Thread: EDGE MAINT. FORMULA

Originally Posted by mrsell63

Aha!!

..............

Originally Posted by mrsell63

Aha!! So many of you boys seem to have fallen for my "reverse psychology" ploy. I did this thread on purpose because I wanted to flush some edge touch-up ideas and opinions out of the woodwork. And it worked.

Your many ideas and opinions are just what the new guys need to help them over some of the honing rough spots. And it sounds like some of you more experienced guys appreciate a different honing strategy.

I have very few problems concerning honing an edge to shave ready.
I do, however, need a very polished sharp razor for my "barbed wire beard". An ulta tough beard is a problem we of Bulgarian ancestry have struggled with for eons.

There is no way I can get a smooth shave off the 8k like most of you.
I need to take it a step or two further. And thank you all for coming out of the woodwork.................

I think you will find that most folks here are willing to add to a discussion without the need for some type of manipulation or "reverse psychology."

Use of such a tactic is tantamount to trolling and is not in the spirit of this site and will not be tolerated.

Giving your formula for edge maintenance and then asking others what their formula is would have been sufficient.

-Rob

I just got my hands on a set of Norton combos and Lynn's modular strop. For maintenance, and refreshing at that, cromium oxide on the rough leather gives me really sharp, comfortable edges. For duller blades, and because I don't have anything higher than an 8K, I'll do some laps on the 8k, then about 40-50 on both 1 and .5 micron diamond spay on the hard felt. For my face, I'll Usually still need about 15-25 on the chromium oxide to smooth it out.

For the rest of you beginners or guys looking to buy equipment, my setup is very flexible and will provide me with good value in the long run - even as I "acquire" hones, strops, etc. The beauty of that modular paddle is that beginners can find out which sprays, pastes, and stropping mediums they prefer. It gives us the flexibility to experiment at a good value. If you mess up, replacement pads are affordable.

Originally Posted by bbuehler10

For duller blades, and because I don't have anything higher than an 8K, I'll do some laps on the 8k, then about 40-50 on both 1 and .5 micron diamond spay on the hard felt. For my face, I'll Usually still need about 15-25 on the chromium oxide to smooth it out.

Welcome to SRP. That modular paddle sure is the cat's whiskers. IME 40-50 passes on both 1 and .5 diamond spray is too much of a good thing. OTOH, if it is working for you ..... I guess it's working.

BeBerlin and Sicboater; Come on guys, whats the big deal to have all this ruckus? It didn't hurt any thing, let's kiss and make up

My warning stands.

Please think about that over the next three days.

-Rob

There are so many ways people could maintain their razors, and this is part of the beauty of this "art."

Don't like following the "mainstream"? That's cool, find the way YOU enjoy and gives you the results you want/need.

There are many good suggestions by experienced members on this site, and it's great that we can throw them all out for people to try for themselves.

Anyway, for my razors, if they need a "touchup" I try the least abrasive methods first, i.e. leather or canvas stropping.

If that doesn't do the trick, I'll hit the CrOx pasted balsa strop I made, then hit canvas and leather.

If THAT doesn't work, I will hit my smoothest finishing Coticule with water for 50-60 passes, then canvas and leather it. Occasionally I'll do 10-20 passes on CrOx balsa before the canvas and leather, but not always.

Generally I will do 50 on the canvas, and then 50-100 on the leather.

This is only my most recent routine...I have had several others I used in the past, but in my experimenting, this new one has been giving me some really excellent edges.

Some razors I have require no taping to get them incredibly sharp, but there are a couple that I just couldn't get up to par until I tried Bart's Unicot method on them.

I think of my razors as people. They all have different personalities, and are unique in their own way. Some "obey" me and take very little work, and others are INCREDIBLY annoying, and need to be beaten into submission

im just throwing this out there...after stroping is no longer enough something such as a barbers hone used to touch up the edge then strop again before use would be enough to keep a razor shave ready forever long as your didnt do something bone headed and completly kill the edge??

Originally Posted by BAMARACING8

im just throwing this out there...after stroping is no longer enough something such as a barbers hone used to touch up the edge then strop again before use would be enough to keep a razor shave ready forever long as your didnt do something bone headed and completly kill the edge??

According to one of my teachers at Barber school, yes, with a Barber hone and strop, you could keep your razors sharp forever, barring an accident where you damage the edge as you stated.

But then again, according to the same guy, you could go get a razor at a flea market or antique shop and get it shave ready with just a barber hone as well.

I've never tried to maintain my razors with just a barber hone, but I would bet it could be done. Would love to hear from someone that has used a barber hone and strop exclusively for a long time to hear how it worked.

i did buy a barber hone...when it gets here im going to try touching up a razor(wish me luck i dont ruin it) i have that pulls some then strop it and see if it will back to normal sorry it wont be long term but atleast it can be a short term look into the possibilites of it being a reality.