Honing SHoulder - Has anyone had this before????

Has anyone ever spent way too much time honing and ended up with what i like to call 'honing shoulder'? My right arm/shoulder is out of service today after I spent all afternoon yesterday on the stones!

I had previously set the bevel on a 1k naniwa borrowed from Ironsidegnr with one piece of electrical tape on 5 of my newly acquired straights. Returning his stone, I asked for two more :) I was happy when he lent me his 8k and 12k Naniwa superstones.

Between the 1K and 8k I also spent countless hours (on a previous day) on my 'yellow arkansaw' and my 'mystery gray'. Both definitely above the 1k but not certain about the gray stone, probably somewhere around 8k ish but a slow cutter.

I got started on the 8k, did 50x strokes per blade, first 25 had slight pressure, next 25 with little to no pressure. Then I moved to the 12k. I made a nice slurry and did 40 x strokes by 4 dilutions then washed the stone and went to straight water.

If my math is right i did 1250 x strokes total.... Hair was popping and the edges looked brilliant with an exceptional mirrored finish (viewed without magnification).

THEN I realise something... I set the bevel with 1 piece of electrical tape on the 1K to protect the spine and I hadn't reapplied it when doing the 8 and 12k........

The process started again and at the end of the day I had done 2500 X strokes and wasted my holiday monday.

With that said each of the razors is popping hair the entire length of the blade! I haven't tried the HHT yet but I'm hoping after stropping each of the blades they will pass it as well!

OH and when I get those 3 welsh slate hones I ordered from AJ on ebay I'll probably pick my favourite blade to run through the stones and see what the difference is like!

Did I mention that my shoulder is sore today???

You are developing new control muscles. It's not that you are really working on the razor, just holding the weight of your arm up. Keep it up buddy, it...just like all other aches, will pass.

Oh ya...PANSY!

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Originally Posted by shooter74743

Oh ya...PANSY!

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LOL thanks for the encouraging words. Much appreciated. Great 'MENTOR' you are :shrug:

Careful you don't suffer a repetitive stress injury from prolonged session like that.

Bob

Brooksie, I have a few kinks in my cable w/ traditional, sound technique honing - causing fatique, soon followed by unsteadiness. If my arm gets tired, it will sometimes spasm. That produces the expected results of a poor stroke and poor edge. Certainly you have muscles that will acquire the strength and endurance for the job. If you start to feel tired, pay close attention to your edge on the stone surface. At the first sign of the stroke getting sloppy - take a break. Early on, I had to learn to take breaks when the frustration levels got too high. I wanted to 'get it' rather badly. You could tell how my day was going to go by how my last honing session went.

It sounds like you're having some fun & that's huge. You also have gotten to try some stones before laying out the funds - not knowing if you can use the stones. That's nice. Your friend is treating you very well. He has my thanks.

Just ask someone like Glen or Lynn who spend hours a day honing. That's why they have arms like a Chimpanzee.

I've never had trouble with my shoulder, but sometimes the joint at the base of my thumb will get sore if I hone too much in a day.

I've had wrist problems when I first started stropping on a hanging strop.
I also had upper back pain until I started to rest my elbows on the table when honing. I hone with my right arm, so my left one is always resting on the table.

So far my only honing 'injury' is a terrible and recurring case of honing mange. :rofl2:

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Originally Posted by Cangooner

So far my only honing 'injury' is a terrible and recurring case of honing mange. :rofl2:

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Talk to Ironsidegnr (Matt) about the mange lol. :angel:

Welcome to the wonderful world of shaving with and maintaining a straight razor!!

You will find that we as in ‘members’ enjoy not only helping with advice and as you’ve found loaning and or exchanging tools and blades we also seem to have this perverse enjoyment of giving each other a load of crap! When Shooter said (Oh ya...PANSY!) it’s all in fun!:tu

It sounds like your doing well! If you have problems you’ve got an army behind you to help out!

Gute Rasur /glatte Rasur, mein Bruder der Klinge

(it means: Smooth Shaving My Brother In Blades)

Enjoy the Ride and Have Fun!

This is not an uncommon thing. Many people get some relief from rigging a hone "sling" for the honing arm. Put a hook in the roof above the honing area, make up a sling in the same way you'd make a sling for a sprain or whatever, attach it by rope to the hook and adjust the height to suit your action.

Then put your honing arm in the sling and hone with the arm supported and gently swinging from the rope. It also helps maintain the horizontal level when honing.

Can also be used with stropping.

James.

Honing of blades (be they razors or knives) actually induces a fair bit of stress on a body (both mental and physical). While it does not require hard thought or heavy moving, it does require constant attentiveness and constant fine muscle movement.

I say honing is very relaxing...but what I mean is it takes my mind off of other (aggravating) stresses, and leaves me both mentally and (slightly) physically tired so that I can sleep well afterward.

Like many things here....YMMV, but that is my story;)

I look like a tool when we have PT in the mornings for work.

Every so often, someone asks me what the hell happened to my legs and arms...then I get to
drone on about honing and how it's not weird at all to have all these random bald patches all over me..

:soapbox:


Nobody ever gets it.....they just stop talking to me and back away slowly...

I developed a callous on my thumb early on, but it went away after my technique changed. My most painful injury from this hobby was burcitis from flattening mystery stones for days on end. The Doc asked what I was doing that caused it. I told him, and he said, "Is there any way you can get a machine to do that?" I eventually lost interest in mystery stones, and now my shoulder is fine.

My shoulder set up for honing is a ceramic ball joint with titanium plates, screws and pins, it will probably outlast the rest of my body!
Talk to your Doc and see if he can get one for you to.