Thread: YMMV indeed...

So far I have bought a Boker and a Dovo from The Superior Shave. Jarrod is a great guy and is known to send out great coticule edges. But man, my face just hates coti edges it would seem! I shaved twice with each razor, and my face was scorched! I always hear about how comfy the coti edge is, but once I touched up the razors with my Nani 12k, I was right back to my usual buttery smooth DFS.

As I journey through the straight shaving world, I realize more and more just how true the YMMV aspect of our hobby is... And it is a beautiful thing.

My coticule gives smooth shaves, just loaned a coticule edge to another member here, nothing but praise for the shave he got from it.

I've read here, that not all coticules perform the same. So it may be more of a coticule thing than a YMMV thing.

You are right.
For coticules specifically, they are great stones from bevel setting, above ~2k to prefinishing, but not the finest finishers. Maybe one out of 5. Or 10, has the characteristics of a finisher.
Their speed is unequaled, and having a random medium hardness one can reassure you that, unless you have damaged your razor, no matter how bad it wear is, with some slurry you can bring it back.
But, that's it. You'll need a paste or another finer stone if you need an awesome shave. Again, you can feel satisfied by its edge, even if it's not the finest possible. YMMV as you said.
A few years back, a medium quality coticule was all I needed. But today, with the knowledge fellow members shared with us, and the finer stones that exist here and there, my skin's preference changed.
Again, there are coticules that can offer legendary edges, and I'm glad I have one of those, but generally, think of them as something between 7 and 10k, comparably to man made ones.

Originally Posted by funtown

... But man, my face just hates coti edges it would seem! I shaved twice with each razor, and my face was scorched! I always hear about how comfy the coti edge is

I would not recommend to shave with the coti edge. The stone is too hard for most of the faces. Yes, shaving with the coticule looks cool and also trains Your biceps, but if I have a razor at hand, I always prefer using that. Try shaving with Your Dovo or the Boker and I'm sure You'll get better results.

Originally Posted by Hirlau

My coticule gives smooth shaves, just loaned a coticule edge to another member here, nothing but praise for the shave he got from it.

I've read here, that not all coticules perform the same. So it may be more of a coticule thing than a YMMV thing.

I am with Hirlau - I have a coti that when paired with the right blade does wonders and provides an awesome, and smooth shave. Diamond paste kills me - well it did until I was taught here how to tame its effects. Others... many, love it sans taming ..

It really is a YMMV thing. Today I honed a blade with my Nani's and did something I have never done before; after my 8K run I lightly stropped my blade on the stone before moving to my 10K. When I was done my 10K, i stropped the blade on that stone too... lightly, before stropping on the leather. One of my best hones ever... It was awesome. Never done that before, but it seemingly worked .

Originally Posted by DDTech

I would not recommend to shave with the coti edge. The stone is too hard for most of the faces. Yes, shaving with the coticule looks cool and also trains Your biceps, but if I have a razor at hand, I always prefer using that. Try shaving with Your Dovo or the Boker and I'm sure You'll get better results.

Mental image... I lolled.