Thread: Honing toes and heels...

Originally Posted by Jimbo

Have you tried the magic marker along the edge trick? Could help you analyse and rectify the beginning and end of your honing stroke, which I guess is where you have the problems.

Using two hands to hone (one at the heel, one at the tip) can help too.

James.

Hi James -

I do the marker occasionally (when I'm stumped) and always use 2 hands. The position might change though - depending on the razor. E.g. - I might have a finger or more on the mid section, or on the toe - depending on what I am dealing with

I don't generally have problems - just sometimes. Like with warped blades, bad geometry, uneven spine wear, etc.

Cheers
Ivo

The magic marker trick is great for showing you which parts of the blade aren't getting honed, but one thing it doesn't tell you is why some parts aren't getting honed.

It could be a problem with your stroke, or the blade could be warped or worn...

Last night I tried using a coarse barber hone to work the tip of a razor I was having trouble with. It let me use small strokes and focus just on just the tip, and after about 15 minutes I had it passing the HHT. I'll have to experiment with this some more...

Josh

Originally Posted by izlat

Hi James -

I do the marker occasionally (when I'm stumped) and always use 2 hands. The position might change though - depending on the razor. E.g. - I might have a finger or more on the mid section, or on the toe - depending on what I am dealing with

I don't generally have problems - just sometimes. Like with warped blades, bad geometry, uneven spine wear, etc.

Cheers
Ivo

Ivo,

Sorry, I misunderstood. I've (luckily) never had a warped blade but I can imagine how tough it would be to get an even edge on one.

I've got plenty with uneven hone wear though - the two hands thing works well on these. I hone north/south (if that makes sense). On the "towards me" stroke my pointer fingers rest on the spine and I let my thumbs rest down near the edge. At the beginning of the stroke I apply a bit of pressure to the thumb at the heel, and as the stroke progresses (in an X pattern) I gradually transfer that pressure to the thumb at the tip. On the "away" stroke I rest my thumbs on the spine and use my pointers for the pressure variation. But I'm guessing this is probably what people refer to as the "rocking" motion? Sorry if I'm telling people how to suck eggs...

James.

Originally Posted by Jimbo

Ivo,

Sorry if I'm telling people how to suck eggs...

James.

nah, as I said I am not as good as I would like to be and it's good to have discussions

Cheers
Ivo

Sometimes the shape of the blade makes it necessary to use non standard honing strokes. I have used the baber hone method on some plades that had a pronounced smile to them and also the 45 degree angle X combined with a rocking motion. It really depends on the shape of the blade and the hones that you are using. I experiment and use what works.

I have dozens of razors in my study collection and many are old and some are new. The toes and heels are especially "issue" areas even with brand new factory blades. If you watch the video of the Dovo manufacturing process, you'll see that most of the honing is on the center of the blade and not the toe or heel. In the knife industry we call that a "factory edge" and it's fine for most folks but many like to bring out the true potential of the steel and heat treat. You'll have to do your best on the toe especially as it's important for the hollows in your neck (well, my neck anyway...).