Thread: Carbon vs Stainless

Hi I am looking to buy my first razor and I need some help. I need to know about how long an edge on a stainless blade lasts compared to a carbon blade. Reason being is that for a while I am just going to try and have a pro hone my blade and just focus on the shaving. I have a heavy rough beard too if that helps. Also with daily use how long should a professional edge last? Thanks alot for the help.

Welcome to SRP first off......
It's funny you should ask that question, one of the other members and I just tried an experiment on that very thing.... The outcome is across the board, he admittedly has a "barbed wire beard" and he wore out one of my edges in 8 shaves, I have other people that haven't re-freshed one in of 8 months... The average is considered to be about 3 months between touch ups but I have never seen it proved so it is just a WAG.....
2 of the biggest variables are the razor it's self and the beard that it is cutting....
For heavy, thick, rough, beards the general consensus is to get a heavier grind, a full wedge to maybe a 1/2 hollow... The SS steel should hold that edge slightly longer but it is not a huge difference.....
Good luck !!!!!

Has the experiment been tried with a stainless? Was your tester stropping between shaves?

oops, sorry to hijack the thread.

Welcome DentGuy - the majority of people here who have let on what sort of razors they use use carbon steel razors

While I have played with stainless razors in the past I find "I'm not ready for them". I'm kind of prejudice against stainless steel I could not get a reasonable edge to save my life. I'm the same way with my kitchen knives I have yet to have any rust issues on my razors yet if that is a consern. I live in the Bay Area and keep my razors in the bathroom, your location and environment would dictate different results.

Good luck on the search and welcome to the forums

Welcome to SRP!!!
I don't think I can add much to what sixgun said but wanted to welcome you.

I've had a stainless DOVO," tempered swedish steel".

I use a carbon steeled blade daily.

I've used a straight for 45 years off and on.

The stainless steel is in many ways superior, but for me at least it isn't quite as smooth as the non stainless carbon steel. For this reason I prefer to put up with the disavantage that carbon steel has, namely it rusts more easily and therefore need to be dried more carefully and honed more frequently. But I can do this myself, so it doesn't worry me.

How long will a stainless edge last between honing depends on many things.

But I would say you will be unlucky to not get 28 shaves or a months daily shaving. I would hope you would get 56 shaves. It really depends how skillful you are at stropping. How you strop is critical.

Many new straight razor users never get to know how pleasant a straight razor shave can be because they either blunt the newly honed razor with bad stropping technique or by touching or generally medaling with a freshly honed stropped razor. A blunt razor is useless. Razors are either frighteningly sharp or useless. There is no middle ground.

The most important thing is to strop your razor between shaves on a decent strop. The stropping achieves two things. It takes any rust/oxidation off the very delicate razors edge and it also smoothes the razors edge making it comfortable to shave with. The stainless steel blade does not rust as quickly as the carbon steel and so tends to have a longer life and hold its edge for a little longer.

If you put a paste (for example chromium oxide) on the reverse side of your strop and strop your blade on the pasted side of the strop when it starts to pull a bit on your beard, the pasted stropping will refesh your blade almost as well as a rehoning would. If you do this monthly for six months or more, that's how some shavers don't need to go back for a professional honing for long periods of time.

You should find and read "how to strop" posts. If you strop badly, you can ruin a blades edge in one minute. If you feel uncomfortable using a hanging strop, you can start by laying the strop flat along the edge of table or kitchen worktop edge. Just run the blade along the strop flat and gently. The speed will come with time. As does the confidence with a hanging strop. You are unlikely to ruin an edge on a flat bed strop.

Hope this helps and I hope I'm not trying to teach my grandmother how to suck eggs.

Great information, English.

stropping is king!