Spyderco Forums

I got a straight razor that I haven't used in quite a while and went through the honing process with the Spycerco fine and ultra-fine grit stones. The razor was already honed acceptably I think. I'm not a great straight razor honer but I do keep my razors up myself. I've had Lynn Abrams (Straight Razor Design) hone a razor or two in the past and he gets a crispness on the edge I don't quite achieve. Still, I have comfortable shaves. Still, after honing a razor on the fine stone (8 -10 passes) and then the ultra-fine stone (10 - 15 passes) I stropped on a felt strop with .5 micron CBN spray then a bare kangaroo strop. I was VERY pleases with the results. So, based on one time, I'm happy to say I believe the two stones are capable of maintaining an already shave ready razor that just needs a touch up on stones in addition to stropping. I can use that razor for quite a while with only stropping.

My next experiment I think will be to use Shapton glass stones (2k and 4k) on a razor to re-set the bevel and then the Spyderco stones then stropping. That should show the effect of the Spyderco stones on a brand new edge.

What this might mean for straight razor honers is they may not need to get more expensive high grit stones. Of course some of you may have already gone through this with razors.

If anyone is interested in more from me on this let me know. Otherwise I'll not waste your time looking at these posts. :)

I can't wait to get a spyderco UF bench stone. If I was shaving though I'd probably break out the 0.1 micron (after 1 and 0.25).

jackh wrote: ↑

Wed Jun 20, 2018 11:42 am

If anyone is interested in more from me on this let me know. Otherwise I'll not waste your time looking at these posts. :)

You're not wasting anyone's time. I don't use a straight razor but I still find the info to be interesting and it may be useful to me (or someone else) sometime in the future.

Pelagic wrote: ↑

Wed Jun 20, 2018 11:47 am

I can't wait to get a spyderco UF bench stone. If I was shaving though I'd probably break out the 0.1 micron (after 1 and 0.25).

The Spyderco UF stone is a phenomenal stone IMO. For most EDC knives I don't think it's needed that much. Not for me anyway. But it can put a very smooth edge on a knife. And in my limited experience with straight razors if it leaves a razor's edge smooth enough to finish up with stropping and give a nice smooth shave, that says a whole lot to me. I don't have magnification tools to look at the edge but if it feels good on my face I don't need to see the edge at 100x or 400x or anything like that. I have the 3" wide UF stone and love the extra width. Plus I put some .5 micron CBN on the back side of the leather case for stropping. But honestly I don't get much improvement stropping a knife after the stone. It really leaves a sharp smooth edge. Or maybe I such at stropping. :) Lately when I do strop a knife I've used my hanging strop.

In my yard I seem to frequently need to cut a small limb or branch that is in the way. Over the years I've used whatever knife I have on me to do that and if I use one that I've only used a coarser stone (Spyderco med, DMT course, etc.) to leave a toothy edge the cutting is ok. But if the knife I use was finished with the UF stone cutting is more like using a chisel. The surface of the cut branch is super smooth.

When you do get an UF stone you may find you don't need to strop as much. I don't really know though of course.

jackh wrote: ↑

Wed Jun 20, 2018 12:28 pm

Pelagic wrote: ↑

Wed Jun 20, 2018 11:47 am

I can't wait to get a spyderco UF bench stone. If I was shaving though I'd probably break out the 0.1 micron (after 1 and 0.25).

The Spyderco UF stone is a phenomenal stone IMO. For most EDC knives I don't think it's needed that much. Not for me anyway. But it can put a very smooth edge on a knife. And in my limited experience with straight razors if it leaves a razor's edge smooth enough to finish up with stropping and give a nice smooth shave, that says a whole lot to me. I don't have magnification tools to look at the edge but if it feels good on my face I don't need to see the edge at 100x or 400x or anything like that. I have the 3" wide UF stone and love the extra width. Plus I put some .5 micron CBN on the back side of the leather case for stropping. But honestly I don't get much improvement stropping a knife after the stone. It really leaves a sharp smooth edge. Or maybe I such at stropping. :) Lately when I do strop a knife I've used my hanging strop.

In my yard I seem to frequently need to cut a small limb or branch that is in the way. Over the years I've used whatever knife I have on me to do that and if I use one that I've only used a coarser stone (Spyderco med, DMT course, etc.) to leave a toothy edge the cutting is ok. But if the knife I use was finished with the UF stone cutting is more like using a chisel. The surface of the cut branch is super smooth.

When you do get an UF stone you may find you don't need to strop as much. I don't really know though of course.

Yes I'll definitely be stropping less when i get one. Probably just a few passes to be sure burr is COMPLETELY gone, since even an experienced sharpener can't always detect its presence when it gets that small/weak (after uf stone).

Pelagic wrote: ↑

Wed Jun 20, 2018 11:47 am

I can't wait to get a spyderco UF bench stone. If I was shaving though I'd probably break out the 0.1 micron (after 1 and 0.25).

That's pretty much only what I use anymore>> I've found that Spyderco's Ultra-Fine 302 benchstone gets the razor set up for final stropping about as good as anything else I've ever tried to use.

If I ever find any sharpening tool better than Spyderco's Ultra-Fine stone I'll immediately switch to using it.

jackh wrote: ↑

Wed Jun 20, 2018 11:42 am

My next experiment I think will be to use Shapton glass stones (2k and 4k) on a razor to re-set the bevel and then the Spyderco stones then stropping.

Wait... what do you mean by "re-set the bevel"? Straight razors have only one bevel angle option, it's set by the width of the blade. That's why they' so incredibly easy to sharpen, you just lay them flat. Maybe you mean something else?

Hi jackh,

Welcome to our forum and thanx much for the kind words.

I used a UF stone on my straight razors for years, 30 years ago. I made mine from a fine stone which I made finer using diamond hones. Ruined the diamond hones though, so I don't recommend it. I liked it so much, we developed and produced the UF stone., (2 x 8). Then we made the 3 x 8, which really is a nice stone.

sal

zhyla wrote: ↑

Wed Jun 20, 2018 3:33 pm

jackh wrote: ↑

Wed Jun 20, 2018 11:42 am

My next experiment I think will be to use Shapton glass stones (2k and 4k) on a razor to re-set the bevel and then the Spyderco stones then stropping.

Wait... what do you mean by "re-set the bevel"? Straight razors have only one bevel angle option, it's set by the width of the blade. That's why they' so incredibly easy to sharpen, you just lay them flat. Maybe you mean something else?

You are right. Re-set the bevel isn't exactly my thought. The angle is established by the thickness of the spine. What would really happen by starting with a 2k water stone is the apex would be to toothy for a straight razor and a smooth shave. Also the bevels would not be polished.
I'm pretty sure they will still look a bit scratchy. Then the 4k, Spyderco fine and UF would smooth and polish both bevels and hone the apex. By doing this the Spyderco fine stone would be honing an edge toothier than the razor I used this morning.

sal wrote: ↑

Wed Jun 20, 2018 3:51 pm

Hi jackh,

Welcome to our forum and thanx much for the kind words.

I used a UF stone on my straight razors for years, 30 years ago. I made mine from a fine stone which I made finer using diamond hones. Ruined the diamond hones though, so I don't recommend it. I liked it so much, we developed and produced the UF stone., (2 x 8). Then we made the 3 x 8, which really is a nice stone.

sal

Hello Sal,

I don't have a lot of experience with lots of different knives from other companies. This is because after I had gotten a couple of Spyderco knives I didn't see any need to try other knives. One thing I've come to almost demand in an EDC knife is that they be easily used with one hand. I also like traditional pocket knives and I have a couple of GEC pocket knives. But they don't get used as much because when I have one of those in my pocket I almost always have a Spyderco clipped in another pocket. One huge thing I like about Spyderco knives is your eagerness to use many different types of blade steels. Having a knife that can get just a bit sharper and stay sharp longer is another thing I consider to be very important. I don't know how many different blade steels you are using right now. But, if you look at the list of the steel's that have been used over the years the selection in amazing. I feel this is proof of Spyderco's dedication to searching for the best options for the knives.

And the sharpening tools are just as impressive IMO. It's amazing to me how well the ceramic stones work. To look at the fine or UF stones I'd think how could anything this smooth actually sharpen a knife. Expecially a knife with some of the hardest blade steels used in knife making. Plus, just like a Spyderco knife is easy to use, the sharpening stones require only a little bit of maintenance to keep them working perfectly.

All in all, I feel Spyderco is one of the knife companies that provide everything needed to keep people cutting whatever they need. Add to that a great selection of people at the Spyderco company and you guys are hard (if not impossible) to beat.

Thanks,
Jack

Thanx Jack,

And a lot of great folks on our forum. :D

sal

Randyorton wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 13, 2019 4:59 am

Hello guys,
Can you suggest me the best straight razor blade for the sensitive skin?

IMO your technique and preparation will make the biggest difference. Different blades can shave a bit differently, but the main distinction is how they handle.
Have you mapped out the grain of your hair and are you getting thick lather with your soap?

If you're just starting out and haven't invested in gear yet, the Feather/Jatai stylist razors can use "pro guard" blades with a foil protector on them. Disposable blades aren't as much fun as the real thing, but it takes maintenance it off the equation while you're learning.

Hi randyorton,

Welcome here.

Straight razor must be very sharp and you need good technique.
I lack it.

I would start with a mild double edge razor.

Hi Randyorton,

Welcome to our forum.

sal

Randyorton wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 13, 2019 4:59 am

Hello guys,
Can you suggest me the best straight razor blade for the sensitive skin?

There's really only one kind of straight razor. A properly sharpened straight razor should do the job with minimal irritation.

One nice thing about straight and safety razors is each pass is only one blade pass. Modern disposable type razors usually have 2-5 blades so each pass is 2-5 more blade passes, which can be a lot of scraping on your skin. With a single blade razor you can make 2 or 3 passes in different directions (as desired), which is a better balance between how close the shave is and how many times your skin gets scraped.

I would also make sure to apply some pre-shave oil to your skin, use a correct shave soap, and finish up with something to moisturize the skin.

If you're just looking for a good razor recommendation, I have had a very good experience with a Gold Dollar "1996" -- one of their more premium models (if you call $25 a premium razor) which is a nice step up from the $10 Gold Dollars and holds an edge very well.