Thread: Having issues keeping Boker Edelweiss sharp

I'm having a lot of trouble keeping my Boker Edelweiss sharp and smooth for more than a shave or two. I've touched it up on the 8k side of my Norton twice now, and gotten great shaves off of it. Then the next shave is rough, and while it doesn't pull, it doesn't cut smoothly either. I have 2 other razors in my rotation, a Wolfertz and an AJ Jordan.

I need to find what part of this whole process I'm messing up, and here are my thoughts:

1. I'm not honing properly on the 8k.

2. I'm stropping poorly.


I've said in numerous posts that I'm uncomfortable stropping this particular razor. I made an adjustment while I was stropping it today, and instead of stropping with the strop parallel to the floor, I lowered my hand and titled the strop to the floor. It was a significantly more comfortable and smooth strop. Right now, I'm thinking the stropping is the issue.

My plan is to give it another go on the 8k this weekend and see if this altered stropping technique allows me to keep the edge smooth. When I use the 8k to freshen the edge, I've been doing 40 or so x-strokes with little-to-no pressure and clear water (no slurry). Then I do about 3 or 4 backwards (stropping) strokes, followed by 75-100 laps on linen. Could this progression be the issue too?

I'd have to say your stropping is the culprit. I'd recommend going at it slow and steady.

Prob stropping, but remove the stropping honing strokes next. It could be the culprit too.

I agree with AFDavis. Although, I'd do it the other way around.

Remove the backward honing strokes first. Those strokes are used to remove a burr, and IIRC, Glen uses them on his 30k shapton. I could be wrong about that though.

I've tested the back honing strokes to finish and edge, and to this date I've not had any results that I would deem even close to acceptable. I continue to hone with a forward/cutting motion. Especially at the 8K level.

Originally Posted by Maxi

I've tested the back honing strokes to finish an edge, and to this date I've not had any results that I would deem even close to acceptable. I continue to hone with a forward/cutting motion. Especially at the 8K level.

Absolutely!

Don't do any spine leading laps as a finishing stroke, stick with the tried-and-true edge leading. I think you'll find a difference right away.

Im no pro lol but it does also sound to me like it could be a stropping issue.

Back Honing at that level is not a good idea...

Even at the 30k Shapton level I use a 3-2-1 which is 3 edge leading 2 backhoning and 1 edge leading sometimes even a 3-2-2 (thanks Maxi)

But at the lower level grits backhoning creates a rough edge, and a frown, the Vorhaven paper explains why much better than I do, but simply put, you are pulling metal out from the edge... This is what we tried to explain to that Knife guy Carter but he wouldn't listen

Go back to the JaNorton thread and read through some of the finishing tricks we were using on the 8k Norton and see if some of those don't pull the Boker into line..

I also think you are running the edge pretty hard with a heavy progression, I would back it down on the 8k and the linen but we all have different pressures and strokes so I could be wrong there...

BTW my second Boker was an Edlewiess, and all I used back then was the Norton 4/8 and I remember thinking that little beauty was Silk on a Stick

PS: I also find that tilting the strop just a bit like you just found, either up or down seems to lessen the pressure and gets me a better feel on the face..

Basically stropping at either a slight up angle or a slight down angle

Originally Posted by gssixgun

Back Honing at that level is not a good idea...

Even at the 30k Shapton level I use a 3-2-1 which is 3 edge leading 2 backhoning and 1 edge leading sometimes even a 3-2-2 (thanks Maxi)

But at the lower level grits backhoning creates a rough edge, and a frown, the Vorhaven paper explains why much better than I do, but simply put, you are pulling metal out from the edge... This is what we tried to explain to that Knife guy Carter but he wouldn't listen

Go back to the JaNorton thread and read through some of the finishing tricks we were using on the 8k Norton and see if some of those don't pull the Boker into line..

I also think you are running the edge pretty hard with a heavy progression, I would back it down on the 8k and the linen but we all have different pressures and strokes so I could be wrong there...

BTW my second Boker was an Edlewiess, and all I used back then was the Norton 4/8 and I remember thinking that little beauty was Silk on a Stick

PS: I also find that tilting the strop just a bit like you just found, either up or down seems to lessen the pressure and gets me a better feel on the face..

Basically stropping at either a slight up angle or a slight down angle

well it's a good thing I backhoned only twice...hopefully I didn't do any real damage. I'll bring it down to 20 laps on the 8k, clear water, and maybe 50 strokes on canvas and see where I go.

Backhoning is no sin, but theoretically it is an slightly inferior technique especially with lower grits. Gssixgun mentioned the paper of John D. Verhoeven, emeritus professor at Iowa state university (2004) that can be found here

But I feel I must say that the difference is highly theoretical, because if you suck at forward honing, whereas your hand is steady when backwardshoning,
the latter will give you better results. Try to do what feels best for you and master this technique.
On the original topic I suggest a new bevel to be set and hone the puppy from scratch. Otherwise there may be too many things that could cause the problems you described, to find out right now.

But if a 8k stone is all you got, there will be no harm in playing around with the 8k a little more.
Maybe you can fix the problem with more, consistent strokes. Maybe even raise a slurry and dilute to water only

well I have a 4/8 combo, so I could reset the bevel but I haven't quite mastered the technique. If I can't make it work, I have a free SRD honing that came with the razor that I'll use instead.

My common sense tells me that it doesn't need it. The razor does cut hair without pulling, it's just rough and leaves my neck irritated. It also doesn't have the smooth glide it did when I first took it to the 8k...or when I got it from SRD.

Keep in mind though that my common sense isn't founded in the straight razor world, so grain-of-salt and all that...