Thread: Bevel setting problem on a fiili #10

No reason why Ive never taped a spine, just the bevels I have set took just a few sets of twenty X strokes and were good to go, so no real hone wear .Most of the razors I have brought were only in need of a few strokes on the 10k or 1-2 sets of 20 strokes on the 5k. Never used a loupe either just went by how the shave is. The MMT shows that the edge is being reached down the length of the razor.
Thanks lynn. Will try a few sets of X strokes without circles.

And like the TV shrink says, “So how’s that working for ya?”

And that other guy … “Honing is easy, till it ain’t”

You found one that ain’t. Do yourself a favor and get some magnification and SEE what is going on at the edge, sounds like you are not honing to the edge. Tape.

You can buy a lighted 60X loupe for 2-3 dollars.

Doing more of the same thing and expecting a different result, is… not working.

Ok, dropped the circles out and did 3 sets of 20 with 10 super light strokes after. This has definitely set the bevel Thanks Lynn!
I think maybe I was getting too concerned with following a given method as l always did circles again after 20 x strokes. The higher number of x strokes seems to have taken the edge to where it needs to be.
Will get a loupe and try tape the next time I find a razor that dosent want to play game.
Thanks to everyone for their input.

Mark

Finished off with my normal progression and just had my Sunday shave. Got to say, really smooth and close and very enjoyable!

A few weeks ago I brought 2 vintage straights. One (a Gotta) I set the bevel and got to shaving wonderfully in a very short amount of time. The other a Sheffield (Radley) I again cant get a bevel set. I got some tape and a 40x loupe and I can see that one side near the heel is not making contact. My strokes are good so I believe that the spine may be slightly twisted or irregular. What would be the best way to over come this? should I keep going on the 1k or go down lower or maybe try honing at 45° or a sweeping x stroke?

Mark

If you are not making contact then changing hones won't fix that. Change the stroke and watch for water displacement on the hone during the stroke to make sure that you are making contact.

You can't treat all razors the same when honing. Your razor is telling you what it wants. You have to change your stroke to accommodate the razor being honed.

Bob

+1 to changing the stroke. You can try 45° angle but you may also want to try a rolling X stroke. You can also try honing on the side of the stone. Just some things that have worked for me in the past with both knives and razors to get the whole edge in contact. Circles at a 45° angle too have helped.

I am no pro so take this for what it may or may not be worth. Watching the water glide away from the blade tells me if I am making even contact. If it does not flow all along the edge, then I start looking at the bevel through my Loupe. I really like using the water flow as a guide to am I getting full contact

Will try honing at 45° and some rolling x strokes. I can see through water displacement on normal strokes that the one side is not making full contact. Would it be ok to apply torque to that part? I only paid £5 for it so it'll be good to practice on.