Thread: Sharpen or Set Bevel

Greetings defenders of straight razor shaving....

So I was looking at a straight razor the other day and a question came to mind. When one buys a straight razor, oh say from ebay, how do you know when to set the bevel or just sharpen it on a finer grit stone? I guess what I am asking is what do you look for? If I were to look at a razor's bevel and it looked even but was not totally sharp, I would just assume that you could use a fine grit stone and sharpen it right up and it would be good. Am I way off base or kinda in the ball park? You'll have to excuse my ignorance if this seems like a silly question.

What stone would you use to just sharpen the razor? Maybe 12K??????

If it has chips and oxidation you redo the bevel. If it's just a little dull you sharpen it. I've never had something in between.
If those who have honed it before me were any good it may be just a little dull and 8k grit hone would do it, otherwise it needs starting from scratch.

When I buy razors on ebay I just know I'll have to do all the work. The only exception if it comes from an experienced member, like the one I just got last week.

Not a silly question at all,,

To know which to do takes experience -BUT- most of us with that experience will automatically re-set the bevel and start from a known point anyway... So the answer is actually a Catch 22...

Except as the Gugimiester just pointed out, if it comes from a known source....

Is a 12k grit stone good to use for sharpening?

Originally Posted by JMatthias

Is a 12k grit stone good to use for sharpening?

I think it is generally used for finishing, but it is sharpening at the same time. Knowing what stone to use is a matter of knowing at what stage the blade is. Does it pass the TNT? Does it cut arm hair easily? Use the tests to tell what the status of the blade is, and that will tell you what the next step should be. If in doubt, make sure you have a bevel set.

Originally Posted by JMatthias

Is a 12k grit stone good to use for sharpening?

yes, if the razor is still able to shave, though not as it used to.
if the razor cannot shave then no, 12k grit stone is not going to help you.

i can tell you what hones i usually use to sharpen a razor. I use them in the following order:
diamond hone ~150grit
diamond hone ~600grit
DMT-EF 1200grit or Naniwa Superstone 1000grit
Naniwa Superstone 5000grit
Naniwa Superstone 8000grit
Naniwa Superstone 12000grit
Escher or Nakayama - no grit

I'd usually start at the 1000grit level, but if the razor needs it I'm not shy to start at the coarser ones. It's just removal of steel and as long as I do not remove more than necessary, I'd rather not spend eternity doing it.

I just start right from scratch and set a bevel...that way I'm sure

JMatthias,

Being very much still a honing newbie, I always set the bevel first on a razor that is new to me, and that has unkown provenence on the honing front.

That way I know it has been done properly.

I also need the practice !!

Have fun !

Best regards

Russ

Whenever I buy an old razor on ebay or from an antique shop I was reset the bevel no matter what, I move through the following:

Naniwa 1K
Norton 4/8K
Naniwa 12K
Finisher - coticule, escher, nakayama, Oozuku, etc.

Or I just hone on a coticule if I want straight through the whole process.

Better to be sure and I like buying old razors just to hone them anyway.