Thread: rounding bevels

I have noticed something whilst honing a frederick reynolds with a wide bevel. Using sandpaper seriously rounds the bevel.
After some experiments with 1500 grit paper, hones and markers I decided to give up on using paper to do my heavy work.
Using marker I very carefully removed it evenly on a paper on a mirror, when I then took it to a hone the bevel was only being shaped on the bevel part nearest to the spine leaving the edge untouched. It has affected the blade so much that I cannot remove it with the 4k and need to buy a 1k stone to sort it out!
It doesn't seem to just be this razor as I have a wade and butcher that does the same, so maybe it is only really noticeable on wedges.
I was wondering why the only way I could get an edge was to use diamond paste, now I know that it was because of the rounding created by the paper.
Anybody else had this experience?
Sorry if I don't reply often but I have limited access to internet at the moment

Nick,

I had this exact problem for months. If I had to grind out a deep chip or frown, it took me hours to get a decent bevel with sandpaper and the Norton 1K. The sandpaper rounds the bevel, and the 1K was too slow to flatten it out again quickly.

The solution I've found is DMT diamond hones. The DMT 1200 grit hone will reset a bevel faster than sandpaper, with no rounding whatsoever. Then it's a simple transition to the Norton or Belgian hones.

I used to spend two to four hours per eBay razor, with most of that being bevel creation. Now I can take a razor start to finish in about half an hour on average.

The DMTs don't get much respect around here, but my experience with them has been entirely positive.

Josh

Originally Posted by JoshEarl

Nick,


The solution I've found is DMT diamond hones. The DMT 1200 grit hone will reset a bevel faster than sandpaper, with no rounding whatsoever. Then it's a simple transition to the Norton or Belgian hones.

The DMTs don't get much respect around here, but my experience with them has been entirely positive.

Josh

Right on!!

Steve

I had to take one razor to the 320 DMT plate to creat a bevel. Only took a few minutes to finnish from that point. It's one of my favorite shavers now.

Now that's tough love. I've tried the 320 and it's a little too rough even for my tastes. On some delicate razors, it chews up the edge pretty good and I had to hone through that damage with the 1200... It might work well to stop just shy of a good bevel on the 320, then finish with a 1200... Would probably save some time...

I'm not saying the 320 doesn't work, just that you'll have a little more work to do on the higher grit hones. Do use light pressure, though; I tried using a little pressure one time and watched pieces of steel flake off...

Josh

Well my D8C is broken in from flattening my stones, so all the high points are taken off. No deep scratches to deal with. My 1200 King only required about 5 passes to clean it up. Than the regular progression on the 4k/8k norton, a few on the 1.0 than .5 pasted strop and I was in the BBS.

I'm not saying this will be everyones experience with these plates, stones, and srops, but it works for me.

Now the D8XX that puppy leaves some canyons in steel, it will never see the edge of a razor. Now maybe some cleaning up after I cut a couple DD Dwarf's in half

I have a D8C as well, and agree that care needs to be taken or it will simply eat the blade up - belch, and then ask for more...

My rule of thumb is to use 1000 grit sandpaper and no finer for exactly the reason you mentioned... rounding of the edge.

BTW, I have 400 and 1200 grit diamond hones and do not use them on a razor. The 1000 grit sandpaper is the most effective for me.

Just my two cents,

There seems to be a great divide in the world of honing: Those who can use sandpaper and those who can't figure it out. Most guys seem to be in Randy's category.

One thing that has always concerned me about the DMT hones is Randy's observation that they can lead to microchipping in the edge as you move up in grit. I haven't observed this myself, but I trust Randy's experience on this one. I always keep that caution in the back of my mind. It might be that I'm just not experienced yet to be able to tell the difference. For me, the DMT was something of a last resort, but so far it's working well.

The Chef makes a good point: If you're going to use a new DMT, you'll need to break it in first. I break mine in by rubbing them for a few minutes with a junk razor--a wedge, actually. After this treatment and honing a few razors, they're not as rough on the edge, although they still cut just as quickly.

Another important tip is always using a light touch. I don't use any more pressure on my 1200 than I do on my finer hones. Keep the strokes light and even--these things are steel-eating monsters.

Josh