Thread: Two handed honing

While honing on my new Naniwas today, I experimented using my other hand to guide the tip of the blade.

I was using almost no pressure, and pretty much just pushing the spine with my left hand.

While I know that using 1 hand is the norm, I was curious if there was any ill effects of using a second hand? It really helped me keep the blade even across the stone.

I don't think there are ill effects if carried out with minimal to no pressure (depending on what stage you're at & what you're trying to achieve).
I tend to use both hands in that manner when setting the bevel or removing chips. I'll always revert to one hand for the more delicate stages & when the hard work is finished.

Just remember pressure is a relative term when it comes to say a full hollow compared to a wedge. A thinner blade is more sensitive to distortion but yeah, horses for courses.

I started out honing with two hands and got good results. I was honing sitting down and needed the two hands to jeep the blade flat on the hone. As I got more experience I found that standing gave me better control and balance. Keeping my elbow out to the side helped keep the blade flat. This brought my edge quality to a higher level. Use what works best for you and experiment.

+1 on Joed's wise words. Personally I found that a stiff wrist will prevent you from getting good contact between blade and stone. That may not be your problem but if it is you could try relaxing it so it's completely free and flops about (which is a physically stable state) and then work on guiding the razor more. Needless to say, shoulder and arm, etc. should also be relaxed.

Good luck

I would rather you look at one handed honing as "correct" instead of the "norm". But, I won't try to argue the point. Unless of course, you want to try and shave my face.

Originally Posted by AFDavis11

I would rather you look at one handed honing as "correct" instead of the "norm". But, I won't try to argue the point. Unless of course, you want to try and shave my face.

Just to expand on that a little. When people hone and they have problems keeping things symmetrical on the bevel or on the spine very often its the two handed technique that is the culprit. Yes I agree its better to learn one handed and perfect that.

Of course many use two hands and have no problems. I usually use two hands but I have a really light touch and shift the position of that second hand frequently as I hone.

I agree that one-handed honing technique should be viewed as correct and not merely the norm. With two hands both hands much be perfect, and when you're going for that finest edge uninterrupted perfection is a must, for stroke after stroke after stroke.

Additionally, using that second hand to stabilise the toe also puts too much pressure on the blade, especially the toe, no matter how light of a touch you are using, which in addition to the sharpness problems mentioned above also has long-term consequence of uneven hone wear.

The only time I use two hands is when I'm setting the bevel and using tape on the spine - this is a situation where some pressure is actually desirable; once I start caring about sharpness then the left hand stays away.

Two handed honing for blades with big smiles works better for me. With older blades that do not sit on the flat on the hone, the game changes. Maybe you guys can feel that roll with one hand, I can not.

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

Of course many use two hands and have no problems. I usually use two hands but I have a really light touch and shift the position of that second hand frequently as I hone.

Pretty much the same here, using no pressure with the second hand, using it as a guide only and changing it every stroke in order to keep the contact between forefinger and blade minimal.