Thread: Weird results from the Marker test

Originally Posted by ShavedZombie

I was just hoping there was some way to get this blade to work without a rolling X... It doesn't really matter that much, it's just me being anal.

Just out of curiosity, why did you want to avoid a rolling X? What do you normally do to set bevels on razors that don't sit totally flat on hones as they are?

Originally Posted by ShavedZombie

For some reason, and I have no clue why... No matter what stroke I use, or how well it performs with marker and thumbnail tests, I just can't shave armhair off of the 1k without staying ON the 1k for hours and hours.

Baffling.

If you cannot shave arm hair and that is what you are testing for with MMT and TNT, it sounds to me like you need to recalibrate or reapproach your tests. At any given stage, an edge which is positive in one test should be positive on all other tests designed for that stage. MMT won't actually tell you if you have your bevel set. Imagine, for example, a razor that is shave ready. If you were to take that edge and run it along something like a glass bottle, apply marker to both sides and do a few strokes on a hone, all the marker would come off. This is because the bevels run all the way to the edge. BUT, those bevels do not meet at a point - they end in a plateau. As such, the MMT is not a test for a bevel being set. The TNT, however, is. It could be that you are feeling for the wrong thing with TNT. OR, are you doing TNT followed directly by an armhair test? A TNT will actually dull your blade (which is the reason it should not be used after the bevel setting stage). When I used to TNT, I'd do the test, then do 10 strokes on my bevel setter, then continue.

With regards to how long it takes on a 1k - it's going to take what it's going to take; there is no way around that. If your razors are all that dull when you start setting your bevels, you must have some pretty bad luck (unless you like setting bevels, in which case your luck is awesome). It's just like getting new hones; some will take longer to lap than others because some are farther from flat than others; it's just the luck of the draw as to what you get.