Thread: Razor that never needs to be honed..

The old barber who sharpened my razor told me it would never need to be honed if i looked after it properly..he said strop before and after you shave, rub olive oil on the blade after each use and it will stay as sharp as it is. yhat was a dovo bismarck which ive used almost every day for the past year and a half and its still as sharp as it ever was.....moral of the story - look after your razor!

No way! Otherwise, why would I need all the stones I have.

Seriously though, even if you are a stropping, oiling fanatic... you still need to touch up a blade after a while.

It's steel, and it dulls with use. Even with a pasted strop, you still need to go back to the hones eventually.

I also agree. Every time you shave minute pieces of the razor chip off because of friction and you eventually need to reshape the edge of the blade again.
This happens to any parts that have relative motion, be it plastic, rubber or whatever. Relative motion means wear.

I think there may be evidence to the contrary. The edge does incur some damage from shaving. misaligned/folded over/broken/weakened steel fibers at the very edge. Stropping will repair much of this but some fibers are bound to break off sooner or later and the edge will gradually degrade. It appears to be the case that much of the edge damage/degradation between shaves is due to surface rust and the oil should minimize that.

So it's my understanding that caring for your razor can greatly prolong the time before a touchup is needed but you cannot eliminate it altogether.

Cool thanks, just wondering as it sounds a bit far fetched to me also...however, a year and a half hasnt done much damage (Luckily)

That old barber is not shaving me.

bj

All edged instruments get dull with use. As far as razors go stropping does not sharpen an edge unless your using a pasted strop. There are some razors that can go a long time between honings but in general from my experience you get so many shaves and then it needs some touchup work. The issue with razors is often times as razors begin to deteriorate they do it slowly and you kind of get used to it. its only once you hone it up that you then realize the difference.

We have a few guys here who say they get a year or more between touchups and maybe they don't shave that often or maybe they have peachfuzz for a beard, I don't know but I do know I can't do it.

Someone should conduct an experiment and see how much extra life incessant oiling could actually give, i agree it could never last forever but maybe you can increase the life of a hone. anyone up for it?

I think the information is sort of out there already. There is at least one study showing the effect/after effects of oxidation on an edge (I don't have the pointers). And it's known that coating a steel surface with oil will seal it from air and prevent oxidation.

Originally Posted by joke1176

It's steel, and it dulls with use. Even with a pasted strop, you still need to go back to the hones eventually.

not true! the coarser diamond pastes cut fast enough to set the bevel on any blade. have you ever tried 2000 grit diamond paste on balsa or newsprint? cuts super fast with a flat angled edge, and does it as well or better than the equivalent hone.