Thread: help with my blade's sharpness pls

Hello everybody,
I got a dovo special from SRD and i feel it needs a little more sharpness because it does not pass the HHT ( only if i insist with it it cuts the hair but on the 10th or so time i try cutting the hair and it leaves a little curl behind on the tip of the freshly cut hair -- is this wierd? )

at first it was the same only that when i ran the blade 1 cm above my arm some of the hair was cut and remain on the blade... now that does not happen as much... only a couple of hairs get cut.

i did about 200 laps on newspaper wraped around my dmt hone and didnt feel any improvement and the blade is shave ready but it pulls just a little bit i think ( i say 'i think' because im 4th shaves in and its the same since the first day and this is my first SR)

How do you recommend i get this sharpness on to my blade without losing the fine edge lynn or don put on my dovo special?

i have the modular paddle with 0.5 diamond spray and CrOx at my disposal... help

would be good to shoot a mail at them maybe they can provide a good advice?

please i need the experts advice on this one because i dont have any hones only the DMT 8k... and i dont wanna do something wrong

thanks alot,
Iulian

Julian, with 4 shaves in the "pulls a little" could very well be blade angle and or skin stretching issues. Direction of attack has something to do with it also. The fact that you are learning to strop and a miscue on the strop can also harm an edge. The HHT is not necessary for a razor to be shave ready.

The 100 laps on newspaper could help or hurt depending on your technique. Try 5 round trips on the diamond spray with the weight of the blade (no pressure) on your modular paddle and shave test. If that doesn't seem to do anything try 5 more. If that gives you a harsh feel do 5 laps on the chrom-ox to smooth it out a bit.

Sometimes it is best to leave well enough alone on your main shaver. Pick up some vintage blades in good condition to learn honing. That way your main shaver is not comprimised if you do make a mistake.

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

Julian, with 4 shaves in the "pulls a little" could very well be blade angle and or skin stretching issues. Direction of attack has something to do with it also. The fact that you are learning to strop and a miscue on the strop can also harm an edge. The HHT is not necessary for a razor to be shave ready.

The 100 laps on newspaper could help or hurt depending on your technique. Try 5 round trips on the diamond spray with the weight of the blade (no pressure) on your modular paddle and shave test. If that doesn't seem to do anything try 5 more. If that gives you a harsh feel do 5 laps on the chrom-ox to smooth it out a bit.

Sometimes it is best to leave well enough alone on your main shaver. Pick up some vintage blades in good condition to learn honing. That way your main shaver is not comprimised if you do make a mistake.

Thanks alot Jimmy for taking the time to answer (almost) the same question again.

i understand perfectly and i am still working on my angles and stretching... it may very well be those thinkgs or many other variables that can cause me to feel pulling where it very well be my technique that needs honing...

i have an old schumate that im learning honing on...

can you pelase tell me if i hone it on the DMT 8k to the point where it shaves arm hair.... then if i take it to the 0.5 diamond sprayed felt and then on the CrOx pasted leather... can this blade stand a chance at being shave ready ( i mean shave confortably

Thanks for your patience with the unexperienced

Best Regards,
Iulian

Take a look though these also but listen to Jimmy he will steer you straight (pun intended)

http://straightrazorpalace.com/begin...an-2010-a.html

http://straightrazorpalace.com/begin...eb-2010-a.html

http://straightrazorpalace.com/begin...ch-2010-a.html

http://straightrazorpalace.com/begin...il-2010-a.html

Originally Posted by iulian

I got a dovo special from SRD and i feel it needs a little more sharpness because it does not pass the HHT ( only if i insist with it it cuts the hair but on the 10th or so time i try cutting the hair and it leaves a little curl behind on the tip of the freshly cut hair -- is this wierd? )

From the Frequently Asked Questions - Straight Razor Place Wiki

I bought a professionally honed, new razor - but it does not pass the Hanging Hair Test!!

Please be advised that the only test for shave ready razors is the shave test. All other tests (see Sharpness tests explained) are meant for testing the sharpness of a razor's edge during the honing process. To repeat, none of these tests are meant to tell you whether your (new) razor is shave ready except the shave test. The article Hanging Hair Test, from trick to probing method explains the proper use of this test in great detail. Still, the HHT is the subject of much controversy, and definitely not an appropriate method for a beginner to test the shave readiness of a blade.

I sometimes wish the HHT had been kept a secret of the people who hone razors...

Originally Posted by BeBerlin

I sometimes wish the HHT had been kept a secret of the people who hone razors...

+1 OMG I so am with ya there Robin.. That and who was the "IDIOT" that brought up Bread-knifing and how to do it????


Sorry a little

I vaguely recall the latter being some martian arts dude from the US. Works like a charm, though...

Originally Posted by iulian

i have an old schumate that im learning honing on...

can you pelase tell me if i hone it on the DMT 8k to the point where it shaves arm hair.... then if i take it to the 0.5 diamond sprayed felt and then on the CrOx pasted leather... can this blade stand a chance at being shave ready ( i mean shave confortably

Julian here is a video with Lynn and Glen honing at an SRP get together. You'll notice that they begin with setting the bevel on a 1K stone and work up through progressive grits. Magnification is used periodically to check the progress and the condition of the bevel.

So it is hard to say if your Schumate can be made shave ready with the DMT 8k and the pastes. Depends on whether the bevel is properly set and your honing skills. I would expect that a razor properly honed up to the level of the DMT 8k and then finished on the pastes would shave well but I've never tried that particular combination so I cannot speak from experience. If it was a 1k, and 4/8k Norton I would say yes for sure.

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

Julian here is a video with Lynn and Glen honing at an SRP get together. You'll notice that they begin with setting the bevel on a 1K stone and work up through progressive grits. Magnification is used periodically to check the progress and the condition of the bevel.

So it is hard to say if your Schumate can be made shave ready with the DMT 8k and the pastes. Depends on whether the bevel is properly set and your honing skills. I would expect that a razor properly honed up to the level of the DMT 8k and then finished on the pastes would shave well but I've never tried that particular combination so I cannot speak from experience. If it was a 1k, and 4/8k Norton I would say yes for sure.

Thanks alot Robin GSSIX and Jimmy ,

I have read and watched so much of honing and i know that you need progressive grit stones for each task that is needed to produce a shave ready blade... but only having the dmt and diamond spray and crox ... i thought that with alot of work on the 8k i would set the bevel and then my question was if the jump from an 8k to 0.5 Diamond spray and then crox can be done... and if it produces a shave ready edge...

thank you all for your help

Warm Regards,
Iulian

I have to say every pro honed razor i have had does pass hht. I never had one that has'nt. I have had razors that shave that hav'nt passed hht. It's a hard one i remember my first shaves with straight. I can onestly say i did not rate them one bit. Now i'd never use any thing else. Even now 3 years on the sahves and edges just get better somtimes not. When your tech is good and you have a razor thats as smooth as butter you will be amazed. so keep at it. You could do with at least two to three razors