Thread: Complete rehone of an old razor

Although you probably can figure out how to get it back and shaving I am not sure why you would. Most times people first learn to shave well with a straight and then move onto honing. For the rice of some higher grit hones you can get that one sharpened a lot. Often the progression of hones used are 1K, 4K, 8K and then a finisher of sorts. You can get quit a once shaving edge from an 8K. There are a lot of threads about honing, from learning to specific problems. The foundation of every great edge is the bevel set, which is when the two sides come together to for a perfect and even apex. I think if I look back I should have sent more blades out and gotten far better at shaving before I started honing. Which ever way you choose to travel your path, you will find helpful and knowledgeable people here. So have a look here http://straightrazorpalace.com/class...wcat.php?cat=4 and find out how much you are looking at for honing and then make your choices as to where to start.

I would also tape the spine to save it from hone wear which can be a big problem when you first start honing (I always tape the spine on every razor)

You can probably set the bevel on the 2k stone, stay away from the other two, way too aggressive for razors unless making repairs.

As said you will need a 4 and 8K ish stone, and some razor quality Chrome Oxide. A Norton 4/8k or Naniwia 3/8k combo stone would both be good choices. Either of the two are under $100 and will last a life time.

Buy quality stone for razor honing, for knives you can get away with inexpensive stone, but not for razors, you want a fine smooth edge.

With the 2 k stone, the 5 micron diamond and 3 micron diamond you will be able to get a good shave ready edge. Will take some trial and error on your part but completely do able. Really is my preferred method of sharpening a razor except I use a 1k hone and go out to a 1 micron finish. However I have stopped and shaved at the 5 micron and 3 micron before. 5 micron was a acceptable shave but a little irritating for me and the 3 micron gave a fine shave.

First you need to set the bevel on the 2k stone correctly with out doing that the razor will never get sharp enough to shave with. Read up on that alot and have a game plan going in.

Next you will need to make two paddle strops or a two sided paddle strop for your paste. There are a ton of materials you can use for this. I used scrap wood and an old leather belt with a untreated leather back.

Once you made your strop make each side with the paste you are going to put on it and apply paste.

Now the 5 micron is roughly 4 k in grit and the 3 micron is roughly 8 k in grit. So after your bevel is set you start on the 5 micron and do a lot of strop strokes and I mean a lot.

Once you have the blade as sharp as you think your going to get it with 5 micron you move to the 3 micron and repeat.

Then shave.

Here is a thread with more details I did awhile back http://straightrazorpalace.com/strop...ugh-guide.html