Thread: Am I on the right path

I got an ebay razor in to play with on my hones. Here is the problem and my understanding on how to fix it. Hones have just been lapped razor sets flat on the hone on one side, on the other side it can rock toe to heel and the heel is not getting touched by the hone if I press down hard I can feel both sides touch the hone. On the side that does touch the bevel is set from toe to heel just fine, this seems counter intuitive to me but whatever. So how do I fix this 45 angle sweeping across the hone kind of making a J stroke as I go. Is this correct? thanks for all your help

It is impossible to have "the bevel set just fine" on only one side of the razor. Either the bevel is set, or not, on both sides, by definition. Can you clarify?

Sounds to me like you have an even amount of removal on one side, but the other is not touching flush...correct?
The term bevel means that the two sides are meeting in space at a sharp angle.
Like this /\ .

I think what you mean when you said the bevel set just fine on one side, is that it appears to be a consistent and even amount of removal or scratches on one side.

My advice at this point is to get a sharpie and color in the edge on both sides, see exactly where the metal is meeting stone.

Originally Posted by UPD

My advice at this point is to get a sharpie and color in the edge on both sides, see exactly where the metal is meeting stone.

Solid advice. Seems like one side has been unevenly sharpened. Be careful not to propagate someone else's uneven sharpening.

i can feel that one side is only touching in the mid section and that the toe and heel are not touching there is no "scratches" of the hone even touching the heel on this side like the blade is bent on one side and then sits flat on the stone on the other

It sounds like the spine is warped somehow. Can you post some pictures? That might help.

the bad side



the good side

Probably have a slightly twisted or warped blade there. Looks like pretty uneven spine wear, so the previous owner had some honing issues.

I'd color in the edge with a sharpie, give it a few x strokes, observe where the sharpie is worn off. Then you're going to have to "push" those areas where the edge isn't touching the hone, meaning you're going to have to focus on those areas with a little more direct pressure from your fingers to get the edge to hit the stone evenly.

What is your current bevel setting stone?

Originally Posted by UPD

What is your current bevel setting stone?

Norton system

When honing this or any warped blade, I've found it helpful to imagine that my hone is only 1/2" wide. Concentrate on that 1/2" making sure that when any portion of te blade enters that 1/2" zone, the edge is on the hone. This means that you may need to lift and lower the blade at several positions using the scales and keeping pressure of of the blade itself.