Thread: Quick question I have not seen answered...

I have been searching through the threads and I have a quick question that I can not find an answer to.
When honing I see that almost everyone uses tape on the spine.
Now I get this for saving the metal but, is it necessary to have the tape on there?
If I have honed my razor without tape (antique store bought) and now I put the tape on, will it mess with the angle and cause more trouble then it is worth?
OR is the tape not going to effect it so much and I should be able to get a nice edge on it?
THANKS for any comments or advice!
Ed

It's actually been debated ad nauseum...lol. To answer your question, it will not affect it so much that you can get an edge on it...it will just ever so slightly change the bevel angle causing no harm whatsoever. Most, such as myself do it to protect the spine from showing wear.

I will use tape if there is significant hone wear on the spine. Depending on how much of the spine is gone I will use layers of tape. Sometimes this takes a while to set a bevel adding layers of tape as needed. but once you get it down you can make an oldy a goody again.

Originally Posted by Catrentshaving

It's actually been debated ad nauseum...lol. To answer your question, it will not affect it so much that you can get an edge on it...it will just ever so slightly change the bevel angle causing no harm whatsoever. Most, such as myself do it to protect the spine from showing wear.

Awesome! I was hoping that it would not change it too much. THANKS for the quick reply!

Originally Posted by stonebraker

I will use tape if there is significant hone wear on the spine. Depending on how much of the spine is gone I will use layers of tape. Sometimes this takes a while to set a bevel adding layers of tape as needed. but once you get it down you can make an oldy a goody again.

Thank You!
I have honed a couple of razors and have gotten a good edge and had some DFS with some of my finds.
Just didn't want to SCREW up what I have done already! LOL

Ahh, the old can of worms is opened once more ...... Do a forum search for "tape" and you'll find more than you want to read on the subject. I used tape on all razors my first year honing. One layer of 3M except for special occasions when I felt I needed more than one.

Once I was confident in my honing skills I began honing without tape and found I liked it better as to the feel of the razor on the hone. Keep in mind I was only honing my own personal razors, not other people's razors.

Even now if I have a lot of bevel correction to do I will use one or more layers until I get the bevel and than go at it with no tape. Since you started that razor without it if you put a layer on you would have to do a slight bevel reset to make up for the minuscule difference in bevel angle or end up with a double bevel. Not a bad thing in some people's eyes.

I suggest using one layer if you are not really confident in your skill set yet. Once you know what you're doing you won't have to worry about unnecessary spine wear. Just IMHO.

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

Ahh, the old can of worms is opened once more ...... Do a forum search for "tape" and you'll find more than you want to read on the subject. I used tape on all razors my first year honing. One layer of 3M except for special occasions when I felt I needed more than one.

Once I was confident in my honing skills I began honing without tape and found I liked it better as to the feel of the razor on the hone. Keep in mind I was only honing my own personal razors, not other people's razors.

Even now if I have a lot of bevel correction to do I will use one or more layers until I get the bevel and than go at it with no tape. Since you started that razor without it if you put a layer on you would have to do a slight bevel reset to make up for the minuscule difference in bevel angle or end up with a double bevel. Not a bad thing in some people's eyes.

I suggest using one layer if you are not really confident in your skill set yet. Once you know what you're doing you won't have to worry about unnecessary spine wear. Just IMHO.

Well I have done like 4-5 razors so I am pretty good!
Thanks... Looks like tape it is!

There's also the "double bevel" theory. Lots of people used to hone with no tape or one layer until finishing stages then add one layer of tape and continue honing on their finisher only. As mentioned this has been beat to death so many times on here already BUT we always like answering questions to help people out. I know Tim Zowada as well as many others used to do the 'double bevel' thing but don't any more.

http://straightrazorpalace.com/advan...stead-two.html
http://www.tzknives.com/razorcare.html

Razors are designed that the width of the spine determines the bevel without using tape. Tape is a modern invention. Your razor is designed for honing without tape (unless its a Hart).

Originally Posted by jbtusa

Razors are designed that the width of the spine determines the bevel without using tape. Tape is a modern invention. Your razor is designed for honing without tape (unless its a Hart).

Or there is enough hone wear on the spine to reduce the angle of the bevel.