Thread: The limits of the hanging hair test

I had an experience this weekend that really drove home the limits of the hanging hair test.

I was honing up the little 4/8 that's for sale in the By Sell Trade forum, and I was working out a nick on my 1000-grit Norton. I progressed to light strokes before moving to the 4K, and on a whim, I did a hanging hair test right off the 1K.

This blade cut hanging hairs like nobody's business. Now I have thick hair, but this was one of my medium-thick hairs, not a really heavy one.

Lately I've been doing the HHT with different blades, and it really is only useful to a certain level. A Feather blade, supposedly the ultimate in sharpness, doesn't do much better than that 1K edge did. After 8K, there's no change that I can detect.

I'm starting to see the HHT as a test for a proper bevel, not for sharpness. As long as the bevels meet properly, the grit doesn't seem to matter as much as I thought.

For me, an edge won't shave well if it doesn't pass the HHT, but passing the HHT doesn't mean it's shave-ready--or even close.

Just some food for thought,
Josh

you know how you can cut a tomato easily with a serrated knife but even really sharp knifes can have a problem with the tomato. I can't help but think of this when it comes to the HHT. I know ones a slicing motion and ones a pushing motion --but there is some crossover here because no motion is pure and simple. And some people claim that their really sharp razors can't pass the HHT. Anywho --there's more than meets the eyes.

Justin

Very interesting,

My stanley jointer plane blade passes the hht, off a 1200 hone. I wouldn't dare shave with that trust me!! But it shows that it's possible to pass a hht on the lower grits.

Yeah, I've always thought along a similar line. There's a lot of different ways to test whether your razor is ready to be placed on your face, and the HHT is only one of them (perhaps).

This is just a guess, but a less polished edge (micro-serrated?) from a lower grit hone is probably going to catch the hair easier. Maybe this is why I've heard some people say the HHT should feel smooth, like the hair melts (I've even heard some people mention the edge slipping between the atoms of the hair...). Don't know.

All I know is that the HHT on its own has never been a particularly useful diagnostic for me. Great for impressing family and friends though...

James.

I agree, I think that the micro serrations would do a better job of grabbing the hair, but then wouldn't you get more of a popping of the hair then a truly clean slice through it?

Matt

Matt,

Yeah, sorry I didn't explain myself very well. I meant that it's probably easier to cut a hair using the HHT at lower grits, and you'll get a popping-type cut. To use the HHT at higher grits I've heard people say a smooth slice is what to go for (gettin' in there between the atoms... ).

Again, I don't know if this right or not.

James.

I think this is a good point about not whether the blade can pass the HHT because substandard shavers can still do it, but HOW it passes; what action does the hair make, what sound, etc.

X

I always was of the mind that the HHT should always be passed with a popping sensation. But personally I never use that test so what do I know? But it impresses others when you do. Like the show at the japanese restaurant.

In my limited experience it depends on the hair. My wife has hair that is absolutely impervious to the HHT. It is so fine that it glides right over the blade no matter how sharp. That may explain why some people get good shaves from blades that wont even pass the HHT. The difference is in the hair!

Originally Posted by alexaggie

In my limited experience it depends on the hair. My wife has hair that is absolutely impervious to the HHT. It is so fine that it glides right over the blade no matter how sharp. That may explain why some people get good shaves from blades that wont even pass the HHT. The difference is in the hair!

Absolutely true! My own hair is too thin, and most of my wife's as well. If I take a hairbrush I really need to pick the thickest hairs for the HHT. My razors will not cut the thinner ones no matter how sharp.