Quest for a competent straight shave.

[helicopter]

I hit it again with rolling strokes and heel forward strokes.

Naniwa Chosera 800
Shapton Rockstar 320
Naniwa Chosera 800
Naniwa Chosera 3k
Shapton Glass 8k
Chicago linen
Chicago leather
TM cotton
TM horsehide

This was good enough to whave with, but not the most pleasant edge.

Post in thread 'What did you use today? +Rate the shave 1-10 (10 best)' What did you use today? +Rate the shave 1-10 (10 best) - https://www.badgerandblade.com/forum/threads/what-did-you-use-today-rate-the-shave-1-10-10-best.568241/post-12907147

With this technique, even with a few passes at 90 degrees at each stage, the middle of the edge didn't move much. It was sticking, so I kept moving up. You can see how the middle bevel is only polished on the distal part.

I suppose I can try a European razor next. I have several that would work alright.

 

[psfred]

Big improvement, but you need more time on the 800k to get the bevel fully set. If you look at the bevel with some magnification, I suspect you will find parts of it OK and parts where the bevel doesn't end in a clean line. Blade has to stick all along the edge.

If you look at the relative width of the hone wear on the spine and the width of the bevel along the blade you will see why I think it's warped, ground to a smile, and probably slightly twisted as well -- at the toe, one side has a wider bevel that the hone wear and on the other the hone wear is wider than the bevel.

Given how much steel has been taken off the spine, I'd use tape on that razor, it will reduce the size of the bevel quite a bit, making it easier to hone. It's not as fat as a GD 66 so removing thickness from the spine can result in a bevel angle more acute than optimal for that steel.

I'm not a fan of huge modifications of the heel, but I would grind off that point as it will likely bite you sometime. Need not be much, but you definitely do not want a sharp corner there.

 

[helicopter]

Traced a penny and lopped the heel off.

 

[helicopter]

Tried some tape. That seems like a good idea because it felt a lot better shaving on the first pass before tape.

Naniwa Chosera 800
Naniwa Chosera 3k
Shapton Glass 8k

 

[Ravenonrock]

Glad it’s feeling better for you, uncomfortable shaves are no fun! You seem committed to figuring things out with that GD.

 

[helicopter]

Glad it’s feeling better for you, uncomfortable shaves are no fun! You seem committed to figuring things out with that GD.

I am not that committed. Either a TI or a Timor is up next

Gold Dollar is nice because I am comfortable doing risky and foolish experiments with it. When I go to hone a serious razor, I am going to want to avoid ruining it or messing it up. With a Gold Dollar it is just, "oh, that doesn't really work..."

 

[Ravenonrock]

I am not that committed. Either a TI or a Timor is up next

Gold Dollar is nice because I am comfortable doing risky and foolish experiments with it. When I go to hone a serious razor, I am going to want to avoid ruining it or messing it up. With a Gold Dollar it is just, "oh, that doesn't really work..."

It happens sometimes, even with best intentions. I put in plenty of practice on junkers and really enjoyed honing on razors that weren’t funky to start with. I’m still learning and figuring things out as I go, trying things and adjusting along the way. If it’s a good shave in the end, I‘m happy.

 

[helicopter]

Is this thing worth honing, or is it just a vintage Gold Dollar?

 

[Darth Scandalous]

Is this thing worth honing, or is it just a vintage Gold Dollar?

View attachment 1949590

Only one way to find out. Doesn't look like it's been mistreated, other than the rust.

 

[H Brad Boonshaft]

Yup, even grind, very little spine wear, even bevel and wide-ish blade.

Nice scales, pressed horn or gutta percha? Should clean up with a little sanding and metal polish.

Cut off the rust with a single edge razor blade, 0000 steel wool and WD40. Pick up some 1inch 3m Radial Bristle Disc for your Dremel, you can buy an assortment of grits, but I use mostly 60 grit and 220, then the buffer, but 600 wet and dry and metal polish works if you don’t have a buffer.

The Radial discs will clean, remove rust on the tang between the scales and clean the monkey tail and jimps nicely. They don’t work so well on the blade belly, leave swirl marks, but some 600 will remove them. Or use steel wool and WD40 on the belly.

Use tape to hone, until you master honing razors, then decide if you want to continue to use tape, no diamond plates needed to set the bevels 1k maximum for bevel set.

 

[Steve56]

Nice old razor, either French or made for the French market. Vintage razors are usually quite good.

 

[helicopter]

I can't find that French razor, so I went to a Timor. The first one had poorly fitted and bent scales that want to get bitten by the edge, so I looked at my other one. It is better.

I put on a piece of 1 mil Kapton, and took it to the Naniwa Chosera 800. I gave it some lapping, The toe was getting pointy and the edge wavy, so I gave it some rolling strokes and rounded the point a bit. I lapped some more, focusing on the low spots. It continued to get worse and worse.

I seem to have figured out how to overpay for razors that aren't very good and them make them worse.

What's next?

 

[H Brad Boonshaft]

You are honing on the Spine over the Stabilizer and it is keeping the heel half of the edge off the stone. You are likely adding more pressure in an attempt to force the heel on the stone and are grinding the spine over the stabilizer and getting a wonky edge. The heel bevel and the toe bevel are not in the same plane.

A 5-minute heel correction will allow the razor to sit flat on the stone.

 

[psfred]

You don't even need a heel correction, you just have to angle the blade on the stone to let the heel touch without the tang riding on the stone, probably 45 degrees or so.

The rest of the funky stuff is far too much pressure.

 

[H Brad Boonshaft]

True, you don’t “have to” correct the heel, to hone the razor, if you hone all your strokes at 45 degrees, heel forward, but that is a pain in the butt and will not hone the heel corner fully, (slightly around the corner) so that the razor will shave using the corner.

It is a 5- minute fix, you did it already on another razor and then you can hone the razor easily without all the gymnastics.

If you round the heel corner a bit more than last time you can avoid the sharp pointed heel corner, that can cut you when shaving.

When you hone a new to you razor, first, ink the bevel and do one lap, look to see where the ink is removed. If large parts of the bevel are not touching the stone, stop and find out why.

Re-ink the bevel and the spine and do another lap. Look at the bevel and spine, if ink is not removed fully from both, (the heel and the spine are not touching the stone fully), find out why.

On this razor you can easily see where you are grinding the spine over the stabilizer off of the tape. That is where your problem is.

Just grinding away on a low grit stone, even with gymnastics is never a good answer to honing a razor, may work with knives…

 

[helicopter]

Done. 5 minutes including walking down to the workshop and back and taking pictures.

This is not the challenging part or the part that is likely to go wrong for an aircraft mechanic.

Also, I could care less about the Timor aesthetic. With the scales on the other one that shouldn't have left the factory, I would say this is basically a $40 European Gold Dollar.

Further, not only do I not want to hone that corner ar 45 degrees, but I don't want it diving into my face when I have it honed up.

 

[H Brad Boonshaft]

The goal to honing razors is to eliminate as many variables, so that your great edges are Repeatable.

Does you no good if you make a great edge, but can’t repeat it or know why it came out so well?

There are many ways to hone, or do most things razor related, find the ones that work for you and simplify as much as possible.

If you round the heel corner a bit more, it will make the corner a bit more shaveable. As the corner gets sharper, pointier, after you hone it.

You may not want to round it off with a Dremel, I just put it on a diamond plate, start about mid arc and as you go down the plate roll the razor until it is almost level with the edge. The edge is thin, so it grinds easy, 2-3 laps are all you need. The side of a 1k or 800 also works well for this and you do not run the risk of gouging the face of your 1k if you use the side.

 

[helicopter]

I hit the heel a little on the diamond plates, but I dont think I got enough ot it.

The bevel is set and hedge is honed.

Naniwa Chosera 800
Naniwa Chosera 3k
Shapton Rockstar 10k

It is sharp. I see what you mean about honing it to a point.

Time to strop and see how it shaves.

I will probably revisit the heel work later at some point. It is more of a problem on the side that isn't etched with a logo. But I want it where neither side is a problem.

 

[helicopter]

Incidentally, this one made violent contact with a sink. Should I try to fix it, and if so, how?

 

[helicopter]

The Giesen and Forsthoff was OK, but not nice enough to keep using. I might give it another whirl before going to stones.

About the Dovo, edge trailing strokes with tape to lift the rolled over part then joint the entire edge on a stone or plate until all bad metal is gone, then set bevel, then hone?

Or is there a better way to go about it?