Thread: Belgian Blue to set a bevel?

quick question guys, i'm just starting on the honing road so i bought a couple of antique store razors to practice on. i had my TI honed by a honemeister to compare. anyway...the W & B i bought i've done some restoration to it and now am moving to the honing. it has no bevel to it so will the belgian blue stone i just bought be sufficient in setting the bevel or do i really have to get a 1200 dmt? ya'lls help is greatly appreciated, thanks.

Remember the Grand canyon was formed by running water so put your razor under stream of water and in a few hundred thousand years you will have a great bevel.

Seriously though the blue belgian is a very slow cutter even for normal work. I don't think I would want to try resetting a bevel on it unless you have a lot of time on your hands. Using slurry will help but its still too slow. Do yourself a favor and use a hone 4K or coarser.

On the other hand, as you are just starting out with honing, you're not very likely to hone your way into trouble with a Belgian Blue. Yes, it might be slow but the hone has a great feel in use and the extra honing will give you more muscle memory in practice. If you find you're not getting anywhere, you can always get some wet/dry paper and place it on top of your wet Belgian and use that to hog off some metal and then go back to the blue....

Regards

Christian aka

Kaptain "Run whatcha brung" Zero

for 4k and under you have a lot of options other than the DMT. There are tons of 1k stones, including a Norton. If you're careful you can also use 1k sandpaper on glass.

Any good tool store or woodworking shop will have a few varieties of 1k waterstones that are dirt cheap (the internet has them as well).

Sandpaper is a very viable option for setting the bevel. Most hardware stores and some automotive places have paper in grits up to ~2k.

The Blue would be a great stone to use to get rid of the 1k scratches, but I wouldn't want to do much more than that (because I'm lazy and have other choices).

For the time being you could try it, you won't overdo it that's for sure, and if you are really getting absolutely nowhere, go look for lower grits.

I have to vote for the 1K sandpaper laid on top of the hone. It has more abrasive grains per square inch than do the hones.

Originally Posted by randydance062449

I have to vote for the 1K sandpaper laid on top of the hone. It has more abrasive grains per square inch than do the hones.

Randy, when you use wet/dry to set a bevel, are you honing with edge leading or stropping with edge trailing?

Chris L

I can't speak for Randy, but I lead with the edge when using abrasive paper on the hone or on a piece of glass.

Regards

Kaptain "Leading man" Zero

Originally Posted by Chris L

Randy, when you use wet/dry to set a bevel, are you honing with edge leading or stropping with edge trailing?

Chris L

Edge leading...make sure the paper is flat to the hone. I soak my paper for at least 15 minutes before use. It curls up far less when I soak it.

Hi

I am quite new to all of this (8months) so am no pro.
I use 1000 , 1500 and 2000 wet and dry paper on a glass sheet,pushing the blade forward with the edge first.

I then move onto my belgium blue with a slurry, then without.
I then move onto the coticle with a slurry,then without.
I then move onto a diamond paddle with 1 micron and then a polishing paste and finally a leather strop.

The result on my wapi and Double arrow - the hairs literally melt off my arm ( dont forget I am relatively new to all of this,the guys who have 10 years experience can get their razors twice as sharp !!).