What Straight Razor Have You Honed Lately????

Those 66 Gold Dollars or Some of Em are a Bugger to Hone Unless One Knows what they are Doing & the Factory Grinding Characteristics of Em...Some Need the Heel & Stabilizer Ground Off with a Dremel Tool & Some Dont..A Gold Dollar 208 or One of the Newer Classic Gold Dollars are Far More Hone Friendly the Way they are Leaving the Factory at the Moment..

The 66 Gold Dollar is Bottom of the Range & Bit Junky Made..Well..In My Books Anyway..

Billy..

 

Yes... that's why I bought them, to abuse!

But noted... it might actually make the process of learning more difficult, haha.

 

I am certainly not referring to you as Harry Home Honer. Your gear is noticeably admirable. Given my lack of experience, and the unlikelyhood to ever gain a comparative experience, it is a title that I have reserved for myself. If anyone cares to partake in my lighthearted self assessment, they may borrow its use for similar self descriptions only. Thanks for not taking offense.

My desire is to learn to produce the best shaving edge I can with my limited gear.

I have a few nice razors that I'd like to keep that way, and a few I consider suitable for my educational purpose.

One of my test subjects is a ZY. It didn't seem bad on arrival. The bevel was pretty even front to back and side to side, when I put it on the Naniwas it became my opinion that it was not honed in a traditional way by their "very own honemiester". I spent more than half a Sunday setting a bevel that clearly showed the blade faults. It took what I'm going to call a 'torqued rolling x'. It shaved poorly. I believe if I had a set of 1" wide naniwas I could have knocked it out pretty easy. I don't even know if they are available.

I did get it to shave acceptably with convexes. It took half of another Sunday.

I have an Edgepro Apex (rod guide) Sharpening system that I use for knives. I think I could get descent results with that too, since it uses narrow stones. Someday, I may grind the spine down with it and try to run a stone progression to the edge directly on angles that are only guaged and measured with my angle cube.

I really do appreciate your response. I will take any information that I can get to advance my skills.

Be well.
Bill

 

I might add that it should pass HHT well at 5k, that’s actually what I use for a final bevel set test. If it HHTs easily at 4-5k, a good edge is just minutes away.

Might as well learn to hone with that Gold Dollar stabilizer in place, it’s kind of considered bad form to hone the stabilizer on regular razors anyway.

 

Good for you. Buy some inexpensive razors, and learn. But, if they are too far gone, it can be very frustrating, and possibly lead to finishing each step too early.

 

Tupper-Spiegel Co
Duluth Minn
11/16th
Full Hollow

It started out well, until I looked at the edge under 60x. Snaggle toothed. So, I killed the edge, twice, gently. That did the trick, and it just took a little time to bring up the bevel, on the Norton 1k. I finished with a Hard JNAT with some Soft Med and Hard Naguras. Finally topped it off with a good hard Arkansas Surgical Black. Fantastically sharp results.

 

Gebr.Becker "Silver Steel"
Solingen
Germany

Very easy to hone, but a little slow. This Silver Steel seems a little hard. But, this steel can take on a very nice edge. JNAT finisher with various Naguras. Finished finally with a Arkie Surgical Black.
Very Very nice results.

 

Gold dollar needs heel dealt with!
I like to grind / remove heel entirely and create thumb notch. I’ll prolly do it to two 66’s in next couple days.
With friends bench or sander, or at home with dremel drum sander.

 

A recent break through moment for me was learning tot hone / bevel set a wonky razor. It had a unevenly worn spine, twist, smiling blade.

The two biggest learning points were sharpie the bevel, and heel leading x stroke. Which turned into an extreme heel leading x stroke. I didn’t under stand the special x stroke including some rocking, until i marked blade with sharpie ... made a a complete pass. Checked bevel, another pass checked bevel. Remarked with sharpie check bevel. Finally found a stroke pattern where I could hit while bevel in one full pass. Repeated until i was only Re inking every 10 passes . Eventually not remarking. But re marking to confirm final bevel set along with magnification. This learned lapping pattern continued up stone progression.

I personally can’t shave off a 1k. I can get it to cut hair all parts of blade, but definitely not shave able.....

I don’t always sharpie a razors edge. But will if something is not working out right. I also check blade against a straight edge first for frown or smile or wave. I personally will make it flat or smile only before honing. Check for nicks and micro nicks. Also lay blade flat on straight edge push on heel does toe rise? Push on toe does heel rise? This helps me analyze for twist or other faults and points me direction of stroke/ Lapp technique. 98% of my blades are now so sharp... I have facial nicks prove it, Edges so sharp I don’t feel the cut, but see pink lather or heavy alum report. I have 2 outlier razors... these are special children. Both will cut arm and leg hairs but not quite “shave ready”

I’m relatively new. But I practice daily. And ask a lot of questions. I’m sure some more learned / experienced Jedi will have better advice for the padwan apprentice.

 

If you are getting clean results on 5k... move up to 8k, Then 10/12k, 14k and up if you have stones... IMHO. I have tried to shave off an 8k. But it was not very comfortable, 10-12 k passable, 14 k and up for a yummy shaves. I think HHT is over rated. If you are tree topping that is a good sign. I’m not very hairy so I test single leg hair/ arm hair. touch pop, falls at blade, hair explodes away, hair so afraid of blade silently runs from blade

 

First image: Dan’s Whetstones - black Ark quarry.

Second image, geology.com, those ridges are novaculite in Arkansas.

 

What do you mean by "a little time on the Norton 1K", Scott? Can you be more specific? Thanks.

 

What I meant, in Texas Talk, was a bit more time than usual. 10 minutes, instead of 5. Give or take a few. I dont really count.
Wedges can take much longer.

..

 

Thanks.

 

Just Honed My Newly Acquired Mint Factory Fresh NOS F.W Engels Leader Full Hollow 13/16th...Honed on a Naniwa Super Stone Progression & Finished on My Escher 17 K Thuri..Took a Killer Edge..My Next Shave..

Billy..

 

Very nice looking razor. You are starting to get quite the nice NOS collection there, Billy.

..

 

Scott..Aye..I Certainly Have..

Billy..

 

@Karl G Sent this John & William Ragg Napoleon Sheffield Half Hollow 6/8th to Me Via Japan..This Razor is in Factory Fresh NOS Mint Condition..I Honed this Sheffield Fair Lady on a Naniwa Super Stone Progression to 12 K..Pre Finished on My Coticule & Finished On My Yellow Lake Branded Oil Stone..

I Took Her Off the Oil Stone at the 16 K Mark as I Find this Optimal for Sheffield's & My Coticule/Yellow Combo Hit the Mark with a Killer Sharp & Uber Smooth Shaving Edge..Now..To Ship it to Karl in the Good Auld US of A..

It Sure is a Stunner..Looks Like it was Made this Morning..

Billy..

 

I had custom scales put on a Bismarck, but the finish started turning to a matte finish over time. I posted a pic of the razor online, and the guy who made the scales noticed this and generously offered to refinish them at no cost. In the process of rescaling the razor, though, the bade became chipped, blunted, and virtually unusable. He offered to send it off to have it sharpened, but I decided to take a crack at it myself. The chips were bad enough that I used a 220 Norton to take them out, and then set the bevel at 1000. Took my time (i.e. anal retentive overkill) on the Norton 4000 and 8000, finishing up on the Naniwa 12000, and then 50 strops on leather. The result was one of the thinnest, straightest bevels I’ve got, which then produced one of the smoothest, closest straight shaves I can recall. Granted, other than the dullness and chips, there was nothing particularly wonky about the blade, but I’m still extremely pleased and proud of the final result after basically starting over with this blade at “ground zero”.

 

Nice looking scales Randy.