Thread: Absolutely, positively the last word on spine taping

As I said in one of the other threads try it if you don't like it fine don't use it anymore....


However here is the reverse thought on taping the spine,,,

Not to bust on some of you guys and how you hone, but I have seen the results of many of those hone jobs,,,
When you first start out, most of you guys have a rather heavy hand on the hone so you have a tendency to wear years and years of metal off the spine.... So if yer theories of spine wear vs edge wear has any basis at all, then you should tape the spine for the next 50 years to even that initial spine wear up....

Interesting thought Glen.

I've always been of the opinion that taping the spine will increase the bevel angle over time, ie many years of honing. But that is and always will be my only concern with tape. If the math and ultimate bevel angle is correct, 1/3 of the razor ground away is pretty much a dead razor IMO. However, the bevel angle will very very slowly change over the years as more of the edge and none of the spine is ground away.

That said, I'm a moderate on most things. Tape is a personal issue, if anyone sells me a razor that has been taped I'm just going to hone it the way I hone all my razors. Won't matter to me because I don't buy razors with 1/3 of the blade missing.

Originally Posted by Rajagra

The model can be kept simple by tilting the hone instead of the blade. Original math then holds true.

Unless there's something I'm missing...

If you were to use a reference frame where the hone is tilted, then the point where the edge of the razor touches the hone would be higher than where the spine touches the hone, and that would affect the math.

Originally Posted by hoglahoo

If 14 and 20 were arbitrarily generated, then how can this be the last word?

PS nice sketches!

Amen, who cares what the angle is? As long as it's shaving sharp, you should only have to adjust yer blade angle accordingly to get a good shave.

Originally Posted by Johnny J

This is what mathematicians do when they're bored. I wouldn't swear in court that there are no mistakes here, but this is my first stab at a theoretical approach to spine taping.

Suppose a razor comes out of the factory with height h[0], grind angle 2*theta[0], and thickness 2*t. Because we always hone it with tape on the spine, t does not change, so the razor is ground away to height h[1] and angle 2*theta[1].

OUTSTANDING EXPLANATION and absolutely correct. If you tape the spine you will eventually thicken the shaving bevel. Pretty soon you have a nice pocket knife.

John

Originally Posted by Johnny J

No. I am saying that you are wearing away the edge but not the spine, thus making the angle more obtuse. I am calculating how this will affect the lifespan of the razor. I conclude that you will have to grind away 1/3 of the razor before it's trashed, which will probably take longer than you have left to live. So spine taping probably doesn't affect the longevity of a razor significantly.

I agree with your theory but not your conclusion here. The idea is to have the sharpest possible edge and that posability deminishes over time when the spine is taped. Besides - taping the spine is silly anyway. If properly honed you will never notice the difference because the side of the spine will be polished - especially on a new or nearly new razor.

Originally Posted by John Crowley

OUTSTANDING EXPLANATION and absolutely correct. If you tape the spine you will eventually thicken the shaving bevel. Pretty soon you have a nice pocket knife.

John

Originally Posted by John Crowley

I agree with your theory but not your conclusion here. The idea is to have the sharpest possible edge and that posability deminishes over time when the spine is taped. Besides - taping the spine is silly anyway. If properly honed you will never notice the difference because the side of the spine will be polished - especially on a new or nearly new razor.

I gotta ask John, just how much time are you talking here????
Weeks , Months , Years, Decades, Centuries ?????
Inquiring minds would like to know???? I know it's sorta silly to ask of course.....

Originally Posted by gssixgun

I gotta ask John, just how much time are you talking here????
Weeks , Months , Years, Decades, Centuries ?????
Inquiring minds would like to know???? I know it's sorta silly to ask of course.....

I know where you are going with this and I respond with another question. If it takes years to get that kind of wear - why bother puting tape on the spine anyway?

I mean you guys buy a razor - it is yours. You can do with it as you please. Dip it in butter, do a dance aroung it and then use a file on it - it's yours. I just put my two cents in and you either accept it or you don't.

John

Originally Posted by John Crowley

OUTSTANDING EXPLANATION and absolutely correct. If you tape the spine you will eventually thicken the shaving bevel. Pretty soon you have a nice pocket knife.
John

Well...EVENTUALLY you will have a pocket knife, but not "pretty soon." Have you experienced how much work it takes to hone out even the smallest nicks? Grinding away about 1/3 of the blade will probably take longer than one lifetime.

No math wiz thats fer shore, but if you were to properly hone a new razor and stropped correctly, used good beard prep and the only hone your razor ever saw was a barbers hone for the rest of its life, why worry about it?