Honed This W&B Tonight

Took it 1k through 12k. It had a decent bevel, but the edge was barely "pocket knife" sharp. This much shape in an edge (the smile specifically) is new to me. It did not lay 100% flat on the stones. Both the heel and toe were raised. Even at ~60 degrees heel forward the toe still rose off of the stone on both sides. I decided to do a combo of light pressure heel forward x-strokes and rolling x strokes. It took about 20 passes for things to really start to shape up and the bevel came together nicely. I used 1 layer of tape on the spine and it appears the previous honer probably did the same based on how easy it was to get on the 1k.

4k/8k/12k/Chromium/Iron Oxide/linen/leather followed. Everything came together very nicely and the edge is now shave ready for sure, from heel to toe! It took a considerable amount of concentration to get it right, but I am pretty proud of my work on this one.
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Looks good GSSIXGUN has a great you tube video on honing smiling blades

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Originally Posted by Razorrookie01

Looks good GSSIXGUN has a great you tube video on honing smiling blades

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Yes...yes he does! I do believe I drew a considerable bit of my inspiration from that very video....

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Originally Posted by Denvernoob

I used 1 layer of tape on the spine and it appears the previous honer probably did the same based on how easy it was to get on the 1k.

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I can absolutely guarantee the previous honer did exactly that, and if you learned from my Smiling wedge vid it should have come together pretty quick since I was the previous honer :)




http://straightrazorpalace.com/custo...rated-w-b.html

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Originally Posted by gssixgun

I can absolutely guarantee the previous honer did exactly that, and if you learned from my Smiling wedge vid it should have come together pretty quick since I was the previous honer :)




http://straightrazorpalace.com/custo...rated-w-b.html

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Hahahaha! Small world!
The previous bevel was very nicely set, and as I mentioned I needed very little time on the 1k to get it ready to progress on polishers. I spent the most time on the 8k getting a nice polish on that bevel after the 1k and 4k stones. 12k was very fast as well. I can say that the bevel was even from heel to toe, which was why I chose this new acquisition to learn on. It was a bit of a risk for me, but I figured the previously laid tracks would be good to follow, and I was not disappointed.

Lastly, I am glad I picked this one up. I really like the scales and overall feel of the blade. Once honed it gave me a fantastic shave. I will thoroughly enjoy this razor for the years to come!

I learnt from the same source, this video is great work.

IMHO the rolling-X is key to correctly honing a smile, but it takes time and patience to learn the trick.
It was indeed a risk to start on such a beauty (love the scales), yet, while I tried to get the feeling of it on a cheap razor and hardly could, it's only when I got to one of my most cherished at the time that it went perfectly, producing a wonderful razor.

I sometimes think that it is because I was particularly careful because I loved the razor that I could get it.

Anyway, good job !

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Originally Posted by Aggelos

I learnt from the same source, this video is great work.

IMHO the rolling-X is key to correctly honing a smile, but it takes time and patience to learn the trick.
It was indeed a risk to start on such a beauty (love the scales), yet, while I tried to get the feeling of it on a cheap razor and hardly could, it's only when I got to one of my most cherished at the time that it went perfectly, producing a wonderful razor.

I sometimes think that it is because I was particularly careful because I loved the razor that I could get it.

Anyway, good job !

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You couldn't have said it any better. I really didn't want to risk hurting this beauty, but the fact that I was so enamored with the razor that my motivation to shave was a driving force. Once I set the blade on the stone I had a good feeling about the geometry so just went for it methodically and delicately.

My biggest frustration in learning thus far has been using sub-par razors to try and learn. Honemeisters say it all the time, and the lesson is a good one to note...starting to learn on good razors (geometrically speaking) will help learning exponentially. The other lesson I am digging into now is the "feel" of a stone when its cutting...and most importantly...when to stop and move on to the next one. Everyone says it over and over, and I will repeat it....more often than not...less is more (especially in the pressure department).