Thread: Are You A Real Man? Do You Think You Can Hone? Shave Off Of Your 1k Hone

Originally Posted by nessmuck

Man up and shave with a clam shell....

Razor clams?

Originally Posted by RezDog

Razor clams?

For the win![emoji1]

Thanks Brian! I was not sure how many would know that there are actually clams called razor clams.

Yes ...there are Razor Clams.....and Bearded Clams too..........

Originally Posted by nessmuck

Yes ...there are Razor Clams.....and Bearded Clams too..........

Yes there are Razor Clams and Bearded Clams----Let's not get into 'Goey Duck Clams' Let's just say that they are are 'unique'

A full week since my last post here and I've finally had the opportunity to get back to the hones. Life's been busy so while I've probably had time to play with my hones I really wanted a chance to do it when I had enough peace and quiet to allow me to give it my full attention.

So I took everyone's advice and took another look at the Thistle Cut through the loupe and between that and the prior TPT I felt pretty confident that I had a good set of bevels to work with. I then took the razor back to the 1k Shapton for about 15 X-strokes with little to no pressure. Then I moved up the progression to the 4k Norton for a set of 20 circles and 15 X-strokes with moderate pressure followed up by about 20 x-strokes with little to no pressure.

While I was at it I set to work with the ShurEdge that had some previous attention but was judged to be well below par. Back on the 1k the ShurEdge got 40 circles with firm pressure followed up by 15 x-strokes. Then another set of 20 circles and 20 X-strokes with little to no pressure.

Both razors looked good under the loupe, felt good on the TPT and would remove arm hairs at skin level. I'm definitely the most confident with the TPT but I'm developing a bit more confidence with the loupe. The AHT is a great check but I feel that it is purely a pass/fail approach for me and that the TPT gives me better overall feedback. Developing my experience with these tests is probably of even higher importance to me right now than raising my confidence in my honing.

The results were very good. The ShurEdge provided a better, smoother shave than the Thistle Cut did after its time on the 1k. I'll be honest, my estate sale find just might end up being one of my favorite razors in my rotation if it continues to improve as I think it will as it moves up the hone progression.

The Thistle Cut, after time on the 4k, gave a very nice shave that was better than some of the razors that I've bought off ebay that were advertised as "shave ready." There is definitely room for improvement but I can honestly say that I could shave off this 4k edge everyday with only a minimal amount of complaining.

So, I shaved the right side of my face with the ShurEdge and the left with the Thistle Cut with no real burn from the witch hazel or AS. I did go back and do a cleanup pass with my trusty Shumate Tungsteel but it did not remove much in the way of stubble and I think, upon reflection, that I probably could have skipped it.

I'm very happy that I've chosen to take the 1K challenge! It is definitely making me more confident in my abilities and is making me more cognizant of what each of my hones can do. I would heartily recommend that anyone new to honing give this a try and I myself will probably continue shaving between each stone for a while until I'm truly confident in my technique.

Well I posted on another thread I would try it with a NOS Japanese western razor. It seems that the bevel on that was is set or at least it's close since it cut the hair on my forearm. To keep it real I grabbed a brand new gold dollar Took down the stabilizers and put it on chosera 1K. Once it was passing my tests, loupe, cut hair and felt sticky on TPT I jointed the edge and went back with much less pressure this time. Razor is a bit crooked so I had to switch between rolling x-strokes and honing on the side of the stone. Stropped on flax linen and leather and shaved.
WTG followed by XTG. Applied alum and no burn. No skin redness. I am very surprised. I kind of expected all kind of burning and stuff.