Thread: how smooth can it be??

Pretty new here and I'm stuck. I'm sure that my edge is good and my razors are sharp. I can do a HHT with little effort. I'm just wondering, how smooth should a perfectly sharpened razor feel and sound?? Is the smoothness people talk about, just as smooth as if you lathered up and ran a spoon over your face only it's cutting hair, or is there a little bit of tugging as it get through the hair. Also should it sound like it's cutting every hair or is the shave silent?? I'm really really close here I'm just wondering on these few points.

A full hollow ground blade will sound, to varying degrees, like when you scrape a knife over toast as you shave. A full wedge, apparently, is the silent killer of facial hair, mowing through it with utter contempt and in total silence ... unless you cut your ear off and squeal like a little girl, but I digress. The tugging could just as easily be your pre-shave prep (might want a little longer to let things soak properly) or the blade angle.

Hi g31.

There are many and many factors that can determine the answer to your question.

First of all, remove the HHT out of the equation. That is something you do to show off to friends rather then demonstrate how sharp a razor is.
I have an 'Enzo England' that i am using to test out my new hones and i can get that to pass a HHT but there is no way i would get a good shave from it!

Second, it depends on the razor you have and how well it has been honed. It might look sharp and feel sharp to touch but is it as sharp as it could be and how well is the bevel\edge going to hold on the particular razor.

Third, The beard type. 100 people with the same razor can get different results from it. some will get pulling some will get a clean shave.

Forth, Sound. Some blades will cut with a sound some will cut silent ish also the beard will come in to this as well. (i always hear a slight cutting sound, sorta) Like Mick said, a full hollow can have a 'ting' sounds and a wedge is more likely to be silent

Fifth, Prep makes a big difference. Make sure you have a good lather and use a hot towel before shaving or shave after a shower.

Smoothness to me is, no pulling and if i can shave my chin area with easy and not leave a rash or razor burn that its a smooth shave!

Hope this helps.

Proper prep and practice. take your time. I have some razors that sound as mick describes like I am scraping a knife against toast. Each blade is different. early on I wasn't concerned with the sound it made when shavin, Just how pink my face would be after. Practice proper prep and work on a good shave technique and You will get the results you want in no time.

Originally Posted by q31

Is the smoothness people talk about, just as smooth as if you lathered up and ran a spoon over your face only it's cutting hair

Some razors can give you that illusion... until you apply too much pressure , wrong angle or lateral movement. Then you realise "There is no spoon"

Originally Posted by onimaru55

Some razors can give you that illusion... until you apply too much pressure , wrong angle or lateral movement. Then you realise "There is no spoon"

Only try to realize the truth, "There is no spoon!"

Originally Posted by onimaru55

Some razors can give you that illusion... until you apply too much pressure , wrong angle or lateral movement. Then you realise "There is no spoon"

Would it be accurate to say that some razors just won't get as sharp as other razors?? It seems to me that I've gotten this razor as sharp as I could imagine, yet there is still some tug when I shave. Will there always be some tug or is it possilble to find a razor that is spoon smooth, seriously?

+1 to all of the above q31.
All my razors sound different to each other.
When I got my first shave ready razor from the classifieds here even SWMBO said that it sounded different to the others that I had honed myself without knowing how it should feel/sound.
I know it felt different. Having said that, I can feel the hairs getting cut by all my razors but I think that is more about my prep than the razors not being sharp enough.
I can't wait to get a wedge into my rotation so I can feel what others here say about them.

Some razors wont get as sharp or be as smooth as others. this could be due to wear or a cheaper Chinese razor but most razors should get shave sharp and if honed correctly should shave without any problems! What razor do you have? Do you have a photo?

Also, Saying that you have gotten the razor as sharp as possible wouldn't be as sharp as an experienced user could get it. In time you will fine that you get angles right and learn to strop the razor better to keep the razor sharper etc.

In saying "I've gotten this razor as sharp as I could imagine" Have you honed the razor or is that just from stropping it?

Originally Posted by q31

Would it be accurate to say that some razors just won't get as sharp as other razors?? It seems to me that I've gotten this razor as sharp as I could imagine, yet there is still some tug when I shave. Will there always be some tug or is it possilble to find a razor that is spoon smooth, seriously?

Sounds like your imagination may be limiting your honing Just kidding... kinda

It would be more accurate to say that most but not all razors can be made equally sharp but one razor may not hold that edge as well as another.

If the tugging is present from the first stroke it is not likely the fault of a quality razor. If the tugging occurs near the end of the shave it still may not be the fault of the razor but it becomes a possibility.