Make a video please!

Thank you! I'm very glad you find it helpful! Next time I'll be sure to use more charts and graphs, and I'll wear my glasses :D

keep it simple. I agree you need to hone both side the same! regards dapper shaves

That’s the Japanese for you.

Thank you for the honesty! Keep on trying. There was once a time where I was also not so successful with my sharpening and honing. You just got to pay your dues and get some good mentors along the way. I learned to sharpen with a little trial and a whole lot of error. I still make lots of mistakes - I'm just better at hiding them now :D

Hey Pete! Glad you found it helpful. That means a lot coming from you!!

Excellent breakdown of the anatomy! On this razor I was not able to see any weld or lamination lines, but the feedback was telling me it was 2 different steels. No matter the razor though, I still am a proponent of the 1:1 honing ratio with the little leaning on the bevel side.

great info, thanks for sharing, regards dapper shaves

Thank you, sir! So far I haven't gotten too many people coming out of the woodwork telling me how wrong I am :D

I was taking the pictures at all the same position, and it really doesn't show any major changes from that particular position. Also, the 0.25 and 0.025 don't really show up as new scratches, but they highlight what is already underneath them.

Thank you, sir!

The wrap is a bamboo wrap from the factory. :)

There's a double edged sword to using a microscope. I've had some very good shaves with razors that looked awful under the scope, and some bad shaves with edges that were perfect. On one hand the scope offers a lot of information about the condition of the edge and its progress. On the other, you begin to strive for absolute perfection at every grit, when it may not be absolutely necessary. I think seeing the progress is one of the most important learning aids when honing. Like a Doctor looking at an X-ray once you are dialed in with your scope, you can see things like effects of pressure. In the end, as long as you enjoy the shave, it's all good!

@@JendeIndustries all I need is bbs no voodoo or microscope why don’t you shave after ? I all ways shave after sharpening my razor that’s how I tell

@@keganjackson7609 Shave was great. kzfaq.info/get/bejne/ZsyIm7CLuZfckZs.html

As always, I am humbled, sir! Razors are a totally different beast than knives. I can't tell you how many straight and kamisori I have left in a ruined wake in my quest to get where I am today with honing. I had some good mentors along the way, and I am hoping to pay it forward. FWIW, I don't think many honemiesters out there have made the connection between the ratio honing and the soft cladding.

@@JendeIndustries I did modify my schedule, and, as any descent newbie-wannabe-sharpener (lol), I prepare a ton of questions, which I bet you will be interested to comment/answer. For the time beeing, You asked for some feedback, and here you have it: 1) Yes Iwasakis are usually / traditionally laminated, see "kzfaq.info/get/bejne/nNefmNhnlrXVm4E.html" from 1:09min to 1:16min, and 2)Although I'm not an experienced sharpener my intuition guides me to hone all/any razors at 1:1 ratio, otherwise you give it a bad treat. However peolple who use e.g. 3:1 or 4:1 strokes, do it this way in order a)to protect the backside holloweness from becoming shallow, similar situation holds as far as I can recall for nakiris or one side beveled hochos, and b) to protect the good steel from premature wear. Some more experienced than me sharpeners recommend that you only sharpen the back hollowed side with higher grit stones and not on 1000grit, even while you sharpen the front on 1k - this way you can keep the 1:1 ratio while still protecting the back side. Additionally and of course, what is important, is while sharpening the back side keep pressure strictly at a very minimal level while employing the 1:1 ratio. To be honest to you, I just report to you what I've seen in other you tube videos, which seemed to me relevant. By the way: what does mean (in sharpening terms) the term "feathering" you use?

@@georgeskandalaros8661 Thank you for the answers, as always! I did some looking up of the Iwasaki before this video and I found one site listing it as Tamahagane, and another as Sandvik. So yeah... When I look at the razor, I don't see any lamination lines or welds. The difference I felt could very well have been the heat treat only going to a certain point on the blade. I really don't know. I would still recommend the forward momentum on these as a general rule. As for the wear, every reason you stated above is what is thrown around. So it's also very gray as to which is "correct". It makes sense to do the bevel side more since it will not lose it's shape like the hollow ground back, but inevitably, that causes the softer cladding to wear more if you don't lean into the edge. Combine that with stone wear, dishing, etc, and it makes the hollow ground flat side seem a little more attractive for faster, easier, and more precise sharpening. On a yanagi or the likes, you spend more time on the more aesthetic bevel side, for sure. So that's probably more the mentality. However, as any razor honemiester knows, there is a definite difference when getting a knife sharp vs a razor - even though the rules are the same..... :D

@@JendeIndustries First of all, I do apologize for not having answered for such a long time - I had to deal similtaneously with work and health issues. But ... I'M BACK!!! (LOL). As far as I can recall, there is only one real "tatara" left in Japan, run by Hitachi, producing the historical - real "tamahagane". I reasonably assume that some japanese bladesmiths who produce their own proprietary steel (if you want to make "nihonto" you can't buy prepared steel, you must first make your own in order to continue) call it "tamahagane" for marketing or sentimental reasons, and by the way, this proprietary steel may very well be much better than real tamahagane... (anyway, what makes a good steel billet / blade is mostly the forging effort of the bladesmith, which purifies the steel). Iwasaki, and his son and successor Shigeyosi, were very good metallurgists anyway, and were working initially with high carbon steel, be it real tamahagane, or tamahagane-like steel, and they made legendary camisoris out of it. But as you know, no one company can survive if they just make solely one product, or solely one range of products (like jende produces from reed knives to acrylic block nanocloth strops). Thus, probably down the road they decided to offer razors from stainles steels, and we all know that Sandvik produces good stainless steel. So, one may very well encounters any of the two. Also about lamination lines, yes, they may not be easily discernible, depending on the surface finish of the blade. Pertaining this particular razor, you could find the truth only down the road by working with it, or if the customer has some documents telling the truth. ANYWAY, I ALSO PREFER THE 1:1 RATIO, IN ORDER TO AVOID CHANGE THE PARTICULAR DIMENSIONS OF THE RAZOR THAT THE MANUFACTURER HAS SET (that's where my intuition prompts me), and since the probability favours that Iwasaki camisoris are made of laminated steel, I FIND TERRIFIC THE IDEA OF LEANING SLIGHTLY FORWARD WHILE SHARPENIG THE BEVEL SIDE. Apart from the previous matter I do feel overwelmed by some querries, which in fact is one querry in some versions. Ar around 13:59, when starting the 10K treatment, you state that not many strokes can be given. Why is that?? Is it the same reason as in the case of honing straights on Shapton 30K? Is the reason that notorious "carbide pop-up" phenomenon? Is the same trouble that newbie sharpeners like me call "overhoning"? And most important: does this limitation depend on whether one has done neat work on previous stages (like you have performed on this video)?? If one skips some steps (e.g. the 2k stone), or if he doesn't perform enough strokes on previous steps, can do many strokes on the 10K without worry?? It must be clear to you by now that it was meaningless to ask such questions to a not well "seasoned" sharpener. Again, I apologize for not posting on this video for so long. Since I' m not a professional sharpener, time is not always available for me. IN ANY CASE, AND IMHO, THIS VIDEO IS A REFERENCE ONE.

The wait is worth it, sir! I'm very glad to see you back up and running! Tamahagane would definitely be the least likely case in most modern kamisori, for sure - the price would be more proof than the steel :D I read that the Sandvik steel was used, as well as a couple other steels in the product descriptions from several sites featuring the Iwasaki razors, so we may never know for sure. For me, as long as she shaves, and shaves well, I'm good. :) Now for the meat and potatoes! The 10K remark about not too many strokes past the 8K or 10K is that other factors come into play at that point on a razor's bevel. The edge of the edge peels away like an onion at each grit, making it thinner and thinner (but sharper and sharper). I usually say it's impossible do too many strokes on the 8K. This is where the steel, geometry and refinement are in a golden ratio and mostly stable as a result. The shave may not be great, however since the edge of the edge is just thin enough (2 microns or so) to sever hairs. After this point, all razors, risk the edge becoming too thin and foiling and rolling as a result. That makes the edge scrape your face and gives you that Home Alone scream when you apply aftershave. This phenomenon depends largely on the steel type and bevel geometry you are working with. We can't change the steel, but tape can be added to reinforce the geometry if its starts to foil at 8K. This is why I prefer to "polish the grooves" after the 10K or so with minimal strokes so that the edge has enough stability/thickness, but the edge of the edge is at 0.25 or 0.025 micron. It minimizes the risk of foiling as you reach into the stratosphere for ultimate refinement. Looking forward to your next comment!

Thanks for watching!

I think that's where it originated from, and it makes a lot of sense in that context. But I think somewhere over time along the passing down of the information, people lost the pressure forward thing - especially in the west.

if you keep the pressure of the spine, slightly edge biased you will not have issues, regards dapper shave.

Thanks for watching! The wearing down of the steel is only half the answer, the other half explains that it's because the softer cladding of the laminated steel, or that you will flatten out the hollow. So you can't really win 😁

Thanks for watching!

Thanks for watching! In all honesty, there's no real visual difference in the edge from only a couple of passes on the strops. But next time I will do that 😎👍

Yes I can hone your razors. Please message me through the contact page at jendeindustries.com

I generally do about 100 strokes at each grit after I have a good bevel set. Setting the bevel can be any number, as you know. The key transition is getting over the 5K-6K "sound barrier" so the more you do on the lower grits, the easier that transition is at 5-6K. After that, you cannot do too many strokes on the 8K, as I think I mentioned. and when I go to finer than that, the number drops to 20 or 10 per side on the stones (except the Naniwa 12K super, which is also never too many) when I hit the strops and clean leather, I'm in the

@@JendeIndustries Are years I struggle 😩 with honing and razors I have little experience and be knowledge but I use glass stones that are faster so I don't no how many strokes on Choosera!!! On my 1000 Naniwa Professional I did 25 sets of 40 strokes before feeling teeth on the cutting edge . I should have stopped? What about using instead of 1000 Choosera the Naniwa diamond stone only for setting the bevel? What grindvus the kamisori 1/4 hollow? Thanks very much!!!!!

counting honing laps is not optimal, each edge is different and require a different approach. set a uniform and even bevel until its done, then refine and polish on finisher, regards dapper shaves

Its all good as long as they work for you!

Thank you for the info!!

I use IWASAKI razor for 10 years. 10 years ago, most of IWASAKI has been made of Japanese iron, but now most of them use Swedish iron. Kantana, kamisori razor, and other sort of traditional iron items are made from Japanese iron sand, with a technology shown in the movie "Princess Mononoke", almost being ceased today.

I hear you :) I've been kicked off all the forums because I challenged the powers that were. Luckily a lot of that power has been decentralized thanks to social media, but the problem now with so many individual places is the lack of a reliable central source of info. You just can't win, but I try to steer everyone in the right direction based on knowledge, logic, and experience. I'm not always right, but I'm honest in my journey.

I think diamonds can be a little problematic on the lower end. They scratch very deeply, and the more brittle steel can become chippy. Diamond films and diamond strops are fine, but you need to be very aware if you use diamond resin and diamond plates.

There are many ways to enjoy the sport of straight razor honing and shaving. I happen to really enjoy the science behind it. Others are more faithful or zenful about it. It's all good! 👍

@@JendeIndustries I sharpen by experience 😂 no fancy technology or anything just skill set bevel to shave sharp sharper than western razors I can see if the edge is ready in the light from experience

@@keganjackson7609 congrats? Man some ppl are so weird with their egos when it comes to razor honing.. perplexing really.. FWIW, no matter what - the microscope pics were still extremely helpful esp from an educational standpoint.

@@keganjackson7609so can he, he’s just teaching everyone. How about you make a video showing your secrets?

He has a separate video shaving this beard off, blasts thru it like nothing… I actually saw that video first which impressed the hell out of me and brought me here. Also, there are always mannny more than one way to skin a cat as they say

There is a video of me shaving off the beard kzfaq.info/get/bejne/ZsyIm7CLuZfckZs.html

Well said! Thank you for watching!