First time lapping a stone and refreshing a blade
I've owned my 6/8" full-hollow Dovo for ~2 months now, and the deterioration in the quality of the shave was very noticeable over the last week or so. Lots of pulling and tugging, and a pretty uncomfortable experience, so I knew I had to refresh the blade. After lapping two stones (Naniwa 8k and 12k), and refreshing the blade on these, I test-shaved, and am very very pleased with the results. A nice smooth shave, just like the razor was brand new :)
I thought I'd share my process with you; not because I think any of you can learn anything from a first-timer, but because you might have a comment on what I did.
Lapping
I don't own a flattening stone, so (thanks to advice from another thread) I used a 12"x12" floor tile as a flat surface, and put a sheet of water-proof sandpaper on top.
- Put 240 grit sandpaper on the tile and thoroughly soak with water.
- Use a black pencil to draw a grid pattern on the top of the 8k Naniwa, and then soak this with water.
- Hold the sandpaper down on the tile with one hand, and use the other hand to rub the stone across it. Vary the rubbing pattern frequently.
- When the pencil grid lines are gone, repeat the process with the 400 grit paper.
I don't know if the 240 grit was a good idea, but I thought that it was smart to do this with a new stone. In the future, I'd only use the 400 grit.
Refreshing
Here's the process I used. I worried that it was a little excessive, but the test-shave reassures me that I didn't do any damage.
- Two laps on the 8k.
- Wipe the blade clean, and strop 20 times on leather.
- Seven laps on the 12k.
- Wipe the blade clean, and strop 20 times on leather.
- Seven laps on linen with CrOx paste.
- Wipe clean, and strop 20 times on leather.
- Shave.
As I said, that seemed a little excessive -- I think I was just keen to use all my new stuff :)
I intend to refresh more frequently in the future, so I imagine doing just a CrOx strop once a week (or less), and only going to the stones every couple of months.
The test shave was great. Three passes, no nicks or cuts or pulling or tugging. Felt like a new razor. :)
Questions
What do I do with my Naniwas now? Do I have to make sure they're bone dry before I put them away? Do I have to be careful to set them down flat so that they don't warp? Should I lap them every time I refresh the blade?