Thread: Smiling Razor Re-Grind

Almost all my blades have smiles. They seem to shave better, and I find them actually easier to hone. Just follow the blade profile on the stone, which generally means a rolling stroke. Once you get accustomed to it, it's actually easier than honing a straight blade and less demanding on your skills.

Originally Posted by ace

Almost all my blades have smiles. They seem to shave better, and I find them actually easier to hone. Just follow the blade profile on the stone, which generally means a rolling stroke. Once you get accustomed to it, it's actually easier than honing a straight blade and less demanding on your skills.

Agreed! I am truly disposed to honing all razors "towards a smile" to some degree !

What helped me a lot when learning how to hone a smiling razor was using a magic marker along the edge. I "painted" the bevel with the marker and then I could see how my stroke on the hone was actually affecting the edge. I was doing okay on the stroke going away from me but on the return stroke I was only hitting the middle and toe and not coming anywhere near the heel.

As soon as I started getting frustrated with my poor results I wiped it off, oiled it, and then walked away for a few days. There was no point in getting mad and not enjoying what I was doing.

In the end when everything finally clicked I thought to myself, "huh, that was easy". It really was, but I just had to have the patience to accept I had to put in the work in order to get the results that I wanted.

So while things can be done to "straighten" the edge, it might be better to keep at it and revel in the fact that when everything falls into place for you, the shave will be that much better.

For a razor to be a "straight" that doesn't mean the edge has to be precisely straight, nor that straightness is a goal to achieve with honing. I have only two blades that are actually "straight", and I find them the most difficult to shave with and to hone. A "straight" edge profile is as close as you can get to a frown without having one. With a smiling blade, you can actually do 'scything' strokes more easily because the blade is easier to 'roll'. But that's just me.

yeah, I have tried all the trcks listed here with the sharpie on the edge and the rolling x-stroke. The rolling part is what I seem to have the most trouble with. I also agree that I have gotten my best shaves from my razors that have a smile and I have sent them out in the past to be re-ground and when they came back they were scary sharp but due to the coarseness of my facial hair it wasnt long before they needed some attention and so I took them to the hones and made them even duller and now the more I try and hone them the closer they are getting to butterknife status. That is the most frustrating part is that I love these razors and can not use them.

OK. If I may, It sounds as if you need to start over. Get them honed again and learn how to properly strop them. It is imperitive that they be stropped in the same "rolling X" pattern" as they are honed (except spine first !) to ensure that the entire edge is evenly stropped. If they are stiffer grinds, (as smilers more often are) they will need liberal, proper stropping. A hundred or two stropping strokes! Otherwise, the edge will rapidly deteriorate. Like I said, save them until the skills come along! JMHO!

Now one of the techniques I have not tried is the narrow hone and was wondering if there is any benefit to using a narrow hone. I do not use stones but rather dmt plates and aluminum oxide lapping film on glass plate and was wondering what micron alumox film would be used in order to set the bevel. In response to the above comment about using a rolling x-stroke while stropping I am curious, wouldnt that tend to allow the blade to dig into the edge of the strop. Also, there may be some confusion about my honing ability. I do real well and can hone a straight blade to a very keen edge its just these smiling blades that are giving me fits and I know everyone is saying just keep trying but I am worried about over honing the blades.

Originally Posted by sharptonn

It is imperitive that they be stropped in the same "rolling X" pattern" as they are honed (except spine first !) to ensure that the entire edge is evenly stropped.

I am learning to hone and shave with smiling razors, too. Is the "rolling" action neccessary during stropping? I know the X stroke is needed, but I thought the slight bend in the strop at the edge took care of the need for the "rolling". I could be making incorrect assumptions here (like I always use a hanging strop).

Ahhhhhhh! The plot thickens! Save em! Good luck!

Originally Posted by DFriedl

I am learning to hone and shave with smiling razors, too. Is the "rolling" action neccessary during stropping? I know the X stroke is needed, but I thought the slight bend in the strop at the edge took care of the need for the "rolling". I could be making incorrect assumptions here (like I always use a hanging strop).

Yes, just roll the spine to keep the edge evenly in contact with the stropping surface. As one would in honing one. If you do not, you will "cup" your strop, making it less effective for more straight bevels. JMHO.