Thread: Reverse Honing?

OK, so here's the deal. I have two "code 3" razors in my drawer. One a Tonsorial Gem and the other a large Frederick Reynolds chopper. Once upon a time they would both give at least passable shaves. Then I touched them up. That was the beginning of the end. I couldn't get them sharp. The more I failed, the more I tried and now, I believe the problem is likely over-honing. So for my next trick I'm ready to try the spine leading multiple laps trick. So I just tape up the spine and use the same motion as on the strop except I'm doing it on the hone, right?
Will the blades become noticeably sharper or am I simply returning the blade to neutral at which point I need to go back, set the bevel and smooth the edge until it's good to go?

How many Spine Leading laps should I plan on doing? I've heard numbers up to a couple hundred, is this right? My tried and true method for touch up hones generally works like a champ. Not really sure what made these two razors jump the shark so horribly but I'd really like to recover them and put them back in the rotation if possible. As of now, they are both about "really dull pocket knife" sharp and it sucks. Of course I'm not attempting to shave with either but it sure would be nice to recover one or both and start. Of course I have plenty of serviceable alternatives but hey, it's the principle of the thing, you know?