Thread: Newbie here with some q's

The thumbnail test will blunt the razor so should only be done prior to the final honing.
I.XL blades are superb steel but if it's warped then honing needs to be done by an expert.

It's sounds like you're doing really well to be honest, I'd just keep at it and you should see continuous improvements. For a newbie, a pasted paddle strop would be easiest to learn to get a good edge with, but if you're getting good results with the 4K/8K then that's great.

Did you lap the hone before you used it? If not you probably should, as they generally aren't flat enough out of the box. Just lay a sheet of 600 grit wet & dry on a piece of thick glass, throw some water on and move the hone in a figure of eight. It should be even better after this.

I bought a Dovo Special recently and it's a super little razor, you really wouldn't need* any others if you have one of these. For the money they're a bargain, they're easy to hone and take a great edge.

* Notice I said "need", you will probably "want" other razors too.

You getting a good start. I like Dovo, I have the same razor in 6/8 and it's one of my stable. Hones great and keeps it edge for months.

If you noticed, many times it is recommend to have a honemeister hone on of your razors for a bench mark for keen. HHT for a lot of us is a parlor trick. The shave is the test. One of my normal tests is to see if the blade will pop hairs off of my arms. If it does then I sure its good to go for a shave test. Everybody seems to find what works for them.

As Steelforge mentioned. The hone needs to be lapped before you will get good results. The 600 W/D paper is great. I use a Norton flattening stone as I use my Norton stones a lot. I lap about every three or four razors. Once a stone is flat it is easy to keep it flat. It will not stay flat so it must be lapped periodically.

Thanks for the words of advise guys. I did lap the stone first, I bought the flattening stone along with the 4k/8k. I considered not buying it at first but once I started lapping I noticed that the stone was actually not as flat as I thought it would be!

I figured the HHT was probably at the extreme end of the spectrum in terms of sharpness. The razor does pop hairs off my arm quite easily though and as mentioned before, the shave after the hone and stropping was one of my finest shaves yet. Almost BBS with 2 passes. My next few challenges are becoming proficient at honing and learning how to use my left hand a little better.

Originally Posted by EvilDylan

Thanks for the words of advise guys. I did lap the stone first, I bought the flattening stone along with the 4k/8k. I considered not buying it at first but once I started lapping I noticed that the stone was actually not as flat as I thought it would be!

I figured the HHT was probably at the extreme end of the spectrum in terms of sharpness. The razor does pop hairs off my arm quite easily though and as mentioned before, the shave after the hone and stropping was one of my finest shaves yet. Almost BBS with 2 passes. My next few challenges are becoming proficient at honing and learning how to use my left hand a little better.

One thing to help train motor memory in your non-dominate hand is to brush your teeth with the off hand. It's not as risky as shaving with it.

Originally Posted by Kenrup

One thing to help train motor memory in your non-dominate hand is to brush your teeth with the off hand. It's not as risky as shaving with it.

that is a really good idea, I think I will start doing this to help my left hand shaving as well. It is also supposed to be good for the brain as it stimulates different parts of the brain.

Dylan,

The Dovo's are great razors and you will find that the shaves get better as your skills improve.

The "Thumb Nail Test" is used only during, and to test the progress of, your honing. Once learned, the TNT will reliably tell you when your razor is honed enough, or even when it is over or under honed.

The "Thumb Pad Test" done correctly, is used following stropping to judge the keeness of your razors edge. The keeness of the edge is directly proportional to it's shave quality (read - comfort and closeness).

The "Hanging Hair Test" - This is a tricky one, take it or leave it. It certainly makes sense to me that if a razor can properly pass the HHT the edge is pretty darn sharp and should shave very well. But--- Could a razor still shave and not pass the HHT? Yes. Could a razor "pass" the HHT and yet shave like crap? Yes.

Other than the actual shave itself, the Thumb Pad Test is the most reliable indicator of "shave readiness."

Sounds like you are off to a good start though.

Good luck,

Scott