Thread: HHT and the 8k

Well it looks like i've finally honed a decent edge. After many failures it seems i have gotten one right. My big question is off the 8k i am getting a HHT - 0 which is weird. After stropping however the hair pops right away! Is this normal. I know the HHT is controversial and it's the shave that matters. Those 2 points aside for those of you that use the HHT, what is the normal coming off an 8k? The different razors/different steels = different results taken into account also. On average what should i be looking for in a HHT after the 8k?

Thanks,

Scott

Tell us about your stropping product(s) and procedure.

How does it shave???

Originally Posted by Ozarkedger

Tell us about your stropping product(s) and procedure.

2 inch strop. 60 linen 60 leather.

1k bevel set, 3k sharpen, 8k refine.

Originally Posted by Lynn

How does it shave???

The answer to that question will come tomorrow. I've left my shaving brush at home so unfortunately a wet shave isn't in tonight's future

The hanging hair test is a bit of a funny one, because nobody uses a standard test hair. Your HHT has to be calibrated for lack of better words. You may be using a hair that will only ever pop after stropping. The best way to figure it out is to take edges that are known to be shave ready and test those edges, before and after stropping and also a DE blade will help you find some answers as well. although the DE blade is a tricky one for comparison because it is not sharpened to abstain sharpness it is coated. Once you have had a few more razors on the hones and played with hairs from the same source but on different razors your data base will improve and so will the meaning of the tests. All the tests though are to help us decide if the razor is ready for the final test, the shave test. I have gotten some really great shaving edges at the 8K. I'm sure you will too. Like all things we do with our hands it is all based on repetition to hone your skill.

Originally Posted by RezDog

The hanging hair test is a bit of a funny one, because nobody uses a standard test hair. Your HHT has to be calibrated for lack of better words. You may be using a hair that will only ever pop after stropping. The best way to figure it out is to take edges that are known to be shave ready and test those edges, before and after stropping and also a DE blade will help you find some answers as well. although the DE blade is a tricky one for comparison because it is not sharpened to abstain sharpness it is coated. Once you have had a few more razors on the hones and played with hairs from the same source but on different razors your data base will improve and so will the meaning of the tests. All the tests though are to help us decide if the razor is ready for the final test, the shave test. I have gotten some really great shaving edges at the 8K. I'm sure you will too. Like all things we do with our hands it is all based on repetition to hone your skill.

I'll agree with you on all of that. Shave test is the one and only. Everyone's hair is different I was just curious about anyone who's used HHT after the 8k mark and what there findings were. Even though we have come to the conclusion that not everyone is using the same test due to the variables involved. Any how I'm going to test the edge out tomorrow. If it doesn't shave well i've always got that Russian razor you sent me to take a test flight on lol! I'm just playing around with my synthetic 3/8k waiting for my Coticule to come from good ol' Belgium.

P.S. off topic warning. What's the time over there on the coast? It's damn near 2 am and my eyes are burning out here in Ontario. So either you're up late, or up early.

It is 11. So not that late.

I could get a decent HHT after an 8K with a real good stropping, even better when I got a CrOx pasted paddle. Smoothness and shave quality are actually more important than the HHT. The HHT is just one of several ways to judge an edge

Originally Posted by Lynn

How does it shave???

That's the only real test.