Thread: The etches coming up in the edge while honing

Hey guys

Tonight I was honing an old razor which I restored. But the thing is there is etches don't stop appear. I started with DMT to lose a crack on the bevel then continued with 1500 but the etches come up. This is very annoying. I need to say on the on heel the edge is just fine, just it needs to be. But any where else the edge had etches.

I also deleted all bevel and got busy knife then continued with 800 grit, it took like 2 hours, I had no etches but the bevel was not sharp at all.

Do you have any opinions to share? It's very annoying and I don't want to get it off. I like this razor.

What you are trying to say is difficult to understand. If you could take close photos for us to see, we could do more to help.

Originally Posted by Magpie

What you are trying to say is difficult to understand. If you could take close photos for us to see, we could do more to help.

I mean these little cracks as teeth in the edge.

I'm not certain but it sounds to me like too much pressure and too coarse of hones and you are getting a sawtooth edge. I suggest trying this, lightly kill the edge on the edge of you hone or on your finger nail, then return to setting the bevel on your 1500 grit hone. If you get really deep stria from the DMT or the 800 it takes a long time to hone past those and they are what typically causes a very toothy new bevel.

800 grit is way too course. Only use that to remove damage from the blade.

1000 grit to begin bevel set. There will still be scratches. 4000 grit to remove scratches. Slow progression getting more and more fine, and the "teeth" will disappear.

You may be putting too much pressure as well. Try more strokes, finer grit, less pressure. See how that goes.

Originally Posted by RezDog

I'm not certain but it sounds to me like too much pressure and too coarse of hones and you are getting a sawtooth edge. I suggest trying this, lightly kill the edge on the edge of you hone or on your finger nail, then return to setting the bevel on your 1500 grit hone. If you get really deep stria from the DMT or the 800 it takes a long time to hone past those and they are what typically causes a very toothy new bevel.

Kill the edge? why? its already dead!

It's a restoration. He may well need a DMT to start. Problem is some old razors just don't tolerate diamonds.

Yes, that can be a common problem with Diamonds, especially if using the 325. Edges don’t get really straight until after 8k. But if you have the bevels flat and meeting, joint the edge on a 1k and re-set the bevel.

Now depending on how much pressure was used, it may take some time to remove all the deep Diamond stria. Stay on the 1k, doing circles, until all that deep stria is gone, or you will pay for it at the finish with a crumbling edge.

When, I do heavy correction/edge restoration work with a diamond plate, I get the bevels flat, (bread-knifing or high angle honing), then high angle hone, about 45 degrees to the stone, to where the bevels are almost meeting, leave a sliver of steel on the edge. Then bring the bevels to meeting on a 1k.

The problem with diamonds to set bevels after correction, is they often cause more work, than they save. You still may have chipping issues at the higher grits, because of the diamonds, deep cut. If so, either hone it out to good steel or keep jointing and re-setting until you get to solid steel.

If you find yourself doing a lot of this kind of repair, a 600 and 800 stone can save you a lot of time and headache, they are inexpensive. Do the repairs with diamonds and bring the bevel to meeting with the 6 & 800, while aggressive, they do not cut as deep as low grit diamonds, or get a 1k, diamond plate to bring the bevels close and seal the deal on a 1k.

And yes, this is restoration/repair work, much different than garden variety honing.

Maybe you need a mentor to assist you. I say this because you mention working on the bevel for 2 hours. A bevel only takes a few minutes to accomplish at the 1k level.

Originally Posted by Wayne1963

Maybe you need a mentor to assist you. I say this because you mention working on the bevel for 2 hours. A bevel only takes a few minutes to accomplish at the 1k level.

Not on a repair/restoration.