Thread: why would bevel cut better on one side ????

JMO I find this happens to me also.The bevel is not quite set. One of the ancient order of honemeisters told me which side needed further work to get both sides cutting properly. I forgot so I just magnifying glass and re-hone. The difference is really tiny and a good glass and light and rotating the blade along its axis is necessary to see the edge of the bevel when this happens. Way less than a human hair is often the difference (>0.001or less.)
YMMV
~Richard
PS some old folks honed razors on a dished stone and the bevel looks good but plays havoc with resetting the bevel. Same with the familiar one bevel wider than the other.. A person will unconsciously hone lighter in one direction or the other.Usually I've found the going away side honed more than the cutting toward one side.
JMO!

Oh well. Good reason to give it 40 more light strokes after you THINK it's set, eh?

thank you guys so much for the quick and informative answers.

I am trying to narrow down the cause :
1. if as suggested it is caused by uneven pressure or technique to a certain side, then it should always occur on the same side regardless of the razor and so i will try to just set the bevel on a few razors and check if it is happening always on the same side.
2. i am very interested to find out when this issue occurs which side needs some more attention on the hone, the one that cuts better or the one that is under-performing.
i thought to take the same razor do 5 laps only on side A then check the cutting action, if it is improved then side A needs some work when this happens, if the cutting action doesn't change or deteriorates, i will flip the razor to side B and do 10 strokes on that side only and check again.

i will of course post my findings, would still appreciate any input as to the cause or fix of the issue.
i know it seems nitpicking but i really believe that if there is a difference at that stage there would be a difference in the final edge.

Originally Posted by azourital

i thought maybe its because of the creation of a wire edge or a burr but then i would think the cutting would be changed after stropping on linen but it does not

You're assuming you removed the burr on the linen but if you didn't & you finish stropping on the same side as honing the burr will still be biased the same way.

Typically, we all learned to hone using the same number of strokes on each side of the razor using equal pressure. However, that only works if the razor starts out equal on both sides of the blade. That may not always be the case.

The best example of two sides being different is the Japanese Kamisori, one side is beveled and the other is flat. Due to that difference, shaving is always done from the same side of the blade rather than using both sides equally as we do with a western style razor.

If your blade is not cutting evenly from both sides, the bevel is not quite set. You may need to do more strokes on one side of the blade vs the other to get both sides shaving well.

Originally Posted by Geezer

JMO I find this happens to me also.The bevel is not quite set. One of the ancient order of honemeisters told me which side needed further work to get both sides cutting properly. I forgot so I just magnifying glass and re-hone. The difference is really tiny and a good glass and light and rotating the blade along its axis is necessary to see the edge of the bevel when this happens. Way less than a human hair is often the difference (>0.001or less.)
YMMV
~Richard
PS some old folks honed razors on a dished stone and the bevel looks good but plays havoc with resetting the bevel. Same with the familiar one bevel wider than the other.. A person will unconsciously hone lighter in one direction or the other.Usually I've found the going away side honed more than the cutting toward one side.
JMO!

This also happens to me every single time-before the bevel is fully set. It is almost there and needs a bit more to go. I keep Honing until it pops hairs equally on both sides and then it is fully set.

You're not reaching the very edge on one side.
In a sentence, that's my thoughts