Thread: Hello rabbit hole.

I bought a beautiful straight edge and strop innocently thinking it would last me a lifetime. 6 months later, I discovered edges dull. At ~$30 per "professional" sharpening, I decided to swallow the blue pill and follow the white rabbit into the world of honing an edge.

My goodness this is a deep hole.

Intimidated by my expensive straight edge, I've been sharpening my kitchen knives as a way to get dirty and make mistakes before attempting my beloved straight razor. Thank goodness for YouTube and places like this as I tend to research as much as possible when I commit to something I'm interested in. That said, I'm a little into my second year after first getting the straight razor and still feel like I haven't quite landed with my feet on the ground. I'm still dizzy from the fall down the rabbit hole, but I hope to have a sense of direction and purpose soon.

So hello people of wonderland. Nice to meet you.

It does not have to be a deep hole. What razor do you have? What hone or hones are you using?

You can get by just fine with one razor and one hone.

Welcome to SRP!
There's a lot of great folks and info here
Enjoy and have fun!!

And yes, the rabbit hole can be a deep one

plus 30$ is not that much when you consider hones and the learning curve of have not so good edges for a while and all the sharpening of your knives aren't going to help much with razors Tc

Hi and welcome. You will want to add your location to your profile then get some one on one help from a local. Plenty of us willing to help others learn and will save you a lot of time and frustration. Good luck and any questions feel free to ask

I must have found a twisty rabbit hole. 5 months in with S.R. shaving and im up to 18 razors. I think the hole is starting to level out but i could be wrong. Depending on whats around the next bend.

Originally Posted by Utopian

It does not have to be a deep hole. What razor do you have? What hone or hones are you using?

You can get by just fine with one razor and one hone.

I'm in a somewhat similar situation as the OP. I've sent my razor out to be honed twice, now. I was thinking of learning to hone, but have been intimidated by the range and costs. If you were starting with one hone, what would you recommend?

And to the OP--welcome to wonderland!


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I would recommend the Norton combo set 220/1000, 4000/8000 with lapping plate, Really it is a nice set for a beginner should run around the $135.00 mark, And on a Plus note if you find Honing is just not for you, They hold there value,Ty

Originally Posted by AZBronco

I'm in a somewhat similar situation as the OP. I've sent my razor out to be honed twice, now. I was thinking of learning to hone, but have been intimidated by the range and costs. If you were starting with one hone, what would you recommend?

If you wanted really cheap, then a barber hone off of ebay. If interested, I can advise you on which ones listed would be worth pursuing.

Alternatively, if you are willing to spend more money, then a Naniwa SuperStone or Specialty 12k is a great option. Like a barber hone it can maintain an edge forever, but it is more fine than almost all barber hones. Its only downside is that it needs to occasionally have its surface refreshed. If you only are going to hone a few razors, then the most practical way to do that is with ~300 grit wet/dry sandpaper.

Natural stones are a poorer option ONLY because there is a shallower learning curve for them and too many people get frustrated with them, but they do work just fine if you are willing to learn.