Thread: The bevel and what I now know (or think I do) about it.

I would consider myself a honing noob, I am very new. There are some things I have learned while picking up the art. I never really could wrap my head around 90% of honing is in the bevel set. How could 90% of something be done on a low grit stone? How could it be done on something nobody really is excited to talk about. When is the last time you saw someone so stoked and proud about their bevel setter? ... Other then the chosera I don't really see it. So for the longest time I brushed it off. Thinking it was not a very important step.

Recently it all hit me at once after a less then comfortable shave. If I do not have a great bevel to start with it doesn't matter what sharpener and polisher I use. The shave would still be less then acceptable, never superb. The way I put it in my mind was it is like building a house. If you do not have a solid foundation to build on, you could mask the non-solid foundation all you want but it is still going to be there and it is still not going to be solid no matter what you do or build on top of it. The bevel being the foundation in the home building metaphor needs to be solid. That is now understood.

The second thing I picked up about a bevel is it can take a long time to set. I used to think that a couple strokes on the 1k and that was it. The light shined all in the same direction. I'm done.. Gone are those days. I think as a new guy it takes some figuring out before you get started on the right path. It didn't matter how many videos I watched I never thought the bevel set was important enough to really spend time on. However after spending close to an hour today on a tricky razor (GD I modded) I learned that THE BEVEL SET IT KEY!

I think it is important for a new honer to practice bevel setting as well as the touch ups. By getting a get a razor they don't particularly like or cherish and learn how to set bevel's. Dull, set bevel, repeat until a bevel can be set easily. I'm not going to say get a blade you don't like or care about so you can wreck it because that is not the goal. No matter what blade it is it shouldn't be the goal to destroy or wreck it regardless of cost. $5 to $500. Instead of the so I can wreck it mindset its more or less so by the time you learned how to set bevel's and eventually hone you haven't put a lot of hone wear on a blade you do like and cherish.

Sorry for the rant I just think I needed to further point out the importance of the bevel set and also I wanted to share what I've learned with all of you.

Yes, if you don't set the bevel all you are doing after that is polishing a turd. Found that hard to believe to until the light came on for me too.

Bob

An AHAH moment. Good for you. I have 3 bevel setters and a few smaller stones in the carborundum and Frictionite flavor for repair or shaping the bevel depending on how bad the edge is. We all learn as we go but the rule to all learning is " Get the basics down first." I shaved off an 8k for a year before I went for the super polishers. Glad I did. The basics sunk in before I started to work on points for style. You have to shave a long time before you feel those differences anyway. Thanks for being honest enough to share :<0)

Thanks for sharing - like I said, for me, honing a razor, setting that bevel, all the time involved, while it is extremely satisfying to have done it (with a hollow only), it certainly cured me of any HAD I was brewing...

One thing that is often neglected when talking about setting a bevel is the potential problems getting there. Setting a bevel should not be as daunting a task as it sometimes is. The real issue that needs to be addressed is sometimes WHY a razor isn't taking an edge and how to resolve that. Simply grinding away may not be the answer when the logic may suggest that more is needed. Setting a bevel is an understanding of what needs to happen and evaluating if you've done enough to reasonably expect to have done it. The problem is when the results haven't matched the effort and steel that has been invested.

As I am just getting into this phase of honing (I have but 4 razors under my belt, only 1 needed a true bevel set) I am all ears to whatever advice you have as far as checking after doing a bit of grinding. It occurred to me today that just because the two sides meet does NOT mean the bevel is fully developed. Touching up an already good belvel I have a pretty good feel for...bevel setting is still intimidating to me.

Thanks for the encouragement. It is always good to hear that other noobs are making progress.

The best advice I can give you is to befriend someone here that is known to be a honing expert. Seek the advice of one, maybe two, experts and keep the rest of this honing noise to a minimum. The collective input of the rest of us is just as distracting as it might be helpful. Trust someone you know to have their act together. It'll keep you focused.

I get excited about the bevel! That is, when I'm done with it and can finally move to my fancy stones! I've always been a little saddened about the fact that we spend a majority of hone money on these nice finishing stones and only spend about 1/10th the time on them.

Originally Posted by MuskieMan33

I've always been a little saddened about the fact that we spend a majority of hone money on these nice finishing stones and only spend about 1/10th the time on them.

Yes but we make up for the little amount of time honing on those expensive finishers, with arguing about which one is the best on here

Easiest way to think of it is bevel setting is sharpening and everything else is polishing. You can sharpen with a lot of time on finer hones, but easier and quicker on a bevel setter.