Thread: Razor won't cut

I've got a Dovo Best Quality for Christmas. Since then I've used it every other day with no issues other than noobie nicks. Today however when I went to shave my razor wouldn't cut the hair. I've stropped it a few times since receiving it with no issues. I put it to the strop about mid shave since it wouldn't cut at all with no positive results. The razor won't even hang up on a hair. It just glides right over everything taking the lather with it.The bottom third of it however cuts just as well as it did on day one (received it truly shave ready from straight razor designs). Any idea what could be causing this? How can I fix it? Also, I'm noticing tiny black specks about a cm from the edge which I'm assuming is rust. I dry off the blade after each use using a piece of toilet paper, then air dry it with some of the canned air stuff you use on computers. What can I do to remove these specks?

did you strop before every shave or only a few times?
If you stropped only a few times it is possible the edge needs to be toughed up on a stone to bring it back.

Is it possible you rolled the edge on the strop?? This could be the case if you are doing X strokes on the strop and rolled it at the end of a stroke.

As for the specks pictures would help greatly.

you might try stroping it carefully on newspaper 50 laps to start that might bring it back. if not its back to the stones.dont know how much or how well you are stroping but the edge should last a lot longer .as for the rust frist try toothpaste a bit on toilet paper and rub

Originally Posted by mainaman

did you strop before every shave or only a few times?
If you stropped only a few times it is possible the edge needs to be toughed up on a stone to bring it back.

I've stropped it probably 5 times. Would that explain why only part of the edge is still there though? As I said the bottom third of the blade is still sharp. I've had a bit of practice with the ex motion using daily use utility knives on stones. Yes, I know not to put the straight up at an angle.

Originally Posted by BenjamanBarker

Is it possible you rolled the edge on the strop?? This could be the case if you are doing X strokes on the strop and rolled it at the end of a stroke.

As for the specks pictures would help greatly.

I've never rolled on the blade. As for the specks, I can tell it's rust looking at the pic.
Last night is when I first noticed the rust, so I rubbed a tiny bit of vegatable oil on it with a paper towl being careful to not go against the blade. Could this have dulled it out? Could it be the oil?

Originally Posted by Zjgilbert

Today however when I went to shave my razor wouldn't cut the hair. I've stropped it a few times since receiving it with no issues.

I'm not an expert - far from it - but I do hone my own blades and own a good range of straights from Gold Dollars to Grelots. I also work with metals quite a bit in my other life. I will comment but cede any emotive issues to the old heads who may contribute.

If the razor isn't shaving (but was), the chances are that it is simply dull. The spots are most likely corrosion. Edit: It is also possible the blade edge was rolled when stropping which caused the sudden loss of sharpness (as was posted by others).

The fix for the dull edge is to have it honed - or stropped with a pasted strop. You can also try stropping it carefully quite a few times - be sure you are using a tight strop and not lifting the blade.

The fix for the spots - if they aren't on the edge - is to polish the blade with MAAS or similar mild polishing paste. Then oil the blade with light oil of some sort. I have a stable of about 40 razors (which really means I'm a newbie compared to some on here) and I use oil on them regularly to prevent corrosion. I might not get back to a blade for a couple of months so I want to protect it.

Your post seems to imply that you didn't strop it between each shave - forgive me if I read that wrong. I would always strop before shaving - always. My beard is tough and even with some very expensive and high-end razors I may end up stropping during the shave (I shave both my face and my head so there is a lot of territory - fat head ;-}).

Depending on your desires, you might look into getting a pasted strop and touching up the edge every 30 days or so. Myself, I don't hesitate to use a pasted strop - I do it much more frequently than is recommended. I want the blade to be sharp and I can easily forget if a blade has been tuned up - so I strop it with paste, wipe it, and then linen and then leather before putting it away. Most on here would say that is completely unnecessary and it probably is. However, I never worry about whether the next razor in the rotation is sharp - it is always sharp. I'm leaving metal behind with the procedure but I figure I won't wear any of my razors out since I only use a specific razor about seven times a year.

Originally Posted by ladykate

The fix for the dull edge is to have it honed - or stopped with a pasted strop.

I use a 2" Latigo I strop from Straight Razor Designs. I also have strop paste. What do you mean by a pasted strop? When I've applied the paste in the past I rub it into the bottom part of the leather, run the blade over it a few times, then complete the strop on the top of the leather. Should I really coat the leather in the paste?

Originally Posted by Zjgilbert

I use a 2" Latigo I strop from Straight Razor Designs. I also have strop paste. What do you mean by a pasted strop? When I've applied the paste in the past I rub it into the bottom part of the leather, run the blade over it a few times, then complete the strop on the top of the leather. Should I really coat the leather in the paste?

No... we are probably not talking about the same kind of paste. The leather treatment you use to preserve your strop is a strop paste but the paste I'm talking about is an abrasive paste (like .5 micron diamond paste). It is used on a dedicated strop, linen, or balsa base and used to 'tune' the razor by polishing it better than just stropping would. Various materials are used in the paste from chromium oxide to powdered diamonds. You can get small tubes of the paste at many outlets. Use a dedicated surface (balsa sheet glued to a plywood base is cheap and works well) and put a small amount of the paste evenly across the sheet. The easy way to do that is to just mark three or four light 'X' spots with the paste and your finger. A little goes a looooonnnngggg way so don't overdo it.

You probably can't go wrong by getting a pasted board off eBay or elsewhere for your first try. It will last a really long time.

Some old heads don't like pastes. I do. I have the normal range of hones (which is also an acquisition disorder) but I tend to like to finish with a paste.

How would that vary from just using a stone? How is buying a barber's hone any different from just getting a stone from a hardware store?

If you have rust on the blade it could be on the edge as well contributing to the dullness.
Another problem can be overly heavy stropping folding the edge. It is easily seen under magnification.