Quote Originally Posted by anjp View Post
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.