Thread: 1k to a 4k honing prob...

Hello everyone!!

I'm still new to honing and I have been able to get a decent edge out of my dmt 1k and norton 4k/8k. But alas I have never been able to get it just right. My most pressing issue at the moment is going from a 1k to my 4k. Only after a few passes on the 1k I can cut my free standing leg hair easily across the whole razor, a decent sign that it's ready to move on. But as soon as I do a few, 20 passes, on the 4k it stops cutting?! I've lapped the 4k with 600 grit wet/dry sandpaper and a straight edge.

My only solution so far is to keep trying. Any hints or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks
Peace
Clint

The 1K is for edge repair and bevel work. personally I wouldn't even be concerned with sharpness off the 1K. Once the edge passes the visual test I move on to the 4K and go from there.

The question is not that your edge loses the sharpness after a few strokes on the 4K but what happens after say 60 strokes? If it isn't getting sharp you are doing something wrong or you didn't do enough on the 1K.

Do you have either a microscope or decent eye loupe? You may have a crumbling edge or as the previous poster said, you may have not gone far enough, it is somewhat of a jump between 1 and 4k. Is there anything you are doing different from one stone to the other? You could try doing 20 circles each side of the blade on the 4k and then 20 laps, then check your work. Circles work fast.

I seem to recall that the 4k norton needs to be lapped down 1/16" atleast to work properly

Any new whetstone should be laped upon arriving at its' new bench for its' new honer. that's the surface that will start cutting right, right from the begining. Any way it's what I always do.

tinkersd.

Did you ever simply proceed forward and try shaving? As thebigspendur mentioned, there may be nothing wrong at all, in that the 1k may be producing teeth that are sufficient to grab the hair but the teeth off the 4k may not. Still, the edge is still getter sharper.

I can only imagine the damage going on honing a razor sharp enough to cut hair on 1K. It's almost like the need to use a 4K was a big surprise. Consider that honing is additive in both sharpness and damage.

You could consider using a DMT 325 for lapping. That's what I use for all my stones, and it works great.

Originally Posted by Skippy

You could consider using a DMT 325 for lapping. That's what I use for all my stones, and it works great.

+1 on the DMT 325's. Just got mine and it made a big difference.

Maybe try Lynn's pyramid technique. It should be in the Wiki. You can use this method on the Norton 4/8k. You alternate between the 4k and 8k simultaneously with the 8k getting the most strokes but as mentioned above lapping is a must first.

Hope this helps.

Clint,

+1 on Utopians' advice.

I spent a very long time worrying about and over my first honing.

The razor wouldn't pass the HHT, etc, etc. After much time on the stones, I thought b*ll*cks!, I will try and shave with this razor.

The shave - excellent ! I wasted much time and effort fretting for no reason at all.

So, have at it; the shave will let you know what you have to do !

Good luck !

Have fun !

Best regards

Russ