Thread: My razor is too sharp???? I like a duller edge??

OK, I have seen this statement one too many times...

First, please only answer if you can explain how you are getting a slightly duller blade...

I really don't wanna hear about "I like a Coticule" or a Ch12k or any other finish stone or paste....really that has nothing to do with "sharpness"..

So what do you "slightly duller" guys do???
Flunk a few tests???
The TNT slides ???
The TPT test is only sticky in spots???
It skips when you shave???
You cork it like a DE blade????


This I gotta hear, PLEASE somebody tell me how to hone my razors to a slightly duller edge???

Originally Posted by gssixgun

This I gotta hear, PLEASE somebody tell me how to hone my razors to a slightly duller edge???

Oh, it's really simple Glen, send it out for honing (I can provide references).

TY Gugi my friend for the laugh

Glen, IME I can get a sharp but smooth shaving edge off of say a coticule or an Escher. I can get a sharper edge off my Shapton progression through to the 15k which will still be smooth but I have to be more careful to avoid weepers or maybe even razor burn if I don't watch my pressure.

I can get an even sharper edge than that if I follow with diamond paste on balsa or even stropping on newspaper for 60 laps. I can still get a bbs shave of course but I have to be that much more careful.

I have shaved with dull, relatively speaking, blades. When I first started out with couple of ebay razors that were almost there and I don't recommend it. I think when members talk about less sharp they don't mean dull. Rather they are referring to more forgiving than scary sharp. Just IMHO.

I think there is confusion with "Finish" and "Sharpness"

And maybe this is all semantics...

But I keep seeing the same statements so I figured it was time to really discuss it

I also think that the difference between your Escher, your Coticule and your Shapton has nothing to do with "sharpness" I think all 3 are within 1/100 of a micron on any given razor...and if you push it farther the edge fails and you get a harsh shave...

I think I'm the opposite. I learned that my first razor that I got that wasn't as sharp as it should have been now that I've honed and shaved with 2 razors I recently picked up (Gold Bug and Dubl Duck Satinedge.)

The Bug was a MUCH better. Cleared my cheek off with the slightest pass. Then I got my DD in the mail...sanded the blade and sharpened her up to try it out and YOWZA! That baby was SCARY sharp! (Got a little cut to prove it )

So I guess I have come to appreciate a scary sharp razor...

As far as dulling it down...maybe running the blade over something to take the edge down a bit? An eraser, or cork maybe? Never tried it tho

Not sure why someone would prefer a duller edge, unless they just want to shave fast and sloppy without slicing their face up

Originally Posted by gssixgun

I think there is confusion with "Finish" and "Sharpness"

And maybe this is all semantics...

But I keep seeing the same statements so I figured it was time to really discuss it

I also think that the difference between your Escher, your Coticule and your Shapton has nothing to do with "sharpness" I think all 3 are within 1/100 of a micron on any given razor...and if you push it farther the edge fails and you get a harsh shave...

I think it is a matter of semantics.... if anyone really wanted to shave with a dull razor I couldn't understand that either.

Glen I see what you mean about them all being within a close range on the micron scale. I wonder if the shape of the abrasive has anything to do with it ? You've got garnet with the coticule, quartz with the Escher and damned if I know with the Shapton pro. (I'm a poet and I don't know it)

Now I have seen many say that they get a smoother feeling edge off of 0.5 chrom ox than off of 0.5 diamond paste and I have experienced that myself on some razors ..... not on others but my point is that there does seem to be a difference in the way some edges feel on the face coming off of one abrasive compared to another.

Sharpness is next to godliness

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

Now I have seen many say that they get a smoother feeling edge off of 0.5 chrom ox than off of 0.5 diamond paste and I have experienced that myself on some razors ..... not on others but my point is that there does seem to be a difference in the way some edges feel on the face coming off of one abrasive compared to another.

Absolute agreement there...

And different steels like different finishes.. all a matter of personal preference....

Easy, Glen, to hone a razor to a slightly duller edge, just don't hone the razor to wickedly scary sharp.

Seriously though, for me to get to wickedly sharp, I think I probably obsess over an edge when I hone it more than you probably do given that, hands down, you have WAYYYY more experience than I do in honing. The same would go for all honemeisters in comparison to my ability. I hone my own because I can shave test, refine, shave test, refine, shave test, refine until I get an edge to my full (and then probably most anyone else's) satisfaction and time is of no concern in the process. For fun, I still can't help oftentimes pushing an edge using diamond, chrome ox, newspaper, etc after honing to what I think is literally the max in sharpness.

I have shaved approx ten times with a Feather AC and some new Pro Super blades both on loan last year from Netsurfr. I didn't like the "walking on eggshells" approach I felt I had to take with such a sharp edge. Granted, weepers can be a result of incorrect technique, but they're equally a result of such a sharp edge. I don't tolerate weepers during a shave at all. I seriously wouldn't shave with a straight razor if weepers were common during a shave process. At this point, with my own straights I get a single weeper (usually under my lower lip/chin area) roughly once every 3-4 months. I admit that my shaving technique can be sloppy at times and I've thought more times than I can count during a shave "Ooh, if this was a Feather AC, on that pass I would have nicked myself for sure." With my razors, during such a pass, it's as close to an "almost cut" that I could get. In my rambling, maybe I'm saying that generally my honing allows for the occasional error in my shaving technique and still the edges are more than sharp enough to give me great comfortable irritation free shaves (no nicks, weepers or razor burn....95% of the time).

Sorry for the long post.

Chris L