Thread: TI razor-Sharp enough?

Welcome to SRP airbus, looking at your screen name I'm betting your in the airline biz ... +1 to what Glen said and whatever you do don't take it to some place local that sharpens knives or sells shaving supplies and offers sharpening. I've read horror stories about guys who did that. Send it to a honemeister from the classifieds.

Of the thousands of TI's I have honed and hundreds of AOS TI's, I have yet to find one shave ready out of the box. Not to say it couldn't happen. I would agree with checking the classified's and having one of the guys hone it up for you.

Have fun,

Lynn

Thank You for all the replies they have been very helpful. I will try to send it out to get honed.

You could also get a hone yourself, with a beaten up razor to practice on

I have bought a TI C135 6/8th full hollow a few weeks ago from Fendrihan.com in Canada. I followed a similar path to yours. I was shaving with a Shavette. The Shavette blades are real sharp when they are new, you can't beat it.

I first bought a used Dovo Silver 5/8th from the classified , from someone who had bought it from SRD in december. The guy had used natural stones because he felt the razor was too sharp to his taste. When i got the razor, it was an awful experience. I had a red face. The Shavette shaving is real quick since the blade is so sharp. I had to go back to basics and take my time and use less pressure. Yet, the Dovo just did not measure up to the Shavette. The razor would tug. I stopped using the razor and decided to buy a brand new and honed razor since i suspected the razor was not honed properly.

I decided to buy it in Canada to avoid shipping costs and customs. The owner at Fendrihan told me some of the good Dovo razor to buy but they were not shave ready. Since i did not want to wait, he suggested i buy the TI C135 razor which comes shave ready from the factory. He went on to tell me that TI hones the razors before leaving the factory because a lot of newbie end-up messing-up their razors on their first hone.

I received the razor the next day and tried it. It did a much better job than the Dovo that i had bought. It took me 3 shaves to get used to it and get a nice shave. It is certainly different than a Shavette. The more i use it , the more i learn to appreciate it. I use the leather strope before using it and that is enough.

I still feel that the Shavette offers a sharper edge. The TI is not as sharp, and don't expect it to ever be. However, as i got used to it, i now feel that it offers a nicer shave than the Shavette . It is more foregiving. It is slower. You need to use shorter strokes in thight areas. I remember that with my Shavette, i was using longer strokes because the edge is so sharp. This technique does not work with a Straight i found out.

I have since honed my Dovo with a Naniwa 12K and it offers a much smoother shave. Still not as nice as the TI, or perhaps is it because i am not used to it (i shaved only once this morning after honing it with the 12k).

You may want to talk to the store where you bought it from. My experience with the TI is positive and very different from some of the people who already answered you. Before i bought the TI, i verified on user experiences and the posts i saw on this site and different user posting on the sites selling this razor agreed that this razor made a nice shave out of the box.

I have not seen your razor and i do not know if you bougth the same C135 carbonsong razor. If you did, take the time to get used to it and get back to the basics . Straigth razors are different

Thanks for the response MichelG. My TI razor is C135 carbonsong, and my experience was that the toe was sharper than the middle or heel. Also my hair is extremely thick. Unfortunately I had to return the razor as I did not want to take a risk with a purchase of close to $300 USD.

Is it possible for a carbon steel straight razor to be as sharp as a Dovo Shavette or Feather razor?

Originally Posted by airbus001

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Does anyone know where I can get the razor honed in Chicago as I lack the stones to sharpen the blade?

...snip...

Check the Classified and the various sponsors for honing services.
Chicago is central enough that via post, FedX or UPS they are all "close".

I got a TI from AoS and it was really hard to tell if it sharp enough at first because it was my first attempt at straight razor shaving. So no matter how sharp it was, I was bound to have some difficulty. Anyway, now that I have more experience and now that I know it's sharp enough, I still find it to be a temperamental shaver compared to some of the vintage ones I've bought and honed. I do know that AoS "claims" that it comes shave-ready, though it sounds like some folks have had experiences otherwise.

Good luck with it.

from factory some razors come pretty sharp some dont
safest thing is having it checked
pretty sharp may be shave ready for some and others not

I started the same way, I bought a TI from AOS and it felt like I was scraping the hair off my face (because I was). It took pressure and a steep angle to get hair to come off. I read the Wiki here and decided to purchase a Dovo Best Quality from SRD that was truly shave ready. I got it in the mail, lathered up and gave it a spin...I sliced my cheek real deep and it bled for about 1.5 hours. So IME, AOS razors are NOT shave ready, and if you try to develop your technique on them before being honed, you will slice yourself up when you get a truly Sharp razor. I have since learned to use light to no pressure(See JimmyHAD's signature line (Thanks Jimmy!)), gotten the angles down, and am still learning the stretching piece. All of this since February...It's been a blast! Welcome to SRP, and remember it's not about the destination, it's about the journey. Have fun! Cheers!