Thread: Question on Honing

I am a three-month straight razor Newbie.

I just got a Henckels 401 in almost new condition. While it was sharp, it was certainly not shave ready. I honed it on a Swaty Stone and stropped it on a paddle with 30 laps on suede and 60 laps on smooth leather. It then cut hairs easily.

I shaved with it this morning and while it shaved very well, it was not a very smooth feeling. I recently experienced the best shave of my life with a Wolstenholm "Pipe" razor. It was so smooth, I couldn't feel it working, and the shave was incredible.

What should I do to get the Henckels to give a smoother feeling shave?

Return to the Swaty?
Several hundred laps on the strop?

Your suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

Given that your are relatively new, it could be a razor/technique thing. The 401 is a full hollow, and German steel. Your Pipe, is it a half/quarter hollow? I find Sheffield steel to feel smoother on my face (most of the time) because it is a bit softer.

That said, it could be that the 401 isn't quite there yet. More on the Swaty and/or the strops could help.

There are A LOT of variables, so an easy diagnosis and solution over the internet is impossible.

The "Pipe" is a quarter hollow. It was restored and honed by Goodtann and came really shave ready.

I will keep doing more honing and stropping on the Henckel to see if it gets smoother. I have used several full hollows that did feel pretty smooth. I agree that it certainly could be a technique problem. I'll keep using the Henckels everyday for awhile to see if I feel any changes on a day-to-day basis.

Thanks for your help.

I'd put my money on the razor needing bevel work. All old razors that I bought new were good to go with the factory edge, almost all the ones that 'looked like may be new' had damage to the edge and needed to be rehoned with cleaning up the edge and reestablishing the bevel, not just touched up.

The difference in grind could definitely be a factor. A quarter hollow razor is, IMO, much more forgiving of shave technique. I also find Sheffield steel to be very forgiving.

And as mentioned, the honing is a big ? as well.

Originally Posted by DLB

The "Pipe" is a quarter hollow. It was restored and honed by Goodtann and came really shave ready. . . .

The obvious thing to do is PM Goodtan and ask:

. . . How did you get the Wosty so sharp and smooth ?

and then do the same to the Henckels.

Or at least _try_ to do the same thing -- your hands aren't Goodtan's hands.

There's no agreement on this board about "final finishing" techniques. You won't hurt the razor by doing more stropping -- maybe 100 - 200 laps. That's the safest thing to try. [Oops -- I just made a general statement that _somebody_ will disagree with!]

Next-safest would be using a pasted strop -- 0.1 micron FeOxide, or 0.5 micron CrOxide.

Any coarser than that, and you're honing. Perhaps a barber's hone would be next, if you have one.

Charles

Even if both blades were honed in the same progression of stones, side by side, the shave would feel different as Dylan mentioned above. Unless a razor comes from a known straight razor user and it has been stated that it is shave ready...more than likely the bevel needs reset as Gugi stated. Once it's truely shave ready, your swaty should keep the edge going like the energizer bunny.

Check your PM's...

I believe the 401 is a smaller blade if it is like mine. I thought it was a mediocre razor a couple of years ago until I sarted to get the hang of honing. You can try some more on your swaty with lots of stropping and if that fails, send it to professional honemeister to see what it's potential is, then just maintain.