Thread: Stupid Honing question...

I have sort of a stupid question regarding honing. If I have a razor that's shave ready and that was honed with tape...When it becomes time to touch it up I again use tape...After a few touch up sessions I assume that the razor will need more and possibly the bevel will need to be reset...SO when I'm resetting this bevel should I also again use the same amount of tape or is that just going to go against what I'm trying to do.

thanks!

This is a "hot button" debate among the honing crowd. To see what I mean by that, just read the responses to the last sentence I'll type in this post......

When it comes time to set a new bevel, you've got two choices, use tape, or not.

If you do use tape, you'll be keeping the same basic angle, except to the extent the angle changes each time honed with tape. This means you will have less work to do because it's been honed with tape already.

If you don't use tape, you will have to put a lot more work into setting the bevel, but you'll never have to use tape on that razor again.

[flame]Other than a corrective measure to fix prior bad honing/grinding, or to set a double bevel, I have never heard a logical reason to tape a spine: discuss.[/flame]

I usually tape my razors because I like them looking new. I also have one with some pretty fancy spine work so I don't want to ruin that. I probably wouldn't use tape on an old vintage razor but all my razors are new factory razors so.

If you're honing correctly, the natural wear on the spine won't hurt a thing. It will be just as smooth and polished as the edge of the razor.

Likewise, with fancy worked backs, most razors I've seen, the spine work is not done on the edge of the spine where it would rub on the hone, but on the back of the spine.

If you're more comfortable honing with tape, be my guest. Just be aware that once you use tape, you must always use tape, or spend a great deal of time resetting the bevel to get out of it.

I always tape. If i've got a new razor, or have spent hours restoring one, i just don't want to have hone marks on the spine.
If you want to keep it looking pristine, put a layer of tape on.
If you're not bothered, & don't mind the initial extra work that it'll take to re-set the bevel, then leave the tape off.

I find that it takes quite a bit to hone a blade not taped that has been honed taped before.

I guess my real question is that after you use a razor, let's say everyday for a whole year. Would the original bevel be completely gone or would simple touch ups keep it going indefinately?

Originally Posted by Dups

I guess my real question is that after you use a razor, let's say everyday for a whole year. Would the original bevel be completely gone or would simple touch ups keep it going indefinately?

The razor would be dull beyond shaving anything long before you could ever wear away its entire bevel. Dulling is a process that takes place on a micron scale. Most bevels have a width on the mm scale. 1 mm is 1000 micron.
If you touch up a razor on a flat hone, in theory you could do an infinite series of touch-ups and never loose the initial bevel shape.
If you touch up on a pasted strop, you would introduce an arc-shape to your bevel. Doing so is a very effective way to regain sharpness on a dulling edge, but each time you do it the bevel is likely to become more arced. Eventually the arc becomes too round and you will not longer be able to achieve good keenness with the pasted strop.
If that happens, the only option is to re-hone the razor, starting with the recreation of flat bevel faces.

On top of all this theory comes the fact that during the shave it sometimes occurs that a hard whisker rips a small chip out of the edge. It depends on your beard, your preparation(!) and the razor in question how often this will happen. Over a long series of shaves, these little damages can build up, and they won't disappear with any touch-up method. If you have a hard beard, use poor preparation, or have brittle razors, you'll only be able to do a few touch-ups, regardless the method, before the deterioration requires full honing.

Bart.

this is the biggest reason I want to get some form of magnification. I am really curious to see what kind of damage my facial hair does to the edge of a straight razor.

Originally Posted by Bart

If you touch up a razor on a flat hone, in theory you could do an infinite series of touch-ups and never loose the initial bevel shape.
If you touch up on a pasted strop, you would introduce an arc-shape to your bevel. Doing so is a very effective way to regain sharpness on a dulling edge, but each time you do it the bevel is likely to become more arced. Eventually the arc becomes too round and you will not longer be able to achieve good keenness with the pasted strop.
If that happens, the only option is to re-hone the razor, starting with the recreation of flat bevel faces.

Bart.

So would I have to use tape again to set the bevel? I know it's possible to hone it without, but it would take longer right.