Thread: budget hone setup for vintage razors.

hey guys.

my interest in shaving with a straight is largely a cost saving one. being the case i've opted to surf antique shops for old razors rather than purchasing new. the situation ends up being that I have an antique razor in good condition with an edge similar to a sharp kitchen knife. it will take down thin hairs but pulls on my beard. cuts paper.

i have been reading about hones for the last few weeks and it would seem that the best budget setups would include the norton 4k/8k stone. from there the next step would be a finishing stone. chinese 12k being probably the best option where value for money is concerned. spyderco UF being an upgrade there for a considerable amount more money and the shapton 16k on the long list of premium options for finishing.

right out of the gate i'm thinking of a single stone setup with the norton 4/8 then stropping with oil and shaving. theory being my edge wouldn't be at it's full potential but, as i'm new to using a straight, that would be advantageous. once funds allowed i would go for a finishing stone.

questions are: am i going about this correctly? should i opt for a finishing stone first rather than touching up on the 8k side of the norton? if so would the finishing stone be able to sharpen a less keen edge as is what i'm dealing with? i suppose the other option would be a pasted strop rather than a finishing stone. .5 micron paste works out to around 30k grit so that would be slow going.

Hey Ron,

First of all stop cutting paper with your razor as a test of it's sharpness. As a rule it shouldn't be used to cut anything other than hair.

Next, the truth is you don't really need anything higher than 8k to get a comfortable shave. Anything higher is just icing on the cake. Above and beyond the 8k level your cheapest options would include:
-Barber hone
-Chinese 12k
-Pastes

You'll need a lapping stone to flatten your hones as well. You may also consider sending out your razor to be professionally honed - then all you need to worry about is touching up the edge every now and then.

Cheers,

Ryan

I agree with Ryan. If you want to pursue honing a lot of old razors for the fun of it the Norton 220/1k and 4/8 combos will be fine. Add a DMT D8C continuous diamond plate for lapping and that is all that you really need. Wet and dry 325 or so sandpaper on a flat surface can take the place of the diamond plate. If you stick with it the plate will be worth the price.

Originally Posted by Ryan82

Hey Ron,

First of all stop cutting paper with your razor as a test of it's sharpness. As a rule it shouldn't be used to cut anything other than hair.

Next, the truth is you don't really need anything higher than 8k to get a comfortable shave. Anything higher is just icing on the cake. Above and beyond the 8k level your cheapest options would include:
-Barber hone
-Chinese 12k
-Pastes

You'll need a lapping stone to flatten your hones as well. You may also consider sending out your razor to be professionally honed - then all you need to worry about is touching up the edge every now and then.

Cheers,

Ryan

thanks for the advice on the paper test

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

I agree with Ryan. If you want to pursue honing a lot of old razors for the fun of it the Norton 220/1k and 4/8 combos will be fine. Add a DMT D8C continuous diamond plate for lapping and that is all that you really need. Wet and dry 325 or so sandpaper on a flat surface can take the place of the diamond plate. If you stick with it the plate will be worth the price.

well it wouldn't just be for fun. i'd like to get into restoring some of my antique store finds. razors seem to be fairly simple devices so restoring them shouldn't be all that complicated. i've come to this conclusion after perusing the wiki. i guess you could consider my interest as a developing hobby restorer.

how do i know which stone to take the edge down to? my impression was that under 4k would be to bring a completely dead or damaged edge into a bevel and then sharpening takes place. at the moment i stay away from damaged edges and opt for things with damaged scales or minor cleaning duties required. if i could bring back some damaged edges that would greatly increase the amount of razors i could purchase.

Originally Posted by RonPopeil

how do i know which stone to take the edge down to? my impression was that under 4k would be to bring a completely dead or damaged edge into a bevel and then sharpening takes place. at the moment i stay away from damaged edges and opt for things with damaged scales or minor cleaning duties required. if i could bring back some damaged edges that would greatly increase the amount of razors i could purchase.

It depends on the condition of the edge. IME vintage ebay and/or antique shop razors frequently have micro chipping or worse. Sometimes it is visible to the naked eye and sometimes it is not. Often an eye loupe or microscope is the best way to assess the condition of the edge and decide what to proceed with. A bevel can be set with a 4k but it is a lot faster with a 1k. If you are buying these vintage pieces you will learn through experience how to judge which hone to begin with and when to move on to the next grit. I said fun because I find it to be an enjoyable pursuit. Honing that is. I do it when I want to and I don't do it unless I want to so it is still fun for me. If I was under the gun honing to a deadline for a customer I might not find it so. Dunno.

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

It depends on the condition of the edge. IME vintage ebay and/or antique shop razors frequently have micro chipping or worse. Sometimes it is visible to the naked eye and sometimes it is not. Often an eye loupe or microscope is the best way to assess the condition of the edge and decide what to proceed with. A bevel can be set with a 4k but it is a lot faster with a 1k. If you are buying these vintage pieces you will learn through experience how to judge which hone to begin with and when to move on to the next grit. I said fun because I find it to be an enjoyable pursuit. Honing that is. I do it when I want to and I don't do it unless I want to so it is still fun for me. If I was under the gun honing to a deadline for a customer I might not find it so. Dunno.

i see. i suppose i'll grab a couple norton combo stones and an off name "antique" razor and get to it rather than take my W&B straight to the stones.

http://www.sharpeningsupplies.com/Wa...it-P94C18.aspx

good idea?

Originally Posted by RonPopeil

would the DMT be useful down the road if i upgraded stones to something like the shapton stones or naniwa SS?

Absolutely. It is great for lapping any waterstones. (except for the 220) Best accomplished in the sink with a trickle of water running down on the work. Here is a tutorial Josh Earl did on lapping awhile back. Also a good kitchen knife sharpener.

+1 with Jimmy. Though you could get away with using the Norton flattening stone (if using Norton products exclusively), the DMT 8C is one of the most versatile hones you can buy, and a great investment. My only regret is that I didn't buy one sooner.

I see there is also a DMT 6" 325. Wouldn't that work nearly as good as the 8"?

The six is as good as the eight(its the same grit) but will take more work, also I myself believe the eight is a tad better for flattening because it is closer to the size of the water stone and will not follow the "dish" that you are trying to flatten.