Quote Originally Posted by ace View Post
The truth is that if I didn't have the HHT, I wouldn't know when to stop honing. I have gotten to the point that using the HHT tells me, without fail, when a razor will shave well. I use different hairs, observe the results, and when finer hairs are getting snipped easily, I know the blade will shave. I can take any blade I have out of my storage cabinet, check it with the HHT and know whether it will shave or needs a touch-up.

There is no question that the shave is the most important thing, but I'll be damned if I'm going to have to lather up and shave to test a blade when I have found an easier, quicker and infallible way of checking the edge while I'm honing. With all the different hairs I have to test with, and with the experience I have developed in years of using it, it NEVER fails to predict precisely how the shave will be.
I'm not sure why you're so worked up. You are using HHT because it's faster than lathering. You are saying a variety of hairs is a plus and you have bagfuls of them to help you perform your test.

You're presenting the HHT as the ultimate test to tell you when you need to stop honing. Apparently you don't use it to tell you when to switch hones. Why? Perhaps it is because there is a faster test that tells you that and that's what you are using.

What if I tell you that some of the best honers I know use only the visual and tactile feedback of the honing stroke to know when the razor is not progressing any further and they are done honing. It's far simpler than what you are doing with multiple or special hairs.

You know what makes the experience in this post http://straightrazorpalace.com/begin...ng-honing.html so special - the teacher customizing the instructions to the needs of the student.
And yes, Alan is among the best.


Now, if you need HHT to tell you when to stop honing what test do you use to tell you when to stop stropping? Have you considered performing that test during honing?