Thread: Some thoughts on "Learning to Hone"

I think part of the reason people recommend a not so great razor to start with is because of posts that start out something like....

My brand new $200.00 razor wasn't shaving as well as it did when I bought it, so I got out my knife hone and gave it 500 laps and it's still not shaving well. Is there something wrong with the steel this razor is made of?

Maybe that was a little dramatic but there are times when you read an experienced hone jockey say something like.... STOP!!! Send me that razor, I'll work on it for free. For the LOVE OF GOD, please just stop. OK, I'll PAY YOU to send me the razor.

OK, maybe that was a little dramatic again. The razor doesn't have to cost a lot. It's about someone possibly damaging something nice. That makes many cringe.

OMG you are sooooooo Dramatic who would ever say something like that?????

http://straightrazorpalace.com/478533-post5.html

Originally Posted by gssixgun

OMG you are sooooooo Dramatic who would ever say something like that?????

http://straightrazorpalace.com/478533-post5.html

I don't know.

I don't hone yet, but logic would dictate that you are correct. If you learn on a cheap paki razor that are known to not take/hold edges or give bad shaves. How would you ever know if what you are doing is right or wrong. You'd get the same bad test shave even if you did well.

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 TheBaron

I don't hone yet, but logic would dictate that you are correct. If you learn on a cheap paki razor that are known to not take/hold edges or give bad shaves. How would you ever know if what you are doing is right or wrong. You'd get the same bad test shave even if you did well.

This is a good thread. Being a newbie I know I will have to touch-up or restore my razor eventually. I've had a few thoughts on it.

1. Try honing my good razor and see how it comes out. Worst case it goes to a honemeister.

2. Just send it to the honemeister right off, asking for a report as to what it needed.

3. Buy another "good" inexpensive razor as a spare, and take my time trying to get my dull razor back to shave ready. At least I know I should be able to get the first razor as sharp as it was when new.

My question is if you start with a good razor to begin with, one that was sharp but just needs to be brought back to the way it was, what stone to you start with? It certainly doesn't need a 1000 to start. Just use a small pyramid on a 4000/8000?

if ya want to learn how to hone, hone
it's rly up to you if you want to do it with a cheap or expensive razor,
some good advice I read was to get two cheap shave ready razors so you can compare