Thread: What's Your Touch-Up Sequence

Originally Posted by nun2sharp

Same for me, Why go to extra and unnecessary work?

Some have said the barber hone is more like an 8k grit and not too comfortable to shave off of. I've been shaving the last week with my Leader off the Swaty with Canvas/Leather stropping (no pastes/CrOx, etc.), and getting my best shaves yet. But I'm still a newb.

Anybody here tried Davis' graphite strop trick as a finisher?

20-30 strokes on the Chinese waterstone.

Edit: 12000 grit eliminated

I'm new to this 'game' so here's what I just did for my 3rd shave, and it seemed to work great: small pyramid on the 3k-5k; small pyramid on the 5k-8k; and a small pyramid on the 8k-12k. Then 60 laps Linen and 60 Laps leather. This was after I screwed it up stropping for my second shave.

But since I'm such a FNG at this I'll take any advice anyone has to give...?

WP34

Originally Posted by Wolfpack34

I'm new to this 'game' so here's what I just did for my 3rd shave, and it seemed to work great: small pyramid on the 3k-5k; small pyramid on the 5k-8k; and a small pyramid on the 8k-12k. Then 60 laps Linen and 60 Laps leather. This was after I screwed it up stropping for my second shave.

But since I'm such a FNG at this I'll take any advice anyone has to give...?

WP34

Sure.
Strop more carefully!

I would guess that you did not need to drop down and do that much. Unless you completely trashed the edge, requiring a bevel re-set, then you probably could have gotten by with the 8k-12k pyramid, though I would have started with just 10 strokes on the 12k alone.

Thanks...My new 'Motto': Rectus gladius ictus non detrimentum vos!

WP34

The OP referred to "touching up" a blade that had no issues, wasn't particularly dull, no chips, etc. Early in my breadknifing career I would start over at every honing session and reset the bevel and go from there. After a few five hour honing sessions, a bout of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, and severe weight loss issues, I finally wised up. I started thinking a little bit, assessing what shape the blade was in, and doing only what it really needed to be brought back to life. If you're going to give your Corvette a tune-up, you don't rebuild the engine. You do that only after the tune-up when you blow it up at the Drag Strip.

So now I finish from the top down, using the highest numeric grit I have. If that doesn't work, then, but only then, I drop down in grit. I have plenty of work to do, and there is no reason to increase that amount of work.

I try a few laps on a finisher first, and only drop down to a 8k if it is necessary. Many times I just give it a few laps on a Cro pasted strop, if I am lazy to get the stones out.

Originally Posted by Alembic

So assuming that there is no damage your blade and your razor just needs a touch up, what is your typical touch-up sequence?

I have a full set of Naniwas, so I typically do 5-10 laps on my 8K and 5-10 laps on my 12k. I have had very good results with this sequence. My reasoning is that these are the last two operations I use when honing a razor following bevel setting and sharpening.

Anybody else?

Hi, Guys,
I'm getting close to 4 months shaving with my SR once a week. And now I want to refresh the edge because I'm feeling that is not so good as it was before. But I think there are too many information available and I'm getting confused.
What would you guys recommend to start the refresh process? Use a strop with paste/spray?? Or a water stone? A water stone should be a Naniwa 12k?

Thanks a lot!
--
Andre.

if you can afford a nani 12k get that then you wont have to keep sending it out professionally. crox is great on a tight budget but will eventually give up and it will need to be honed but you could probably get away with one honing a year like this. i think most people who have a nani 12k still finish on crox anyway but thats just personal preference the nani gives such a smooth edge anyway its not really necessary

In the time since my last post, I've used barber's hones, Norton 8k's, and a Thuringian to retouch a blade. The Barber's hones give a smoother edge than the Norton 8k. The Thuringian gives the best edge out of what I've used, but can be pricey to get a hold of.

You can go with strops and pastes; plenty of guys do. But they aren't necessary.

If you plan on honing your own razor at any point in your life, you can get a comfortable shave with a little practice and a Norton 8k. From there you can move up if you aren't perfectly happy, but you'll still have a very useful tool at hand.

If you're dead set against doing any honing, then I'd go the paste/spray route.

Peace,
Jim