(almost) Successful Honing My First Two Razors!

Hey all,

I spent many hours on my new, freshly-lapped, Nortons this weekend. First of all, I'm amazed at how quick improvement can come. I was using two hands for awhile because I just couldn't keep the blade flat on the hone one-handed. Using the pinky to adjust height was useless - I had no touch at all, it was either too far up or too far down and I just couldn't find a middle ground. Then I slowed waaayyy down, made sure my strokes were as close to perfect as I could get them, and before too long (and a couple of breaks to calm down and let my muscles re-set) I was seeing vast improvements. Happy times.

Here are the problems I still need help with -

I went ahead and shaved with three razors today, the two I had honed and my "shave ready" razor honed by Larry over at Whipped Dog. My two razors did cut, but were just a little rougher than Larry's.

I've read plenty of threads about how inaccurate and misleading the HHT can be, but my "shave ready" razor will easily mow down the "treetops" of my arm hairs, and I see gssixgun getting those results as soon as the bevel is set, and I just can't get my newly-honed razors to do it.

I *can* pass the HHT after progressing past the 8k and then stropping with CrOx and leather, but only in the center of the blade (which is most likely a problem with my stroke missing the heel and toe).

any advice on; A: getting my razors smoother, B: passing HHT at the 1k or 4k level, and C: sharpening up the heels and toes?

for smoothness off the 8k Norton , you need to either lighten up the pressure while honing on the stone, or add more laps to get the max out of it.
You might need to add more laps on CrO to get that 8k edge as smooth as possible.

Sounds like you have already done the best sharpness test, which is shaving which told you that the razors were not quite there, but close. As Stefan indicated, pressure could be an issue. You might try 3-5 no pressure X strokes back on the 8K and the strop and re-test to see what the results are. You really should not need more than 10 light strokes on the chromium oxide.

Have fun

You have already learned to slow down and take your time, speed is unnecessary, you say that the center of the blade is sharp but not the heel or toe, check for a warp and if this is not a problem then work on keeping the blade perfectly flat, go slow and watch every stroke you make, this way you can see where you need to correct yourself.

I used to find any post by Randydance I could find and watch his avatar while I was learning to hone, it will help you to develop the perfect stroke.