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Honing help!!!!

J

Jfg83

Hi,

Ihave recently progressed from my merkur safety to straight razors.... It's going great.... Until I tried to hone.... I have a Japanese 6000 grit water stone, which I was lead to believe was all I needed... After what feels like endless honing it's still not as sharp as I need it to cut stubble cleanly...

I could be honing wrong? Can anyone recommend a good tutorial video? Or do I need a selection of hones? Having managed to learn to shave with a blade I'd hate to not be able to maintain it.....

Help!

Thanks :straight:
 
PapaFish

PapaFish

A Japanese 6K is about like an American 8K, if you consider micron level, and how people say they finish. Mike's right, you may require a finer stone, or some pastes. Pastes are great for taking an edge up a notch, and they are easy to use. Was the razor shave ready to begin with? You have been stropping, correct?
 
J

Jfg83

PapaFish said:
A Japanese 6K is about like an American 8K, if you consider micron level, and how people say they finish. Mike's right, you may require a finer stone, or some pastes. Pastes are great for taking an edge up a notch, and they are easy to use. Was the razor shave ready to begin with? You have been stropping, correct?
Click to expand...


Hi,

Yes I've been stropping, using a dovo reindeer strop, I'm not sure if I've been doing it enough? Is 10 strokes before and after a shave ok? Should I use paste on a leather strop?

Im in the UK and am struggling to find places that sell equipment....

Thanks for the help so far!
 
Mike H

Mike H

Instagram Famous
!0 is not enough, try 60 before the shave and 20 after on the reindeer.
You need a different strop for paste, a cotton belt, balsa wood, or leather can work, but keep your reindeer clean
 
LarryAndro

LarryAndro

There are two honing worlds... (1) maintaining a shave ready edge, and (2) creating a shave ready edge from a dull straight razor. And, comments made on these threads don't always make that clear. For #1, all you need is a hone in the 8K to 12K range. For #2, you need a suite of hones from rough to fine grit.

I suspect whoever said all you needed was one hone was referring to #1.
 
LarryAndro

LarryAndro

superbleu said:
unless they were talking about a coti...
Click to expand...

Good point! Coticules are amazing stones, standing in for several "regular" hones.

My full set of hones goes from rough whetstone for breadknifing, DMT 220, DMT 325, DMT 600, Naniwa 1K, 3K, 5K, 8K, 12K, 0.5 micron diamond on felt and leather. That gives an idea of what is required for honing dull razors. (Of course, I don't start every razor at the bottom hone.)
 
J

Jfg83

Thanks for taking the time to help! I'm struggling to find shops in England with a supply of traditional shaving supplies. The razor I'm trying to hone will take the hair off my arm but pulls and doesn't cut too well on my face... I guess this means it only needs the #1 option?

Cheers!
 
LarryAndro

LarryAndro

It is a long jump from 6K to shaving in my opinion. While someone mentioned yours might better be rated as 8K, it still might be true that there is a long jump from your hone to shaving. Of course, you can buy a finer hone. But, sticking to cheaper options, you might try some chromium or diamond on felt, balsa or wood before you strop on untreated (with abrasives) leather.

Just guessing...
 
J

Jfg83

So if I got a 12k stone would it that be good after a 6k? Then strop and shave?
Should I be using a paste or 'slurry' on these water stones or just water?
Is just stropping with the reindeer leather strop sufficient?

Thanks again, you guys in the US don't know how lucky you are with the ranges in your shops! I have no idea where I would get diamond or chromium on felt!!!!!
 
superbleu

superbleu

There are a few number of folks on the other side of the pond, perhaps they could point you in the right direction for supplies.
 
ladykate

ladykate

Jfg83 said:
So if I got a 12k stone would it that be good after a 6k? Then strop and shave?
Should I be using a paste or 'slurry' on these water stones or just water?
Is just stropping with the reindeer leather strop sufficient?
Click to expand...

Visit the links provided to see how to use them. I suspect you can get away without a slurry if you razor is close to ready.

Thanks again, you guys in the US don't know how lucky you are with the ranges in your shops! I have no idea where I would get diamond or chromium on felt!!!!!
Click to expand...

You can make your own easily. Use balsa or a piece of raw leather or even denim glued to a wood base. You can get diamond pastes from eBay and elsewhere. Use a 1 micron diamond paste for a start. Or buy two ( 1 micron and .5 micron) and make a double sided paddle from a piece of plywood with 1/16" balsa glued on each side. When I first started this odyssey, I just got a 1/2 pound of chromium oxide from the pottery shop and make a paste from a pinch of it and mineral oil (wash up afterwards - CrO2 is not nice). Made a few X marks on the balsa and then rubbed it in with the palm of my hand. Works fine. You will get warnings that the pottery shop CrO2 is not graded fine enough but my experience has been that it works like a charm. I actually use it for polishing brass cartridges so the 1/2 pound (which would last several lifetimes if used for polishing razors) hasn't gone to waste.

Alternatively, you can order some lapping film from one of the dealers (bestsharpeningstones kit #2 is the place I got mine) - look on here for how to use the lapping film. It will replace your stones - a one stop solution.
 
J

Jfg83

Lapping film looks cheap! I'm guessing you stick it to a bit of wood and hone away! Great site too, thanks!
 
Slash McCoy

Slash McCoy

I freehand dog rockets
No, don't lay your film on wood. It isn't flat enough or rigid or smooth enough. Your best bet is a VERY thick piece of glass, maybe 1/2", glued to wood for ease of handling, or a polished marble floor tile. Pieces of broken polished granite countertops or sink cutouts from them also work well. These will usually be flat enough to get the best results from film.
 
Gamma

Gamma

Jfg83 said:
you guys in the US don't know how lucky you are with the ranges in your shops! I have no idea where I would get diamond or chromium on felt!!!!!
Click to expand...


yeah, we got a lot of places to shop at - but you got this guy right in your own backyard.

http://www.strop-shop.co.uk/

Neil is not only a gentleman and a scholar, he also offers great stuff at reasonable prices.
 
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