Thread: What's you pattern for eBay specials? (Crap to SHARP³)

I know this could TECHNICALLY go in the restoration sub forum but since the topic I'm asking about is specifically about honing without regards to scales or any other aspect of razor care/restoration I figured I'd get better results here.

So I've been buying some blades on eBay, as have many of you, and while some are in decent shape others have the shaving ability of a Dorito. So let's assume some of the worst and go from there, my example for this will be the Henckels I bought that is now MY restoration project combined with some other blades I have dealt with because they will give us some things we can go with as far as working out technique for getting things fixed and working properly.

My blade has a TINY nick in the edge about a third of the way from the toe. I spent some time on the 1000 Norton and it has gotten smaller but even after what I feel to be a LOOOOOONG time it is still present when I run the edge on my thumbnail. HOW long is too long when working out issues with the 1K? 100 strokes? 200? 500? should I be applying more pressure, light touch be damned?

Also, as with many other razors the edge doesn't seem to contact along the entire length of the blade. This is somewhat my own fault I think as the heel contacts better than anything else (I assume because it's closest to my hand holding the shank) and sometimes better in the middle on one side and the ends on the other. My instinct would be to go to the 1K and stroke it till the whole edge is even but something tells me that would be wrong. How do you go about working on this sort of problem?

I suppose those are the two biggies for me PERSONALLY...though I have to admit my favorite razor has a seriously messed up toe. The edge hones up nicely from the heel to about the last 1/8 or so of the blade where the edge starts to curve back towards the spine. Obviously it was honed that way by a previous owner, but since that end doesn't contact the hone I've never really gotten it shaving. I've just learned to make do. That's partly why I'm so excited about this restoration, it's my favorite brand, it's a spike (what I like) and the pint is intact which means it could easily become my NEW favorite shaver.

Maybe if I can ask the right questions this can help out some OTHER newbies like myself by getting a lot of the more "technique-centric" questions and answers in a single place. So all you bad-asses belly up to the bar and talk my ear off OK?

Well I'm glad this is in the Honing Forum as I'm shite at resto.

First I clean the blade with metal polish.

Then I tape the spine and do circles on my cheep Chinese kitchen hone which I don't even know the grit of, but imagine its two sides are somewhere between 600 and 1000 grit. I'll typically do about 50 circles on each side because it doesn't really cut too fast, then TNT and eyeball it till it's ready changing the tape whenever it gets worn. That'll depend on the type of tape you have on hand. I use steady and somewhat heavy pressure, as much as I feel I can handle without making uneven pressure.

At this point it's time for a full pyramid op to 15/5 or 20/5 and back down again on the Norton combo. TTT and HHT until I'm happy to move on.

I finish with a very few, very light strokes on my Shapton 12k. I mean 3-6 short strokes with ultra light pressure, Then pastes. about 12-24 on the 0.5µ Cr2O3 and 6-12 on the 0.25µ Diamond paste. Each blade likes it a little differently and I'm still playing with my technique, but that's my process.

Irregularly shaped blades will require creative approaches to creating evenness, but in my experience trying to isolate areas only leads to overhoning. I therefore always try to keep as much of the blade on the hone at one time and if that's diminishing, I try to diminish my pressure too.

X

First off lemme do this

I got that old Henckel hunk of crap I bought popping hairs like a champ with only a little bit of time on the 1K (for that nick), one pass through the aggressive pyramid, and one pass through the conservative pyramid. WOOHOO FOR ME! Heel and toe aren't quite there yet but I'm not used to using those much anyhow.

Second off, it sounds like you are confirming my "1K grind it till it's even" technique. Is that the case or am I reading it wrong?

OMG did I actually name this thread "What's YOU pattern"?!?!?!

The Henckels brand of razors are known for having steel that is harder then most razors. Congratulations on your progress.

The X pattern of honing will usually helps in getting the toe of a razor keen.

When you are removing nicks then use some pressure, a light touch is not required at that stage, 1-2 lnbs of pressure is my norm for the 1K.

The 1K is a very fast cutter. I don't have one, I use the 4K and using circular honing I have been able to remove some respectable nicks in a few minutes. You just have to keep at it until the edge responds. If you need more pressure apply it. At this stage your doing gross work to the edge anyway so I wouldn't worry about finessee here. I would just be checking to make sure you don't have a warp in the blade since you say both sides don't contact the hone. If you have a warp you'll never sharpen the thing unless its minimal and you can apply massive amounts of pressure along the entire blade to force it against the hone. IIf thats the case I know there are a few experts concerning warped blades here. I am not one of them.

I used mine to remove the nick and it actually wasn't too hard to do. I actually felt like I had spent more time than should have been prudent without getting it out. The blade was good and attached to some less than stellar scales, if I had ruined it I wouldn't be OVERLY pissed off, so I just kept at it until it was gone. Then a little bit of Pyramid work and I've got a shaving blade with shitty scales. Going to be ordering the materials to re-scale it next week and hopefully I'll have my first restoration to show for it.

We're getting of track a bit though, and I want to ask a for a little clarification on the warped blade issues. If you have a blade that is contacting on the ends on one side of the blade and in the center on the other side, what options are there for getting it into shape? I don't know that bending it would be a viable solution but I'm not the expert here. Can you bend them back a bit? Do you grind at them until the edge evens out? I mean, it might take a while but with minimal pressure (and a ridiculous amount of time) you could probably get the geometry evened out so that the edge contacts evenly right?

In cases like this, I've had the most success by using Xman's rolling stroke, sometimes combined with an X stroke. You start with the blade angled backward, then roll it forward as you go through the stroke. It helps ensure that every part of the blade hits the stone during each stroke.

Sometimes I'll try to use only a 1/2 inch strip of hone along the edge, but you have to be careful with this. The key seems to be getting every part of the edge on the stone on every stroke. Go slowly.

I haven't had any luck evening out edge geometry, although it probably is theoretically possible.

Good luck,
Josh

Ok...so I've been hearing a lot about this mysterious rolling stroke, but even despite my searching I've still got no freaking CLUE what in the hell it is. Here's what I'm working with...

That Wostenholm I bought arrived and I spent about 30 minutes just now honing the living crap out of it and after all that time and energy I managed to get the half starting at the heel sharp enough to cut hair. Not shave sharp yet mind you but well on its way. The toe half on the other hand? Well it'd make a nice Jello knife right about now but beyond that I make no claims whatsoever.

So what in the hell am I supposed to do with this stupid thing anyhow? It's obvious that the edge isn't contacting the stones on half of the blade but I'm not exactly sure about how to go about making up for that problem. PLEASE somebody enlighten my heathen ass so I can grow a bit more in my straight shaving world.

BTW after all this honing lately I'm willing to bet I'm not the first person around here to end up with a bald patch on their leg (my legs never see the light of day and people are starting to look at my arms funny) so everybody STOP LAUGHING!

I'm laughing with you not at you!!!!

Show me your spot and I'll be laughing...right now I'm wishing I had hairier arms