Shaving with an SE Wedge Blade

Fergiebilly said:
Hi Tom

That's where these Hollow Ground Blades come into their Own..Comfort is the Operative word here..Factory Disposable Blades are Fine & Dandy but like anything Else that is Disposable there is No Relationship or Attachment that You get with a Natural Steel Blade that you have Honed & Sharpened..o_O

All things Disposable were Thrust upon the Modern World by Manufacturers because they are Cheaper to Produce & Don't Demand Skilled labour..Most Folks are Happy with Instant Gratification & Ease of Use..Convenience Doesn't Mean its a Better Product..Usually the Opposite..:rolleyes:

Of Course Most Folks would Rather Watch Football or East Benders than Spend some Quality Time Honing their Own Blades & Reaping the Rewards..:eek:

The Irony is of Course that we Live in the Age of Modern Lapping Film & Synthetic Stones that have made the Job of Honing & Sharpening Less Hassle..:D

Billy
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I agree wholeheartedly.
I love the ethos of these. This makes sense. The plastic cartridges don't.
As a race, humans need to grow up.

I love the fact that it doesn't get thrown away.
I enjoy sharpening knives, I don't throw them away.
I prefer to fix things.
DE and SE / injector blades are pretty darn good though eh?
Next to no packaging and throw something that gets recycled anyway.

(I also like that I don't have to spend money)
Right, so, wedges it is.

Let's see how we get on with it.
I have been looking forward to this time for quite a while.
 
grarea said:
I agree wholeheartedly.
I love the ethos of these. This makes sense. The plastic cartridges don't.
As a race, humans need to grow up.

I love the fact that it doesn't get thrown away.
I enjoy sharpening knives, I don't throw them away.
I prefer to fix things.
DE and SE / injector blades are pretty darn good though eh?
Next to no packaging and throw something that gets recycled anyway.

(I also like that I don't have to spend money)
Right, so, wedges it is.

Let's see how we get on with it.
I have been looking forward to this time for quite a while.
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Lapping Film is the Cheapest Way to Go..In the Long Term for Honing SRs I would perhaps say its a Different Story due to the Price in the UK ..You Don't need a Lot of Film to Hone an SE Blade..Its Cheaper in the USA & easier to get..:rolleyes:

Lapping Film is also Easy to Learn on..Its very Popular in the USA these days for SRs as Well..I have Invested in some Stones for My SRs but I will Continue to use Lapping Film for my SE Blades..o_O

Other than that its Cheap..You just need to get a Hold of a Few Decent Hollow Ground Blades & that's Not always an Easy thing to Do..Most of them are Unusable or need some Considerable Restoration Work..:eek:

I will say One thing..This is a Must Do..You need to Start out with a Properly Honed Hollow Ground Blade by Someone that's Reputable..You are Up a Gum Tree Otherwise..Knife Sharpening is a Million Miles Away from Honing & Sharpening a Hollow Ground Blade..;)

You Need to Feel a Properly Honed & Sharpened Hollow Ground Blade to Know what you are Looking for..There may be the Exception to the Rule But Anybody that Doesn't Heed that will be on a Hiding to Nothing..I have Seen it Time & Time again..:D

Billy
 
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Fergiebilly said:
Lapping Film is the Cheapest Way to Go..In the Long Term for Honing SRs I would perhaps say its a Different Story due to the Price in the UK ..You Don't need a Lot of Film to Hone an SE Blade..Its Cheaper in the USA & easier to get..:rolleyes:

Lapping Film is also Easy to Learn on..Its very Popular in the USA these days for SRs as Well..I have Invested in some Stones for My SRs but I will Continue to use Lapping Film for my SE Blades..o_O

Other than that its Cheap..You just need to get a Hold of a Few Decent Hollow Ground Blades & that's Not always an Easy thing to Do..Most of them are Unusable or need some Considerable Restoration Work..:eek:

I will say One thing..This is a Must Do..You need to Start out with a Properly Honed Hollow Ground Blade by Someone that's Reputable..You are Up a Gum Tree Otherwise..Knife Sharpening is a Million Miles Away from Honing & Sharpening a Hollow Ground Blade..;)

You Need to Feel a Properly Honed & Sharpened Hollow Ground Blade to Know what you are Looking for..There may be the Exception to the Rule But Anybody that Doesn't Heed that will be on a Hiding to Nothing..I have Seen it Time & Time again..:D

Billy
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You said it billy. I only started honing, i am lucky that i have 5 good blades (wedges). One honed by somebody that knows how to do it. My honing is not that good yet. Each time I hone one it gets a little better.

I still am working on keeping it flat and no pressure on the blade. I get really nice shaves with my honed blades but not great. The edge is not holding up for a long time yet. It will get better with much more practice.

Tom
 
twhite510 said:
You said it billy. I only started honing, i am lucky that i have 5 good blades (wedges). One honed by somebody that knows how to do it. My honing is not that good yet. Each time I hone one it gets a little better.

I still am working on keeping it flat and no pressure on the blade. I get really nice shaves with my honed blades but not great. The edge is not holding up for a long time yet. It will get better with much more practice.

Tom
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Hi Tom

Aye..Thats Right Tom..Once You get a Correctly Honed + Sharpened Blade then You have a Reference Point..An Edge that's Not Holding Up is an Indicator that the Bevel is Not Quite there..:)

Billy
 
twhite510 said:
Thanks for the pointer.
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I think You are using 12 Micron the same as Me..12 Micron Does the Job to Set the Bevel but this is where we Need Pressure..You need to Use some Pressure on the 12 Micron to Set the Bevel..I also think it Helps to Stick to Honing One Blade for some Consistency..You will also Tune into it Really Well..;)

How Much Pressure is a Learning Curve..:D

Billy
 
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twhite510 said:
Ok good to know. I am getting a bit of a taper on the bevel from one side to the other. I think my pressure is not even. I need to develop a feel for even pressure over the blade.

I swiped my learning curve, so it is free[emoji16]


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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15 Micron will Help Tom..12 Micron works but it can be Tedious..There May be a Tendency to Use Too Much Pressure to Speed it up on 12 Micron..Pressure is Not You're Best Friend when Learning..It can Only be learned through the Practice..Most of us are Not Fortunate enough to have a Honemeister at Our Side..:p

I Honed My 1st SR recently & was a Wee Bit Over Cautious with Pressure..Just an Ongoing Learning Curve..The more You Play the more You Learn..:D

Billy
 
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So, here is where I am at.
I have about half a dozen of the blades and a couple of look in very good order.

(I think the rolls is a different matter)

So, I am thinking that I have two tasks.
One is to ask where I saw the link to the 'how to sort a rolls razor' link you posted somewhere please billy.

The other one I think is to source a stropping handle for the hjealgebergenberg.
OR, more likely, make something to work.

Won't be on the same lines as Tom. It will need to be able to be made with
a chop saw and a club hammer.
 

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You will get a Stropping Handle from an Old Cheap otherwise Buggered Hollow Ground SE Blade Set from French EBay on the Cheap if you look around..Plenty from Time to Time..o_O

The Rolls Razor Stuff is on this Thread if You Click Back..There is All You need know & a Bit More..I also started this Brief Intrduction to the Rolls but if you Click Back on this Thread You are On just Now its All there..:)
http://www.theshavingroom.co.uk/community/index.php?threads/the-rolls-razor.36364/

Billy
 
Gentlemen, here comes a guy who's done it all WRONG: I honed them myself, have no experience honing, took the coticule route (and don't regret it), and did not read enough about honing. Today I got a great shave. Comfortable enough so that I could touch up as much as I wanted. Way nicer than with a GEM.

IMO there isn't enough info on how to hone this blades.

In my modest experience a blade holder is critical and it should replicate the existing bevel angle as much as possible (probably this will be obvious to those with honing experience). The Heljestrand handle I have is too bulky and heavy. A bamboo chopstick is a better alternative as it is lighter, you get less giggle, and if you push hard enough it will also prevent the blade from moving down in the holder (tape prevents from moving up).

I followed Billy's advise and been stropping out of the Magnus system. After testing it with a dull blade I saw he was absolutely right.

A couple of local straight razor mentors gave me a honing lesson and that is why my blades are now a decent shave. I know my blades can be sharper and will continue to pursue that. But even at this point and can't stop checking my difficult to shave areas to confirm again and again how great these shave.

2016-05-30 15.50.15.jpg 2016-05-30 15.50.30.jpg no worries, that is just a reflexion, not rust.
 
Lloyd - you seem to have it about right in terms of the approach. Your chop sticks are doing exactly the same as a blade holder. The thing to bear in mind is that an ideal bevel angle is between 17 and 20 degrees therefore achieving this is basic geometry. Measure the thickness of the chop sticks including tape when holding the blade - measure the part where they rest on the hone. Next is the distance from that point to the very edge of the blade - if the ratio is between 3.5 to 4:1 your honing attachment is OK.
 
Another Potential Problem I see with that Method is that it will Flex..Some Pressure is Needed to Set the Bevel..It needs to be Absolutely Even pressure..Moreover, When You Go through the Progression to Finer Grits No Pressure is Required so the Blade being Flat under its Own Weight on the Stone is Paramount..That Homemade Set Up there is Gonna Flex & Upset the Applecart..:)

Billy
 
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My first attempt was with a piece of tape but I was doing more harm than good.

2016-05-09 23.07.21 copy.jpg
A honemeister (based on that same picture) recommended to look for the for the original angle on the bevel and to find a way of making a guide for it. So I used the blade holder for stropping that comes with the set.
2016-03-24 13.41.48 copy.jpg
As you can see, the razor handle acts as the stropping handle, but IMO its too heavy and bulky for honing and stropping.
So I used the holder only. That alone improved my honing tremendously. It also made sense to me since I will be stropping using that blade holder so honing with it should give the bevel a similar angle to what it will get when stropping. I inked the bevel to guided the honing.

2016-05-11 20.59.48 copy.jpg

That holder is covered in tape on the chopstick handle picture (so I missed to mention that). After honing without a handle I felt the need for one for the x strokes and then the rolling strokes. I used the original handle and did not like it but did notice I liked how it felt better than no handle, so I replaced it with the chopstick. After that I used this approach with another dull blade start to finish and its working better for me.
To make pressure when setting the bevel I put my index finger on top of the blade, similar to what I've seen on straight honing videos (or so I like to think). No flexing issues and in fact I get better results with the chopstick than with the original handle or the blade holder alone.

This are my first honing steps and am sure this approach can and will get improved. Right now am already getting better shaves than with a GEM blade; quite encouraging.
 
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