What Straight Razor Have You Honed Lately????

Success!! I lived to tell the tale... a few cuts, but I’m out of practice and my technique needs refreshing. It’s easy to fall into the convenience trap DE razors provide and my ‘66 SuperSpeed has been getting a real workout while I waited in my 12k stone to arrive. In a week or two I should be right back on the beam.

 

Congrats @Mr Two Bits! Great feeling when you know you brought an edge back into play.

C. Friedr. Schmidt Revisor
Really quick work with this one. Naniwa 1&4k, followed up with a Shapton 8k, and finished on the pictured Thuringian.

Shaved with it Sunday and it delivered.
Happy honing.
Tom

 

nice razor sir..

 

Thank you Gary. This was a true pleasure to hone and shave.

 

I know this question has surely been asked a zillion times and has no “one size fits all” answer, but as a rule of thumb, how long should a straight be able to go between honing? I strop on the leather every time, hit the webbing (my strop has webbing, not linen, and which is rubbed in with green oxide) when it starts to get grabby (maybe once a week or thereabouts) and my Dovo was good for a few months before I had to put it down and buy a proper finishing stone. That seemed kind of quick to me to be needing honing but that’s why I’m asking you guys who have more experience with this than I do.

 

I can get around 65 shaves but that’s pushing it. It still shaves well enough but starts losing smoothness sooner. Alfredo got 135 shaves out of a TI I believe. I’d say maybe 45 shaves with good stropping. That’s with no pastes, just fabric/linen and leather, and of course the number greatly depends on what you think is good enough.

I have hones, so it isn’t unusual for me to do a finisher-only touch up on razors with 20 shaves on them after honing other razors. If I go to a high number, then I usually need to go back to a coarser stone before re-finishing the edge.

Hope this helps.

 

@Steve56 thats very helpful! I’m the sort who can’t seem to leave well enough alone so I imagine touch ups with the finisher will be a bi-monthly thing for me going forward...

 

That should work.

 

Depends on razor, your hair and how sharp is sharp enough. My wicked sharp edges don’t last very long maybe 2 shaves. But for my comfortable edge I dozens with just stropping.

I’ve gone months with razor but got daily touch ups on diamond pasted balsa. I’ve heard of razors that are over a year with no stone work just regular touch ups with diamond pasted balsa. I guess you can tell I’m a fan of DPB. I also feel it I should less destructive than a hone. I too can’t leave well enough alone so the DPB is a good alternative to hones/stone.

 

Genco Henry’s X
1k, 3k, 5k, 8k, coti
Finished on convex translucent ark

this is the SHARPEST edge I’ve ever honed.

I think i’ve Stumbled upon my MAGIC combination for honing....

I did strop on diamond pasted balsa ( prolly was not necessary) then back to convex trans ark for a few strokes then plain leather.

My barber used it for cleaning up lines on razor fade haircut, he commented on how over the top sharp it was.....

This one is borderline too sharp! I think i have unlocked this stone's code!!!

 

ShaptonGlass 4,8,16 progression.

No tape group:
Dublduck, JWest, Hart Steel, Riga Razor

Triple tape for my George Wostenholme.

Shaved with the Wosty today, a pleasurable shave. This was the best edge I put on the Wosty so far but I can not get it as sharp as my modern razors but it is good enough to deliver a nice shave.

 

To extend the life of my edges I do 4 to 8 strokes on FeO3 before stropping. When I feel the edge dropping a little of it's sharpness I go to CrOx or Dove Red/Black pastes. I get 8 to 15 shaves before I go back to a finishing stone. I have a tough beard and do 4 passes. I like to keep my edges very sharp. You need to experiment and see what works for you.

 

German razor for the Canadian market...
Lucky Seven Brand made for the J. Tarnow Co. of Toronto. Looks like they started up in 1946 and are still in business.
Went with the Naniwa 1k/4k, then the Shapton 8k again. Finished on a little darker Thuringian.

I’ll give it a go tonight.
Tom

 

That's one fine looking razor.

 

Thanks Scott. I thought the design on the blade face was pretty unique. Can’t say I had heard of a Lucky 7 Brand razor before .

 

Did 50 on the Coticule followed by 50 on the Thuringian, both under dripping water to prepare the pre 1890 W&B. Just linen and horse for the John Holler.

 

What??? I need to find one! I’m from Toronto would be nice to have a razor from the city.

 

J. Tarnow Co. didn’t look very big. Are you familiar with the name by chance?
Tom

 

Playing with the same progression...
Naniwa 1k/4k, followed by the Shapton 8k, finished with the darker Thuringian.

R. Holder 578
I’ll speak more to the blade in the SOTD, but might as well say F. Herder on it .

Happy honing.
Tom