Thread: First time honing

I agree with Lynn. Saying that I remember the same thing when I honed my first razor. I think I used to much pressure shaving with it afterward, hence the irritated skin. Because the razor wasn't sharp/smooth enough.

When setting the bevel at 1k you can fell the edge grab your thumb when you touch the edge. Be careful NO pressure, or you cut yourself.

That's the best way and the most difficult step.

Always lap the hone flat before honing. And last advice. You can watch any kind of video and copy that, but razors are made of different steel. Some takes more stokes, some takes less. I'm pretty sure Lynn says the same on the video. To many stokes might destroy the edge.

In time you will fell it, when the edge is perfect. It takes just as much practice to learn to hone, as to shave, so a year from now, you will be a pro. :-) it's a great feeling when it succeeds first time.

Do what Lynn propose and if it don't help, try it again from the beginning. You could buy a cheap razor and practice with that, but find one in similar shape as your main one.

I really appreciate Lynn remembering to notice the success part. Starting out can be a challenge. Bravo for taking it on.

Nani stones. You'll notice in most vids & discussions that they seem conflicted about staying flat & straight. If I recall, Lynn's vid used 3 - figure 8s w/ a diamond plate before honing. Glen used about 5.

You'll get shaveable edges very soon. It'll take a while to smooth out your stroke, chasing edges that you really like. Not quite 5 yrs later, I'm still not that happy w/ my stroke, but by taking way too much time, I get edges I like alot.

You'll be on top of the world when you start getting edges you like - and for good reason. I *DO* support you to spend some time w/ someone experienced on the stones. Another big boost would be a regional meet-up. It really accelerates the learning curve. The side benefits have to do w/ meeting some wonderful people.

Enjoy the learning, Avant.

Definitely lap the stones. Even new they will not be perfectly flat and seem to have a skin on top. If you soak them after lapping you will also find thst they swell a little and you will need to lap again. Sounds like you did well for a first time so hopefully soon you will get it. Good luck

I appreciate all the good advice. I did not think to lap the stones before honing since they were new but did so afterwards. Good point that even new it is best to lap them first. I have not revisited the razor honing yet since I have been busy the past week or so but plan to do so this week. Right now I have just been using a new one that was shave ready when it came to me.

I agree with Lynn. I use a Chinese 12k and noticed after honing a razor if it didn't seem "smooth" I would go back to the 12k and it helped a lot. I ended up doing more passes than what Lynn suggested but it was a different hone. Give it a try and if it helps a little you may need to keep trying until it works for you.