Thread: Advice on Honing

Sorry for stupid question but to start at the beginning, what does "setting the bevel" actually mean and how is it achieved. I haven't started honing yet but I'm keen to start soon

Someone may have a better explanation, but I'll take a shot at it. "Setting the bevel" means the initial removal of steel to establish the proper cutting angle of the edge of the blade. This is where the majority of the metal will be removed in the honing process, and as such, usually takes the longest amount of time. All of the other stones that are used to hone after the bevel set are ued to refine and polish the edge of the blade.

For some good write-ups and FAQs look in the library section: Straight Razor Place Wiki - Straight Razor Place Library

Ok Lynn here are the pictures! And does using a wire brush and soap really work while cleaning the DMT 325? By the way everybody I always lap under running water.

Helloooooooo. Anyone out there?

Caddy,

I've never had any particles not wash away under running water. I've never had a need to clean a DMT other than giving it a rinse. As for other honing advice, my advice is to seek the opinion of one or two EXPERTS and take their advice alone.

Lap your stones with the diamond plate under running or in a sink full of water. Lapping without water can strip the diamonds from a new plate.

Mark the stone face with pencil X’s and remove the X’s with figure 8’s. Clean you diamond plate with Simple Green or 409 type cleaners and a nylon brush, I use a finger nail brush I keep on the sink.

When learning to hone, tape the spine to preserve it. Once you have mastered honing you can decide if you want to continue taping.

Setting the Bevel is honing a flat, even bevel on both sides that meet in a straight sharp edge. Most commonly it is done at 1K.

Your razor is sharp at 1K, everything after that is polishing the bevels to polish the edge, making the edge straighter and the saw tooth edge finer and more comfortable for shaving. You will also gain some more sharpness, but actually very little, 80-90 percent of the sharpening is done at bevel setting.

Chances are the bevel was not completely set, (meeting in a sharp edge) completely. Look straight down on the edge with magnification and a strong light. Any shiny spots are where the bevels are not meeting.
Do not progress, until the bevels meet completely. There is no formula for how many laps are needed to accomplish each task, the razor will dictate what is needed.

Once the bevel is set, just remove the stria on the bevel from the preceding stone. Do not use pressure to speed the process, remember you are polishing not removing metal at this stage. The 1, 4, 8, 12K progression is a good solid progression that should work smoothly and give you great results.

Your razor looks to be in excellent condition and the spine and bevel appear to be straight and even with little wear. A hollow grind like you have should hone easily and is a great razor for your first honing job. Nice razor.

When you say the “bevel was off, not the same sharpness”, how did you determine that?

Originally Posted by Euclid440

Your razor looks to be in excellent condition and the spine and bevel appear to be straight and even with little wear. A hollow grind like you have should hone easily and is a great razor for your first honing job. Nice razor.

When you say the “bevel was off, not the same sharpness”, how did you determine that?

Thanks, it is a nice razor. What I meant by the bevel being off was that the bevel was sharp at the toe and got duller down at the toe.

Are you using a heel leading, rolling-X stroke keeping the shoulder clear?

Originally Posted by pfries

Are you using a heel leading, rolling-X stroke keeping the shoulder clear?

I don't know lol. Maybe. My honing technique needs serious practice.

You can watch all the honing videos in the world and teaching yourself still takes quite a while. It did for me at least. My edges took a 100-fold leap forward when I started spending time with some local pros. After 2-3 afternoons on the hones my honing improved more in those 2-3 afternoons than in the year and a half I tried teaching myself. If you can, find a honing pro near you and see if you can coordinate an afternoon/evening spending some time honing. Using different hones is always fun too. It lets you see what you really like and which final edges your face prefers as well.

When I first got my hones I said, "it can't be that hard.. its just sharpening on a fine grit stone.. I don't know why these weirdo's act like its an art.."

My edges could shave, there was some tugging but I thought I was doing pretty dang good at the time. Then I felt what a pro honed edge felt like and instantly knew my honing was subpar. I think one afternoon with a honing master will get you started on the right foot.

Now I say, "It is definitely an art. Any hillbilly can sharpen but it takes skill to hone." (Kevin-Hidestoart originally said something to this effect on his trip to Kansas City. Must give him the credit for stating it so simply yet so effectively)