Thread: What's the general consensus on honing a butterknifed blade?

Title pretty much says it all, I've got a blade here, almost butterknifed, but I am unsure what kind of grit progression I should use to give it a decent bevel. I have a decent amount of grits ranging from 80-2000 grit (all sandpaper) which I can use on a flat surface (glass or otherwise). I can get a whetstone with grits of 220 and around 3-400. If required I can probably find some finer abrasives.

Thanks,

Joundill

fastest bevel setter would be the lowest grit stone 220, but if it leaves very deep scratches go up to 400 for example. You just need to make sure you have the stones to follow and refine the scratch pattern on the bevel.
All that being said, I'd go for 1k and see if this will work before moving to lower grits.

Originally Posted by mainaman

fastest bevel setter would be the lowest grit stone 220, but if it leaves very deep scratches go up to 400 for example. You just need to make sure you have the stones to follow and refine the scratch pattern on the bevel.
All that being said, I'd go for 1k and see if this will work before moving to lower grits.

Awesome, that's pretty much what I've done while polishing this blade, I tried 320 grit, but it was quite slow in cutting, so I moved down grits until 80. Still have ~10 hours of hand sanding at 80 grit left.

You'll need to go a bit higher than 4k to get a comfortable shave I would think.

Assuming you get your razor successfully honed up to your 4k stone, you probably will want to go up to 6k or (ideally) 8k to really give a smooth finish to the edge.

A good budget honing set up is this one:

Amazon.com: Norton Waterstone Starter Kit: 220/1000 grit stone, 4000/8000 grit stone, SiC flattening stone: Home & Garden

It has all the stones you will need, and will give you years of reliable service. If you're getting into the restoration side of things in a big way then some proper hones would be a really good investment.

Honing a damaged blade - Straight Razor Place Wiki


I highly suggest tracking that back to the original thread as many questions are asked and answered there...

You are going to need patience.

Even on a DMT resetting the bevel on a breadknifed blade takes time.

I would look to getting a Norton kit as linked above by Stubear. In this post here Lynn said," Please pay attention to this.

I have received hundreds of razors from folks with simply ruined edges as a result of sandpaper efforts, not to mention the scratched blades ."

Here is another by Lynn on the topic,"I hate sandpaper for honing.

It's a pet peeve based on all the razors I see with scratch marks all over the blade and an edge that needs a full restoration every single time.

Personal opinion only.

Thanks for the indulgence,"

If that is all you have and it is working for you good luck but if Lynn said it I believe it so it is waterstones for me.

Perhaps the most important tool is a marker and a magnifier.
Run a marker over both the back and the edge, let it dry fully
and then give it a run over the stone.

At first there will be a bright steel band in the middle of the
marked edge. Then the edge will emerge as the last of the
marker is gone from the cutting edge.

It will also make it more apparent that the front and back are getting equal
attention.

Go with the finest abrasive you have the patience for at each step. Re-apply
the marker often to keep track of your progress.

Originally Posted by niftyshaving

Perhaps the most important tool is a marker and a magnifier.
Run a marker over both the back and the edge, let it dry fully
and then give it a run over the stone.

At first there will be a bright steel band in the middle of the
marked edge. Then the edge will emerge as the last of the
marker is gone from the cutting edge.

It will also make it more apparent that the front and back are getting equal
attention.

Go with the finest abrasive you have the patience for at each step. Re-apply
the marker often to keep track of your progress.

Although I totally agree with this method...it is for much later in the process, he has to set the "Pre-bevel" first from a bread-knifed edge...
Then he can use the marker to set his bevel later on...
Even using a lifted spine knife stroke can work at this stage as you are talking about a squared, blunt, edge here...

Warning: This is a restoration technique, not a honing technique, it should only be used as a last resort just like the original thread I did on it says...

Wet or dry sandpaper should work just fine if the paper is perfectly adhered to a flat, non-porous substrate. Sometimes this will work with water and the wet or dry paper on something like a piece of plate glass. If the paper slips, however, you have a chance that it will bunch up ahead of the blade, wreaking havoc with your developing edge, or bubble up in the hollow grind, scratching the finish of the blade. Papers that have a pressure sensitive adhesive that one can apply like a decal with a water slip and anti bubble transfer layer that can be squeegeed out would be a wonderful way to attach/use abrasive papers, but I don't know if such things are available, tho' for the one or two time user would be great sharpening media.

For the many times user or the HAD afflictee, hones and stones is where it's at.



ps, I did read Lynn's quote that Jimmy provided and in reading between those lines am guessing that Lynn gets presented with re-work jobs from those who are taking shortcuts with abrasive papers for honing razors where the cautions are not fully understood or appreciated. I have learned that sharpening a razor ain't quite like putting an edge on an axe.