Thread: General advice? First hone: Newbie to razors, but experiance with edge tool restores.

JimmyHAD,

I'll take your advice on the tape. Has anyone ever tried the low friction tapes that are sold to line saw guide jigs and outfeed supports? I think I've got some of that stored away somewhere. It may not be an improvement. I was just wondering because it's pretty slippery.

Thanks,
Bruce

I've had the same thought. As long as the tape isn't any thicker than electric tape. I am familiar with the product but don't have any, try and report back.

Originally Posted by oldgearfan

JimmyHAD,

I'll take your advice on the tape. Has anyone ever tried the low friction tapes that are sold to line saw guide jigs and outfeed supports? I think I've got some of that stored away somewhere. It may not be an improvement. I was just wondering because it's pretty slippery.

Thanks,
Bruce

Tape saves the spine from hone wear but then you have to tape the razor to touch it up. I don't use tape for that reason. YMMV.

Yes, I understand that the same thickness of tape would have to be used for future honings. I was also wondering if there would be issues when stropping without the tape. I found in a post an opinion that because of the give in a strop it would probably not be an issue to strop a razor that had been taped for honing. The spine on this razor does have fairly substanial honing wear so it might make sense to protect it. The slippery tape I'm thinking of trying is thinner than electrical tape. It's also very tough. I've been impressed with how well it holds up to hundreds of feet of lumber being dragged across it, but of course that's not the same as mounting it on steel and dragging it over an abrasive. We'll see.

This is all new to me. I'll probably experiment a little here and there. If I find out anything that might be useful I'll chime back in. I can't mess around with any of this stuff for a few more days. I'm stuck on a tug boat and won't be home untill Sunday. And I have a new (old) razor sitting in my mail box. It's killing me!

With a hanging strop tapping the spine is not an issue. On some paddle strops it could be. When I hone a razor that has a lot of damage to the edge I set the bevel with one layer of tape then I remove the tape and finish with a few more passes on the 1k, then on up the progression. The additional wear after 1k is negligible.

Jonathan

It sounds like you will do just fine with the scary sharp method. What I look for when honing a razor is that the scratch pattern is uniform from heel to toe, the scratches extend from the top of the bevel to the very edge and that the color of the light reflection is the same for the full width of the bevel.
If their are 2 colors then you have 2 different angles on the bevel. You know this from creating micro bevels on your other tools.
What concerns me is that you will be working on a razor with significant hone wear. This may cause a problem. The problem will be that the angle is to narrow thus creating a bevel with a very thin cross section . That can result in a edge that either bends to easily or that will curl or develop a gross burr. One of the guidelines we have here is that the width of the blade divided by the thickness of the spine should not be greater than 4. A layer or two of tape on the spine can help with this. Try not to buy razors with a lot of hone wear for that reason.

I think you will do just fine

That is excellent information, explained very well. Thank you. I'm somewhat challenged looking up information in both the forum and the WIKI because of very slow internet speeds. You answered several issues I've been wondering about. I have not worked with bevel angles much below 25 degrees and am concerned about the potential for creating thin cross sections. The four to one guideline is a gem. The razor I will be working on is 5/8ths wide and the spine is 3/16ths thick. Applying your formula results in 3.3, so it seems like I should be fine using the spine as an angle guide.
If the spine had been worn down to 1/8th thick that would result in a 5, and potentially too thin cross sections, correct? Do you guys have a chart that converts these ratios to bevel angles? That would be pretty interesting.

Regards,
Bruce

Originally Posted by oldgearfan

The razor I will be working on is 5/8ths wide and the spine is 3/16ths thick. Applying your formula results in 3.3, so it seems like I should be fine using the spine as an angle guide.

Correct
If the spine had been worn down to 1/8th thick that would result in a 5, and potentially too thin cross sections, correct?

Yes


Do you guys have a chart that converts these ratios to bevel angles? That would be pretty interesting.

Nope, I have not seen one.

Regards,
Bruce

Pressure control while honing is the other variable. Try to keep more pressure on the edge than on the spine. I use a 60/40 analogy. Use some "torque" on the tang to accomplish this. And go slow, otherwise you lose control of what part of the edge is making contact with the hone.
Watch the water flow ( in front of the edge) from heel to toe.

Now back to my morning coffee