Naniwa SS warp, other alternatives?

[TheBeast]

I should put that on a plaque at the honing station. Or maybe at the foot of the basement stairs to keep me from running up to the den for a premature shave test.

BTW, I think starting restoration honing with a full set of lapping films showed me the value of small jumps in grit, in that with small jumps I got to feel the blade improve and top out more frequently. Plus films do not like pressure.

For me starting restoration work showed me I am spoiled and have no patience. I want the razor to be beautiful because I bought the tools capable of helping me make it beautiful. I am not willing to sand and sand until it is where it needs to be. I played with two razors, only as much as lightly cleaned them and got frustrated when I realize how much work it was going to be.

Same with honing. I want to put the razor on the Stone and immediately get know what to feel for, know what to do, get a perfect edge right away. I end up with an edge that barely shaves. And it's flaws are probably underlined by my poor shaving skills.

Obviously, I am a fool. I want the reward without having to work for it. Its almost as if I have been led to believe that I can just wish it to be true, and it will. It is hard work to do hard work (hard work for me is work that requires patience and is repetitive). It is hard work to change myself. But I think it All starts there.

I don't have a personal experience to form an educated opinion on small vs large grit jumps. I've seen SEM microscopy shots of a 320 dmt to shapton 16k glass Jump. It worked, the edge looked just the same as when put through a progression of smaller jumps. Probably took a loooot of laps though. So on one Hand, why spend money on more stones if I don't need them? On the other, why not make it easier for myself and more enjoyable in a sense of maxing out Stone after Stone, knowing after each one I am done removing previous scratches and making my Apex more refined, my edge straighter.

 

[Tanuki]

I am generally resistant to magnifying my edges beyond a 7x loupe, which I rarely use unless a bad boy razor is reluctant to take a bevel.

I also don't use a burr method at all. I paid good money for that steel! Perfectly understandable approach to a Gold Dollar. But vintage Solingen, Thiers, or American steel? Sacrilege. I go for patience. And maybe a diamond plate if all else fails.

I can't believe that forming and tearing off a burr helps the quality of the steel in the edge. I like to think that is why my edges seldom revisit anything other than my finest balsa strop. But to each his own.

 

[Steve56]

Obviously, I am a fool.

No you aren’t, you’re an impatient engineer/scientist.

Restoring anything, razors furniture, knives, is an art, and patience is an attribute that requires practice, but you can do it, just like I did.

Keep on and you’ll get there. As your skills increase, the time you spend gets shorter.

 

[JPO]

I don't have a personal experience to form an educated opinion on small vs large grit jumps. I've seen SEM microscopy shots of a 320 dmt to shapton 16k glass Jump. It worked, the edge looked just the same as when put through a progression of smaller jumps. Probably took a loooot of laps though. So on one Hand, why spend money on more stones if I don't need them?

Large grit jumps can be done, and the resulting edge will be quite similar if done right. It doesn't take allot of time either.
I honed a razor today just to see what happened if I jumped from a 1k to 30k shapton glass.
1k to 30k, and a denim strop loaded with TI white paste.

This is the 1k edge.

After just a few minutes on the 30k most of the 1k scratches are gone. However, the edge is still toothy,

The edge is now stropped on denim loaded with TI white paste, just to remove the weak edge. The convexity caused by the strop is removed by doing some finishing laps on the 30k
This did not take allot of time (5-10 min). Using smaller grit jumps makes the process a little simpler.
After a quick shave I can report that the edge shaved just as well as full progression edges. I doubt I would be able to tell the difference if i had to do a blind test.
These shapton stones cut fast at every grit level. I would not attempt this with a Naniwa 12k.
Honing can be as simple as you want it to be. You don't need that many stones. However, you do have to do something to address the apex, like using a pasted strop or by jointing the edge to get a clean apex.

 

[BLOnpnklthr]

I have Shapton 12k kuromaku/pro, it loads up kinda easy. I use rust eraser that you soak in water before using it. Got the idea from burrfection YouTube video. They can be found on Amazon (sabitoru) and work pretty good to preserve the stone instead of lapping it w diamond plate every time it loads up. Get the medium abrasion one it has white writing on it or try honing on w slurry w diamond plate. I find Shapton 12k edge somewhat harsh for my sensitive skin. But I’ve read from @Gamma that sometimes you must lap a good bit of stone to get to the “good stuff” with the Shapton 12k past that top layer(s) that might be the result of harsh edge. I did that w some w&d sandpaper (#120,#240,#400 atoma) a good bit and it did help but still left me wanting something less harsh.

I also have Fuji 8k n think edges are smoother generally compared to Shapton 12k/diamond balsa but I only have the 0.5 micron paste. Naniwa are known for warping, usually a result of user error, try soaking in lukewarm water for a 5-10 minutes before next honing session and see if that helps n then don’t forget to dry off soon after and leave on its width edge away from sunlight.

One plus about Shapton that can’t be denied is they cut fast, they’re harder stones, so they wear very very slow, less likely to dish, warp, craze, and crack.

 

[TheBeast]

I have Shapton 12k kuromaku/pro, it loads up kinda easy. I use rust eraser that you soak in water before using it. Got the idea from burrfection YouTube video. They can be found on Amazon (sabitoru) and work pretty good to preserve the stone instead of lapping it w diamond plate every time it loads up. Get the medium abrasion one it has white writing on it or try honing on w slurry w diamond plate. I find Shapton 12k edge somewhat harsh for my sensitive skin. But I’ve read from @Gamma that sometimes you must lap a good bit of stone to get to the “good stuff” with the Shapton 12k past that top layer(s) that might be the result of harsh edge. I did that w some w&d sandpaper (#120,#240,#400 atoma) a good bit and it did help but still left me wanting something less harsh.

I also have Fuji 8k n think edges are smoother generally compared to Shapton 12k/diamond balsa but I only have the 0.5 micron paste. Naniwa are known for warping, usually a result of user error, try soaking in lukewarm water for a 5-10 minutes before next honing session and see if that helps n then don’t forget to dry off soon after and leave on its width edge away from sunlight.

One plus about Shapton that can’t be denied is they cut fast, they’re harder stones, so they wear very very slow, less likely to dish, warp, craze, and crack.

Thanks for the tips. Will try to get the Naniwas somewhat straight again, then glue them to 20mm acrylic. They still have a lot of life in them. But they do annoy me.

Hopefully I will be happier with shaptons.

I did make a little dressing Stone from the piece of my 12k SS that broke off. Works quite nice.