Stupid mistake leads to knowledge...

OK - got my Norton 4K/8K today in the mail from classicshaving. I put it to use on the old J.R. Torrey, with not much luck. That's an issue for another thread. I then did one round of pyramid honing on the Dovo Renaissance. Then, stopped and tested on my chin (after lathering). Better, but not great, so while attempting to wash off the residue on the stone, my dumba$$ hit the edge of the razor on the water tap!!! :mad: Yes, I had the razor in my hand while running the stone under water and rubbing the residue off. Don't ask. I was excited...

So - there I stand, with a large, highly visible nick in my brand new blade. My stomach sunk, but I decided to try my best to fix it. After some more pyramids, the nick was a lot less visible. HOWEVER - (here's the "knowledge" part!)... the blade was sharp - real sharp, compared to what it had been! Because of the stupid mistake I learned what a real edge feels like!

From here, I guess I try to shave with it tomorrow morning. If I leave streaks of blood I assume I need to send the razor to one of you experts for a real fix.

Tim

haha...

We have all done that my self included.... in fact my razor had slight nicks to begin with (before I really started honing) and I worked them out only to do the exact same thing you just did :rant:

I'm sure the real experts will chime in here soon, but the real issue is just how big is the nick? It sounds like it wasn't too bad really if you were able to partially remove it with the pyramid. That being the case, I'm sure you will be able to resolve the nick on your own unless you get a little scared ;)
besides the expierence will be invaluable....

Now all you need is a healthy gash and you'll be fully initiated into the faternity:D

Yes, I could use the expert's opinion here! I'm not too sure what to do - to keep honing until it's completely removed (won't that be "overhoning?"), or just try to keep it, as it seems to be pretty smooth.

The nick is now about 1mm deep. It started out a lot bigger than that, though! Just didn't want to keep honing and honing... I did 3 pyramids after the "incident." The pyramids were 5x/4K 5x/8K, 3x/4K, 3x/8K, 1x/4K, 3x/8K, 1x/4K, 3x/8K.

Ugh! Damn thing is brand new, and I really like it! The shaves were pretty decent on my cheeks, just couldn't get my "tough spots" real well with the duller blade.

Well 1 mm for a nick is actually pretty deep. I have some razors with some really tiny nicks in them probably less than .25mm and they shave great. It also depends where the nick is. If its towards either ends it will probably be less noticeable than if its towards the middle. Of course once you start honing it out then you need to hone down the entire edge until its all equal. Thats why I say if it shaves ok leave it alone unless your one of those real anal guys that demands pefection.

I was so mad today. I have this wade & Butcher with blond wood scales and brass hardware and all. The blade was in good condition until I hit it with a dremel felt tip and knocked a chunck out of the blade. I learned my lesson. It pretty much ruined my day until I found out that the razor Randy sent to me was in town at the post office, so that made things better.

I gotta chime in here. Nothing less than absolutely NO nicks will do for me. I had brought an old W&B back from the bring and initially produced and uneven wiry bevel with a minor nick of about .25 mm. It was a brilliantly sharp shave, but there was scratches and always a little blood. Once I gave myself a tiny nick on the lip. A perfect edge is necessary for a safe shave. Demand nothing less of your razor.

X

Tim, don't worry, you now have better feel for the razor when rinsing to the faucet. As for the tap, been there done that... I find that the tiny nick don't bother me when I shave. If you don't feel it when shaving, leave it alone... Try shaving, than decide what to do.

Nenad

Thanks everyone for the advice and reassurance... I decided to not shave with it this morning, in order to save time for more honing. I spent about an hour on it, with very light pressure. Believe it or not, I was able to get rid of it! What started out last night as a huge gouge is now completely gone. The edge is still very sharp, too, so I guess I didn't overhone it. The test will be tonight when I shave with it, but I know already that it is sharper than when I first got it.

Again - thanks for the encouragement! Lesson learned here!

When removing a nick I never use the pyramid. I only use the 4000 stone until the nick is gone. From there its just a couple of small pyramids on the 4/8 and the edge is sharp.

Just my two cents,

Yep - that's pretty much what I did... Got the nick with the 4K side. Once in a while I flipped to the 8K for a couple of passes, just to break the monotony.

I think you made the right decision. You'll discover bad damage from nicks like that at the wrong moment. Had you stropped it you might have put a nice scratch down your strop. And your face will probably appreciate it as well. I would consider the first razor for your learning anyway, regardless of how much you love it.