What should I expect when I send a razor in to be honed?

[riooso]

I am a little new about what to expect when I send in a razor to be honed. My thoughts on this is that I should see a really nice bevel established and shave ready but not necessarily sharp to my liking. I got a razor back and the work is nice but I really had to put it on the pasted paddle 0.5 and 0.25 before I was happy with the sharpness. I am already getting spoiled with the pasted strop so I would think that this is what I should expect with outside work because they can't know what I want. Correct?


Thanks,
Richard

[Kees]

Discuss it with the honemeister before you send the razor!

[AFDavis11]

I think your on the right track. Everyone needs some method to update their razors. Thinking that the blade will be honed to a perfect .5 paste is silly. If you hone up a razor to that level 75% of the users will write you back saying the edge doesn't last long enough or they've rolled the edge on their strop before the first shave.

Since second hand honing is typically a newbie proposition I try to balance a stable edge with a sharp one so they won't roll the edge on the strop before the first shave.

I think, to be technical, you should say "After your done honing can you strop using .5 paste?" If I'm honing for an experienced user I go way finer than .5 paste anyway. You want a nice edge? Try working into .1 paste.

How would you feel if you returned a razor to me and I said "What, you only honed using .5?"

[riooso]

Just to get the record straight I am not unhappy with the work. There are customary conventions and reasonable expectations in any environment and straight shaving is a new environment to me. I am with AFD in that if I was dong the work I would have to assume the person on the other end wanted a nice bevel but not "scary sharp". When one is sending out work is it also assumed that if you want it taken to a very sharp status that you would be expected to offer more for the service? I am new to this but after getting the pasted paddle from Tony I am spoiled in what I want my razor to do. I do not want to come across as a jerk to the honemister because that step is important in the work flow that I want to establish to keep my razors up to snuff.

Thanks in advanced,
Richard

[gglockner]

Not all razors are created equal. So most razors returned from being honed should be as good as that particular razor is going to get. The quality of the razor and the grind will play a bigger part of matching your needs versus how sharp it needs to cut your individual beard type. You are fortunate to know or have used a straight enough that a little fine tuning was needed. I thought my first shave ready straight wasn't that keen when I first started, only to learn that it was my strop technique and prep that needed tuning up. Sounds to me that you are well on your way to honing your own.

Glen

[Thebigspendur]

Yes you have to discuss what you expect with the honemeister. Do you expect the razor to be truly shave ready? Do you want the bevel to be perfect? Do you have unreasonable expectations about what sharp is, like some guys who are on an unending search to get the keanest edge even though it may not last for more than a couple of shaves? You need to discuss all this. There are some razors that are just better than others and feel better when you shave however all quality straights should give a BBS shave.

[matt321]

:001_smileFor deluxe service , how about:

1. A brief report of the razor condition when received. (Like check boxes saying number and size of chips, coarseness of bevel, flatness of blade.)
2. A couple of 200X microphotos of the edge, before and after sharpening.
3. A brief desription of what was done to the razor. (Like check boxes for stones, paste, strops, polish.)
4. Test results before and after showing results for the common sharpness tests.
5. Recomendations to the owner on how to maintain the edge and when to return it for more work.

[riooso]

I think that would be great but you know for $25 not to realistic and more than I would probably expect.

R

[Thebigspendur]

For deluxe service, how about:

1. A brief report of the razor condition when received. (Like check boxes saying number and size of chips, coarseness of bevel, flatness of blade.)
2. A couple of 200X microphotos of the edge, before and after sharpening.
3. A brief desription of what was done to the razor. (Like check boxes for stones, paste, strops, polish.)
4. Test results before and after showing results for the common sharpness tests.
5. Recomendations to the owner on how to maintain the edge and when to return it for more work.

Yea, if you were going to pay about $250 to have an edge honed that would be neat but its really impractical. Most honemeisters do this as a sideline and don't have fancy equipment to give photos and do tests and give reports. They just hone and test shave.

[heavydutysg135]

When someone pays me to hone their razor I send them back the best shaving razor that I can give them, not just a finished bevel. I expect that the other "honemeisters" would do the same. With that said different razors do have different potentials, but all quality razors should provide at least a really good shave.

[riooso]

It shaved well but I have gotten really spoiled very quickly. I tend to be a perfectionist anyway and have worked around quality machinery and talented people who expect none other for most of my life. I do know not to be unreasonable in most areas and the reason for the post is to learn what conventions are acceptable in the new environment that I am in.

Do you hone? It would be great to get someone who is in California to do what little work I do have. If so please PM me, I would appreciate it.

Thanks,
Richard

[Bruce]

riooso,

HD is right, the razors which have been set up by the various honemeisters should be ready to give you a good shave. A perfect shave? Maybe not. More and more I'm becoming convinced the one guy's whiskers are as unique as the guy growing them and it may not be possible to hone a razor that will suit this vast array of individual factors perfectly. Will the razor work well? Yup. Can it be improved upon? Probably.

Here is where you, the user, come in. With your set-up to maintain an edge with either a barber's hone or a series of pasted paddles or bench hones, you should be able to gently customize the razor's edge to suit your face and beard.

I've bought some hones for myself and am slowly learning how to use them and probably won't need the services of a honemeister in the future, but was very thankful that I could hire the honing done or buy a shave ready razor before trying to do it myself.

good luck,

[riooso]

I need the services of a honemaster because if I put a nick or something in a blade I do not have the hones and probably the skill to a first rate job. I did buy the DMT 8000 and a pasted paddle strop (recommended by members here on different posts, thanks Joel!) and can do a really nice job on a properly beveled razor. In fact I have gotten spoiled in a very short time with just this gear. I am really loving the shaves that I am getting in a months worth of effort! :thumbup1: I tend to be a fast study when around dangerous equipment :biggrin: There was a machinist I knew that explained it very well. "A machine has no conscious"

Thanks,
Richard

[FloppyShoes]

Chips, knicks, and other major work are easy is you have course hones. These hones are not only less expensive, but also usefull for other things (knives and other tools)

[ScottS]

Chips, knicks, and other major work are easy is you have course hones. These hones are not only less expensive, but also usefull for other things (knives and other tools)

Lots of folk at SRP have been telling me to just wet down some wet/dry 1000 paper and put it on top of a hone to do the rough work.

[FloppyShoes]

It has been my experience that wet/dry sandpaper cuts slower than hones do. However, it does work. Just make sure it's damn flat, 'cause it you mess up the bevel it's a pain to reshape on the higher grit hones.

[crankymoose]

I guess another thing to consider besides each blade having it's own personality is what is very sharp and may shave me great for several shaves may not be sharp enough for someone else or may even be too sharp for others. I think especially when it comes to honing as mentioned a lot of these guys while very good just do on it on the side and while each of them try to get the razor as best they can for the price I doubt anyone can replicate a perfectly feeling razor for everyone so I would imagine unless there was upfront discussions about finishing stones and or paste you most likely are getting what they feel most would be happy with.

I had a few razors professionally honed and while all came back as shaving great some were good and others were like wow. A lot of these honemeisters are agreeable if at all possible in finishing your razor on a certain stone or paste as since it is is your razor ultimately you may after time know what you like and feel and what stone or paste gives you that feeling.