Honing Stainless Steel Blade

Hello all- new to straight blade shaving. I bought an inexpensive 'Buckshot Knives' 404 stainless steel straight razor and it needs to be sharpened. I purchased a honing kit and spent about 2 hours honing it, however it isn't much sharper than when I started. I searched online and I saw one gentleman say it took him about 6 hours of honing to get his stainless steel straight blade sharp enough to shave with. My question is could I use an industrial grade belt grinder to make honing go quicker and finish with my honing kit? I just don't have that kind of time to hone a stainless blade by hand.

Thanks!
-Mark

First

There is no discernable difference in honing a QUALITY SS razor vs a Carbon steel one

Since I have never even seen the razor you are asking about I have concerns as to what it really is as I have a feeling you might have an RSO


PICS ????? Link to where you bought it ???

NEVER ever not ever use a belt on a real SR

Attachment 268218
Attachment 268219Attachment 268220

This is what we call an RSO or Razor Shaped Object

The Geometry is wrong, the Steel, Heat Treat and Temper will never allow them to take a Shaving edge.. Even if you manage to get them sharp enough they will fail halfway through the shave :(

You are not the only one to be duped into buying these RSO's they are advertised all over the interweb by unscrupulous sellers, they are the bane of this hobby.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by MMessmer27

Hello all- new to straight blade shaving. I bought an inexpensive 'Buckshot Knives' 404 stainless steel straight razor and it needs to be sharpened. I purchased a honing kit and spent about 2 hours honing it, however it isn't much sharper than when I started.
....

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404 stainless is ill suited for razors. It seems it will harden to about R35 vs the R60+ most razors are tempered to.
It has a lot of chrome and nickel and could have a lot of carbide development which makes for a nice kitchen and
camp slicer but not a great razor. A razor should have a smooth edge for the push cut and almost no carbides to
nick or cut the face.

Tell us about the honing kit and how you are using it.

I looked for the "Bukshot knives" brand and they seem to make hundreds of knives which
does not often result in good making good razors. The tempering for a knife and razor are
very different ... Often these are used by muzzleloaders and decoration.

Some of these do work out from time to time... I would not hold my breath
but tell us more about the hone kit and how you use it.

Kind of upset that I was duped into buying it, at least I found out before I spent all day trying to get a razor edge. I bought this razor from a small shop while on vacation, I should've known better, oh well, I guess I can use it to cut things around the house.

Here is the honing kit I bought:

Smith's TRI-6 Arkansas TRI-HONE Sharpening Stones System https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00062BIT4..._z8XlnneRn6xW2


I think i will purchase this razor, any opinions on this?

https://www.classicshaving.com/produ...straight-razor

Quote:

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Originally Posted by MMessmer27

I guess I can use it to cut things around the house.

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RSO's make for wonderful letter openers... I speak from experience :)

I have a couple of suggestions before you buy anything if you are intending to shave with a straight razor.

Read this in the forum library Shave Library . Get to know what a straight razor looks like, what to watch out for and what you are getting yourself into.

You could put your location in your profile and may be there is a member close to you so you can do a meet up or attend group meetings in your area. Both are a great way to learn.

Bob

I just looked these up and 440 stainless is about all it says on these and then the cost of about $15, get it sharp enough to open letters and then look to BST to get one here and properly honed, honestly for about $50 you could get a decent vintage that will shave well if honed properly, it's not gonna be a beauty queen but will shave well.

Great, thanks everyone for all your help!

For the Smith's tri hone, the coarse synthetic is meant more for heavy knives and tools than a razor. The medium and fine stones would work to refresh a blade, but there are better options available that will give a smoother finish.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by MMessmer27

Kind of upset that I was duped into buying it, at least I found out before I spent all day trying to get a razor edge. I bought this razor from a small shop while on vacation, I should've known better, oh well, I guess I can use it to cut things around the house.

Here is the honing kit I bought:

Smith's TRI-6 Arkansas TRI-HONE Sharpening Stones System

I think i will purchase this razor, any opinions on this?

https://www.classicshaving.com/produ...straight-razor

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The razor is a $30 bet. I am not convinced it will be a good shaver. It is an all or nothing gamble.

The sharpening kit also seems to be a risk for shaving.

The finest hone of the three with heavy mineral oil and a light touch might work.
Arkansas stones need to be worried and burnished with common steel quite a bit
before you have a chance to hone a razor. All my "Arkansas" hones required attention
even to sharpen a kitchen and hunting knives but then they are also 50 years old at this
point and I understand them a lot more than when I bought them way back when.
Sharpening razors is not the same as sharpening knives.

At the top of this page look for Buy, Sell/Trade. From time to time there are some bargains
and some beautiful out of my budget razors as well.

This next link from above is likely better than the Black Ops... by a lot.
http://straightrazorpalace.com/razor...ml#post1753088

I just looked and there are no razors (for good reason) in the "Vintage 'Damn Fine Shaver' Series"
section on gemstarcustoms.com when one pops up give it some attention.

Once in awhile companies that sell new razors get returns that asking nicely can discover.
They are "used" and can have reasons behind the return to discount. They are never advertised...
some go home with a friend or employee. Some go back to the vendor for credit because vendors
do not want seconds on a gray market. Like I said ask...
When I lived in Nevada casino restaurants had "off menu specials" that only locals knew
about but would share if asked. Ask ClassicShaving if they have a returned Dovo or Heart razor
that is good enough for a shaver but could not be on the site. Skip the Gold Dollar razor...
Skip the Parker and Shavette as well.

Only ask companies you intend to shop at when you have cash... negative karma causes harsh shaves,
nicks and cuts.