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I've seen this referenced in a few posts, but am completely ignorant to it. I've been honing with one hand for over a year.
What are the differences and advantages/disadvantages of honing with one hand or two hands?
How do you actually hone with two hands?
I think they use two hands for stability, and may feel more natural. I started honing and i used both hands but as i started feeling more assured in my abilities i went to one.
I just started out honing this week, so this will be a beginners point of view here.
I find using two hands easier for me because it allows me to balance the razor on the stone better. If I use only one hand, its only a matter of time before I tilt the razor and the heel is just riding the lip of the hone. I just put one to two fingers gently on the tip and this stops me from lifting up the tip and having the handle hit the table. For me its easier to use less and less pressure with two hands because it gives me more control and I won't end up see-sawing the razor on the edge of the stone.
Check this out, pay attention! You don't actually 'hone' with two hands, but two hands are used in his technique. I hope this helps. :shrug:Quote:
Originally Posted by Warchild281
gssixgun Honing on a Norton 4-8 - YouTube
I hone with two hands on the lower grits, then move to one hand after about the 8K mark or so. I can add a bit more uniform pressure if needed that way, which I find is sometimes necessary on the lower grits.
James.
I hone with two hands and I would use a third one if I had.
The second hand provides stability and it can regulate the pressure from 0 to some if needed.
I effectively honed with 3 hands once on a problem razor from Estonia that remained a problem. The third 'hand' was really a 2nd finger on the spine. I felt so ashamed I never did it again and dumped the razor in my POS pile which is hidden from prying eyes that might question my razor purchasing habits.
Same. I will go to one hand if the blade is honing well.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jimbo
I hone with 2 hands right the way through start to finish.
Bob
At the time I began honing through SRP the buzz was that honing with one hand was the best way to go about it, so I endeavored to learn in that fashion. The thought, at that time, was that using the non dominant hand to assist could create pressure problems, unevenness ....... IMHO whatever you get used to, if it is done correctly, and the end result is satisfactory, is fine.
'At this point in time' 'Lil Shaver, you are using two hands but one of them is not actually honing. The second hand is there ,but at this point in time, it is not there so there are never two hands, except when there are. To prove this to the feeble minded, remove the hand holding the razor, and just try using the hand that is not being used....so simply put, let the hone tell you what to do, lose yourself and you will find a man in a mirror singing, Look Sharp.....:)
One thing that hasn't been mentioned yet is that one of the advantages of one-handed honing is that it leaves the other hand free for other things.
For example, the other day I honed a crusty old wedge one-handed, leaving me free to have a beer with the other. After being very frustrated for the first beer I suddenly found my honing improved enormously. After the second beer it was going fantastically well and continued to be awesome right up to the 4th beer, at which time I felt the edge would shave like a laser strapped to a shark's forehead.
Funny thing was the next day during the test shave the razor was rubbish. Dunno what happened there, but that was definitely one of the best one-handed honing sessions I've ever had.
James.
I only use 2 hands when I strop.
I do my best hone work when I have a glass of Bourbon to sip. Naturally I need the other hand so one handed honing is my normal. I do like two on the 1k and 4k for bevels. After that I fly like a butterfly and I cant do it with two hands on the blade
Dunno if it is true, but I hear coticules work good with beer slurry ....... but it has to be Belgian beer :pQuote:
Originally Posted by Jimbo
I am pretty sure I seen a drink hidden in one of Glens videos so it must be part of the process
Maybe that's the part that I was missing!Quote:
Originally Posted by cubancigar2000
When i started to hone i used two hand, actually one hand(better..in this way i can accomodate the blade)
I started out using two hands with a coticule stationary on the table. I lost a lot of slurry and felt a bit restricted in my motions. I switched to one hand, which did take some getting used to, but I liked how it worked much better. I felt like I had more freedom of motion with certain strokes to focus on very specific parts of blades, noticed the feedback in the hone/holding hand (to get a better sense of the contact between the hone and razor), lost less slurry and last but definitely not least I felt like my stroke technique got more and more refined.
Do note that my coticules have never been very large, the largest I have used comfortably in hand was a 20x5cm, the smallest 1.5x9cm.
EDIT: I hold the hone in hand as well.
This was the case with me as well.Quote:
Originally Posted by TrilliumLT
The second hand added needed stability before I got the feel for one handed honing up to a usable level.
Nowadays it feels better with just one hand, rolling and working separate parts of the edge at the time.
It's not how you drive, it's how you arrive.
I do both.. two and one hands.
I use the second hand on lower grit stones that can benefit from a slight amount of pressure and the second hand helps me distribute it evenly. On higher grits, one hand for sure.
2 hands for me always. I like to alternate slight pressure heel to toe on most blades that are not completely flat and straight. Im basically rocking the blade.
Always one hand ..
It's hard to hone with two hands when one hand is holding the stone, and stone in hand provides superior feedback.
I have no choice, one.