Yeah, I felt bad after that post that after you guys went through the effort to teach me the test I didn't bother to do it. It bit me in the rear too, b/c I'm still not shave ready. Back to the drawing board. Gotta go find me a sharpie...
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If you find a way to take a picture it is worth 1000 words.
There is no ME, there is WE the guys of SRP.
We will enlarge your picture and go over it in detail.
Before any of us speak, we cross reference all of our restores. When one speaks we all agree ...or there is a flurry of responses.
If you tap lightly with a ball peen hammer. On the to pin, backside(non show side) of your razor it will get rid of the sloppiness.
Dont hit the pin any harder than your thumbnail. Tap the ABCs not just the center of the pin.,tap the pin at a slight angle around it. thats 26 taps if your counting and lightly is an understatement.
Good luck. Any magic marker will do in a pinch. Get a green one from the kids.
OK so did the Sharpie test, seemed to pass easily - a little too easily? Do you guys put several coats of marker on & let them dry, cause mine cleared off on the first pass easily.
In other news, had my first (what I would call) successful shave this morning! First time I was able to cut without pulling, and even go ATG in certain areas. My chin is super thick and was just way too tough to go against, but as the ATG pass gave a closer shave than my DE, I may not have to go ATG in my chin & mustache areas. Going ATG with my slant blade in these areas, even well lubed + w fresh blade is just brutal.
So I attribute my success to proper stropping - thanks to the guy who advised me to slow down -and going slow & steady with the Swaty hone after each shave I wasn't satisfied with. Probably still requires a little more honing.
So thanks again to you guys, I'm sure I'll have more questions. One question is about the blade looseness: ultrasoundguy2003 recommended tapping with a ball peen hammer - which I dutifully did - but it's not a rivet, it's a sort of pin, so it doesn't work. Any other recommendations for tightening it up? I will try to submit pictures when I get a chance.
From the pictures here;
http://straightrazorpalace.com/begin...ml#post1617572
Those are classic 'pins' and they should tighten when GENTLY TAPPED with the ball end of a SMALL Ball Peen Hammer/4 oz head would be best.
Remember to try tapping on your thumbnail and if it hurts, then your using too much force. All you need is to end up with a razor with broken scales. :gaah:
Also... Don't strike that center of the pin. Only strike the outside edges of the pin.
Or google, how to pin a straight razor. And watch the videos. It should only take a few light taps on each side. Again... Go slow, take your time
How about I send you a PM and I give it a try. You have given this a great first go. All is free, this is how we the guys treat each other.
Down the road you help another.
Got your PM, thanks, I really appreciate the offer. Being the stubborn individualist that I suspect most of us are, I would like to give it one or two more weeks to see what I can do with it, given the modest success I've recently had. I do recognize that I need to know what a truly shave sharp razor feels like, so I'll probably end up letting you have a crack at it. Plus I haven't solved the spots or pin problem yet (someone recommended looking at a pin- setting vid on YouTube, haven't gotten to it yet). Thx again.
I do understand. No man ever became a master on his first attempt. Outback is correct about the videos. Videos dont convey touch and pressure. We all say the same thing but differently hoping that one of US will connect with your learning style. Peening was very hard for me to grasp. My mentor sent my his peening block. That gave me the confidence to overcome. It was a job that only a mother could love in retrospect. I have redone much of my work as the quality of my work improves. I look forward to helping.
OK, I surrender. Please PM me your address
Good Choice! :tu
More than once when I was learning to hone, I'd send one out to be honed. I learned many things from that decision.
1. It's harder than it looks.
2. I had a 'gauge' to judge my work by.
3. I wasn't frustrated by the razor that wasn't coming along.
4. I have some good advice from personal experience to pass along.
Good choice, Jonathan will steer you right.
Metaphorically speaking...
Like a infant, you can't even crawl at first.
Then your on your knees.
Then your standing.
Then you toddle.
Then you walk.
Soon after that...
Your running like the wind!!!
Don't worry..your gonna fall, we all did. Its all part of the plan.
Time and practice, will make you graceful. And we all still trip and fall, from time to time.
But that's just so we can get back up again.
Don't sweat it...accept it!!
Razor en route :D
OK so... ultrasoundguy2003 kindly received my razor, fixed it up & mailed it back to me. Long story short, shave sharp = understood! I now understand what the TPT is supposed to feel like (really felt the "grab"), and how easily it is supposed to cut arm hairs. (Actually didn't cut them as easily as I thought it was supposed to - I had seen videos of "Geofatboy" cutting off hairs at mid-strand, but maybe you need really thick stiff hair to do that...) Also pin was tightened some more. I had a good, irritation free shave with it, considering the facts that a) I was anxious to try it & just quickly splashed hot water on my face prior to lathering, and b) my technique still needs a lot of work. Overall though I am excited to have some bearings now, and not so mystified as I realize I was not far off. Many thanks to ultrasoundguy2003 & the rest of the input on this thread. I'll let ultrasoundguy2003 take it from here...
It was my pleasure to help. To all the Mentors and fellow wetshavers. Thank-you for teaching me.
Mohawkshaver1 is a stand up member, who reminds me why we do this.
Matt if you ever need any help in the future, please just ask. You made my day.
Jonathan
I should mention one of the hindrances I had was a jagged edge Jonathan discovered with his scope I wouldn't have otherwise known about. He ran it along a glass cup and started from scratch.
I've got another vintage of the same make which looks like it's never been used (see post #12 last pic). Prior to setting the bevel would it be a good idea to run the edge along glass as well?
I'm pleased to hear that you enjoyed ultrasoundguy2003's edge. He does nice work, I know as I recently had him play with three razors for me.
As far as the arm hair test and any test is that the results vary between 'testers'. While I have a fairy coarse beard, however my arm hair its very thin and fine so the 'tree top' test is worthless for me. However over time I've learned how my arm hair cuts when the edge is right.
I believe that when I am doing the TNT it's about the same as what running the edge along the glass is. I do the TNT at the 1K and then at the 4K with slurry. I test with the arm hair at the 4K with water. If I'm pleased at the 4K with water, I'm done testing until it's Shave Time!
If you don't have a loupe get one as they are a very valuable tool. I recently purchased this one and I'm very pleased with it:
http://www.amazon.com/iKKEGOL-Magnif...ilpage_o04_s00
Personally I don't use a microscope but that's my preference.
Enjoy your new shaver and thanks for taking Jonathon up on his offer.
Thumb Nail Test
Wet your thumbnail and use only the weight of the razor drag the edge across the nail.
If it slips there's no edge, It should 'grab' as it's dragged over the nail.
Glen shows it here:If you want to skip some of it go to 2:30 that's where he First shows the TNT
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y53SL9QMq6I