Thread: Bowed Blade?

Is it possible to correct a bowed blade?

If this has been asked before I'm sorry. after unsuccessfully skimming a couple pages in the honing for subjects like this I decided to just ask.

I'm honing this blade and on one side it appears to be honing more as it goes toward the heel, but on the other side it appears that the tip and heel are getting honed but the center isn't being touched. the more I hone, the more it creeps to the center but I'm afraid I'll hone the blade to oblivion if I keep it up.

Any suggestions?

Hi there,
By bowed, do you mean that the edge is like half an ellipse, so that if you were to put the blade on a flat surface it would be able to rock back and forth?
Best,
Mark

Well usually when what you are describing happens its because either the hone you are using needs to be lapped or you aren't honing properly so one part of the blade is getting exposed to more of the stone than the other part so the honing is uneven. Of course a third possibility is that the blade is not straight but you should be able to see that if its the case. Just lay it along a perfectly straight surface and if its bowed you will see it. In that case I would trash it.

Something that you can do is get a magic marker and blacken the edge and hone. All the marker should come off evenly if it doesn't something is wrong.

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

Well usually when what you are describing happens its because either the hone you are using needs to be lapped or you aren't honing properly so one part of the blade is getting exposed to more of the stone than the other part so the honing is uneven. Of course a third possibility is that the blade is not straight but you should be able to see that if its the case. Just lay it along a perfectly straight surface and if its bowed you will see it. In that case I would trash it.

Something that you can do is get a magic marker and blacken the edge and hone. All the marker should come off evenly if it doesn't something is wrong.

Is it a totally crazy idea to sand the edge until it is straight? If so, why?

Mark

There is a way but it results in a LOT! of honing afterward.
You may also sand away the edge so much that the edge recedes into the area of the blade called the "belly" which is not designed to be used as a shaving edge. Its to thick. This assumes that you are taliking about a full hollow ground blade.

If you insist on doing this then use a wet/dry sandpaper on a flat surface and pretend its a hone. After doing this operation myself I suggest the following.
Put tape on the spine to prevent excessive wear in that area.
Wet the sandpaper and use a Nagura stone on it also. Use 600 or 800 grit sandpaper. It may take 2 sheets to work this out. Use moderate pressure, 1-2 lbs.
An edge leading stroke is much more effective than an edge trailing stroke but you can easily slice the sandpaper so be careful.
Go slow. Use a microscope. Follow this with a 1000-1200 grit hone/ sandpaper using the edge trailing stroke until you microscope tells you that the edge is uniform. Then move on to the 4000/8000 hone

Hope this helps,

Originally Posted by marciaga

Is it a totally crazy idea to sand the edge until it is straight? If so, why?

Mark

Originally Posted by randydance062449

There is a way but it results in a LOT! of honing afterward.
You may also sand away the edge so much that the edge recedes into the area of the blade called the "belly" which is not designed to be used as a shaving edge. Its to thick. This assumes that you are taliking about a full hollow ground blade.

If you insist on doing this then use a wet/dry sandpaper on a flat surface and pretend its a hone. After doing this operation myself I suggest the following.
Put tape on the spine to prevent excessive wear in that area.
Wet the sandpaper and use a Nagura stone on it also. Use 600 or 800 grit sandpaper. It may take 2 sheets to work this out. Use moderate pressure, 1-2 lbs.
An edge leading stroke is much more effective than an edge trailing stroke but you can easily slice the sandpaper so be careful.
Go slow. Use a microscope. Follow this with a 1000-1200 grit hone/ sandpaper using the edge trailing stroke until you microscope tells you that the edge is uniform. Then move on to the 4000/8000 hone

Hope this helps,

Thanks Randy,
A further question if you don't mind: do all full hollow ground razors advertise in etching to that effect? The blade I have that is bowed says, "No. 1 Sweedish Ground Razor For Coarse Beards" It's a Maher & Grosh, Toledo, OH.
Thanks for your advice,
Mark

Originally Posted by FUD

I'm honing this blade and on one side it appears to be honing more as it goes toward the heel, but on the other side it appears that the tip and heel are getting honed but the center isn't being touched.

Did you find out what caused this? I'm experiencing the same thing, that the center is left nearly untouched.

I hope someone chimes in with a definitive answer on this.
My suggestion is to go to Razor Central and look at the gif showing the different razor grinds. Compare your razor to those. That will give you an answer as to what grind you have. BTW, you hone all of them the same way as long as the edge is straight and not curved.

Hope this helps,

Originally Posted by marciaga

Thanks Randy,
A further question if you don't mind: do all full hollow ground razors advertise in etching to that effect? The blade I have that is bowed says, "No. 1 Sweedish Ground Razor For Coarse Beards" It's a Maher & Grosh, Toledo, OH.
Thanks for your advice,
Mark

Check for a uniform thickness of the spine. Also look at the wear pattern on the shoulders of the spine, they should be the same along the entire length of the spine and the same on both sides. The third test is to stand the razor on its edge and look to see if there is any light coming thru in the middle of the blade.

Let us know what you find,

Originally Posted by misj

Did you find out what caused this? I'm experiencing the same thing, that the center is left nearly untouched.