Thread: Difficult blade.

Just wondering if others have this problem. out the razors i have honed i have found 2 that i never got right. one was a stainless steel blade the other is an old sheffield. The sheffield i have taken to the hone 5 times and still haven't got what i consider a comfortable shave. I'm just before removing the blade from the scales and chunking the blade. It's not what i would call a good looking blade as it is but for me now it's about actually getting it to shave right. after that i may use it to cut patches for my smoke pole. I got the thing off the bay mainly for the scales. they were ivory and the razor was very inexpensive. I removed the blade and cleaned the scales then made scales for the blade out of plastic.
I used the naniwa hones 1K-3K-5K-8K- and 12K then finished on the Suehiro 20K. All good stones and have served me well. I use tape on the spine to create the small edge that i like. I don't have a microscope but do have 10X loop. from what i see through it the bevel is set and edge looks ok. It shaves but pulls some. The feel is not at all like any of the other blades i have. Anyway just thought i would ask and see if others have had this experience and what they may have done to fix the problem.

First off pictures would help. Next what is the grind of the blade wedge, near wedge, hollow? Don't throw out the blade until you get an answer.

5/8 near wedge. It seems like each time i hone it it gets a little better but not quite right. I've had to hone different razors twice before because the bevel was not quite right but never this many times. I will try to take some photos and post but i can't get real close photos of the edge . I have been using Lynns circle method as he shows on you tube.

On a wedge or near wedge it helps to use 2 or 3 layers of electrical tape on the spine. This keeps the sides of the blade off the hone.

Must have been a real good edge if you started restoring at 1k.

The blade had some rust and when i started sanding i noticed that it was too deep to get completely out. i sanded untill there was some small devils spit at the tip and buffed. then i used 2 layers of .0085 scotch brand tape. I have a 400 grit hone but the edge didn't look bad enough to use it. the more i think about it i may not have the bevel set good enough. I can hold a long hair out of the wife's hair brush (i don't have any) hanging down and the blade cuts it but it still may not be right. I will try it again tomorrow and see what happens. It would have been nice if the blade was good but at least i got a good set of scales out of it.

Originally Posted by onimaru55

Must have been a real good edge if you started restoring at 1k.

If not a 1k stone what other stone would you recommend for a more aggressive bevel setter ?

Originally Posted by Euclid440

Yup, bad steel, breadknife or do as Shaun advised, hone it, kill the edge, hone it again, kill it and hone it one more time. Either way you are getting to good steel. Old Sheffield steel is good steel, but rust is rust…

10X may not be enough to see damage to the edge. 60X lighted loupe for $2 is a good investment.

If I'm starting from bevel set, I always kill the edge and do it again just to make sure now. It leaves no doubt as to if the apex has been properly formed. If it's a chippy razor I kill it again on a hard white Arkansas and bring it back with that stone too

I have never been a big fan of breadknifing, but sometimes I will "sharpen" a razor like you would your pocket knife with the spine raised.

Nothing wrong with killing a edge either, sometimes you have to get to fresh material at the edge.

No matter what, if you like the razor, send it to me if it doesn't work out for you. Sometimes another set of hands can bring one around...as long as the temper isn't blown. I have run into that two times since I have been at this sport, first time almost made me pull my hair out until I talked to my honing mentor. Just cover the return shipping.

Just made an order to SRD and in it is a 800 grit super stone. I will put the razor aside until it gets here. As for the offers to hone for me i really appreciate the offer but to tell you the truth i really don't think the blade is worth shipping both ways. For me it's just being hard headed. I will make this thing shave. When the 800 grit gets here i thing i will add an extra layer of tape and then start with the 400 then go to the 800 then the 1K and finish honing as before. If this doesn't do it i will start looking for another peace of rusty steel to play with. Again thanks to those who offered to hone. if the blade was better i would send it to you.