Thread: Back at it again, could use some help.

Alright i will try and make this short and sweet. Started straight razor shaving about 2 years ago with a feather AC and loved it so much that i wanted to take the leap to traditional straights, so i did.
Got a few razors, shaved with them a good bit and finally decided to buy some hones (i got a pretty good lineup Chosera 1k, naniwa 3k/8k and a coticle) Was slowly learning to use the stones but found i was just too busy,(gf breakup, moving out blah blah) so i put the straights down all together and continued using my Feather.

Anyway i've found some time to finally sit down and learn to hone my razors up, but i've forgotten the basics. All i'm asking is for a basic starting template (stroke counts i guess?) for me to start on, and i can go from there. Not asking how to hone, i know all the strokes, pressure etc etc.

p.s. Sorry for telling you guys my life story lol! Thanks all

No worries, life happens.

as for the number of strokes every razor is different every time you hone it, at least for me. i would suggest you read the honing section of the wiki for a start. Glen (gssixgun) and Lynn also have some nice youtube videos on honing.

LESS is MORE!

enjoy,
jim

If you are looking for a "template" then you may want to try out the pyramid style of honing. It's got stroke counts for norton 4/8k stones.

I haven't had any luck with that method but many swear by it.

If you want to use a progressive style of honing then it's a little different. I do 20-30 circles on each side then follow with 15-20 xstrokes each on 1k and 4k, then do about 20 x strokes each on 8&12k. The whole time I'm testing carefully that the xstrokes are making good contact. Also important to test and see if you are ready to move to the next stone.

Michael

Yeah I take it the pyramid method can be used with the naniwa 3k/8k combo stone without much change right? Does anyone have experience with both Norton and naniwa??

Also, when moving up grits, should I be paying attention to the scratch marks only to know when to move up a grit? Or are there other things I should look for. Thanks again

Glen aka gssixgun has great videos online that you can watch and mimic. Good luck!

gssixgun Naniwa Honing part 1.wmv - YouTube