Hey guys. I have been lazy lately, and, instead of learning to hone my own razors or sending them off, I've been shaving with DE's. That's all well and good (DE shaving is great), but I've decided to finally see something through and figure out this honing thing so I can get back to that straight razor shave that we all love so much. Plus, I have about a dozen resto-worthy blades that I badly want to fix up to use.
Here are my questions:
1 - Is it ok to mix hone types? I have a Norton 1k/4k but a Shapton 8k. Is there any problem pyramid-ing from the Norton 4k to Shapton 8k?
2 - I have an unidentifiable (to this point, anyway), old, Sheffield blade that is huge and beautiful...in a rugged sort of way. The way the thing is ground, it looks like it will hone the bevel at a different angle on each side (similar to the way some of the Japanese blades look, only one side is not flat). Is this do-able? [Note: this will, obviously, not be my first hone job, just one that I REALLY want to shave with at some point.]
3 - How does one fix a frowning blade? I have another resto that needs that kind of work, and I can't seem to find that information anywhere. If someone knows where to find some sort of tutorial for frowning blades, that would be excellent.
4 - This may be more of a restoration question, but is there a good way to tell how much pitting on/near a blade edge is too much to restore it to shaving condition without polishing it all up and trying it?
Thanks in advance for the input, amigos. I've seen some of the work you all do on razors, so I know there is some great experience around here.
Here are my questions:
1 - Is it ok to mix hone types? I have a Norton 1k/4k but a Shapton 8k. Is there any problem pyramid-ing from the Norton 4k to Shapton 8k?
2 - I have an unidentifiable (to this point, anyway), old, Sheffield blade that is huge and beautiful...in a rugged sort of way. The way the thing is ground, it looks like it will hone the bevel at a different angle on each side (similar to the way some of the Japanese blades look, only one side is not flat). Is this do-able? [Note: this will, obviously, not be my first hone job, just one that I REALLY want to shave with at some point.]
3 - How does one fix a frowning blade? I have another resto that needs that kind of work, and I can't seem to find that information anywhere. If someone knows where to find some sort of tutorial for frowning blades, that would be excellent.
4 - This may be more of a restoration question, but is there a good way to tell how much pitting on/near a blade edge is too much to restore it to shaving condition without polishing it all up and trying it?
Thanks in advance for the input, amigos. I've seen some of the work you all do on razors, so I know there is some great experience around here.