Thread: Can this be honed out?

FWIW (I may be out of my depth here) --

1. One alternative is keeping the frown, and getting the edge sharp. Since there are a _lot_ of old razors with frowns, I suspect the shave would be OK. However, honing a frowning edge is tricky.

2. To "fix" the frown, you hone the razor on a flat stone until you've removed metal from the toe and heel - enough metal so the toe and heel are even with the center of the frown. The edge will then be straight.

The first razor I bought had a frown -- my story is here:

http://straightrazorpalace.com/honin...ning-edge.html

It eventually straightened out; it's "number 1" in my rotation.

Charles

My first clean up had a very similar profile as well, however, I was lucky that it is a shoulderless blade.
I watched Glen's video over and over before trying to do anything with it and now it shaves just great.

This might be viewed as a stupid question, especially at this point in this thread, but I'm the guy for the job. Why exactly is a frown difficult to shave with? I don't have any blades with frowns and am not in the market for one, given the bad press they seem to get, but it seemed to me that the profile of a frown might be closer to the curvature of the contours of parts of the face than a smiling edge would be. Just puttin' this out there.

I won't ask how that Shumate Barber is - I know.

I don't know if the blade was a fleabay or other method where you don't get to see and feel it first. If I go to antique store or show, I carry a small barber hone to check for smile/frown (I like smiles), and for symetry - any wave or warp. The Bhone and a loupe can be handy.

Originally Posted by ace

This might be viewed as a stupid question, especially at this point in this thread, but I'm the guy for the job. Why exactly is a frown difficult to shave with? I don't have any blades with frowns and am not in the market for one, given the bad press they seem to get, but it seemed to me that the profile of a frown might be closer to the curvature of the contours of parts of the face than a smiling edge would be. Just puttin' this out there.

Sharpening a frowning edge on a narrow stone isn't difficult. Sharpening a frowning edge on a wide stone (like a Norton bench stone), is not straightforward.

I think the frowns developed because people were using narrow hones. With a barber hone, it's easy to "accidentally" take more metal off the center of the blade, than off the ends. The razor shaves OK, and the barber keeps honing it unevenly until a real frown develops.

And then he says "Uh-oh, I need a new razor", and the frowning blade goes in his "old razor" drawer, and 50 years later one of us buys it on eBay!

. . . Charles

PS -- at least, it _could_ have happened like that!<g>

The simple answer...
A frown is much more likely to cut ya besides the honing problems... By always honing toward a smile, it would eventually turn a slight frown upside down The techniques are rather simple but they have to be mastered... The fastest way to get a frown, is to put yer finger on the blade, or to hone straight up and down the hone... Given "fairly" flat hones...
If you hone a lot of razors one thing you learn is that many spine/edge grinds are not perfect so by honing without guiding the edge over the years many razors will develop problems..

I got really confuse

Originally Posted by cpcohen1945

Sharpening a frowning edge on a narrow stone isn't difficult. Sharpening a frowning edge on a wide stone (like a Norton bench stone), is not straightforward.

I think the frowns developed because people were using narrow hones.

usually result not using flat hones.

With a barber hone, it's easy to "accidentally" take more metal off the center of the blade, than off the ends. The razor shaves OK, and the barber keeps honing it unevenly until a real frown develops.

i have no idea what are you trying to say in above statement? why barber hones are any different from rest of the similar wide size stones?

And then he says "Uh-oh, I need a new razor", and the frowning blade goes in his "old razor" drawer, and 50 years later one of us buys it on eBay!

. . . Charles

PS -- at least, it _could_ have happened like that!<g>

Sham --

I think most barber hones are narrower than most blades. So it is easy to hone badly -- to take more metal off the middle of the blade, than off the toe and heel. If you use a "straight stroke" instead of X-stroke, that will probably happen.

What _I_ don't understand is why honing "straight up and down" on a flat hone should result in a frown, _if the hone is wider than the blade_. Since GsSixgun knows way more than I do, I'll let him explain it. [Putting a finger on the middle of the blade, and honing straight up and down -- _that_ will cause a frown for sure!]

I think I am out of my depth -- too many ideas, and not enough experience.

Charles

Cahrles you will see very rare someone uses barber hones up and down. usually it is x strokes.
while someone makes x strokes we had many people asked why heel of the blade almost doesn't stay in the stone long enough to be honed?
In reality if you hone blade correctly buy using x strokes your blade will have double smile.
Meaning heel and toe will honed more then middle.
i am not sure what Glen said (about putting finger in the middle of the blade)but if you put your finger in the middle of the blade and use some pressure and start to making up and down strokes in perfectly flat stone your blade will end up getting frown.
Because you are pushing down in the middle of the blade and tip and heel will left off from the stone(this is a little dramatic) . This will end up making frown. middle of the blade will hone more then rest of the blade.
If someone uses finger to put in the middle of the blade it has to be done without any pressure at all.
Just to help keep the blade flat enough on the stone.
hope this helps.