Printable View
I sat for an hour trying to set a good bevel and the razor will not get sharp. The toe of the blade will shave hair off but the rest won't do anything. I marked the edge with a sharpie to see if the whole of the edge is touching the hone and it is. I'm out of ideas. Any advice on the subject will be appreciated.
As much information as you can provide will help the guys work out what's going on. Everything from the kind of razor, what hones you're using in what progression, wha tyou're using to lube/wash the stones, if you're using tape on the spine and how you're angling the blade and scales could all be related.
You could be putting extra pressure on the toe moreso than the rest of the blade or maybe the toe has started to sharpen up but the rest of the blade hasnt caught up with it yet.
The toe turns up somewhat so it isn't touching the hone at all. It was that way when I got it. I'm ensuring that the toe doesn't touch (I want the rest of the blade to catch up with it as far as being evenly worn). The hone is a DMT 1200 grit and I'm just using water on it. It feels just as sharp as the toe using the TPT but when I try to cut hair with it it's like trying to shave with stiff aluminum foil.
Edit: I could try to get a good picture of the blade if that may be of some help.
Others may disagree, but your description of stiff aluminum foil sounds like over honed edge.
Quote:
Originally Posted by deighaingeal
I think you may be right. I completely dulled the edge and started over. It turned out pretty well. I think it needs a little more time on the 12k but it's pretty nice at the moment.
Thank you all for the input.
Wow, well caught.Quote:
Originally Posted by deighaingeal
I personally only use diamond "stones" on my knives & stones as my experience has shown micro-chipping with them when trying to use them on razors. I do use them on razors from time to time, but only when I am correcting issues with a blade like frowns & chips. I feel that they have a place with razors, just not in honing.
do you have any means to look at the bevels with magnification?
you need to make sure the bevel is set correctly on each side.
I have a microscope but really am not sure what I should look for.Quote:
Originally Posted by mainaman
in this case can you post a pic of the razor?Quote:
Originally Posted by bulldog
You don't require a microscope here, but a 10X loupe or magnifying glass will help you find out where you are. You have to know what shape your edge and bevel are in in order to make progress, to know what next steps to take. Like I've said elsewhere, sharpening without a loupe is like driving without being able to look through the windshield. Get a loupe, tell us what you are seeing, and we'll tell you what you ought to see and where to go from there.
I've been having the same problem. Check out my thread. I got a lot of responses:
http://straightrazorpalace.com/honin...get-sharp.html
Honing doesn't have any recipes. You honestly have to learn how to evaluate blade edges in a way that makes general knife honing look like kindergarten. Don't be so rough on yourself.
I have a 10x-20x combo loupe on the way right now. Should be here Saturday, Monday at the latest. I know I should be looking for a uniform bevel (in terms of size) and looking to see if the edge is rolled at all but other than that I'm not quite sure. Keep in mind I'm not going up as far as grit progression, I'm just trying to get it to cut hair from my bevel setter. I know that once I start using higher grit hones I should be looking for the scratches from the previous stone to "polish" out. What other factors have I left out of here?Quote:
Originally Posted by ace
The front and back side of the bevel must meet in a line -- the cutting edge -- all along the length of the blade. That's all you have to accomplish. No chips, and no "rounding" of that cutting edge.Quote:
Originally Posted by bulldog
The width of the bevel (when you look at the blade from the side, anywhere along the blade) is determined by the honing angle (which is determined by the width of the blade and the thickness of the spine) and the thickness of the blade.
If the blade is thicker in some spots (due to irregularities in factory grinding), the bevel will be wider in those spots. There's nothing you can do about it, and it's nothing to worry about. Lots of razors vary in thickness from toe to heel.
. . Charles
PS -- if the blade is warped, that's a different story.
I hadn't even thought to check for that. That will be the next thing I look for.Quote:
Originally Posted by cpcohen1945