Thread: first shave with a wedge

Tonight I tried my first shave with a W&B 5/8 medium hollow razor though it looks more wedge than hollow!

My other razor is a dovo 5/8 special. Didn't shower, just ran some hot water over my face and used a hot towel for a few seconds.

Had a good stubble going, last shave was friday morning. Man, I really noticed the difference., especially in the chin area-where the whiskers seem like wire. The blade didn't catch once-it just mowed right through them. Shave was smooth and close, razor was easy to work with.

I'm diggin' the wedges!

That's an excellent indicator that your technique needs a lot of work

Originally Posted by gugi

That's an excellent indicator that your technique needs a lot of work

probably why he posted in the newbies corner...

explain more on the technique needing work please

Well, imagine what a hair sees - a sharp edge. It knows nothing of the rest of the blade.
How the edge moves through the hair is determined by your hand, and the most significant thing your hand is affected by is the weight (aka inertia) of the blade.
If your hand can provide a smooth motion at the proper angle there will be no issue what blade you use. When you lack the skill, larger inertia of the blade can help a bit and cover for the lack of skill.

It's like driving a giant truck versus a sports car. If you lack driving skills you can't get a smooth ride from the sports car - it will just respond to your errors immediately, while the larger inertia of the big truck will cover them.

Sounds like you are having fun, that's great.

I'm not a pro either and have been trying a bunch of different razors. I like the wedge but also like the hollows., big and small. What I am learning is I like a sharp razor. That seems to have more to do with a great shave than anything.

Hang in there, using a razor you like is a great confidence builder.

Originally Posted by kerik

Tonight I tried my first shave with a W&B 5/8 medium hollow razor though it looks more wedge than hollow!

My other razor is a dovo 5/8 special. Didn't shower, just ran some hot water over my face and used a hot towel for a few seconds.

Had a good stubble going, last shave was friday morning. Man, I really noticed the difference., especially in the chin area-where the whiskers seem like wire. The blade didn't catch once-it just mowed right through them. Shave was smooth and close, razor was easy to work with.

I'm diggin' the wedges!

Originally Posted by gugi

Well, imagine what a hair sees - a sharp edge. It knows nothing of the rest of the blade.
How the edge moves through the hair is determined by your hand, and the most significant thing your hand is affected by is the weight (aka inertia) of the blade.
If your hand can provide a smooth motion at the proper angle there will be no issue what blade you use. When you lack the skill, larger inertia of the blade can help a bit and cover for the lack of skill.

It's like driving a giant truck versus a sports car. If you lack driving skills you can't get a smooth ride from the sports car - it will just respond to your errors immediately, while the larger inertia of the big truck will cover them.

This is a useful post. I wanted to get a wedge to compliment my full hollow for this very reason.

With regards to the "medium hollow" bit; I'm almost certain that the medium refers to the size of the blade, not the grind. Most Sheffield "hollow ground" blades are about 1/2 to 1/4 hollow, and all the "medium hollows" that I have seen are around 5/8. Other "hollow ground" and "celebrated hollow ground" blades tend to be a bit larger. Again, these are just some observations from my experience.

Originally Posted by Raudrive

Sounds like you are having fun, that's great.

I'm not a pro either and have been trying a bunch of different razors. I like the wedge but also like the hollows., big and small. What I am learning is I like a sharp razor. That seems to have more to do with a great shave than anything.

Hang in there, using a razor you like is a great confidence builder.

+1, I love a sharp razor and I like all of the various grinds, sizes, blade profiles. Catholic in my tastes when it comes to razors if they're sharp. If they ain't I make 'em sharp.

^
You're right. It is a half-hollow. My mistake for referring to it as a wedge.

In regard to technique. I really wasn't having much of a problem after the first month of shaving. It has only seemed to resurface recently. As in, right after i tried to do a touch up on a 4k/8k. Hmmm.....

thanks for the responses