Thread: Some thoughts on "Learning to Hone"

I aways recommend to new guys a new entry level Dovo to learn to shave with a straight. I would recommend the classifieds but I don't know who their razor will come from and whether it will really be shave ready. I know that some of the sellers in the classifieds can hone with the best of them but the new guy doesn't know and we ain't going to recommend one over another 'cause it ain't politically correct and maybe we don't know either.

If it comes from SRD, Classic, or Vintage I know who honed it. No offense meant but that is what I think. Once the new guy isn't new anymore he can buy from the classifieds and judge for himself.

To learn to hone I recommend used full bladed Solingen full hollows with undamaged scales. I recommend some magnification to check the bevel even if it is a 30x eye loupe. The better the condition of the edge the easier it will be and ebay or antique stores and flea markets are crap shoots but you pays your money and you takes your chances.

There are degrees to 'learning to hone' too. A guy may just want to have one or two razors and maintain them. A barber hone, a Norton 4/8, and a strop and maybe a bit of chrom ox of whatever kind of paste and he is probably good for life.

If a guy wants to really learn how to hone anything that comes down the pike IMO he needs a lot of razors and minimum a small arsenal of hones. Of course he could do it with a yellow/bbw coticule or whatever series of Nortons, Shaptons, Naniwas .... it really doesn't matter which and the flattening stone, diamond plate or sandpaper.

What I am getting at is there is going to be a certain expenditure for tools. I hate to tell guys what I think the minimum setup is some times because of cost. I mean minimum ideal setup. Like anything else, having the right tool makes the job easier...... once you know how to do the job.

That is the other thing. As Kaptain Zero used to say, having a basketball won't make you play like Magic Johnson and all of the hones in the world won't make you Lynn Abrams.

I got really lucky in that a honemiester who used to be on the forum lived nearby and was gracious enough to let me come over his house a half dozen times (30 miles one way) to watch him hone. This helped me mainly in seeing bevels set and honing up through the progression.

I still couldn't have gotten half azz good at it without Lynn's help on the phone and in the forum, Randydance on the phone and in the forum ,.....posts and Wiki stuff by Glen, Bart, Utopian, ChrisL, AFDavis, mparker762 and many ohters. Videos by Lynn, Bart, and heavydutysg137...... and my own efforts. Without the desire and acting on it .... want in one hand and wish in the other and see which one fills up first.

That is assuming I am half azz good at it. I've gotten good feedback from a few guys I've honed razors for and I can get mine sharp to suit me and that is all I really need. I wouldn't say I'm a honemiester .. may be a wanna be honemiester but I'm working at it.

To me it just takes a hell of a lot of razors and time. I see some guys who must be a quick study and they seem to get it with a couple of razors in no time at all. Didn't work that way for me so God bless 'em is all I can say.

Thanks Jimmy Man great write up there....

I think or at least from my point of view if someone is starting out they are all thumbs and they don't have a clue. It's not that I want them to get a crap razor and turn it into a shaving masterpiece. The idea is just to use it to learn how to hold the razor and use the hone and get comfortable with the mechanics of honing. Once they have that down then they can try with a serious razor.

Just think about all the things that can happen while you are honing. Bad turns as you flip, gouging the edge against the edge of the hone, dropping the razor as you hone or having it torq during a stroke or using massive pressure as you hone. We could make a list. Maybe some of you have experience knife honing or are highly mechanically inclined but for someone who isn't...its like putting training wheels on your first bike.

I agree that if one were getting into the sport of straight razor shaving and wanted to learn to maintain their own razors on a personal basis, using razors that are "better" makes perfect sense.

But I think there are 2 kinds of honers: one who maintains/sharpens their own razors, and one who maintains/sharpens/repairs other peoples' razors.

For those in the sport who are into the actual sharpening, repair and restoration (which I admit will be less people, overall) those beater blades are great (although frustrating) learning tools. Yes, they are very difficult and take a lot of time - but I ask what is better for really learning trouble shooting skills for the aspiring honester, honing 100 well kept razors, or successfully honing 25 really tough cases?

Originally Posted by jendeindustries

I agree that if one were getting into the sport of straight razor shaving and wanted to learn to maintain their own razors on a personal basis, using razors that are "better" makes perfect sense.

But I think there are 2 kinds of honers: one who maintains/sharpens their own razors, and one who maintains/sharpens/repairs other peoples' razors.

For the non-meisters, I think there are people who just touch up pre-honed razors, and thus may never not reach for anything beyond a barber's hone or 12k for a long, long time.

Then there are people like me, who can't pass up something interesting at an antique shop and who want to take it from bevel setting or chip repair to shave ready.

Hmmm Some thoughts from the other side of the fence there too....
Some things to ponder about....

I think maybe again we are stumbling over semantics, cheap does NOT have to equal crap....

There isn't one of us that hasn't scored a great 5/8 hollow grind with zippo hone wear off e-bay for less than $20... The problem is that new guys don't know how to shop for those razors on e-bay or at antique shops...

I also remember doing multiple bevel sets for new guys, so they could finish out the honing process, and so they could see first hand how sharp a bevel should be...

Some great thoughts here thanks guys....

it's how I started sort of, I also honed a dull razor before I worked on my then shave rady one.
I have a lot of experience with knife sharpening, and although razor honing is not the same the bevel setting principle and grit progression are the same.

I can attest to the expensive doesn't mean good. Glen helped me get through a Le Grelot with an uneven grind, and I learned more from that one razor than I have on all of my other razors combined. In fact, the satisfaction of getting that razor shave ready (and scary sharp) is what has given me the confidence to tackle my other bad projects.

So while it is easier to learn the mechanics of honing with a good quality razor, I'd say that I didn't do any "real" honing until I started tackling problematic razors. Now, I feel like I have a clue at least

Kind of agree with Glen. If using the term 'honing' in a strict sense I think a razor that is already set & honed is the easiest approach to learning by simply maintaining it. However I think even a wedge grind is ok if its just a matter of reproducing what was already there.

New or used razors with faulty geometry &/or requiring a reset falls more into the edge 'restoration' category. And if someone wants to learn at that level surely one's mistakes are less costly with an eBay junker. The lessons are all the same, it's just a matter of the cost of 'school fees'

I still think learning to strop without damaging the edge or strop should be a newbs biggest priority second to actual shaving but there is such a wealth of information available thru SRP etc that a good grounding in the principles of honing is not difficult to achieve if one does the research.

Originally Posted by onimaru55

I still think learning to strop without damaging the edge or strop should be a newbs biggest priority second to actual shaving.

Some very, very, wise words there, spoken by the man from down under....


Thanks for the input Oz