Warped Blade?

Hey Guys,

I have been shaving with a straight razor for about 6 months now, but I have never been able to get the razor as sharp as my double edge. I have always chalked it up to learning to sharpen the blade.

Last night I tried to start over and hone it with a medium India stone (about 30 passes) and then a Black Arkansas (about 30 passes). I noticed something very interesting. That I was getting a smile on one side and a frown on the other. On one side the tip and the heel were honed with little or no effect on the middle and the othe side the middle was getting honed with no effect on the tip or heel. I rotated the stones to eliminate the possibility that the stone was gouged and got the same results.

I am laying the blade down flat so the exact results is reflected on the top (decorative part) of the razor (sorry for not knowing the term). The razor is a new Dovo Bone Handle Bismark 6/8. Could it be warped?

Has any one seen this? If it can be corrected, how?

Thanks in advance for your responses.

Mark

It could be that the razor is mishapen, but I would suspect that you are using different pressure application from one direction to the next when you are honing. Try ensuring that you grip is appropriate for each direction and work to correct the bevel assuming that YOU are the problem and not the razor. I make sure my thumb is on the edge side of the shank on the top of the razor and that my forefinger contacts the spine side of the shank from underneath. This helps me get a subtle torque which keeps the edge in firm, but not excessive contact with the hone. I also use the Rolling Hone method where I travel the main point of contact with the hone gently and subtly up the edge from heel to tip as I progress along the honing stroke.

X

Unless it's a major production defect or you hit it wiht the hammer a few times, I'd say it's probably your stones. Lap them for starters. Once you do that, you may want to re-try honing them. However I don't know how effective these stones are for getting a shaving edge.

Lay it down on a sheet of glass and see if the edge and spine rest flat against the glass.

Hey Guys,

Thanks for the feedback.

I did try using other stones (4k and 8k Norton water stones) with the same results. I also tried using the two handed approach with two fingers of my free hand lightly rested on the spine. All of my stones are 3" so I can move straight across. I have tried to eliminate as many of the possible mistakes and the thing that I keep coming back to is that it is exactly the same result every time. It doesn't vary.

Will over at Classic Shaving suggested that I send it to Lynn via Classic Shaving for his expertise and sharpening. I included a note and hopefully he will be able to get it shave ready and even provide me with a little feedback that might help me in the future.

Before I send it I will try laying it on the glass to see what that tells me. In the mean time I ordered the Filarmonica 7/8 to try in its absence. That looks like a meat cleaver. If anyone has ever tried one I'd appreciate your feedback.

Thanks,

Mark

mparker762,

Nice call. I placed the razor first on a piece of granite and then a plate glass with the blade and the spine flat against the surface and I could see daylight between the surface and the spine and the blade. It does seem to be warped consistantly with the way the honing reads.

I checked all of my other knives and leatherworking tools and none of them show the same signs of inconsistant honing across the blade.

I am still sending it off to Lynn today, but I would like to know if any of you guys have ever experienced this kind of inconsistancy in a razor. I have seen it in some of the cheaper knives that I have purchased over the years but I would not expect it in something that was supposed to be so precise.

Thanks for your feedback.

Mark

I have seen that kind of "inconsistency" several time's before in new razors. The quality control methods used at the factory leave a bit to be disired.

To hone that razor you would need to use either a rolling X pattern on a standard hone or an X pattern on a narrow hone.
The bevel will probably never be even but it will shave just fine.

Just my two cents,

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Originally Posted by Mark C. Candela

mparker762,

Nice call. I placed the razor first on a piece of granite and then a plate glass with the blade and the spine flat against the surface and I could see daylight between the surface and the spine and the blade. It does seem to be warped consistantly with the way the honing reads.

I checked all of my other knives and leatherworking tools and none of them show the same signs of inconsistant honing across the blade.

I am still sending it off to Lynn today, but I would like to know if any of you guys have ever experienced this kind of inconsistancy in a razor. I have seen it in some of the cheaper knives that I have purchased over the years but I would not expect it in something that was supposed to be so precise.

Thanks for your feedback.

Mark

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I have the Filarmonica you are getting and it is a fine shaver.

Another thing you can try is using a magic marker in the edge of your razor and then try honing. If the marker comes off in some places and not others and your sure your hone is flat then you know your not making consistant contact with the hone. I don't know about a warped blade. Personally I've never seen one. I'm sure they exist especially old well used ones but newer ones? I would think it a rare defect. Maybe others can chime in with their experiences with allegedly warped blades.

Thanks for the feedback on the Filarmonica. I am looking forward to it. I also just purchased a 8/8 Henckel that looks pretty fina as well. I am eagerly awaiting both.

Randy,

The problem may still very well be me, but it is a bit more comforting to know that someone has seen this kind of problem before. I understand that during the heating process sometimes the blades do bend and they attempt to straighten them. I guess some may get through QC with a slight flaw.

Thanks,

Mark

Warped blade are not as uncommon as you may think. The heat treating process does it. The thinner the steel, the more likely it will warp. I'm pretty sure razors were either only partially ground or not ground at all before the heat process took place. After they were tempered, a different process, then they were ground. No way could they have been ground to their normal thin profile and then heat treated.

I have knifemaker friends who do their folders this way to ensure the blades do not warp. Warped blades can be fixed. Use a big vise.

Put the blade parallel to the top of the jaws near the surface. Vertically insert one wood dowel on each "low" side of the blade at the spine. Then insert a vertical dowel on the opposide side of the blade at the tangent of the "high" side on the spine.

Crank the vise shut until you go a little past the curvature of the bend. Practice on some junkers first. Do a little at a time and keep checking to see if the blade is straight.

Tip: Tape the dowels in place on the blade because you will need 5 hands otherwise to get them where they need to go.

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Another thing you can try is using a magic marker in the edge of your razor and then try honing. If the marker comes off in some places and not others and your sure your hone is flat then you know your not making consistant contact with the hone.

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This oughta be the "sticky" TIP OF THE DAY". What a great tidbit of knowledge to have.

I just finished honing an old composite frameback with a twisted spine piece so that the blade described a slight helix. The "signature" of this one was interesting - the hone only wanted to touch the ends of the blade and not the middle, even though the blade had a minor but noticeable smile to it. I was able to get a basic bevel by combining the rock-and-roll motion with a sort of corkscrew twist, but could never get the entire edge to the hair popping stage using just the stone. I punted and finished the edge on the pasted strops, it felt like the slight give of the leather helped compensate for a less-than-perfect corkscrew/rock/roll motion. A pasted hanging strop would have probably worked even better.