Thread: can anyone advise me

I have recently gotten an old Robeson sure edge blue Jay razor. I really want to be able to shave with it but am having trouble being able to get a shaving sharpness on it. It already has a good edge but for some reason I am unable to refresh it to the point of being able to shave. Anyone have a suggestion?

Send it off to a professional honer. If you go to the SRP classifieds under Member Services you will find many pros advertising their services.

They are costly aren't they?

sound advice for certain

Was kind of hoping not to have to get someone else to hone it for me. Call me old fashioned or stubborn but I am hoping to do it myself

that is most often a long learning curve. If you are trying to learn to shave and to hone at the same time there will be a lot of uncomfortable shaves and you will not be able to be certain which is lacking, your honing technique or your shaving technique. If you learn to shave with pro edges and then learn to hone it will all make sense way faster. If you insist on doing your own honing your first lesson, as with everyone else, is if the bevel is properly formed for the length of the edge. best way to decide on that is with a loupe. Also what do you have for hones?

I'm not sure of the grits but I have three stones ranging from a basic to an Arkansas natural stone finish hone. And I've refreshed the razor I shave with successfully which is why I feel lost with this blue jay

Originally Posted by avens

They are costly aren't they?

No.. Some guys and even some most reputable vendors will do it for free
However, I can empathize with your desire to try it yourself

Originally Posted by avens

I'm not sure of the grits but I have three stones ranging from a basic to an Arkansas natural stone finish hone. And I've refreshed the razor I shave with successfully which is why I feel lost with this blue jay

knowing what you have is pretty important to others to know how to tell you how to progress through your hones. If you are wanting to be serious about the learning you will either have to get known hones or have someone that really knows hones to tell you what you have. It may be wise at this point to stick with the refresh technique, send your blade out or the very best would be to try to find someone near by with the ability to show you one on one where to go next. The razor that you are refreshing was it pro honed to start with?

It was. Bought new shave ready. And I feel daft because though I am getting a great shave with it I am still new to this and not sure about anything like the measurements or anything really aside from refreshing the new blade and shaving with it