Thread: My first time with the hones

Originally Posted by Mrchick

Thank you. You are correct that it wasn't as difficult as I expected. I guess it's easy to over think it. I still have a ways to go but am not intimidated anymore.

Just wait.... the honing gods will find a way to amuse themselves yet.

I'm working on a razor that has been sitting here for 5 years untouched..... Now I remember why!

Regards

Christian

Congratulations on your success! I really enjoyed reading about your honing journey and the pics were great. Now you get to enjoy the fruits of your handiwork!

Originally Posted by kaptain_zero

Just wait.... the honing gods will find a way to amuse themselves yet.

I'm working on a razor that has been sitting here for 5 years untouched..... Now I remember why!

Regards

Christian

Yep! I think it may have been Glen that put it this way: "Honing is easy - until it isn't." By all means celebrate the victory but don't get discouraged when you hit a speed bump.

Originally Posted by kaptain_zero

Just wait.... the honing gods will find a way to amuse themselves yet.

I'm working on a razor that has been sitting here for 5 years untouched..... Now I remember why!

Regards

Christian

Thanks. I have a few in the queue that might sit here for a while. For example, I'm not ready for smiling blades yet. I'm going to keep practicing with the easy looking and inexpensive ones for a while. This one cost me less than $15.00 and it will be up next. The blade looks to be in good shape and hard to screw up[emoji1]

Originally Posted by Lazarus

Yep! I think it may have been Glen that put it this way: "Honing is easy - until it isn't." By all means celebrate the victory but don't get discouraged when you hit a speed bump.

Thank you. I know the speed bumps are inevitable. What is nice is that I have a bunch of you to that will be able to give me advice when I hit them. I do like this community.

I started honing from the beginning myself an I thought everything was great too until I ran into that problem blade I have 3 or 4 I can't recall that I take out from time to time an take to the hones to no avail an I put them back up when I get angry at them again.

But it sounds like you're on the right path with choosing the easier one to start an not trying to take on all of them at once.

Not to steal your thread here but Lazarus is the Anerican bulldog in your photo yours, because that is one good looking? dog I myself have 2 one male one female.

Thanks for your post. I'm sort of in the same place. I've got one razor that I honed from bevel set through finishing that I am (mostly) happy with. I've got a couple more to work on next. I'm doing the same thing- buying cheap razors for practice. Good luck on this journey!

Originally Posted by KsStraightShaver

... Not to steal your thread here but Lazarus is the Anerican bulldog in your photo yours, because that is one good looking? dog I myself have 2 one male one female.

Thank you - very kind of you to say so. He was indeed mine. We owned his mother and father. His mother died after delivering him and his 9 siblings. We hand raised him and his litter mates. He was the runt of the litter and almost died a few times so I kept him. Hence his name "Lazarus" honored in my avatar. He grew into a fine specimen of an American Bulldog. At 90 lbs he could jump a 6 foot fence, run down a coyote and be gentle with small children. Wow talk about hijacking a thread. We lost him not too long ago and this tribute just poured out of me.

Originally Posted by Mrchick

The blade looks to be in good shape and hard to screw up

Never assume anything is hard to screw up! A razor that looks easy to hone can humble you and prove a challenge. Look at each as a unique blade not as an easy or hard to hone blade.

Originally Posted by KsStraightShaver

I started honing from the beginning myself an I thought everything was great too until I ran into that problem blade I have 3 or 4 I can't recall that I take out from time to time an take to the hones to no avail an I put them back up when I get angry at them again.

Thanks for that reminder and yes, I did not mean to make light of "MrChick's" accomplishment. There are few things more satisfactory, than successfully shaving with a straight you have honed yourself.

And as KsStraightShaver points out, it is important to realize when to put something away and go do something else... the solution may be easy and obvious, but not while you're staring at it in a foul mood. Then again, it might be one of those &*$(#&(^@#$# razors that drives you 87 times around the bend before you beat it into submission, but even then, it's best to put it aside when you grow tired of it.

I had one of those awkward razors when I came back to them after a 5ish year layoff.... it was a 4/8" I had many good shaves from in the past, and I know I honed it several times, but for some reason, I just wasn't feeling it on the hone and I could see I was going off the rails. I put it aside and eventually sent it to a local gent who hones razors for $$$, When I got it back, he seemed to think it was *almost* there when he got it, and didn't seem to see any reason for trouble. He was probably right.... it was me, not the razor! The important thing is to not keep grinding away if it's not working like you think it should.... Take a break, and look at it with fresh eyes another day... or year..... or decade...<sigh>.

So, congratulations! We are very happy for you, but we will also be here when you start crying in your beer over some (*&$)&(#)@ razor that won't behave! We've all been there..

Regards

Christian