Thread: Stone width

Originally Posted by Marshal

Random question...when you use the 3" stones you're setting them on a bench I assume? So...when you use the smaller 2 inch stone, are you honing on the bench as well, or with the hone in hand? I know sometimes the ability to articulate both the stone and razor helps, but other times maybe not so much.

You've got to be doing something different with the thinner stones to be getting different results. Key is to figure out what that is. Regardless of the width of your hone, your strokes should begin and end the same. Do a few slow and careful strokes on your 2 inch hone and watch closely. Then do the same on your 3 inch stones. See what it is that you're changing up.

Bench for the 3". Handheld for the thinner ones.

Originally Posted by S0LITARYS0LDIER

Bench for the 3". Handheld for the thinner ones.

That may be where the difference lies. Rather than the stroke of the razor on the stone, possibly be the way you pitch/roll the stone in your palm? I'm thinking perhaps that's leading to a slightly different bevel at the toe than what you would get with an immobile bench mounted stone.

I don't have a problem honing on stones of any width, as long as the stone is long enough for my stroke. Even if it is a shorter stone, I can alter the stroke to catch the length of the edge from heel to point. I think it is a mental block kind of thing you're suffering from. If a person is a perfectionist stuff like that can be troublesome. Don't ask me how I know.

I sort of suffered from the same affliction when I had 3" wide strops. Obviously we're only going to use the width of the strop that is needed to service the blade, but for some reason it bothered me that there was all this leather. I cut my one 3" strop to 2 1'2" and sold my other one.

Anyway, just work on honing on a 3" width with your regular stroke and eventually it will become normal.

I'm not a honemeister and I don't hone for anyone else but myself. While the rolling stroke is something we all want to get correct, mistakes happen. But its really not a big deal. You can simply correct it. If you missed the toe, go back and put just that part of the blade on the hone and give it the attention it needs. Sometimes I break the blade up into sections depending on the issues the blade has. If it has an exaggerated smile, I might give extra attention to the heel, center, and toe as needed. Then be sure to do a few careful rolling strokes to ensure its all evened out nicely. If the razor doesn't sit flat on the hone, give the front and back some extra attention to be sure the whole edge is getting sharp. The key is to monitor it at each stage. I think what many people in this hobby forget is that we're all going to make mistakes. Its not the end of the world. You just have to go back and correct it. Next time it'll be better.

Unless I am using full size hones and even then i am a fan of holding the stone in hand. I can feel and gauge steel / hone contact much better this way. Better feedback IMO and can get a real sense of progress. I still hone on the bench with a holder for certain applications and phases of the process like edge repair or setting a bevel or restoration. But once things get settled in and pressure is no longer desirable, the hone sits in my hand for mid range to finish. I just got used to this and I like it because i can tilt the honing hand and the stone hand to better deal with the situation.

My understanding of various honing strokes/gymnastics improved dramatically when I began to study my inked edges as I honed. Keep the Sharpie handy, re-ink often, study the results after each honing stroke and adjust your technique accordingly. Soon you will have a clearer understanding which angles and dangles work for a particular blade.

For very smiley or warped blades I prefer narrow hones. 1" wide Thuringians are great.

All I can add is maybe stick with them for a while and don't buy anything else till you master them.

"No amount of money spent on a Stone can ever replace the value of the time it takes learning to use it properly"... A quote I read somewhere...

Originally Posted by Grazor

All I can add is maybe stick with them for a while and don't buy anything else till you master them.

"No amount of money spent on a Stone can ever replace the value of the time it takes learning to use it properly"... A quote I read somewhere...

See I've always been of the thinking that is you don't have a bevel you're just polishing a dull edge. But this stone thing has me thinking.

Originally Posted by OCDshaver

See I've always been of the thinking that is you don't have a bevel you're just polishing a dull edge. But this stone thing has me thinking.

Little of column A, little of column B. Getting the bevel set is the foundation. The rest is squeezing the most you can out of the hones at your disposal.