Thread: I can get razors very sharp but lately they have been harsh.

The last couple of full and half hollows I've honed have had this problem. They are extremely sharp. Enough to where they easily cut the tops off the fine hairs on my arm but when I go to shave with them they aren't very smooth. After the third or so shave they felt like a dream. The two razors of mine that had this problem recently are my Tennis and Dovo I just honed a week or so ago. All is well that ends well, right? Well I'm a bit curious about what causes such harshness off the hones. My progression is Norton 4k/8k, Naniwa 12k, and finally CrOx before stropping on linen and horse hide. I use Lynn's circle method on the Norton and about 10 strokes both ways on the Naniwa. After that I do about five strokes both way on the CrOx. Finally doing 20 strokes on linen and 60 on leather. Is there something that I'm doing wrong? Like I stated before, after multiple shaves they became very smooth. So I'm not too concerned about it. Just curious really if this is common and would like to absorb any knowledge you guys could lend me here. Thanks!

Have you checked it under mag. Make sure you don't have any micro chips. It can cause roughness.

I have a jewelers loupe. I think it's a 10x Bausch and Lomb. Maybe 20x. I can't remember but my bevels look fine under it. Before this comes up, I really make sure I use no pressure on the Naniwa and CrOx.

Try a few more more laps on the strop.

I have a razor here that I got in a group. Later tonight I was going hone it to 12k and see what the shave was like straight off of that. Before I got the Naniwa I was getting great shaves off just the Norton. At the same time I got the Naniwa though I started using CrOx so I never have tried to shave directly off of it. Will add more laps on the strop too. May do something like shave half my face immediately off the stone and then do something like 40 laps on linen and 100 on leather. Might be interesting to see the comparison.

Agree....give it 100 on the leather!

Originally Posted by JTmke

Try a few more more laps on the strop.

Straightoverload: The first thing I would try is skipping the linen and double your stroke count on clean leather.

1. Is this "Harsh" feeling on all your razors or just specific ones ???
2. Keep in mind as "Keeness" changes you must also adjust the pressure and possibly the angle that you are shaving at..
one of the advantages of using a Finisher is that you should be able to back way down on the pressure which ultimately will give you a more comfortable shave..

It is not the shave that is making the edge smoother it is the additional stropping…

You either do not have a complete edge or the edge is chipping off the stones or Chrome Oxide.

When you say it looks fine, how are you looking at it, what do you see and when?

10 laps on the 12k may not be enough to polish 4K stria or completely set or re-set the bevel. Too much pressure on the 12K can also be an issue, the 12K can be aggressive.

It could also be the Chrome Oxide, many guys use way too much pressure, because they really want to, ”Polish” the bevel, but pressure will chip the edge, as can the substrate, a softer substrate will be less aggressive.

What is your Chrome Oxide on?
,
Eliminate the Chrome Oxide and see how it shaves, then eliminate the 12k and shave off the 8K. By a process of elimination you can find the problem, sometimes.

That stropping can make it shave,means you are very close. It is the difference between sharp and smooth. Sharp is easy…

Originally Posted by gssixgun

1. Is this "Harsh" feeling on all your razors or just specific ones ???
2. Keep in mind as "Keeness" changes you must also adjust the pressure and possibly the angle that you are shaving at..
one of the advantages of using a Finisher is that you should be able to back way down on the pressure which ultimately will give you a more comfortable shave..

I can't remember to be honest. These two are the only ones that really stood out. It's definitely not all of my razors though. I have had problems with pressure in the past. I start off alright but sometimes as the shave progresses I start using some pressure. I need to take a dry erase marker and write on my mirror before I shave. Something to remind myself constantly.