Straight Razor Questions

Langadune

Langadune

Joined
Apr 19, 2012
Messages
212
So apparently I don't stay busy enough... or I don't wanna take the risk of maybe having some free time on my hands. Among other things, I've decided I might try my hand at making a straight razor. I have some AEB-L in .070" coming my way and I'm pretty sure I'll have some stock left to make a razor. That said... I don't know if I can make one, or more accurately, if I can make a quality one with the tools at my disposal.

I use a No-Weld Grinder with--primarily--a flat platen, and some times a 1" wheel. I have 2" wheels and a 4" that I can probably use but I don't know if any of this will work. Can a guy make a good straight razor with a full flat grind? Can it be done (well) will 2" or 4" contact wheels?
 
Great to hear that others are trying their hand at razors. .070 will yield you a Razor Shaped Object but not a razor. The spine thickness is dictated by the width of the blade; as an example, I use 3/16 stock for a 5/8 (11/16) razor and 1/4" for 7/8 to 8/8 razors and so forth. The size of the contact wheel depends of the style of razor you're making. If doing an extra hollow or full hollow I use a 2 to 3" contact wheel, but if making an 8/8 wedge, a 12" wheel works well.

If you're going to give razors a try, shoot for a 3/4, 7/8 or 8/8 razor to get your feet wet. I have plenty of craps laying around, shoot me a pm and I'll send you a blank in 3/4 to grind on. You can most certainly use the 2 or 4" wheel on any razor over 5/8,
 
I would suggest going to an antique shop and purchasing an old razor to study. .070 is about a third the thickness you need to even start. You really cannot make a razor with a full flat grind because the tang is the razors honing jig. with a full flat grind you would have to bring the entire bevel up to 8000ish (not hundred) polish. That being said, I have done some razors on a four inch wheel with success. Many knife makers approach making a razor the same way as a knife and they are really two totally different tools.
 
Honestly, I had thought of razors as "just another kind of knife," but the more I read, the more I understand how naive I have been. I'm still gonna give it a try, but any suggestions on how to proceed, even if it's just for practice/experience, would be appreciated.
 
You can make a razor like any other knife, it will just take a master to sharpen without the spine acting as a jig. There are full flat grind razors but they take a lot longer to sharpen because at that shallow angle the full flat is actually a Scandinavian grind that goes all the way to the spine. Makes for a lot more metal to remove.
 
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