Thread: New to straight razors (loads of questions)

Ok i have oodles of questions here... i just watched the honing video, and i have a good number of questions for some of you straight razor gurus here...

1: the razor i intend to buy is a 4/8 dovo stainless blade... just kinda putting that out there.. dont see any issues being a newbie and having a blade thats 1/8 of an inch smaller than the standard 5/8 size... but, if anyone has any other input, let me know.

2: in the video, the guy uses 2 completely different stones... is this really necessary? or is it just a "good idea"? what kind of stone would be best for a newbie to start with, something cheap, reliable and still get a really good edge on it

3: he also used a small stone to make what he called a "slurry" ontop of the 4000 grit... what is the purpose of that? and is it a necessity? what do i need to create that assuming it IS a necessity?

4: he took the tape off the spine of the blade after only a few strokes down the 4000 grit... im assuming probably because the miniscule thickness of the tape would hinder getting an even steeper angle on the edge... is this true? and considering this, wont this completely obliterate the nice shiny finish along the top of the blade? not to mention... wear it down faster? (the stone AND the blade...)

5: i notice he uses muti "micron" pastes on a 4 sided paddle strop... this is kind of a multi part question... do you need multiple pastes? do you need more than 2? do you need pastes at ALL (lol)? and finally, do you need a separate strop for your paste? if so, do paddle strops work best for this?

6: the final question... how often do you really need to do all this? LOL not really a whole lot of work, but if you have to do it even once a month, it might prove to be excessive... i dont plan on using mine more than 2 or 3 times a week... but even as a daily razor, how often can one expect to put the time into honing a blade?

i lied... last question... where can i get the best deals on strops and stones? do people here sell them often?


thanks guys!

Alright, alright let's make this quick and painless

Size of the blade shouldn't really matter all that much. 5/8 or 6/8 is the standard. (I'd actually recommend getting a 5/8) Some guys prefer larger, some smaller. Once you try it, you can decided whether you want to go smaller or larger.

I assume you are talking about this series:
http://www.dailymotion.com/related/3...intro_creation

Using two different stones is not necessary. If you have to do significant work (ie honing out a chip or the like) you'll probably use a coarser stone like 1000 grit, otherwise the basic workhorse stone that is generally recommended to beginners is the 4000/8000 grit Norton waterstone (I personally didn't like it, but that was more convenience issues rather than performance issues) This stone will give you a shave ready edge. You may just find that the more you work with razors the mores stones you will acquire

Once you've mastered the Norton and are able to extract every bit of keeness out of it you could consider something finer like a coticule/escher/thuringen/12k etc. but don't worry about that for now

If you are using the norton (which is a fairly fast cutting stone as it is) you don't need to make a slurry on either side. Doing so will make the stone cut even faster but isn't necessary. I'd recommend not doing this though it may want to be something you'd like to experiment with later on once you are experience with using the Norton

Taping the spince saves the razor from excessive hone wear when doing major work (chips etc). You take it off and extablish a bevel that makes full contact with the stone otherwise you'll end up with a double-bevel where the edge of the razor does't make contact with the hone and doesn't get sharper. You may also choose to leave the tape on the spine to maintain the angle. In this case it might be advised to tape the spine for all subsequent honing sessions (there is a recent thread on taping the spine) Honing without tape will wear down the spine, however, razors are crafted in such a manner that the edge and spine wear down at such a rate that the angle of honing remains constant.

Pastes are optional (icing on the cake). Often-times if you have pastes you'll have more than 1 size. Usually 1.0, 0.5, and 0.25 micron (I'd say 0.25 is optional...it gives an ultra sharp edge, but some say that edge is weaker and doesn't last as long). Chromium oxide can also be used and has a size comparable to 0.5 micron and most would agree it leaves a "smoother" shaving edge. The general concensus is to use pastes on a paddle strop as that gives you a rigid working surface. You can use pastes on a hanging strop but that may make the edge susceptible to rounding due to slack tension in the strop. pastes are NOT used daily (only to refresh a dulling edge or when honing) and as such you'll still need a daily strop

The frequency of honing depends on several factors (thickness/toughness of hair, type of steel, technique, stropping etc) I've heard of ppl who hone once a year, and ppl who hone once a month. anywhere from 10 to 30+ shaves could be expected between honing sessions

Beautiful strops are available from Tony at thewellshavedgentleman.com for very reasonable prices (he will also assist you with any questions you may have with a quick email)

The norton is sold by Howard at theperfectedge.com for $62.00 + S/H (he is also a dealer of belgian coticules when you progress to that point)

what video did you watch?

good lord... im looking at $150 in sharpening equipment arent i? of course, thats being conservative as hell! lol STARTER kit even.... ugh....

by the way, that was the site i was citing...

are there any cheaper stones? i mean say i want to go to a really fine stone in the future, im looking at another $100 just for THAT stone... im guessing sending the razor off for $20 - 30 is probably the best option... save for the strop itself... which is necessary no matter what...

Originally Posted by Warlockdlx69

are there any cheaper stones? i mean say i want to go to a really fine stone in the future, im looking at another $100 just for THAT stone... im guessing sending the razor off for $20 - 30 is probably the best option... save for the strop itself... which is necessary no matter what...

It is the best option in the beginning but not in the long run. You will not be able to get a razor "shave ready" at first regardless of how much you read, and it is better to learn proper technique from a razor that you know is shave ready. Once you now what a shave ready razor feels like and have developed proper stropping and shaving technique then you will be in a better position to learn to hone your own razors.

I should also add that there are probably several senior members, including myself, who would be willing to hone your razor(s) for free to get you started. Then you would just need a strop to maintain the edge until you decide that you want to learn to hone.

definitely a generous offer thank you! will definitely have to take you up on it!

The guy in the video must be getting results that work but it seems to me a very inconsistent approach to honing and one that if followed by a beginner would lead to disappointment.

PuFF

how so puff?

the one thing i did notice he did that many members here seem to disagree on, is taking the tape off at ANY point in the hone.. seems to be that the census agrees that if you DO use tape, you must leave it on the entire hone... otherwise, you will basically be honing the side of the edge, rather than the edge itself... and that all subsequent hones need to be done the same way... either with, or without... but not both...

Originally Posted by Warlockdlx69

how so puff?

the one thing i did notice he did that many members here seem to disagree on, is taking the tape off at ANY point in the hone.. seems to be that the census agrees that if you DO use tape, you must leave it on the entire hone... otherwise, you will basically be honing the side of the edge, rather than the edge itself... and that all subsequent hones need to be done the same way... either with, or without... but not both...

Like with many other debated issues with honing, there are many differing opinions on the tape issue. The best way is to experiment and find out for yourself when you are in position to do so.