Thread: Razors that don't sit flat on hone

So coming back to this, I watched a video a gentlemen sent me about this discussion. He taped the edge on an old sheffy, and ground the spine dead flat on a 400 grit atoma, then brought edge into line with the spine tape off. He took a blade that wouldn't sit flat, put a little extra hone wear on the spine, but made that thing true to a tee, both the bevel widths and spine widths....
I currently sent him one of my razors that rock back and forward, not heel to toe to see what he could do with it lol. If he fixes it somehow... I am going to take some serious time to learn this technique.

I have no problem rolling an x stroke a bit for heal to toe issues, but when the heal sits flat, and then the razor rocks back having the spine sit flat diagonally accross, and that heal is no longer touching the hone, I find that a not so fun experience. I've done it... but wish I never had to. I'm looking at this Geneva here in good shape that has a slight diagonal rock... really want to fix it!

You don’t have to “fix” it.

Very few razors are perfectly flat and do not need to be. For hundreds of years, guys have been honing razors just like yours using a various X strokes.

You don’t need to grind the razor flat. Just modify your strokes to hone the edge, whatever it takes, a rolling X stroke will hone the entire edge, simply by modifying the pressure on the edge.

You are, way over thinking, a common issue.

yeah its called... having fun? Experimenting? Finding ways to make things easier.
I'm sorry you don't like it, but you just said right there its a common "issue"
Over thinking and obsession with perfection is part of edge related hobbies, why you gotta try to bring me down man? haha.
-Can always count on Euclid coming in and saying something like this.

Originally Posted by glytch5

yeah its called... having fun? Experimenting? Finding ways to make things easier.
I'm sorry you don't like it, but you just said right there its a common "issue"
Over thinking and obsession with perfection is part of edge related hobbies, why you gotta try to bring me down man? haha.
-Can always count on Euclid coming in and saying something like this.

I have seen some lovely vintage razors destroyed using the "easier" method, in my eyes anyway. It is a common issue but well covered here with techniques other than grinding it flat. The end of the day they are your razors, listen to sound advice or not.
Glad to hear it's a threesome of Dovos and not a 150 year old Sheffield in your hands.

There is no such thing as perfection, that's a true fact, I don't care about bevels, spines, or how the damn thing sits on a hone, it's just shaving and if it shaves well, then it's a non issue. From 2,000$ razors to 10$ ones, no one is perfect, it can not be achieved. So what are we trying to do by grinding away? I,ll tell you, we are wanting a shave ready edge, and it can be achieved without grinding. Now if all your doing is looking for a pretty bevel, that's fine too, it won't shave any better. As to having fun, that's cool, I myself think of fun as something besides shaving, but everyone is different. Tc

Keep in mind that you may want to sell, trade or even pass on your razors someday. Anyone with a very basic knowledge of straight razors will notice right away that the spine was modified. No one is going to want the razor.

Each vintage razor comes with a story waiting to be told. Don't erase that story/history by such a irreversible technique.

Looks like I am in the minority here. If it's not very close to 'right', I get rid of it. Life's too short for wonky razors!

Originally Posted by kelbro

Looks like I am in the minority here. If it's not very close to 'right', I get rid of it. Life's too short for wonky razors!

I have got a couple to hone up, vintage ones i'm talking, but its a pain in the butt. Their is nothing like a razor that is just a pleasure to hone because the bevel was set properly from the maker. The bevel being the spine to edge.

But yes, me and you are in the minority. : )

The way I view this is - to me - razors are a tool first, and a collectible second. Can you make it sit flat on the hone by making sure the spine thickness is uniform heel to toe? Yes. IF you do this, you should also make sure the blade thickness (Spine to edge) is uniform heel to toe. SHOULD you do this? It depends.

Some sort of hardware store advertising type razor, or random generic straight razor that you just want to work properly? Sure, it's your razor and no one has to be happy with it but you. Have at it. Filarmonica, Wade & Butcher, etc. with collectible value? Think long and hard before any grinding is done. I certainly wouldn't, but that's just me. Again, it's your razor and no one but you has to be happy with it.

So I got the vintage blade back from the guy who "set the bevel" the full bevel. Made the razor sit flat on the hone. IDK how he did it, I can barely tell but WOW!
The razor literally blew my mind. The thing was so easy to hone, and shaved like nothing else.
can't believe what a difference this made in this particular blade!