Thread: Questions I'd like to ask before getting my first straight razor

Originally Posted by tcrideshd

the "Knife Shop" probably didn't give you a trues shave ready edge, tc

Started to think that way after my second trial.

That sharpness test should work without pulling or tugging the hair. It should be a easy cut

Originally Posted by eddy79

That sharpness test should work without pulling or tugging the hair. It should be a easy cut

I wish to know if everybody here has his razor passed the hanging hair test. I ask this question for an obvious reason, my razor failed it

Originally Posted by alfaspider75

I wish to know if everybody here has his razor passed the hanging hair test. I ask this question for an obvious reason, my razor failed it

No - shave test is the one that really matters. The HHT can be useful if calibrated against a known shave - ready blade, but on its own it can be a deceptive test. Different hair will yield different results as can the method used.

It can be a useful guide, but is not the ultimate test.

+1. I have never even TRIED the HHT. If I purchase a razor that is supposed to be shave-ready, then I shave with it. If it seems dull, I sharpen it, or send it to someone who can. I have no interest in whether my razors can cut some hair suspended before the edge. I only care if they cut the hairs on my face.

Originally Posted by alfaspider75

Thanks Orville for asking. I got this Dovo 6/8 from a knife shop and have it honed right away by an expert.

If the "expert" was from the knife shop, then it is unlikely that your razor was honed properly. You always want to ask two questions of the honer.
1. Does he use a straight razor himself?
2. Does he use any power equipment for the honing?

Unless the answers are yes to the first and no to the second, then you probably should look somewhere else for the honing.

Originally Posted by alfaspider75

I wish to know if everybody here has his razor passed the hanging hair test. I ask this question for an obvious reason, my razor failed it

It may be helpful to watch some of the videos, particularly those by Lynn Abrams or Gssixgun, both of whom have done videos on shaving which are geared toward the less experienced. In addition, without wasting any more time, I'd send your razor to be honed by an experienced razor honer, many of whom can be found on this forum. Lastly, if you'd add your location to your visible profile, you may get some responses from experienced folks who are near to you. In the hands of someone inexperienced any test of whether a razor is sharp is kind of silly, because you have no reference point for how the test is done or what the results mean and SOME tests can actually dull a razor some.

Originally Posted by alfaspider75

I wish to know if everybody here has his razor passed the hanging hair test. I ask this question for an obvious reason, my razor failed it

My experience -- my razors, my honing, my beard, my arm -- has been that if a razor didn't pass the test, it didn't shave well. If it did pass the test, it shaved OK. "OK" covers a range of sharpness; some razors (when I hone them) are sharper than others.

One nice thing about that test is that you don't need good lather, or good beard prep, or a just-right angle of the blade against your face. All those things can be problematic, for beginners.

The logic of the test is that it finds out whether the edge is sharp enough to fit between the keratin scales of your hair. "Sharp", here, is talking about the radius of the cross-section of the cutting edge. If the edge is dull - large radius-- it will slide over the hair. If it's sharp -- small radius -- it will get caught between the keratin scales on a single hair, and cut that hair.

As other responses say, there's a whole literature (online) about the "hanging-hair test" (of which this is one variant). Some people find it more useful than others. And you need to validate it -- yourself -- against your shaving experience.

. . . But you don't have much shaving experience, so you can't do that, yet.

I have sympathy for your situation. I had considerable trouble shaving with my first straight razor (which I honed myself), and wasn't sure what to blame. When I got a Dovo from Straight Razor Designs to compare it to, everything became clear:

. . . My "sharp" razor wasn't anywhere near as sharp as that properly-honed and stropped Dovo.

. Charles

Thanks a lot Charles, for sharing your experience, it is nothing but very constructive and helpful to me. I'm trying to learn here, I make mistakes, and will probably learn from them.

I will try getting hold of a shave ready razor to compare with when I have the chance to. And I will have to learn to hone and maintain my razor too, start doing some search on that soon. I can buy any new shave ready razor online any time, but sending it to the other side of the world to maintain it could be painful.

Originally Posted by alfaspider75

I wish to know if everybody here has his razor passed the hanging hair test. I ask this question for an obvious reason, my razor failed it

Nope, never really used the HHT . Then again my edges may not be the sharpest, good possibility that, but they give me a smooth comfortable and decently close shave.

Bob