What did you hone today?
- Thread starter ouch
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Really sharp and smooth as butter. Not particularly difficult either.
A new ebay purchased hone. Very affordable, sold as a translucent, soft combo. They came pretty flat, the translucent wasn't near as opaque as most translucent, no shortage of crazing either. Perhaps a dumping ground for factory seconds or thirds. The crazing didn't effect it's use at all the stone is up to it as most really hard arks are. I like the set up.
Slash McCoy
I freehand dog rockets
First I will assume that you have a good bevel set. If you know for an absolute fact through actual proof that you do, then it is set and we can continue. Otherwise, no, you need to verify that bevel. I am also assuming that you are using a good stroke, not letting the shoulder ride up on the hone, and using a bit of x stroke action, and balancing pressure properly between spine and edge.
Paste on leather has been used for 100 years or so, with unspectacular results. Here is what I would do.
Revisit your 8k Norton. It has been a long time since I used one of those, and the new ones are differrent from the old ones I knew, so I am not familiar with the feedback that you should expect. But I would say that when you nail it with that stone, IF IT IS PROPERLY LAPPED, then you should feel a faint stiction and the razor should treetop hair barely above the skin, maybe as high as 1/8" above the skin. So break it out again, re-lap if needed. Don't use another stone or diamond plate. The overrun will cause dishing. Use a sheet of sandpaper glued to heavy glass or a 12x12 tile or a granite countertop sink cutout. Something very very very flat. Draw a grid pattern with a pencil on your stone and lay it face down on the sandpaper and work it corner to corner. When the grid is gone, step one is done. Step one can be done with 320 or 400 grit wet/dry paper. The slurry from the stone can prematurely wear away the grid so it isn't flat enough yet, maybe. Draw your grid again, switch to 600 grit paper, do it again. It will not take very many laps because the first step brought it to a nearly flat state.
Now rinse your stone and hone your razor. HOLD THE STONE IN HAND. Many newbie mistakes are instantly solved with this key element. Do not lay it on a fixed object. Pressure should be moderate, about the weight of your hand. As you find the razor gaining sharpness, lighten pressure gradually as you continue to hone. About every 10 laps, add a couple of pull strokes. I made a thread on that somewhere or you can google for my growleymonster site. I am not permitted to post the url, sorry. The pull strokes will help prevent possible formation of a fin edge. At the end your pressure should be the weight of the razor only.
Rinse the stone well, and the razor. Coat the stone with shave lather and replenish as needed. Begin honing again. Start with pressure equal to the weight of the razor and a finger. Slowly and gradually reduce pressure as you hone. This process should take a couple hundred laps. Pressure should end up being only the weight of the razor, maybe even less if you can manage it. It will begin to feel like the razor is not even contacting the stone, just floating over it in the lather. If you nail it, your edge should be good for a shave without any paste. It will be roughly equivelant to a 10k Naniwa edge.
Speaking of which, an 8k is not much of a finisher. You could spring for a 12k Naniwa Superstone, but my much much cheaper, easier, and more consistent suggestion is to buy a piece of cast acrylic sheet, 3/4" or 1" thick, cut 3" x 12". In the US, TAP Plastics is a very good source. Use acrylic. Not wood. It warps! Not anything heavy or that flexes. Acrylic. It is THE BEST, and if you want the best results, use the best tools and methods. Period. So get your acrylic plate. Also get some 1u (one micron) lapping film, a whole sheet, 8-1/2" x 11". Lapping Film, not polishing film or polishing paper or microfinishing paper or microfinishing film or any other babble meant to confuse the newbie into buying the wrong stuff. It must be actual LAPPING FILM. Get the plain back. It is far easier to use while learning! If you get PSA, which has an adhesive on it, better get about 10 sheets cause you will mess it up trying to apply it. Plain back is better. Cut it into thirds, longways. Take one piece, make sure it is very clean, wet the back. The shiny side. Take the acrylic plate, peel off the protective paper, make sure the surface is very clean, and wet it, too. Lint, dust, hair, all will mess you up. It must be dead clean. Apply the film. It will slide around at first. Starting from the center, squeegee the water and air bubbles out from under it with a credit card, drivers license, whatever. There must be no bubbles underneath the film. Now, you have a very large and extremely flat hone, a bit finer than the 12k Naniwa. A perfect finisher.
Hone on it. (with water) You will feel a definite stiction as the bevel is polished and the edge comes in. Pressure about the weight of your finger, tapering off to the weight of the razor or less. Add pull strokes, two or three per side for each 10 regular laps. You can use the lather trick here, too, if you wish.
Now your razor should treetop arm hair at 1/4" above the skin. It should shave quite well. If not, you messed up somewhere. Maybe your bevel was NOT set properly? Bad bevel sets are probably responsible for more honing failures than any other cause.
Are you done? Not if you want the best edge possible. See the pasted balsa thread. Read it from beginning to end. Get more acrylic, three pieces. Get balsa, a 36" long plank, 3" wide and 1/4" thick. Cut it in thirds. Glue to the acrylic plates. Get diamond paste. No substitutes. Follow the thread. Do it exactly correctly. You want .5u, .25u, and .1u. See the thread so I don't have to write a book here. When you are done, the edge will amaze you.
timwcic
"Look what I found"
Way to much time on my hands hunkering down. Like waiting for a hurricane that never arrives. A Brusletto “Granbit” on a Rosy Red. Getting ready for the zombie apocalypse
How did the Rosy Red cut, Tim?
timwcic
"Look what I found"
This would be a bad example to tell this stones speed. I was babying the knife, so I took my time and worked sloooow. But I did use in on several other knifes and it does cut faster than I was expecting. I consider this stone on the hard side and fine. I have a few other stones, but I enjoy my LW and RR
Brian Brown Spanish point shorty
6/8 71 Le Grelot in G10 scales
MK4 on the Kiita with a tomo today. Much better results, 2 notches or so sharper than the coticule however not as smooth as I would prefer. Definite step in the right direction
I finished cleaning up this Kinsyo that I had to rescue for a neighboring cell-rotting razor.
Luckily the rust was superficial on this one.
Honing took a while as getting a bevel turned out to be more elusive and time consuming than I expected.
I finished it on the Imperia La Roccia followed by the Corsican wood strop
Luckily the rust was superficial on this one.
Honing took a while as getting a bevel turned out to be more elusive and time consuming than I expected.
I finished it on the Imperia La Roccia followed by the Corsican wood strop
This lovely Fairy by Ludwig and Schmidt was honed on a Naniwa SS 1K, 4K, Welsh Slate 9-10K and finished on my Escher Barbers Delight. Shaved like a dream this morning!
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Love that stone!This lovely Fairy by Ludwig and Schmidt was honed on a Naniwa SS 1K, 4K, Welsh Slate 9-10K and finished on my Escher Barbers Delight. Shaved like a dream this morning!
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timwcic
"Look what I found"
This lovely Fairy by Ludwig and Schmidt was honed on a Naniwa SS 1K, 4K, Welsh Slate 9-10K and finished on my Escher Barbers Delight. Shaved like a dream this morning!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I second it, nice BD
Thanks guys! I'm pretty sure I reached out to both of you about this stone 2-3 years ago. I was worried I was paying too much, but it was dirt cheap! It is a great stone and I could use it the rest of my life and be happy.
Yeah you did. I remember saying buy it and buy it now!
Thanks again for your help, it’s an amazing stone! I understand why they ask $500-700 for them!
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I went back into the project bag and found a MK 31 dressed in ivory.
The blade was clean and it luckily did not take too much effort to get a bevel on it.
Finished on the Gokumyo 20K
The blade was clean and it luckily did not take too much effort to get a bevel on it.
Finished on the Gokumyo 20K
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