I forgot how much I love your videos! It's been a while, thanks for posting this! Very interesting to see some of those things that can go wrong, as well. Awesome stuff.
Mr Lewis I've lost count how many times I've rerun and watched your videos. I never tire at watching old school skill and the magic of creating such treasures from unassuming pieces of steel. You make it look so easy, but know full well it takes years and years of diligent focus and patience to achieve works that laymen such as myself hold in absolute awe! Well done Mr. Lewis.
Mr Lewis your razors are exceptional, even the cracked and broken ones are no doubt sought after, they're works of art in themselves. Excellent work and such a joy to watch!Thank you Maestro!
Thank you for leaving in the scrapped blades. To me, it shows the skill involved in making the razor. Its never as easy as most videos make it out to be. Nice finished piece as well.
I've been watching your videos for over a year. I forge as well but still trying too save up for a grinder that can hollow grind. 2x72, u inspire me to make razors as well. Thanks for your videos.
Man this was a big help. I also like how you showed your mistakes and you correcting them. What most people don't understand is he prolly had like at least 2 hours into each one of those messed up razors.
Love your work and hope to someday make a meet up. I have made several razors from W2 and truly like it and the edge that it takes and the first two I attempted to quench in water and both of the split as well. My third on I left the edge a bit thicker than normal (more so than the O1, 1080, and 52100) and quenched in oil and that seemed to work as well. I wonder if the edge is too thin to quench in water? That's the only conclusion that I can comet too. Anyway I always look for new videos and admire you creativity and work. Thanks for a great video!
I use water with W2 halfway often. I think the problem this time was I put some scratch marks on the blade after normalizing for the hamon clay to stick to. I forgot to go back and smooth the edges and corners of the blade edge. I think that is what happened, I really do not remember. Thanks for your comments and thoughts. I tend to leave a lot of thickness before heat treat with all steels.
I am glad you found the video helpful, best of luck with your razor making. The Black Bear Forge channel has helped me a lot with my black smithing skills.
I still have a couple of blades made in the 1870’s that I cleaned up and made new handles for. It really surprised me how fine the blades where made back then.
Can you list the stones you used please. My cerax 1000 is like my favorite stone ever. Can't really afford nanies yet. Got a black ark but am not really as impressed as I thought I'd be with it.
Charlie, I would love to see your own personal take on an old Wade & Butcher FBU with a barbers notch, If you ever decide to make one I certainly would be interested.
I've been a sub for years, but recently started going through your channel again (fantastic content). Are you still using the Naniwa stones? Do you have a preference of the S2 super stones over the traditional?
I like water better it is less messy, and makes for a better hamon, but comes with the additional risk of cracking the blade. I used oil the second time because I was frustrated and did not want take the chance of scrapping another razor.
This is sort of a "bookworm" input but I have been leaning metallurgy over the last couple months here in college as an aspiring machinist. Water seems to only be a viable quenching medium for steel that has a carbon content of less than 0.35% - With W2 steel measuring as high as 1.5%, mineral oil should give a satisfactory quench without compromising a crisp hamon edge. Thanks for your hard work in dedicating all the different outcomes during your creations, Lewis Razors - it's great to see the real-world application and outcomes to all these wonky CCT diagrams! Beautiful work!
Very cool razor! It's great to see another video from you, Charlie. As you found out, there's no need to water quench W2 with a cross section as thin as a "pre-ground" razor 😯 lol Although I'm sure you were probably just trying to get more activity in the hamon, with the cross section of the steel being so thin already it will probably make very little difference than something like Parks 50 oil. If you wanted to try a water quench again, you could try an interrupted quench in water first to cool past the pearlite nose, then into warm oil to finish the quench for less stress. This is actually kind of how fast commercial quench oil (Parks 50) works. Anyway, great job keeping at it especially after 2 new additions to your scrap pile. It still happens to us knifemakers even years later. Thanks as always for sharing. I do actually have a question if you don't mind. Why the sudden switch in grinding style after you seemed to already be comfortable and efficient in edge up grinding? Does it have something to do with the way you feathered the edge in and thus creating a "variable" hollow grind? Thanks again man!
You are right about the water, I was trying to get more hamon activity. Thanks for the interrupted quench ideas. The hollow never follows the shape of the wheel, there will be a smaller radius up near the spine then flatten a bit behind the edge. When I grind edge down it is easier to flatten the curve behind the edge. In reality i switch edge up/edge down and do not think about too much. I tend to edge up making the hollow beneath the spine then go edge down to blend and flatten the area behind the edge.
Great vid, thank you sir for sharing. What are the advantages of tempering in oil? Never heard of that. What effect does rocking the blade on the grinder wheel have? Does it give less of a hollow grind as if you were using a lager wheel? thanks
There are no big advantages to the oil, my old toaster oven I used to temper in varied a bit in temperature. The new pid set up with the oil is stays pretty much at the temp I set at with little variance. It is a little more accurate process now. I have now swapped out the oil with a low temp salts, the smell of french fries in the shop was distracting. The rocking/moving the blade is to shape the hollow of the blade, it is a flat-ish grind behind the edge then curves more up by the spine.
sorry but i am looking forward to the answer. I'm a big fan of vintage things, especially about this vintage razor. it fascinates me and makes me want to create something special but Vietnam is nothing but the stories told by my ancestors. I am missing information about steel process and material (steel type). I tried consulting some people like LEWIS RAZORS. but that's still not enough, I failed several times. PLEASE . WHAT IS THE BEST MATERIAL FOR 1 Razor.And IMPORTANT INFORMATION? I REALLY THANK YOU
Would you consider 8000 grit stone enough for a razor? It's the finest I currently have and it's more than enough for knives but haven't really wanted to try it with my razors. Is there a method you use to test sharpness or do you know of any that people use? Sometimes I end up thinking after stroping my blade is sharp enough but then take the first cut and wash lather of and strop a little more. Also thanks for the videos, they're the best!
An 8k stone is just fine for razors. As a matter of fact when people are asking about higher grit hones, I always tell them they should not get anything above 8k until they can get a good shave off of the 8k. Any grit after 8k is just icing on the cake. An 8k edge with a few strops on chrome oxide is one of my favorite shaving edges. If you go the Straight Razor Place Forums, there is a lot of good information on honing. Lynn Abrams and Gssixgun youtube channels are two to the best for razor honing information. I feel the edge with the pad of my thumb to check for sharpness, but the only real test, is shaving with it and seeing how it preforms.
Hey buddy I commented many times before but I'd like to say I really miss your videos and your expertise. You're such a perfectionist than it shows. One question I have about this particular video is what kind of clay do you use to get that jamone(or however you spell it)? And where do you get it from?
@@lewisrazors .... Actually I have a little baggie of satanite powder for when repairs need made on the inside of my forge I didn't even think about using that. thank you sir
Two of my friends, both very talented, one a knife maker, one a razor maker both grind edge down. After seeing Bruno from Snail Forge grind a razor edge down (his grinding is awesome) I decided to give it a try. I tend to grind edge up near the spine, and edge down while thinning the blade behind the edge. It is just another method, both ways work.
Looks like your blade failed in the quench because of a Stress Point. From what I can tell there are very rough grinding lines on the steel. Would it be worth a try to polish them out before heat treating and see what happens? When I make a Spring for a rifle all lines are in the direction of the spring and I go to 600 grit for the polish. I was happy to see you file and using a file properly. My old Boss would be proud of you!
You are right and spot on. I usually go back to 36 or 60 grit after heat treat, I leave my edges thick. I hate to take the time to go up in grits, just for heat treat. I get away with the coarse scratches more that 9 out of 10 times. It just happened to break while I had the camera on it. Thank you for your comments, they were appreciated.
Just thinking that the purpose of polishing the blade would be to convert the Sharp V Grooves from grinding to more of a Rounded Washboard Surface. So maybe forget about going "Up through the grades" and just hit the surface with about a 320 grit wheel. That may help remove the start of stress cracks. Wish I knew more but right now I am trying to understand Women, Ha!
I was so glad you showed that mistakes aswell.. to be honest when you said water quench.. I thought... Noooo!!! 😀 Still in the end.. a beautiful razor👍🏻
3 inches or a little less for length, the width just depends on what you like. I like my 5/8" blades and I like my 1" blades it just depends on my mood,
I did not plan on that many sparks hitting the lens, I was a bit freaked out when I looked at the footage, I had to look at the front of the lens to see if I damaged it.
Sam Harper not going to lie I actually flinched a little bit at that part. It's a very foreign feeling to look directly at a shower of sparks without a mask
a jewelers saw would be handy and way safer to saw small pieces. you can buy many sizes of blades and they will cut steel . I use a piece of hard wood with a notch cut in it, screwed to a table with the notch sticking out, to cut with the jewelers saw. the saw makes a very fine cut and easy to control.
I have not made any recently, I hope to start up again. I have had several surgeries the past year. I hope to have it all sorted out in 6 months or so. What kind of videos would you like to see. I have thought about making some more videos. Something that does not involve hammering.
But on the other hand I have ruined a lot more blades than you :) I visited some knife maker friends last week it was the same thing, I was jealous of their forging and grinding, The grass is always greener on blah blah blah. Thanks for the comment.
