Thread: Chips In Heel, What Would You Do?

So I'm honing up this 6/8 Clauss. It's a blade restoration and had very small chips along the length of the blade. I've got them all out except for the heel. As you may or may not be able to see the blade has a slight smile and decreases in width by about 2mm going from toe to heel.
So what would be correct, just working the heel a bit and further decreasing the width at the heel, or continue working the whole blade to keep the width as even as possible? The chips are very small and barely perceptible with the naked eye.

Originally Posted by 57vert

So what would be correct, just working the heel a bit and further decreasing the width at the heel, or continue working the whole blade to keep the width as even as possible? The chips are very small and barely perceptible with the naked eye.

Check out this PDF on honing from the SRP help files. Shows how to get a smiling blade, and the barber manual said that is preferable. I can't see them well, are those chips back around where the heel won't come in contact with your face ? One way or the other, a smile is the way to go IMO, so check out the illustrations and text in the PDF and you'll see what the best way is.

http://straightrazorpalace.com/srpwi...t_-_Honing.pdf

It does appear, the stabilizer has wear marks and is hitting the stone, possibly keeping the heel off the stone.

It also appears the stabilizer has been ground and not evenly, one side more than the other.

First ink the stabilizer and the bevel and tape the spine. Do a light lap and see if you are making contact on the stabilizer and the bevel all the way to the edge.

As you hone the blade you should make contact with the whole bevel all the way to the edge.

Inked up the edge and stabilizer. Doesn't seem to be hitting the stabilizer, but toe and heel don't seem to be contacting. Rolling X stroke seems in order or sweeping X stroke?

Originally Posted by 57vert

Inked up the edge and stabilizer. Doesn't seem to be hitting the stabilizer, but toe and heel don't seem to be contacting. Rolling X stroke seems in order or sweeping X stroke?

Observe what is working to take the marker off uniformly and, if it is a stroke you're comfortable with, stick with that. See how it goes.

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

I can't see them well, are those chips back around where the heel won't come in contact with your face ?

This is what I was wondering. I don't use the last 3/8" or so. The vintage razor I recently acquired has similar wear to the OP's with some imperfections in that area, but since I don't use that section I just let it be. Eventually I'll get them out of course, but for the time being they aren't hampering my shaves so I'm content to leave that area alone until it gets straightened out through the natural course of honing the blade.

The chips were back where the edge really isn't used, so it really wasn't that big of a deal. But, I'm a newbie to the honing game and want things perfect. I guess I was looking for what the "generally accepted practice" of a properly honed blade was. I used a hybrid swooping/rolling x stroke and that took care of them. Things were going great, was up to my Norton 8K, went to check the edge with my loupe, it slipped from my hand, hit the blade and put some dings in the edge, $%$%#&*! So, back to the drawing board.

Just more honing practice. Your next edge will probably be better than the one you messed up.

Yes, the whole edge should shave. You want to shave with the whole edge, one inch at a time.
You may want to look at this thread.

In honing there are really just 2 things that will resolve 90 percent of honing issues,

1. Knowing how to identify when a bevel is set. And
2. Knowing how to perform a proper X stroke.