Thread: Shave ready?

So we have razor X and it gives me the best shave in the world. There is no doubt it is "shave ready". So I sell it to Mr Smith and he says the razor won't shave worth a darn and it's no where near shave ready.

So what about this concept of shave ready? Is shave ready an absolute objective term? If a razor is truly shave ready should it be for any competent straight user no matter he has peachfuzz for a beard or a beard like a wire brush?

Maybe shave ready can only be a subjective term valid to the current user of the razor only. So a razor can go from shave ready to not shave ready in an instant.

Also what about the term provisionally shave ready? What does that mean? Is there such a thing? Maybe all razors that are shave ready should be called provisionally shave ready.

Put your thinking caps on.

No two faces/ beard are alike!

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

So what about this concept of shave ready? Is shave ready an absolute objective term? If a razor is truly shave ready should it be for any competent straight user no matter he has peachfuzz for a beard or a beard like a wire brush?

You can only prepare the edge so far, the razor does not know whether it is shaving peach fuzz or wire wool - I guess a really experienced honer could make allowance for the difference but in reality you would advise the wire wool man to go for wedges as opposed to hollow ground blades. As to their being shave ready, go back to the start of my post.

Conversely, razor "X" can pass the HHT along the full length of its blade, but "Joe Seven-Day Set" just doesn't have the technique to cut water, let alone, shave his face.

I prefer to say that "I get a {DFS|BBS}" with a given razor.

Here's my dilemma, I have a razor honed by an expert. I know it comes shave ready since I have used that person before. I have a big rotation so second shave with that blade was a several week wait. The first shave was not what I expected and looked forward to the next use because based on my experience often the second shave with a new edge is better (smoother?). Second use was smoother, but not as close. As a result I'm going to hit the Swaty with it, crox, linen/leather/felt/and a lot of leather, use it out of turn and see if that's all that was needed to make it effective or is it a case of the metal doesn't respond in a "normal" way.

At this point I will agree with thebigspendur that 'provisionally shave ready' is a term to be used between finishing an edge and first use. Tomorrow I get to try a different razor that is 'provisionally shave ready' and see if it is like many other first time uses and a great shave.

I do not doubt my stropping technique any more because I have another razor in my rotation that has been used four times and the shave is still as good as the first. I think it is a matter of many, many variables, including the composition of the metal and the phase of the moon. YMMV is so apt it's almost trite to use it.

Ultimately, I think it comes down to what people have been exposed to and their experience regarding that. Obviously, there are various skill levels in honing, different stones and progressions, that result in a unique edge blade to blade.

I would think people can also become accustomed to who or how their blades are honed. I loaned a blade to someone who honed their own and thought his edges were awesome. A couple of days later this person was absolutely blown away at the edge of the blade I loaned him - never thought a shave could be that nice, smooth, close and comfortable. He then sent one of his blades to Valery, had it honed, and was again baffled at the much superior edge - so experience is a big player IMO.

I would think the type of stones and progression used would also add "different flavors" to an edge.

In the end for me, I'm very used to a certain way my blades are honed, and obviously that would prejudice me towards any other edges.

Good topic.

This may be stating the obvious, but my main assumption about a "shave-ready edge" is that someone (presumably the honer) who _knows the difference_ has shave-tested the thing and gotten results he finds to be good by his high standards.

I know that not every vender/seller/honer will shave test, but to me that's what "shave ready" should mean, even though there is still the inevitable "YMMV" factor.

good subject. I hone most of my own razors. I have gotten a few bench mark razors done by some experts, and swapped a few edges with others. I can get a very close comfortable shave off of my edges, guys that I have swapped edges with have been happy. I can get my edges sharper than a few of the shave ready razors I have bought, but cannot consistently hit the height of the bench mark all the time. That is why those one are still bench marks. So I would have to suggest my edges are shave ready, but not the sharpest I have seen or felt, so still subjective.

Stropping can still play a big part, even for "an experienced" stropper.

Wide blades are easier to strop than a narrow one. Wedges are different from singing hollows. A person can be fully capable of stropping his big W&B with no issues, but hand him a 5/8 SRD and he will just roll the edge right over .
In my mind, if a razor has not shaved my face to a satisfactory finish, it is not shave ready. To call a razor shave ready without it being shaved with is guess work at best. I think we have all had that experience with a razor that passed the HHT, and yet gave a lousy shave. "provisionally shave ready"? to me that means, "maybe it is, maybe it isn't" I feel that a properly honed (and that means shave ready) razor will give ANYBODY a decent shave. Maybe not the finest shave of their lives, but a decent one non the less. Past a certain point its all personal and subjective. If somebody doesn't think a shave from one of my razors is smooth enough, its a very different matter from "not shave ready"

IMO, "provisionally shave ready" means that the razor goes from a state in time where it has left the finishing hone and has the potential to go to shave ready(stropped correctly and not damaged in any way) or to not shave ready(incorrectly or poorly stropped or damage cause another way).