Discouraged, Depressed, Disgusted, Damn near Done wit it all!!!

OK, I have been shaving with a DE for a decade plus, and decided to make the switch to a straight to have a fun adventure. So I got a shavette a month back figuring it was the best easiest way to learn with out a lot of investment or the distraction of honiing etc. I have shaved with it daily and figure that by this time I have the shave figured out, so its time to take the plunge.

I get a shave ready razor from a board member and strop it sixty times on my paddle. start to shave, it doesn't pull it ripps and drags the hair from my face I haven't felt pain like that in a decade. I figure not quite shave ready so I touch it up with ten laps on a swaty the next day and strop sixty times then start to shave, a bit better, a little bit. Then disaster I touch it to the faucet edge and chip it. Crap, now 100 plus circles on a 4000 and the nick is still there but and trying to shave with it is like touching a blowtorch to my face. I'm fed up, if there isn't and easy cheep fix for this I'm done, the kit goes in the trash and I'm out like a hundred bucks.

1) Did you have any abrasive on the paddle? If you did you would have overhoned and ruined a shave-ready edge. If not, you could have placed too much pressure and rolled the edge.
2) To get rid of the chip, you'd need to use a faster-cutting abrasive like 1000 grit wet-dry sandpaper, equal number of strokes and pressure on both sides. Then you need to take it to the Norton and do the pyramids until it gives you a pull-free shave before taking it to the abrasive paddle surface. Make sure you tape the spine with electrical tape to avoid honewear-galore.

MAKE SURE THE NICK IS COMPLETELY GONE BEFORE STARTING TO HONE!!!

Wildtim,
No matter what endeavor you undertake in life, there will be a learning curve. The cost is green and the school colors are black and blue. However, if it's worth doing and you want to do it, you keep trying and you will succeed. There's nothing magical about getting a straight razor shave. You start with a quality razor and a great edge, lather up, shave, and dry off. My suggestion: get a straight razor from someone on the forum, nothing fancy, just good steel. Strop it up on natural leather, lather up and shave. Keep the edge sharp as opposed to letting it get dull and then sharpening it. Do this by regularly touching up with an 8000.

If you get a nick in a straight razor edge, move down to a coarser stone such as a DMT 1200 to remove the steel back to a uniform edge. Using a 4000 finishing stone for steel removal is frustrating and doesn't work. Honing is a progressive process.

Howard

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Howard

Wildtim,
No matter what endeavor you undertake in life, there will be a learning curve. The cost is green and the school colors are black and blue. However, if it's worth doing and you want to do it, you keep trying and you will succeed. There's nothing magical about getting a straight razor shave. You start with a quality razor and a great edge, lather up, shave, and dry off. My suggestion: get a straight razor from someone on the forum, nothing fancy, just good steel. Strop it up on natural leather, lather up and shave. Keep the edge sharp as opposed to letting it get dull and then sharpening it. Do this by regularly touching up with an 8000.

If you get a nick in a straight razor edge, move down to a coarser stone such as a DMT 1200 to remove the steel back to a uniform edge. Using a 4000 finishing stone for steel removal is frustrating and doesn't work. Honing is a progressive process.

Howard

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This is a razor from a forum member.

Tried all that even a half hour on an aluminum oxide coarse stone nick is still there.

How easy is it to nic a blade like this? If what happened to me is common I see why this was given up in favor of replacable blades.

If I can sharpen my chizels and keep my plane irons cuting clean a razor shouldn't be so much of a step.

Man, what a bummer?!!! It is so easy to mess up a good razor. I dropped my TI 6/8 Blond Horn Silversteel the first week I had it. Fortunately it must have landed on its back as there was no damage to the blade.
If I were you (I know, I'm not) I would give sending the razor to a honemeister another try to save your investment and to reintroduce you to a really fun "hobby". I know straight razor shaving isn't for everyone but I feel you haven't had much chance to give it a good try. There's a real possibility you'll end up really enjoying it. Lot's of people get off to a rough start. It's not an easy art to learn. You know the old cliche..."if it was everyone would do it." I'm no honemeister but let me know if you have any questions or if I can be of any help. Also Lynn Abrams, from this forum, is about as knowledgeable as they come regarding straight razors, is a really nice guy, and is a tremendous resource for new straight razor users like you and me. Shoot him a PM or email. Once you get a good shave you'll be hooked. :nj

Tom

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Wildtim

This is a razor from a forum member.
Tried all that even a half hour on an aluminum oxide coarse stone nick is still there.
How easy is it to nic a blade like this? If what happened to me is common I see why this was given up in favor of replacable blades.
If I can sharpen my chizels and keep my plane irons cuting clean a razor shouldn't be so much of a step.

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These edges are very easy to damage. Even though they're made of very hard steel, the edges themselves are very thin, so they are damage-prone.
It will take you a long time to work out a large nick even on 1000 grit sandpaper. Take it as a learning experience and be more careful with your razor next time you use it.
Start off by doing everything I outlined in my instructions in step 2.

You're not the first to have trouble out of the gate and lessons learned the hard way are often the ones that make the greatest impression. I suspect you knocked the edge off your razor when you stropped the first time. This is a common occurrence for the initiate as stropping should be done very slowly, gently and carefully. Not knowing about honing would also mean you are NOT going to get a satisfactory shave once you touch it to the hone. That's going to take some practice and some patience. This is perhaps your greatest challenge right now. If you're ready to give up after these stumbling blocks now, I'd strongly encourage you to take a bunch of deep breaths and consider how best to solve your problems and not run from them. It can be a very empowering experience getting all your straight razor ducks in a row, not to mention a terrific shave.

Do you have any pics of the 'chip' or can you describe it? If it's not bad and you're willing to take my advice on the patience and persistence, you can ship it to me and I'll see if I can't get it back into shape for you. Just PM me.

In the meantime, I recommend you practice stropping with a butter knife, imagining there are a perfect row of flees sleeping in a single file on the edge and you don't want to wake them up, but must tuck them all into bed neatly with the stropping.

X

Wildtim,

I understand your frustration--I've been trying to learn straight shaving off and on since this summer. I wound up going to a DE for a while, which got me off the Meh 3 and let me get good shaves without ripping my face off. (My first straight "shave" was with a disguised Pakistani razor that was sharp enough to work as a letter opener, but nothing else. It took several days before my face healed completely.)

Since you already shave with a DE, you've climbed part of the learning curve. You know how to prep your beard, so we can eliminate that as a source of the problem.

I agree that it sounds like the problem is a rolled edge.

If this is something you really want to do, don't give up yet. It seems like a lot to learn, and it is, but once you get the hang of everything you'll get a lifetime of inexpensive, enjoyable shaves.

The razors do require some upkeep, but it's not as bad as it seems. The first time I shaved I didn't wipe my blade dry. I set it down and came back 15 minutes later. Rust! You're kidding me. Well, since then I've wiped the blades carefully and haven't had a speck of rust. It's just a little routine you have to get used to. It's not burdensome, just different.

One suggestion I'd offer is to wipe the blade on a towel instead of rinsing it under the tap. It lets you see whether you're actually shaving hair off or just lather. It will prevent many dings like the one you experienced. (It also keeps the hinge area from getting wet, which prevents rust.)

We're with you all the way, man. And if you decide to chuck that gear in the trash, I've got a nice big bin you could use...

Josh

Ok another hour on the coarse stone, fifty laps on the medium arkansas fifty laps on the hard arkansas, and two times through the aggressive pyramid and it feels close by the thumb test to where it was yesterday, not there but close. any guesses as to how many more pyramids before it is even worth a shave test? BTW the HHT never did work for me, I can't get it to work reliably with my shavette either.

Yes I do get frustrated very easily and will probably need to vent every so often. Partly it my personality and partly its doing a job where getting a bigger hammer and swinging it harder is usually the right answer.

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Originally Posted by Wildtim

... any guesses as to how many more pyramids before it is even worth a shave test?

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One is all you should need, but I often start small and end up having to work my way up to bigger pyramids, going up to 15/5 or even 25/5 for big jobs and you've got a big job.

Don't succumb to speed on the hone. If you're getting impatient, walk away for a few minutes until you are ready to use your tiome on the stone wisely. Otherwise you're bound for more frustration.

X

Wildtim,

I tried to hone my razor when it probably didn't need it in the first place. I spent 2 solid days just trying to get it back where it was and came close but no cigar. I put it away for 6 months. My interest rekindled last month so I sent it to Lynn and he got it sharp again and I'm back in business. I got so pumped I've ordered 3 new razors within the last month. I am going to get a razor to practice honing on though so when the new ones need it I'll be ready this time. Hang tough.

Tom

By 25/5 you mean

25/5
15/5
10/5
5/5
3/5
1/5
1/5

or so. correct?

I've been using my shavette as a benchmark for the thumb test. How close should I be able to get to that? Also when shaving, how close to the feel of the shavette will i get? It cuts close but sort of scrapes my skin more than I want. The first actual straight shve Pulled the hair bad but left the skin cool and comfortable in comparison. The sking of the straight with the cutting of the shavette is what I am really looking for and expect I should eventually get. Realistic?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by xman

If you're getting impatient, walk away for a few minutes until you are ready to use your tiome on the stone wisely. Otherwise you're bound for more frustration.

X

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I guess I can see what you mean I won't have to shave for twenty hours or so anyway :)

Tim...

If it gets too frustrating, send it to me. I will fix it for free and send it back for free.

thanks bill but for now I am resolved to get it done myself....It migh be down to a 2/8 before I get it sharp but I will.

That's the spirit :tu You don't want a small nick to have you beat. Now just focus on reducing pressure, keeping the blade flat and moving smoothly across the hone. You'll get there eventually and it will be a great experience.

Tim,

One thing to keep in mind is that you don't need a lot of strokes to get the razor sharp. (Once you get the nick out, that is.)

I think the hardest part of learning to hone is learning to evaluate an edge. Once a good honer knows how sharp or dull the edge is, most likely it will only take 50 to 100 strokes to get it shave ready.

So determination is good, but don't assume that a dull edge means you haven't put enough strokes on the blade yet. It can mean too many strokes, or too much pressure.

It's a tricky thing to learn. Cut yourself some slack.

Josh

Please don't give up, Wildtim. :tu

after reading this massive post i might just decide to send my Straight to lynn once every 2months or so to hone :D just need to learn to strop with out ruining everything

If it's any consolation, I regularly whacked my razors on the faucet when I started with the straight razor.

I rarely do so anymore. I still rinse my razor under the water but now I automatically avoid the plumbing fixtures.

Hours with a stone is an effective negative reinforcement, is it not?