Thread: Who hones and who just doesn't want to?

Originally Posted by Hirlau

We'll call it the "Roseville Slugger".

would need to be corked to meet specs tho

I seem to have found my niche here on SRP. After lurking here for a month or so reading everything under the sun, I ran out and proceeded to do just about every no no listed for newbies. I bought not 1 but 2 hunks of Pakistanian junk. I have several diamond stones, Arkansas stones and a Welsh purple finishing stone,so I spent large amounts of time grinding the substandard metal on those razor shaped devices. Then being the thrifty<cheap> man that I am I scored a inexpensive Surpee that had a huge ding in the toe. I hand filed that off and made basically a nice rounded tip though slightly shorter blade. Rumbling and fumbling around got me a wicked bevel that I managed to shave fairly well with several times. I then scored a fairly decent Wilbert on the bay that had a few rust issues that a bit of Nevr Dull and some quad aught (0000) steel wool took care of. I honed that bad boy up and added that to the cabinet. I managed to hack not only the hair that grows out my mug with those two but also a bit of flesh but hey I have plenty to spare. Last weekend I picked up a green cromium oxide crayon and after turning one side of my canvas on my cheapo strop into a green monster. I went hog wild with those two blades on that and then after sanding a few nicks out of the leather on my strop, I stropped the snot out of those 2 blades. HHT? Trimming the Tops? yep. not only that managed to pull of the ol Saturday morning cartoon hold up a single strand of hair and split it lengthwise on the blades. Have managed to pull off 3 bbs shaves even with the funky swirls and whorls that live on my neck. Yep I guess honing will be part of my routine for a time to come and now Nortons,Nani's,and a slew of strops along with the tons of beautiful blades I've been seeing here and the various sites mentioned I have a humongeous case of MAD going. I love it. My wife...not so much. She seems to like the shaves and smells though . <grin>

Honing for me is a connection with my Grand Father and Great-Great Grand Father. I remember as a little kid watching my Grand Father shave with a DE and my Great-Grand Father shaving with a straight and honing his own blades. As I became older they patiently helped and explain the proper way to wet shave. They have been gone almost thirty years, I feel even more of an obligation to keep the art alive. This has been a great bonding experience with my sixteen year old son. Passing down an art that was almost forgotten. He never new his Great-Great Grand Father or Great Grand Father but for a little while through me they are there with us. What a great feeling.