First Self Honed Razor

Hi All,

Just thought I'd write something about the first razor that I honed myself.

Well, I bought a few razors from Ebay and got one of them honed for me. The shave from this was great which made me want to get a Norton 4000/8000 stone so that I could hone my other razors.

So, the other day it arrived and I started honing one of my razors with it using the pyramid method. Did the thumb nail and hanging hair rest and it was all good. So I though what the hell, let's give shaving with it a try.

Well, I did get a REALLY close shave. However, It gave me the WORST razor burn I have ever had :cen :cry: Infact, three days later I still cannot shave because my skin is really painful, STILL :cry:

Oh well. Never mind. Think I just need to go a LOT more gentle with it next time!

Also, when I use multiple lathers/shaves, I find that my lips are relly sensitive and in slight pain for the rest of the day (I use a Kent B2 brush). Does anyone else find this?

Steven

Steven, did you peel yourself? :roflmao

I could not shave 3 passes as some members do. One or at the most 2 is all my skin can handle. Do not apply pressure when shaving. If your razor passes the HHT it is not necessary. Skin prep is also crucial.

Seems like he did. Scraped the hair off...only takingthe skin with it. That's gotta hurt!!
I shave 4 passes in some places, 2 on the neck and three on other places.

Basicaly you just need to learn what works best for YOUR face.

I think it maight be bause it is heavier then my normal razor and I was using the same amount of pressure. Well, it least now I know not to!

Steven

Steven,

It's also possible that your razor had either a rough edge or a wire edge. I've been able to get one of my razors to pass the HHT off the 4K side of the Norton, but I wouldn't want to shave with it because the edge isn't polished enough.

A wire edge feels sharp but quickly breaks down during the shave, leading you to use more pressure to cut hair.

It might help to try the HHT again after your shave. That'll give you an idea whether the edge survived.

I've been working on my honing for months and it's still a challenge for me to get a razor to pass the HHT. So either you're very talented, very lucky, or your edge is suspect.

Keep at it!

Josh

Steven: when I nick/cut myself or have too much razorburn like that I use a salve called cremicort(by Omega Pharma) to help it recover and lower the burn (contains cortisone). It's a salve against eczemas and other skin issues but I found it helps well with razor burn and healing nicks. :)

Most soaps that I've tried produce some burning by the third lather. These days I've been using a high-glycerin bar soap called Sappo Hill. It takes a bit of nursing to get it to a full lather, but it's very inexpensive and never gives me the slightest burn. And yes, you might also consider whether the brush is a factor, since some users say that they need a really soft brush to avoid discomfort.

i also would be lead to believe its mostly 2 causes,


1 - you probably produced a wired edge during honing. you overhoned it. if you touched the straight to your face to start a pass and now you have a slight slice/nick at that starting spot....then you definitely have a wired edge


2 - you are pushing too hard to get the shave you desire.. if this is the case then most likely your edge is not keen yet. it may feel sharp but its not ready if it causing so much irritation. try holding the blade just ever so slightly off the skin of your arm and shave the top of your forearm. it should basically POP hairs at their stalk

~J

Quote:

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Originally Posted by harold

Steven: when I nick/cut myself or have too much razorburn like that I use a salve called cremicort(by Omega Pharma) to help it recover and lower the burn (contains cortisone). It's a salve against eczemas and other skin issues but I found it helps well with razor burn and healing nicks. :)

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Harold,

Be careful with steroids! I bet they work but they tend to cause the skin to become thinner. In the Netherlands they are prescription only because of that.

If you use them regularly apply very very thinly. The thinning effect is irreversible.

Well, I finally tried honiing again last night.

I've come to the conclusion that I actually under honed the blade. When I checked the edge of the blade VERY close, I notices that there were some small nicks in it. So I honed them out last night and tried a shave with it.

I did not pass the HHT (I think last time might have been a lucky chance), but it did give a nice shave without any nicks or razor burn. Though I did only do one pass this time, just to make sure :w

It still suprices me how little presure is needed on the blade. For some reason I just can't get my head around the fact that you should not put ANY pressure on it! Oh well, I suppose that's what practice is for.

Steven

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Kees

Harold,

Be careful with steroids! I bet they work but they tend to cause the skin to become thinner. In the Netherlands they are prescription only because of that.

If you use them regularly apply very very thinly. The thinning effect is irreversible.

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Yes, I heard about that, but this is a class I corticosteroid, we're talking in mg there not g of use. :) (and they say that the maximum lies at about ~50g usage of the corticosteroid per week, then you risk heavy chances of local side-effects, like skin-atrophy)

but your skin does recover:

Quote:

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Na hoeveel tijd lokale bijwerkingen zullen optreden is afhankelijk van de frequentie van smeren en van de sterkte van het hormoon. Hydrocortison-acetaat, een klasse I preparaat, veroorzaakt zelden lokale bijwerkingen, een klasse IV preparaat al na weken tot maanden. Het optreden van atrofie is iets dat geleidelijk aan gebeurt. In de beginfase zal de huid zich nog kunnen herstellen. Pas wanneer het preparaat maanden tot jaren achtereen wordt gebruikt, wordt de huid echt onherstelbaar beschadigd. Wanneer in de onderhoudsfase intervalbehandeling toegepast wordt (bijvoorbeeld driemaal per week éénmaal per dag), treden lokale bijwerkingen vrijwel nooit op, ook niet na lange tijd.

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(and notive that you're talking class VI then, something you can only get on prescription I believe)
bron: Nederlandse Vereniging voor Dermatologie en Venereologie

Sorry I know the above is in dutch, but I just wanted to show Kees that sporadic use of it doesn't hurt. :) (but like in all things: over-use == abuse)

Steven,

That's great news. It'll get better as your honing improves, too.

Someone on these boards compared shaving with a straight to using a squeegie. No pressure; you try to just wipe the lather off.

Keep at it,
Josh

As you've discovered, the HHT isn't the end-all-be-all test. I've never had a blade pass it, not my own, not honemiester-honed, not feathers, so I've had to use other tests to tell me it's getting ready.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by harold

Yes, I heard about that, but this is a class I corticosteroid, we're talking in mg there not g of use. :) (and they say that the maximum lies at about ~50g usage of the corticosteroid per week, then you risk heavy chances of local side-effects, like skin-atrophy)

but your skin does recover:
(and notive that you're talking class VI then, something you can only get on prescription I believe)
bron: Nederlandse Vereniging voor Dermatologie en Venereologie

Sorry I know the above is in dutch, but I just wanted to show Kees that sporadic use of it doesn't hurt. :) (but like in all things: over-use == abuse)

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Harold,

I checked this with our local dermatologist. She strongly recommends you don't use hydrocortisone on your face on a daily base. The 50 gram weekly thing is about systemic side effects i.e. adrenal cortex suppression and thinning of the skin all over your body and all other systemic side effects of steroids. You're right this will not happen if you use it sparingly.
The local thinning of the skin of the face even happens if you use it sparingly on a daily or every other day base. She even recommends you start using it every other day for a couple of weeks and then stop it completely!

hello my norton 4/8 is on the way
my question is can someone explain the pyriamid?
what is the system to get dull, nearly ready and just a touch up on a blade?
i already have a .25/.50 diamond paste strop that i made last week.
came out nice(oak base with balsa top 3.5"x12"). also have some 600,1500 wet dry paper,
got a couple dull ebayers id like to work on.

thanks for any help.
Happy Holidays to all, "And to all a GOOD SHAVE".
Mike

The honing pyramid is a method of honing designed to help get the razor where you want it. One switches back and forth from the 4000 grit side of the honeto the 8000 side gradually increasing and then decresing the number of strokes on the 4k. So 1/5 means on swipe up and back on the 4k and 5 up and back on hte 8k. A regular pyramid would go up to 15 or 20 4k laps always followed by 5 8k laps (except at the end where a few more or less are determined by the individual razor and honer). A short pyramid would go up to 5 or 10 on hte 4k. A touch up would be a few 1/5 combinations or something in that range.

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