The Stanford 5 Second Sharpener

Discussion in 'Safety Razors' started by PLANofMAN, Jul 26, 2012.

  1. macaronus

    macaronus Sir Nice-a-Lot

    Had a busy week, so here goes for a whole week:

    Used almost the same setup all week (as it is Williams week). I only switched brushes on thursday (boar in stead of badger). Had DFS-es all through the week. The blade has had ten shaves right now and is still going strong! If it weren't for the Williams lather -or lack thereof- I think I might have had a BBS. Or that might be wishful thinking. ;)

    But the verdict after 10 shaves: great little and easy sharpener! If you find one, grab it and don't let go! That is what I intend to do. ;)

    Thanks Ryan, for letting me -and the other lucky ones in the row- try it out!
     
    PLANofMAN likes this.
  2. feeltheburn

    feeltheburn Well-Known Member

    Just read this thread and was intrigued. Checked e-bay and there was one there closing out in a few hours with no bids so I put in the min bid to see what would happen. Looks like I'm now a proud owner of a Stanford 5 second sharpener. It looks like it has some wear. Will that be a problem?
    [​IMG]
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  3. feeltheburn

    feeltheburn Well-Known Member

    To me it looks like the action of this sharpener is not like honing or stropping. It looks like it actually burnishes the blade.

    I'm looking forward to trying it out. Anyone confirmed that it works with stainless blades? If carbon are better, I'll have to pick some of those up. After a little searching, it looks like Treet Durasharps may be a candidate or of course some old Gillette Blues if I can find some. Any advice is appreciated.
     
  4. macaronus

    macaronus Sir Nice-a-Lot

    Congrats on a great find, mate!

    My advice (since blades aren't that pricey): just try and see what happens. If by chance you ruin a blade, that's a waste of, what, 15 cents? Oh and keep us postesd as to the results!;)
     
  5. feeltheburn

    feeltheburn Well-Known Member

    I'll definitely keep you posted when I get it and have a chance to try it out. I think that wikipedia article I linked above may have some useful info. It seems that burnishing with a sliding motion can be a bit unpredictable which could explain some of the inconsistent results mentioned earlier. It also looks like the caution to not oversharpen may be because steel tends to spall (harden, crack and flake off) if you burnish it too much.

    I know from working with stainless steel bolts that they tend to gall (which I think is similar to spalling) if you don't lubricate them well. The wikipedia article mentions using a lubricant to avoid spalling too. So, it sounds like it may be a good idea to use some sort of lubricant, especially with stainless blades. I'll probably try it after dipping the blade in mineral oil unless someone's got a better idea.
     
  6. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    Sounds good. It works better on carbon blades, but it does work on stainless. It just takes a lot longer. A minute or two longer...

    I haven't tried mineral oil, but it sounds as though that would work great. As for the wear, that will not be a problem.
     
  7. feeltheburn

    feeltheburn Well-Known Member

    Thanks Ryan. I may just pick up some carbon steel blades to try out with this thing too.
     
  8. RocketMan

    RocketMan Active Member

    I realize this thread is a little dusty, but PLANofMAN, have you used this sharpener anymore over the years? What is your final verdict on this strategy?

     
    brit likes this.
  9. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    It's a piece of crap compared to other systems. If it doesn't have a built in stone or strop, it's going to be more gimmick than useful. It's the equivalent of the pull-through knife sharpener systems. Cheap, easy to use, and after a few uses on the same blade, goes from sharpening the edge to destroying it.

    For the thick three hole blades it was designed to sharpen, it's not a bad design. It won't keep a thin modern blade sharp though. If you want to play around with sharpeners, the Kriss Kross is good, the Allegro is good, and other sharpeners of the same ilk are good. The glass curved ones and the German pull cord ones are not.

    Edit: The best systems seem to be built around a razor. The Shake Sharp type razors and the Rolls Razor type razors have good built in systems and will keep blades sharp for much longer than a few shaves.
     
    macaronus likes this.
  10. Bax

    Bax Well-Known Member

    My sharpener is an amazing Blade Master. I even bought some carbon steel blades to try it on (Treet, I think). It didn't work very well, either. But if the zombie apocalypse comes, and I need to be clean shaven to help defend what's left of humanity from the walking dead, it will probably give me a blade that will work better than my Ka-bar.
    :)
    - Bax
    IMG_20231211_091025233~3.jpg
     
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  11. RocketMan

    RocketMan Active Member

    Its too bad it goes on the crap pile. It seemed to be working well for you some years back in this thread, and you claimed multiple resharpenings of various vintage blades with good success. It is for the vintage 3 hole 1910/1920 blades that Im interested in. You were having at least some success there? I have one of these sharpeners and had never even thought to give it a shot. I read how it was working for you and your friend, so I wanted to check in.

    I have yet to see a Kriss Kross have the leather in decent enough shape to have any chance at success. Some claim miracle restoration using WD40 and a little rubbing. Uh huh. Rolls - I’ve worn out some wrist ligaments on several occassions slapping away at their honing frame. Sharpened on hones a Rolls blade can be coached to work surprisingly well, but not with that frame in my experience. I agree the string contraptions and similar style devices don’t do diddly. The Allegro Model L for me is similar in terms of not actually creating any satisfactory improvement in a blade. I have seen folks claim great shaves using this device - but I doubt few such claims were on track. The convex glass sharpeners too I have used with no personal success. Never did tru the two marbles on a wire, but I wouldn’t hold my breath on that one. The Shake Sharp is fun to shave with, but have you really had success with keeping a blade maintained with it? I must admit I have yet to try.

    This thread had me dig out my Stanford which is in great condition. I selected an unopened 1925 Gillette 3 hole new out of the wrapper and am in the process of checking the Stanford out. First shave - pretty darn tuggy. Poor shave. But I will use this little device for a bit and see if I can pull any decent life out of that Gillette blade. I’m not expecting much, but the pursuit of failure can be a lot of fun. And, what if the little thing pulls a home run? Thanks for the inspiration at any rate.
     
  12. DaltonGang

    DaltonGang Ol' Itchy Whiskers

    This thread brought back memories. I own just about every sharpening contraption made. Kriss Kross in excellent condition, a few Allegros like new, Curved Glass, String pulled one as mentioned above, etc. None will sharpen a stainless razor to the point we are accustomed too, from the factory. Old carbon blades can be brought back to minimal, and I mean minimal standards. If all manufacturing of blades had stopped and I had to use these, it would work, after my face toughened up, a lot, to ignore the pulling. Then again, I am able to sharpen Straight Razors all day long, and get as smooth or smoother shave than a DE blade can provide. Or, my DE stash will keep me clean for the next ten years or so, if I desired.
     
    Karl G likes this.
  13. RocketMan

    RocketMan Active Member

    Many folks used these types of blade conditioners for many years. There is some sort of value in there. My interest in this has sort of been boosted lately seeing a british Imperial War Museum WW2 collection photo of a soldiers kit with a valet set with strop. That fella at least must have believed in the utility of self maintained blades. I was surprised really to see that razor as a pick for soldiering so late in the design game. There would have been so many choices of razor/blades then, but this modern soldier carried a valet. They must work - it must be the expectation of how sharp is sharp enough that has changed - not the success of the tools.

    I hope Im not setting myself up for months of rough shaves again - but it seems like that is just what might happen. “Sharp enough” eh?

    DaltonGang - your 10 year supply might need a touch up in 8 or so years…….. those darn vintage blades ya know
     

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