Thread: is my razor still sharp?

whew - busy week and I'm just getting back to reading all these responses now. Thanks very much for your input. I'm in the process of getting a 2nd shave ready blade just to do day-to-day comparisons and make sure I'm keeping my first blade fully sharp (and stropping correctly).

Sham, thanks for the offer to test it out. I'd take full advantage of your generosity but I hate shipping anything over the border. More often than not, I get dinged with customs charges and brokerage fees and all sorts of ridiculous tariffs. Just hoping there was some sort of standardised test I could do at home :-)

Originally Posted by anjp

How does a newbie know when his is no longer sharp?
.....snip....
Regrettably, I didn't try this when first received so I have no baseline. Many fellow shavers have said the HHT is a good measure to test sharpness...

Perhaps you are mixing two endeavors: honing and shaving.

The HHT and other tests have value for some but no all folk when honing razors.
Because the HHT is "personal" i.e. your hair not his, what works for him
may not work for you. Once a razor has been honed
and stropped correctly discard any test other than the shave
test.

For a newbie the way to test is shaving the easy places to shave.
i.e places easy to get the angle right and easy in other ways.

Difficult places like the chin or jaw line for a beginner are just difficult.

One important mind set is that with each pass the goal is to reduce your
whiskers. If the easy parts of your shave do not feel smoother as you make
a second or third pass or if the easy places tug and pull then
visit the strop -- canvas followed by leather. At that point if smooth deliberate
but light handed stropping does not help, the blade is likely dull.

How do you know when your razor isn't sharp enough? Easy; when it starts to pull and delivers sub-par shaves. I do realize the predicament though when you haven't had great shaves to begin with.....

Originally Posted by bulldog

Another method of testing is the thumb pad test. Sadly though, you have to have a known shave ready blade as a reference (at least I did the first several times).

This is a problem that is easily solved. Use a brand new DE blade and that will give you a good reference to what the TPT should feel like.

Originally Posted by red96ta

I'd say it's your technique. When I started, I got a Dovo Bismarck from SRD and it didn't feel as sharp as it should which just couldn't have been the case. after just a couple weeks, my technique improved and the blade felt much better.

It's your technique...

Red, you're probably right (to a degree) but the OP also stated that he had a month's worth of shaves with his razor. For a newb that's A LOT of shaves without a touchup, so in this case I'll say it's the razor. Many guys who have been doing this for well over a year report that they can't go that long without at least a touchup or two.

anjp, your razor needs to be honed. I'd say send it to Sham or floppyshoes, who is a little closer to you (Montreal).

Originally Posted by BKratchmer

I am curious where you have seen this... the HHT is by no means a good measure, nor is it recommended by anyone of good repute that I know of.

It may well be both- beginning technique is often very hard on the edge of a razor- bad angles, poor stropping, etc. I think that it is worth either picking up a second razor or sending this one out to be re-honed so that you know. In my own experience, my edges only lasted 1-2 months the first time I had them honed.

I agree with Ben here: The HHT you did doesn't tell you anything. I also think that it's a possibility that the razor may need at least a touch up considering you're a newbie and it has been a month or so.

I'd forgo all of the "tests" and just stick with the shave test. All of the more experienced fellas keep hammering this point. (And Glen mentioned it in this month's Beginner Post!!) It's the only test that matters. Basically, with correct beard prep and technique try shaving down your sideburn to your jawline. If it tugs or doesn't shave the hairs well, you should be able to tell right away.

Your options are to send it out for a touch up or get yourself some CrOx paste for the back of your strop. The Filly strop comes with it if you have that, and I think you can get little packets in the classifieds or most straight razor vendors online (Straight Razor Designs comes to mind).

In the meantime, do yourself a favor and quit trying to test the edge. It'll just make you pull your hair out. Literally.

I agree wholeheartedly with Paul. Forget the HHT. The only real test of a straight razor's sharpness is the shave it delivers to your face.

Basically once the razor starts to pull a lot, or doesnt remove hair, its time to send it to be honed!

This is a good reason to have two razors, then when one of them is out to be honed you have another one to keep shaving with.

Of course, you can get some hones and hone it yourself, but then you need to get more razors to make the hones worth the spend. But if you end up with too many razors, you need to get more hones and strops to keep them all in best condition. And then you need to get more soaps and brushes to use with all those razors... Arrgh, feel the AD's!!

The HH test and the TP test are good indicators as to whether a blade is sharp enough to shave with, but the ultimate test is actually shaving with it.

When you got the razor it should have been shave ready, so if you were not getting good shaves then it could very well be you. I always use a new shave ready razor before stropping it so if I screw it up I know it's me.

Now, what's a good shave for a newbie? I would start with the sideburns and work down your cheek to your jaw. STOP. This is the easiest part of the shave. If your angle is right the shave should be smooth and clean with virtually no pulling, assuming your preshave methods are good.

If this part of the shave is good, and you have problems with your jaw and chin and neck and mustache, welcome to the club. Your blade is probably fine, but you just need more time and experience.