Thread: Beginners, The 1k shave . . .

Here is a bevel set hint:

The TNT is really your friend, not only does it tell you about the sharpness of the bevel it also smooths the bevel up for you

Whenever you use it and get a positive pass, then do maybe 10 super light finishing strokes on the 1k and check for a positive Arm Hair Test if both tests gave a good solid positive test you can be pretty darn confident in a solid smooth bevel set

A couple of TNT passes can clean up a ton of junk on the edge without doing the same damage as a Jointing Stroke/Downstroke/Glass Stroke can cause, make friends with the TNT and get smoother edges at the end ...

If you guys want to push your 1k stones as far as you can, try honing with a dab of lather (very little) as too much lifts the blade off the stone. Or even just a small drop of dish soap in the water will will provide adequate lubrication. By using lather it lubricates the abrasive slightly enough to allow for a slightly less deep scratch pattern.

It's also neat to compare the different 1k bevel setters, so make sure you mention what stone you're using. Keep up the good work guys!

Originally Posted by gssixgun

Here is a bevel set hint:

The TNT is really your friend, not only does it tell you about the sharpness of the bevel it also smooths the bevel up for you

Whenever you use it and get a positive pass, then do maybe 10 super light finishing strokes on the 1k and check for a positive Arm Hair Test if both tests gave a good solid positive test you can be pretty darn confident in a solid smooth bevel set

A couple of TNT passes can clean up a ton of junk on the edge without doing the same damage as a Jointing Stroke/Downstroke/Glass Stroke can cause, make friends with the TNT and get smoother edges at the end ...

Great tip, thanks Glen.

Wow TNT, I had never used it before for fear of "nails on the chalkboard" feeling.
What a valuable tool! The bevel was rough as hell on the greaves, but I had the wosty smooth as glass.
I chose another wedge to eliminate the wedge being the issue (I know now it was a bevel issue)
Boker 5/8 near wedge
Set bevel on norton 1k
10 crox
40 linen
50 leather
It cut effortlessly, by far the smoothest 1k

Next was the Greaves
Reset bevel on 1k, using tnt
Escher heavy slurry, dilute, finish on clean stone
Strop
Very smooth but not as close as my 8k

Next was the wosty
Couple strokes on the 1k to make up for the tnt
After watching a couple vids on coticule I made an attempt, but it didnt get it anywhere near the 8k level, tnt and aht were great but it didnt shave very smooth.

So now I'm planning on going through all my razors to check/reset bevels where necessary, which means I'll have to finish them all aswell . Sounds like a lot of work!

Originally Posted by gssixgun

Here is a bevel set hint:

The TNT is really your friend, not only does it tell you about the sharpness of the bevel it also smooths the bevel up for you

Whenever you use it and get a positive pass, then do maybe 10 super light finishing strokes on the 1k and check for a positive Arm Hair Test if both tests gave a good solid positive test you can be pretty darn confident in a solid smooth bevel set

A couple of TNT passes can clean up a ton of junk on the edge without doing the same damage as a Jointing Stroke/Downstroke/Glass Stroke can cause, make friends with the TNT and get smoother edges at the end ...

Hey Glen!

As always you give great counsel!

One thing about the bevel without magnifications is what you have shown in you videos by using lighting to be able to ‘see’ the bevel. Just to make sure that it's even!

I used your advice even though I had a non-illuminated 20X Loupe!! It’s a very useful and convenient tool!

Thanks for that word of advice!

I once had a very decent shave off a DMT325, so I guess a 1K shave would be fine.
It's all a matter of having a bevel of which the sides form a perfect triangle.
The toothiness of the edge makes it harder to shave without an angle, but if you go with toe leading, it'll saw right through the hairs without too much fuss.

In the end (by the time I'd grown enough stubble to test-shave) I'd finished 2 new razors. One just polishing, one making and pinning new scales.

From not cutting arm hair at all, I did the following, all on a 1k King waterstone with light lather (except the last few strokes). I like using a bit of lather because it leaves a more visible trace of where the razor is contacting the stone properly - this is probably more useful to newbies like me than to people who can feel where the blade is making contact.

6/8" half-round half-hollow Joseph Rodgers.

Applied magic marker
25 x-strokes, moderate pressure
25 circles, moderate pressure
25 x-strokes, light ... at this point it passed the AHT along about a third of its length (near the point)
25 x-strokes, light ... now cutting (but not brilliantly) along the whole edge
10 x-strokes, light, with thick lather ... seemed to be good AHT all the way along. Nice 'suction' feeling against the stone.

4/8" Kropp square-point full hollow (pics here):
Magic marker
10 x-strokes, light
25 circles, light, ... AHT passed just at the point
25 x-strokes, light, ... AHT passed except for heel
25 x-strokes, light, torque to heel end, ... AHT passed except for heel
25 x-strokes, light, torque to heel end, ... AHT passed
10 x-strokes, no pressure, with thick lather.

In both cases the sharp edge gradually extended from the point to the heel. Is this normal, or is it a sign that I'm honing unevenly?

Both were then finished with stropping - 50 newspaper, 50 denim, 80 leather.

Test shaving - half of face with Kropp - cut quite well, but could be better. Didn't exactly burn, but some irritation during the shave, quickly fixed with Nivea ASB. Half of face with Rodgers, didn't cut as well as the Kropp, and irritation was worse (maybe the blades were about the same sharpness/smoothness but the heavier weight of the Rodgers caused this? Don't know). Still, not as bad as I expected.

Because of the burn I decided to do the second pass with my regular SR, and because I was thinking about honing not shaving, managed to cut myself. 2 months ago I couldn't spell noob, now I am one!

Originally Posted by Matt69

Because of the burn I decided to do the second pass with my regular SR, and because I was thinking about honing not shaving, managed to cut myself. 2 months ago I couldn't spell noob, now I am one!

My Brother In Blades!

While some of us have been shaving/honing etc for many years we are all still Noobs from one time or another! While it might not be shaving, it's going to be honing, stropping etc! Hell even sometime even getting the lather 'just right'

I recall Glen (GSSIXGUN) posting that he had a new set of hones that he was still tying to figure out how to get them to give a great shave!

Keep the faith! It'll come!

Thanks, I'm not at all discouraged. In fact I'm very pleased I got near-shavable edges on both razors. (Both were ideal candidates for a new honer, I think - nice straight edges with no frown/smile, no chips, no hone wear).

I think I'll give the Rodgers another few laps on the 1k, then put both of them on a finer grit stone. I think the Kropp is quite close to OK.

Thanks to the OP for suggesting that "Learning to shave off a 1k (if actually possible) would be incredibly valuable for a beginner honer" ... great idea!

This is a great experiment, it teaches new comers to learn one stone at a time. You can get a decent shave off a 1k, just takes a steady hand and a proper stropping.