Tim Zowada recommends tape on the spine of his razors from day one. Quote from his website - "The back of the blade should be protected with electrical tape for all the bench hones. This does two things, it protects the blade back from being scratched by the hone, and it sets the correct angle for the edge while on the hone.".
tape on the spine
- Thread starter hahnevince559
- Start date
Tim Zowada recommends tape on the spine of his razors from day one. Quote from his website - "The back of the blade should be protected with electrical tape for all the bench hones. This does two things, it protects the blade back from being scratched by the hone, and it sets the correct angle for the edge while on the hone.".
Interesting, thanks for chiming in
Interestingly, when i honed a zowada i was surprised how thin the razor was. Perhaps he does account for it, however if that was really true and there is a correct angle, shoukdnt be tell you which thickness tape to buy? And if you keep rehoning with tape, the correct angle will always be different.
If you're spending what a custom razor costs, I doubt you're going to put enough hone-wear on it to ever effect a significant geometry change, to be fair. A $300-1000 razor is not the type of beater razor we find worn down to a nub in a barbers box from decades of use. I suspect they get whipped out for a shave here and there, and otherwise are displayed.
I am a tape guy and exactly for the reasons mentioned. Damascus razors and custom pieces of steel that I just don't want the hone wear on. It is my hope that a couple hundred years from now some guy has to send my razors off to Tim Zowada's great great great grandson to be reground! 
I have used tape and not tape and honestly I really dislike using it as it so razors that I purchased that were honed on tape I took back to bevel and rehoned without, I am sure spine wear on my shavers are their but I don't hone the same razor that often and usually all I have to do is hit a finisher once in a while to keep the edge but I say if you like using it and get good results then keep using it but for me it's a pain and I have not noticed any difference in the edge honed with it or without.
Taping a razor is both over and under-rated. It has a place but you need to decide if it will help or hurt your efforts at getting the best edge you can on a particular razor. I have some razors (usually 6/8 and up) that seem to do better with taping (from bevel setting to final polishing on stone). I have others (usually 5/8 and below) that do better without it. Then there are some razors that I will put a layer of electrical tape on during the last few polishing steps to create a micro bevel.
The real key, whether taping or not, is to know what is happening to the edge at each stage of honing, polishing and finishing.
I never let gold wash be the determination on if I tape a razor. What good is a perfect looking spine if you can't get a great shaving edge?
The real key, whether taping or not, is to know what is happening to the edge at each stage of honing, polishing and finishing.
I never let gold wash be the determination on if I tape a razor. What good is a perfect looking spine if you can't get a great shaving edge?
I started a thread once asking to see razors with spine work and hone wear to see whether it spoiled the aesthetics of the spine work. In my eyes it did not. I have not seen a Damascus with hone wear, but I doubt that it would bother me.
Seems to me that all these fancy razors a partly a show of opulence anyway. What could be more opulent than letting the spine work or gold show a bit of hone wear.
Perfect even hone wear shows that the razor has good geometry.
Seems to me that all these fancy razors a partly a show of opulence anyway. What could be more opulent than letting the spine work or gold show a bit of hone wear.
Perfect even hone wear shows that the razor has good geometry.
On a lot of my razors, I find the thin flat mirrored line rather appealing, even when there is pretty spinework.
Slash McCoy
I freehand dog rockets
I only tape certain razors.
Wedges or near meshes
Spine work or gold on spine
Frameback type
Customs
Why?
With decorated spines or gold on them I don't want the wear
This would not look right to me with a line missing from the gold.
Wedges-very hard to get a good edge, not impossible but hard.
Near wedge I honed without tape
Shaves great but it's a love hate relationship with this type of wear
Frameback-the spines can be softer than the metal on the edge, specially the copper ones.
Customs-only because that's how the maker usually honed them.
Wedges or near meshes
Spine work or gold on spine
Frameback type
Customs
Why?
With decorated spines or gold on them I don't want the wear
This would not look right to me with a line missing from the gold.
Wedges-very hard to get a good edge, not impossible but hard.
Near wedge I honed without tape
Shaves great but it's a love hate relationship with this type of wear
Frameback-the spines can be softer than the metal on the edge, specially the copper ones.
Customs-only because that's how the maker usually honed them.
Slash McCoy
I freehand dog rockets
I only tape certain razors.
Wedges or near meshes
Spine work or gold on spine
Frameback type
Customs
Why?
With decorated spines or gold on them I don't want the wear
This would not look right to me with a line missing from the gold.
Wedges-very hard to get a good edge, not impossible but hard.
Near wedge I honed without tape
Shaves great but it's a love hate relationship with this type of wear
Frameback-the spines can be softer than the metal on the edge, specially the copper ones.
Customs-only because that's how the maker usually honed them.
Looks like a REAL razor. And of COURSE it shaves good.
Slash McCoy
I freehand dog rockets
Every respectable dungeon, tower, or castle has them that way.
This is a very interesting thread and I very much appreciate it. In saying that, I find that I am being twisted every which way every time someone says something that makes sense. Taping or not taping. I am sure that I am not the only one with this dilemma. I have been into straights just over a year and a half and can get a decent edge on most of my razors although I have had problems on smiling blades and a custom that I think has a possible geometry issue? I have been taping all my straights, and it is a bit of a pain, although I am getting used to it. Not sure on what to do now? I do see the reason for taping with a fancy decorative spine and I will continue to do so in the future though. Sigh, what a conundrum!
Mike
Mike
Remind me to never buy a razor from a manufacturer who says their razor needs tape to achieve a proper angle. Oh wait, I already bought one and have culled it from my rotation. Are they too cheap to get thicker bar stock or too stupid to grind a 5/8 instead of the 6/8.
Not really a conundrum. You can just continue taping for now and decide to stop later if you conclude that a more acute bevel angle is desirable. While Slash's point about the bevel angle increasing if the spine and edge are not being reduced together is technically correct, the amount of change over a lifetime of honing is pretty negligible, on the order of 1 degree per 1/16" of width reduction. A bigger reason not to tape IMO is the roughly 1 degree that it adds to the bevel angle at the time of honing.
Tape proponents tell me that I can't feel the difference of 1 degree. That is probable true, but I know I can feel the difference between 15 and 20 degrees and much prefer a 15 degree bevel. As such, I always try to get as close to 15 degrees as I can.
Slash McCoy
I freehand dog rockets
Both sides of this eternal argument have been presented in detail. So, after careful reading and also some rational thinking for yourself, do it or don't do it, as you see fit. Your razor. I just dont want to think about all those who tape that simply don't know any better. I am so deep into the modded GD rabbit hole that I may never buy another vintage razor as long as I live, so I don't have to worry about rehabilitating a razor that has suffered through the indignity of having its spine taped.
But I will offer one more shot across the bows of the tape crowd. Electrical tape wasn't even invented until 1946 and I doubt it was ever used for honing razors until quite recently, like after razor BBS's and/or internet discussion forums related to razors came to be. So obviously, the bulk of razors in existence were never meant to be honed with tape. Even wedges, though I will concede that I would never think of honing a full wedge myself without tape, simply because I dont trust myself to freehand hone one. You dont use a hammer for every job you do, even most tasks are not done with a hammer. Yet, it is a useful and powerful tool WHEN NEEDED. That's how I think of tape. You can share this view, or not. But I will always present it, given cause and opportunity to do so.
Okay, I'm outta this thread.
But I will offer one more shot across the bows of the tape crowd. Electrical tape wasn't even invented until 1946 and I doubt it was ever used for honing razors until quite recently, like after razor BBS's and/or internet discussion forums related to razors came to be. So obviously, the bulk of razors in existence were never meant to be honed with tape. Even wedges, though I will concede that I would never think of honing a full wedge myself without tape, simply because I dont trust myself to freehand hone one. You dont use a hammer for every job you do, even most tasks are not done with a hammer. Yet, it is a useful and powerful tool WHEN NEEDED. That's how I think of tape. You can share this view, or not. But I will always present it, given cause and opportunity to do so.
Okay, I'm outta this thread.
There is quite a bit of leeway in what is considered a proper angle, but suppose a maker decides that his razors shave best at 16 degrees. A lot of people will judge a maker by the quality of the out of the box shave on a brand new razor, so the maker wants to send out the razor at the 16 degrees that he feels is 'best'. Should he build the razor to hit that angle with or without tape? If without, that means he needs to send the razor out with hone wear, or at a more obtuse angle than he feels is 'best'. Some people would object to receiving a razor that is supposed to be new that has hone wear out of the box. Add to that that in my opinion, less experienced shavers get along better with larger bevel angles. Not knowing the experience level, bevel angle preference, or feelings about hone wear of the end user it is understandable that a maker may decide to default to a layer of tape and let the user decide if he wants to hone without it.
I'm not saying there is any right or wrong to this, just some of the thoughts a builder may have about tape.
Have you measured the bevel angle of the razor that you have that supposedly needs tape to hone at the 'proper angle'? There is a good chance that you may like it fine if it was honed without tape.
^ i did try it without tape and the bevel was so wide for a new razor it was ridiculous. And it never shaved well. It was 1/4 hollow and a shallow attack angle always resulted in the face of the razor and spine getting in the way. Earlier versions of this razor were apparently worse and they increased their bar stock. Unfortunately not enough for me.
