Thread: How do I know if i screwed up the edge

Of my professinally sharpened razor with my bad first time stropping?

If it shaved well before and it does not shave well now, it is safe to assume that you may have rolled the edge. You may be able to get it back with proper stropping if you did mess it up. Depends on how bad.

A possible indicator might be scratch marks on your leather strop?

No marks on strop yet. My first shave was after my crappy first time stropping, so i dont have another point of reference. It seems a tad less sharp than a razor blade

I only recently bought my first "new" razor, a Hart. I was very happy, as you may know, to finally have a point of reference. As for your problem, I agree with JimmyHAD's remarks, if it shaved fine then, but wont now, then there's no alternative but put her back on the stones and start again. Don't be scared, as long as you tape it you can learn as you go with little wear.

I'd suggest you send it back for assessment & /or correction. Any damage you've done on leather will be increased tenfold on a stone if you repeat the same faults.
In the meantime practice your stropping skills &/or research where you may have gone wrong.

Just for future reference. I think most professional honemeisters send it back to you shave ready, which means you don't have to strop it before you use it that first time.

Last night the darn edge was so dull it didnt reduce my beard at all. I dried it off, put it in a shipping envelope, and finished my shave with the DE. Bummer. Im sending it back to the pro's for sharpening. When i put it flat on my hone (with spine and edge on the stone - it's a half hollow shape), it seemed like the point of the edge wasn't in firm contact with the stone, and after each pass there was a fair pool of water behind the pass, where the blade should have picked it all up. A "burred edge" or "curved edge"? How do I know? How the heck am I supposed to get interested in SR shaving when i need to be an expert in sharpening and edges? Hopefully it's a simple fix, but this first round just sucked on the technical, sharpness-of-the-edge side of things. On the bright side, i didnt nick myself - i have a pretty good instinct for the shaving method itself if i could just get a SR with an edge. Maybe this old Thiers Issard razor (bought off eBay) is stainless or inherently incapable of holding a sharp edge. Anyone think i should get a new Dovo Best for $85 on Amazon and start fresh?

Originally Posted by jkeane22

How the heck am I supposed to get interested in SR shaving when i need to be an expert in sharpening and edges?

You dont have to know honing to be an expert shaver. I suggest you check the classifieds and see who is available to hone your razor. Even at 3/8 it should still be able to shave IMO.

Was it professionally sharpened by someone that has a good reputation for sharpening razors?
If so - contact the vendor and see if they will take a look at it for you.
If not, look for a reputable honer to take a look at it, or possibly even find a local mentor to help.