Nick repair?

[aus71383]

I did a few searches and didn't find anything on repairing a blade with a nick in it. I got a Dovo about 8 years ago and somehow got a nick in it - haven't used it since. I'm wondering how much can be honed out, and what's the point of no return. I don't have it in front of me - its packed away somewhere. I think its a 5/8, and I know its a Stainless w/ pearlite handle. Thanks,

Austin

[gglockner]

A lot depends on the size of the nick, but you can try using a medium grit hone (4K), tape the spine and do a bunch of circular strokes evenly to both sides of the razor until the nick is gone.

Glen

[joel]

PERSONALLY if it's anything more than just a tiny flea bite - I won't put in the effort to hone it out. It takes so incredibly long, and is so time consuming, it just isn't worth the effort for me, unless the razor has some sentimental value - or is something special. If it's just a run of the mill Dovo, or an ebay razor, the amount of time i'd have to put into it, isn't even worth the cost of the razor.

With that said - if it' a small nick, a 220 grit norton or a medium grit DMT plate will make pretty short work of it.

[aus71383]

Thanks for the reply - at least there's potential. I don't suppose there are any pictures of nicks in blades, with a rough example of what is too big of a nick? I believe this is a 5/8 razor if that makes any difference. I don't have a hone of any kind at the moment. Would I be wrong to assume that taping the spine will serve mostly to prevent honing the spine at the same time I'm honing the edge? If that's the case, won't this change the angle on the blade if the spine doesn't get thinner as the blade is (somewhat) reduced? Thanks again,

Austin

[aus71383]

Thanks joel -

I got this razor in high school and shaved with it with mediocre results. I know now that it probably never had a proper edge on it. I think I paid $100 or so for it - not cheap, but not the end of the world if it is ruined. I guess I would like to get it back working just because right now its useless to me. I probably won't use it until I have a more stable place to live - not to mention a new strop and some hones.

Austin

[scarver]

You know, before I tossed it, I'd try one of my woodcarving contacts. These guys are notorius for using razors to turn into carving knives, but I think they could rescue the razor itself. These folks have an inexpensive cost to hone/sharpen carving knives. I'd give them a try.

Little Shavers

Woodcarving Supply

423 SW 104th St.

Seattle, WA 98146-1545



Open Monday - Friday

9:00 am - 5:00 pm Pacific Time
Web: www. littleshavers. com

e-mail: rick @littleshavers. com

e-mail: theresa @littleshavers. com

Phone: (206) 767-7421





24 hour secure Fax: (206) 763-6774

Thanks joel -

I got this razor in high school and shaved with it with mediocre results. I know now that it probably never had a proper edge on it. I think I paid $100 or so for it - not cheap, but not the end of the world if it is ruined. I guess I would like to get it back working just because right now its useless to me. I probably won't use it until I have a more stable place to live - not to mention a new strop and some hones.

Austin

[heavydutysg135]

Don't throw out the razor or turn it into another tool yet. Post a picture of the blade, some nicks do not take that much work to remove with the proper stones. If it is not too serious then I would probably be able to hone it up to be a great shaver for my normal fee plus a repair charge.

[aus71383]

Thanks heavydutysg135 - I'll try to find it and get a picture up here. It may be back home in WA....I'll have to do some poking around and see if I've got it here or not.

Austin

[joel]

Don't throw out the razor or turn it into another tool yet. Post a picture of the blade, some nicks do not take that much work to remove with the proper stones. If it is not too serious then I would probably be able to hone it up to be a great shaver for my normal fee plus a repair charge.

+1

Austin - don't misread what I intended, in that if the nick isn't very big/major, it isn't a big deal to hone out - whereas if it is, it isn't worth the effort in my opinion.

[aus71383]

Not to worry - I don't have a picture so its hard to say. If its too bad, its a loss. If not, it can be fixed. I just wasn't sure if there was a standard of some kind for size of nick=junk/woodcarver.

Austin

[gglockner]

Would I be wrong to assume that taping the spine will serve mostly to prevent honing the spine at the same time I'm honing the edge? If that's the case, won't this change the angle on the blade if the spine doesn't get thinner as the blade is (somewhat) reduced? Thanks again,

Austin

Taping the spine is a normal practice around here. The spine seems to wear or hone faster than the edge. You are correct if you took like 1/16" off of the edge to remove chips, you would be altering the geometry set by the width of the blade versus the depth of the spine. I typically will take the tape off when the chip is first or just about gone. I will also tape the spine when building a new bevel, as not to remove more on the spine than the edge.

Glen

Glen

[heavydutysg135]

Taping the spine is a normal practice around here. The spine seems to wear or hone faster than the edge. You are correct if you took like 1/16" off of the edge to remove chips, you would be altering the geometry set by the width of the blade versus the depth of the spine. I typically will take the tape off when the chip is first or just about gone. I will also tape the spine when building a new bevel, as not to remove more on the spine than the edge.

Glen

Glen

Read the section on edge uniformity tests and double bevels:
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?t=31640
If you use tape to set the bevel then you must use tape throughout the entire honing process, or else completely re-set the bevel without tape before moving on to the polishing stages. Otherwise you will be polishing the base of the bevel and not the shaving edge. It will take a lot more work than you might think to re-set the bevel, you can use the magic marker test to see when you have completely eliminated the double bevel.

[Suzuki]

Two suggestions:

1) Post a picture - preferably with a good view of the offending nick. Once we can see the nick in person, we'll be able to give you better advice as to what makes sense.

2) If the decision is made to send the razor out for repair, I would make sure you send it out to someone who knows what they're doing. The fact that someone can sharpen a knife means less than zero when it comes to sharpening a razor - apples and oranges. If the nick is not something that can be honed out easily, it may be possible to regrind the blade. Once we get a better sense of what type of repair is necessary, we can give you good recommendations for people who can fix the razor.

Its very important to make sure you send your razor out to someone who has a good reputation, as there are lots of folks who call themselves honemeisters who are no better than average honers - this is one of the areas where we consistently see comments like "I sent my razor out to be honed and it came back all scratched up and dull as a butter knife", so definitely a buyer beware type of thing.

Hope this helps.

[jlander]

Chris!
You're ruining my fledgling business!


Seriously, Chris is absolutely correct. Find somewone who knows what they asre doing with a razor. If it needs a regrind, it's even more important to go to someone who does that on a regular basis like Bill Ellis, Joe Chandler, or Robert Williams to name just a couple.

[aus71383]

After a brief look around I suspect my straight razor is back in Washington State....and I'm in Florida. As I recall the nick I want to say it was around 1/16th of an inch or so. I saw a couple videos on youtube (the only ones on there) about straight razor honing and I think I have a better idea of what all is involved in the process. I'm not sure if the producer of the videos is on this site, but I wouldn't doubt it. Irregardless I'm thinking of getting a 220/1000 and a 4000/8000 Norton waterstone just to have handy....then maybe I'll get another razor....and another strop...

Austin