Thread: Honing a Hart

I didn't know if this topic should go into Razors or Honing, so I took a guess and chose this one..

I believe there is a Hart in my future.. I like the simple elegance of them.
Now, Hart recommends that the razor be honed with the spine taped with one layer of electrical tape. I guess I dislike the practice. I don't want the hones loaded up with vinyl, for one thing.
It finally occurred to me why Hart may recommend this practice. I notice the Harts have a matte finish... Not highly polished, so I assume that honing without the spine taped would leave a highly polished seam along the spine. I guess it would look unsightly on a matte finished piece of steel to have one thin, highly polished line along the spine..
Have any of the Hart users here honed without tape? And what are your thoughts on this?

the one I honed I did with tape it and took a nice edge.
Never seen my hones load with vinyl but may be I am just not seeing it because its too fine.

I think they recommend honing them with tape because that's what they do, so if you want to switch you have to correct the bevel, which is significantly more work.
As far as why they use tape I can only speculate, but with the quality of matte finish I don't see how small polished flats along the spine would be a problem.

Good thing I looked at Gugi's post before posting because I was going to say about the same thing.

I don't think a small honing flat on a Hart would detract from its looks, so I doubt that their rationale is driven by aesthetics. They have simply decided that taping is the way to go. The honing forums are full of discussions about the pros and cons of tape. Do the reading and decide what side of the "3M" line you stand on.

Do note that I have electrical tape vary in thickness by manufacturer and maybe grade. I don't like using tape and avoid it when ever possible due to the feel while honing and because it does load up the hone, but I am mostly resetting the bevels on old razors. unless you are honing out some damage you shouldn't have a major problem with the tape loading the hone but may not be honing the edge at first if the tape you are using is thiner than what Butch used. Two layers of tape would ensure you are honing the edge from the start. It may produce a double bevel but there is no harm in that and your honing would be minimal. If you hone enough to wear the tape replace it often. When the tape wears you are honing the back of the bevel more than the edge.

Hart recommends the tape because of their very low bevel angle,,,
1 layer of tape change the angle about 3/4 of 1 degree in fact you should probably use more on the Hart razor,,, You might also actually do the measurements on your razor and have Gugi run the numbers for you if you're not sure how...

You can find a ton of info in this thread...


http://straightrazorpalace.com/razor...zor-angle.html

I always hone with tape. It protects against spine wear and helps create really small bevels, which I prefer. I've never noticed any of my hones loading with the tape, even the 325 DMT, so you should be fine to use it. I use the plain black 3M electrical tape, its good stuff!

Good luck!

The only hone I've ever had load with tape is my Norton 1k, and it only happened after spending a loooooooooong time on the hone with one taped razor.

I used to hone all razors with tape but changed to only Damascus razors a year or so ago. Just personal preference. Just thought to mention that IIRC Tim Zowada was the designer of the Hart razors and since he only makes Damascus razors he always uses tape. I don't know if that would have anything to do with the folks at Hart using it but I wouldn't be surprised.

Originally Posted by gssixgun

Hart recommends the tape because of their very low bevel angle,,,

On their website's care tips page (http://www.hartsteel.com/honing.html), they state:
"At Hart Steel, we use one layer of electrical tape, to protect the spine, while honing. The tape is placed lengthwise on the spine and then folded over the sides. The tape is optional, but we like it."

I don't have a Hart Steel razor, but am really tempted to get one. Since as Glen says their spine is that narrow in relation to the width of the blade, using tape to increase the angle sounds like a really good idea.

Thanks,
Jeff