Thread: Honing Mistakes?

I hone at a moderate pace. As a friend of mine likes to say, "methodical and deliberate'. Like Bart I keep the razor on the hone throughout and flip on the spine. I also do an x stroke whether rolling or otherwise. The exception being circles and back and forth strokes. Whatever works is whatever works though. Different strokes for different folks.

Originally Posted by Lynn

Honing is all about mistakes. The best way for someone to learn the good, the bad and the ugly is through making mistakes. When we started a few years ago, there basically were no good instructions for people to learn how to hone, so we have established "guidelines" or a few basic processes for people to learn from. Now we have so much more information available that the opportunity to learn and do well is really great. The basics remain the basics. Every person has to learn an even stroke and an amount of pressure that works well for them as well as what stone and media they prefer. Nothing will replace the fact that the more you hone and the more different things you try, the better you will get. If you hone just for your own use or if you eventually hone a ton of razors, you will continue to learn every time you approach a hone. I think people who end up honing hundreds of razors under stand that you don't know what you don't know at 100 or 200 or 500 razors and even after thousands, you are still learning and of course, still making mistakes. This is the fun of the sport.

One hand, two hands, solid surface, held in the hand, naturals, sythetics, Nortons, Naiwas, Shaptons, rolling, 45 degree angle, X pattern, straight strokes, circles, pressure, no pressure, breadknifing, thin hones, wide hones, oil, water, lather, slurry, pastes, sprays and on and on.......So much fun stuff to try and so many great razors to try them on.

The objective remains......that just a little bit better shave that will be considered perfect beyond compare........

Keep those mistakes coming and have fun,

Lynn
Keep those mistakes coming.

Very cool, Lynn. Thanks for this. It's absolutely true for me like you've said, EVERY time I hone a razor I learn something new.

My deviation from what's commonly considered as "standard"? I use my left index finger tip to stabilize (two handed honer) and it suits me and my razors perfectly well. The only sucky thing that can happen IME with that is the potential for dinging the edge on the index fingernail on the flip......well, that and getting cut if you're not careful.

Chris L

I have not searched the site to see if there is anything written on this. Here is a blurb on an ERN I have on eBay.:
"This razor is one of four in my rotation that demonstrates the "memory" phenomenon of the steel. This phenomenon is why a rotation is used. If the razor is stropped after shaving it will not be as sharp as if it is allowed to rest. In fact if this razor is stropped after shaving and allowed to rest several days it then has the sawtooth thumb nail feel of a freshly honed razor that is ready to strop. One of the things you do not realize till you hone 70+ razors."

I do my razors in batches of 8-10. The first time I noticed this was on a Fabyan Sum-Extra silver steel. The razor was sharp but not hair splitting sharp. I put it aside because it looked like one for the rotation. When I got back to it the razor had a sawtooth feel. When I stropped, it was hair splitting sharp. The stress in the blade had to be put in when honed because the razors I get in have been siting for years. This may be one reason that Lynn advises light pressure.The razors that react this way for me are the Fabyan, ERN, Bresnick New York/Dubl Duck, and a Wester brothers manganese. I do not know if this will change the next time they are honed.