About to throw in towel. Any books on honing?

[Jayboz]

Hello, been using straights for a couple years now and wanted to try my hand honing my own. Does anyone know of any available books about the complete process of honing? While threads here are helpful and members have answered questions, its really not the best way for me to learn something. Not too fond of video's either. I want to read, digest, try, re-read. I can add in/experiment what other people are doing after i learn from one person’s perspective.

Already trashed a few razors and feel like im at point where just sending them out is the better option. Ive found a few people who have delivered great edges. I can maintain on diamond balsa or a finisher and if i particular razor requires all kinds of gymnastics to use balsa/finisher, ill get rid of it and try another.

Hell, im not even opposed to paying someone for lessons.

Thanks if anyone can suggest some reading material.

 

[Herrenberg]

I prefer reading to videos too, but I think the best way is to read things on the forum, dive in with a razor you would not grieve to ruin, hone, hone, hone, and hone some more, until you have questions, then search for the answer here, and if you don't find it, post your question.

 

[Wid]

Hello, been using straights for a couple years now and wanted to try my hand honing my own. Does anyone know of any available books about the complete process of honing? While threads here are helpful and members have answered questions, its really not the best way for me to learn something. Not too fond of video's either. I want to read, digest, try, re-read. I can add in/experiment what other people are doing after i learn from one person’s perspective.

Already trashed a few razors and feel like im at point where just sending them out is the better option. Ive found a few people who have delivered great edges. I can maintain on diamond balsa or a finisher and if i particular razor requires all kinds of gymnastics to use balsa/finisher, ill get rid of it and try another.

Hell, im not even opposed to paying someone for lessons.

Thanks if anyone can suggest some reading material.

If you were in my area I’d be more than willing to sit and guide you to learn to hone.

 

[sexy beast]

Between Mr. Johnson and Dr. Matt They added a whole dimension to honing razor and making it fun. I'd still be using a my old Dovo paddle strop with a piece of slate and leather with Dovo Stainless straight razor. Which work fine by all means. I'm more of visual person. Here is something I looked over for reading and might help you: Simple Straight Razor Honing - https://scienceofsharp.com/2016/04/14/simple-straight-razor-honing/comment-page-1/ It may give some knowledge to unlock some doors.

 

[Bayamontate]

No magic honing books out there, give me a holler and we’ll do a video chat or something.

 

[JimmyJoeMeeker]

Read away: Simple Straight Razor Honing

 

[JimmyJoeMeeker]

Here is something I looked over for reading and might help you: Simple Straight Razor Honing - https://scienceofsharp.com/2016/04/14/simple-straight-razor-honing/comment-page-1/ It may give some knowledge to unlock some doors.

Read away: Simple Straight Razor Honing

heh

 

[Mr Kooby Shemayrew]

Cue up some DrMatt videos and turn on closed captioning.

(Sorry. Dumb joke, couldn’t resist.)

Grab a beater razor or two that you don’t care about ruining. IRL experience is a valuable tool, and almost everyone is going to burn up at least one razor in the process.

 

[Jayboz]

Thanks for recommendations and offers from @Wid and @Bayamontate. Ive read the Science of Sharp site back to front. Tried his demin/diamond method to no avail. If theres a you tube video with over 500 views, ive watched it. Spent many hours on the forum and tried the hone, hone, hone, and hone some more. Theres a few razors and some rolls blades in the landfill for my attempts. At least only one was new.

I dont think theres any sense in investing more time in what may be improper methods and committing bad technique to memory. Ill get ahold @Bayamontate and will certainly pay you for your time. One zoom meeting i wont mind attending. Thank you.

 

[Herrenberg]

OK, but what exactly went wrong when you tried to hone?

 

[Frank Shaves]

Subscribed.

 

[Jayboz]

Thats the million dollar question for me. Thought i had bevels set according to all the diagnostics ive read to ensure it is set. (Tomato, thumb nail, thumb pad, shaves hair.) i admit im not entirely sure what it should feel like on your thumb pad though. Tried burr method, just x strokes, started the ax method. Inspected with 5x B&L loupe after each progression to ensure i removed previous. Perhaps i didn't go far enough.

Fast forward to shave and it blows. Its not my stropping bc i have razors honed by others that are still going strong. Tried to be cautious of pressure at higher grits. So the only thing i can think of is the torquing and/or the various strokes (rolling x, swaying x) used to cover entire bevel or the bevel set is causing the issue.

For what its worth, im using film on verified flat acrylic (Starrett rule and feeler gauges). The finishing stones are lapped and verified flat. Ive touched up a couple razors using film (3u & 1u) only and had no issue. Interestingly, i never sharpied the bevel on any of those and was only doing x strokes.

 

[silverlifter]

Thought i had bevels set according to all the diagnostics ive read to ensure it is set. (Tomato, thumb nail, thumb pad, shaves hair.) i admit im not entirely sure what it should feel like on your thumb pad though

Those methods are all heuristics: they can give you a sense of whether or not you have set the bevel, but to confirm it you need to inspect it. See the images here:

Honing

Introduction to honing

www.badgerandblade.com

 

[Jayboz]

I forgot to mention that. I did look at edge and compared to my other razors honed by others. Looked the same to me at 5x. Is 5x not enough to see possible reflections?

Thats kinda why i asked if there was a book available. Its worked for me in the past for some semi-difficult/detailed things. Ive read/watched so much from numerous sources, its info overload.

Not that i think people wouldnt of helped here, but post the pictures and see what the various replies are, isnt ideal for me.

 

[Wid]

I know this sounds redundant but sharpie an edge and hone till it’s completely gone. You may need better magnification. Honing is 90% bevel. No bevel no shave ready.

 

[captaincaed]

Have you run across the Iwasaki honing pamphlet? It’s definitely written in a certain style, oriented toward jnats, but may have some insights that click for you. I’m definitely still “on the path” as well, but I found a couple passages there that helped improve things.

 

[JPO]

You can also post a video of how you hone your razor. You will probably get some help to point you in the right direction.
Allot of the honing videos on YouTube are just misinformation in my opinion.
I still have nightmares about when I "corrected/fixed" a razor after watching Dr Matt.

 

[Steve56]

Where are you located?

 

[H Brad Boonshaft]

Yup, cant beat one on one instruction.

The biggest issue new honers have is not knowing what a bevel and edge should look like, with the magnification available to them, 5x is not enough for a new honer. $15 Carson Micro Brite 60x100x lighted handheld scope will show you what you need to see and can be compared to micrographs.

Film is great and can produce fine shaving edges, but film if used with pressure will wear out quickly especially film in the low grits and the honer is left trying to set a bevel on plastic. So, bevels never get fully set.

Buy a $20 King 800 -1200 stone to set the bevels, polish away the 1k stria with a 6k and finish on 1um film. It will be worlds easier.

Have taught a number of folks to hone, in person and online. To a man, they all said, “there is/are so many little things that you never pick up reading post or watching videos”. So do in person, if possible, if not buy a cheap scope and do it online. The scope will allow you and your mentor to both see the same bevel and edge so he can make corrections.

Google (My Second Try at Honing). This post is a step-by-step account of a new honer taking an eBay beater to pristine bevel shaver, with many great micrographs. It is a long post, with lots of questions and corrections. It took over 50 posts to get the bevels fully set.

 

[Frank Shaves]

The idea of doing some video conferencing sessions sounds ideal.

I remember the first time I put a razor on a stone (a Naniwa 12k). Had no idea what I was doing and a case of imposter syndrome. There is definitely a learning curve to honing. The funny thing is how much of my initial intuition seems to be true.

That said, like folks say about the 100-shave rule for using a straight, it takes a certain number of bevel-to-finish hones to work your way through most of the common problems/challenges and gain confidence.