Thread: Taped or not?

Originally Posted by atercz

By coloring your bevel with a permanent marker you can actually see where you're sharpening. So try color razor bevel and than make few strokes on finisher stone (razor without tape). You will see where color is removed.

1. color removed from whole bevel- razor sharpened without tape
2. removed only line closer spine - razor sharpened with tape
Color can be removed by alcohol after test.

Be sure to use a dye type Magic Permanent Marker. The dye will not chip off like the enamel type with a particulate ink/paint/
If you can kinda see through the marker you are good to go. Usually they smell a bit like alcohol or acetone.
~Richard

I know your original question was how can you tell but this is a good watch....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMchDtXzUO4

It is really no sweat to do it either way you like. As mentioned just drop to the 4k for a couple swipes and away you go! Enjoy.... honing is such a fun (and useful) skill to learn!

Does not matter, if you are learning, put 2 layers of tape on the spine. When new to honing, you will most probably use too much pressure and do too many laps, on low grit stones and needlessly grind the spine if tape is not used.

Once you master honing, then decide if you want to continue honing with tape. At the least you will not damage the spines of your razors. Really there is no “good” reason for not using tape, when learning.

Do change tape at the slightest dragging of the razor on the stone or bits of tape swarf in the water or excessive stone loading. Tape is much cheaper that new razors.

Ditto to the prior. At one point, I thought all razors that couldn't hone without tape were defective (notwithstanding the comment above about saving the spine when you're new, that's important). I've got one right now that will not hold an edge without tape, but it does fantastically with a couple of layers of tape (won't hold an edge with one, either). It's a kikuboshi razor, or I'd have thrown it away. So I'd go with the recommendation for two layers - will probably make an edge that's more resilient against minor stropping, and the edge will be a bit less bitey, but still smooth.

If I were honing a new razor (some come from the factory with a second-ish bevel), I'd get a loupe out and drag the razor across a semi finisher and see where the haze shows up. You've only got to do it one time unless you start taping some razors and not others and then you don't keep track of what's what.