Thread: How sharp is sharp?

I have one razor that I can hone to level of sharpness that is beyond my other blades.
Is that because of my honing skills (or lack of) or the attributes of that blade in particular e.g. manufacturing techniques , types of metal used?
Can all blades be made equally as sharp as one another?

I think the bottom line is if you learn to hone well enough you can find the edge you like. If you have the right tools, and the skill, you can get the edge you like consistently. Whether it is a mild and smooth or a 'scary sharp' is up to the honer, if they have the skill.

Originally Posted by JOB15

I have one razor that I can hone to level of sharpness that is beyond my other blades.
Is that because of my honing skills (or lack of) or the attributes of that blade in particular e.g. manufacturing techniques , types of metal used?
Can all blades be made equally as sharp as one another?

'Mostly' all blades can be 'equalised' for sharp but not for smooth or durability. The other factors you mention do play a role.

I agree with your statement about smooth and durable. I know that some blades will get sharper, smoother and be more durable than others. Has anyone else pondered whether a coated edge, such as in industrial metal cutting tools would take the smooth and durable and perhaps sharp of a razor's edge to a new as of now unobtainable level?

Originally Posted by 25609289

Has anyone else pondered whether a coated edge, such as in industrial metal cutting tools would take the smooth and durable and perhaps sharp of a razor's edge to a new as of now unobtainable level?

Yeah some guy called Gillette.
I believe the coating is a compensation for a less than perfect edge. You can get closer to perfect by hone & strop if you have the skills.

I dip all my finished edges in a solution of that stuff the 2nd terminator was made out of. Hard to get, especially in Australia.

You know, it's funny what you can get used to in terms of smooth. I used to like 8K edges, now I'm like the Princess and the Pea unless it's a Jnatisher edge.

James.

The coatings used on Gillette cartridges are mainly to reduce friction and increase edge life from what I recall in reading some articles and "how it's made" type things years ago - and they work quite well in most cases. The blade needs to be proper sharp before the coatings are applied IIRC.

To tell you the truth when I first started reading this forum. I thought allot of what I was reading(in the context of razor edges) was just hot air from a bunch of guys that like messing about with bits of rocks and pastes. Sharp is sharp, its either sharp and it shaves or its blunt and it doesn't, simples......right!!............wrong

My dad told me something very early on in life and i remember it very clearly. He said "son let me give you some advise, if I teach you nothing else in life please remember this.

Everyone has their own story and skills, they could be a high flying millionaire or a homeless man on the street it doesn't matter they still have a story to tell. If someone tells you something, listen. Even if you think you know it all, or you think the person speaking is just full of bull s@#t..... Listen. At the end of it you can walk away and think yup what a load of old tosh that was. BUT you also might learn something, even if 99.9% of what the person says is rubbish or they are telling you something you already know. It is that 0.1% that is important and had you not listened you won't have got that little bit of information you can use. It costs nothing apart from a bit of your time to listen, the information you learn however can be invaluable"

With that in mind I have carried on reading about this here razor honing and after reading some things I have tried them out. I was waaaay off the maso with my initial assessment, there is certainly much more to this razor honing than meets the eye........but some of you knew that already

Let's be honest, getting an edge on a razor that is sharp and can shave hair isn't difficult (assuming you have the right tools). I managed to get an eBay special to shave ready (shave ready in this instance means it will shave face hair without pulling etc) in an hour or so having never honed a razor before, though I do have plenty of experience with other edged objects.

I think you could sit a guy down who has never honed anything before and give him a razor(with no geometry issues), a set of hones and a basic honing guide. Within a few hours I think they could get an edge on that razor that will shave.

I have now honed 18 razors(a tiney amount) and by reading the posts here and trying a few things out I have found that simply getting an edge on a razor that will shave is only the begging of the story.

Though all 18 razors shave. I have only managed to get an edge on two of them that has left me thinking, "wow that was a sweet sweet shave". At the moment I don't have the skill or experience to know if that is due to my particular preference in a razor or if I have done something different while honing.

I will continue to read and try new things so that I can find that perfect edge for me, and find it consistently.

In the mean time I thank all the guys here who take the time to share their knowledge and experience with us all. Without them I would still be thinking sharp is just sharp when in actual fact sharp is just the start of the journy in finding that sweet edge(that varies from person to person), and finding it consistently.

You're very lucky. I think your father was/is a wise man. And your father is very lucky - he has a wise son.

James.

Originally Posted by Suile

I have never tried pastes and will must likely never will. If you can hone and shave without pastes their don't seem a place for them.

If it works for you, all the best, but it's a bit like saying, "I've never cooked with salt and will most likely never will. If you can cook and eat..."