Thread: So...What Do You Think Of These Photos?

Well not sure I can give a really good input on this thread, but here's my thought.

I been honing fore many years. Razors, knifes, scissors.

Barbers scissors are more demanding, then razors actually, but that's not the point. A honemeister is a self proclaimed title. There's no education you can take, but practice is the key. When you have honed 10.000 hours, you are pretty good.

I've helped many starters in Denmark, where I live. I like it, to teach an pass on knowledge. When I started I had no one to guide me.

Thankfully I found this place and a shared knowledge unmatched.

Today newcomers are coming to me, with hones made fore professionals and microscopes that can take pictures of the finest part of every part of the edge.

No hones make you a honemeister, no microscope can do that to.

I do own a loop. A 20X one. I use it, when I want to understand what's happening.

BUT ordinary I just feel the edge. When the edge is set, it grips my thumbs and I know I can proceed.

When I'm finished I test the edge again. Now it sooks itself to my skin. Then I lap it 20 times on my trousers and now the razor should pop armhair 5 mm over the skin. This test is personal. Because some people doesn't have armhair that long.

Then I strop it. 10 times on red dovo, 10 times on red and finally 20 times on leather.

Then test shave. If the razor works, there's really no need to look at it with a microscope.

My synthetic always leaves a fine mirror finish. But my Coticule leaves a grayish pattern, as does indeed most of my naturals. But the naturals gives the best shaves.

When using a microscope, you only see a tiny fraction of the edge.

You may find all sorts of problems, but it's really hard to see the exact same spot again, when you tried to correct it.

It's the same reason why the hanging hair test is irrelevant. You only test a very small part of the edge.

Learn to feel the edge. Remember how a good edge feels like. And practice for many hours.

That's the key.

The pictures shown Utopian, doesn't say anything. Only that the guy is mislead. No barber of the old days used microscopes.

They practiced and improved their skills over many years.

This is what I usually tells new honers, seeking advice. Sometimes their pictures indeed show obvious things like bevels thats not set and so forth...

Regards Kristian


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