Thread: Four Words--What do they mean?

Originally Posted by WW243

Harsh= The words that the old lady uses when you have been in the bathroom for 2 hours shaving

It's because of things like this that people wonder why I'm laughing and shaking my head while looking at my phone...

Originally Posted by gssixgun

I only have two descriptions

Honed Correctly
Honed Wrong

I like the first one

Haha, this is awesome.

Originally Posted by gssixgun

I only have two descriptions

Honed Correctly
Honed Wrong

I like the first one

I thought you always say "smoooooooth" in your videos?

Originally Posted by Laurens

I thought you always say "smoooooooth" in your videos?

That would fall under "Honed Correctly" and more importantly "Used Correctly" see how simple it really is

The unvarying velvety, mirrorlike, uniform and frictionless shaving experience was incredibly smooooooooth.

Originally Posted by gssixgun

That would fall under "Honed Correctly" and more importantly "Used Correctly" see how simple it really is

Subcategories? Talk about making things complicated!

I think Ed has it right too, however I'd lump buttery and smooth together to mean the same thing. I do feel that different steels can lend themselves to slightly different feels on the face; even when honed correctly. I do feel some of my razors (W&B Special) tends to be more smooth (or buttery) when honed correctly than, say, my Burrell Top Flight, which tends to feel LESS smooth. Though not especially harsh it still feels less smooth than the W&B. Both will be sharp when honed correctly and readily cut hair. Of course, I'm no honing expert. It'd be interesting if an expert honer could hone all (quality) razors to feel as smooth and buttery as each other; of if the different steels may in fact sill make some feel less smooth than others.

I guess one could say some passages of a Beethoven symphony are more harsh than other smoother passages yet are still composed correctly.

To me buttery explains an edge that when you shave it feels like the blade is almost soft. That is the only way I can explain it.

You're never going to get a useful agreement on definitions of these words from an edge point of view - they are completely subjective categories - at best they may be ordinal but even that is arguable.

Even if it were possible to come up with working definitions that everyone agreed on for the words describing an edge, we then have the issue of how each person's skin type, beard type, cream, prep, stretching, technique etc interact with that edge so we can work back to what the edge is like off the hone. It's a losing battle, but as history has shown it's a lot of fun fighting it.

I'd even go a bit more direct than Glen (although I think he hit the nail directly on it's head) and say the edge shaves properly or it doesn't since, in the end, that's why we are doing what we are doing here. I'd even go so far as to say that until your technique is down to a reasonable level you really have no business worrying about a honed edge (as long as that edge was honed professionally).

I know that last statement is a bit controversial, but the way I look at it is: do you think the Renault Formula 1 pit crew would prefer to hear what I have to say about the handling of their race car, or what Mark Webber has to say?

Just some food for thought.

James.

Sounds like you are saying we need a standard face. Perhaps whoever has it could supply standard hairs for HHT's