Thread: Another hone test - Shaving off the Naniwa 5k

I don't remember when or where, but I know I recently posted somewhere that I would try shaving off my Naniwa 5k. I put it off for a bit, because I wasn't looking forward to it. I was anticipating pulling, general discomfort, a poor shave, and having to go back to finish razors. I am happy to report that none of the above happened.

I did my little experiment with two razors -
King Gun Metal - 5/8, full hollow, American steel
Joesph Elliot For Barber's Use - 13/16 ish, quarter hollow, Sheffield steel

I only did two for the above mentioned reasons. I chose American and Sheffield to cover harder and softer steels; I chose grinds on opposite ends of the spectrum for more diversity.

I'd honed both razors using my current "normal" honing; I set the bevels on a DMT1.2k, then went to the Naniwa 5k for some circles and X's. Each razor then got 50 laps on my new SRD English Bridle strop, and then came the test shave.

In order to normalize my face, I used these razors while test shaving a number of other razors that were finished on my vintage Thuringian. I did this because I wanted to have a direct comparison to a really great shave, as opposed to having a subpar shave with no comparison and, as a result, thinking it was pretty good.

The shave was very comfortable. There was maybe the slightest amount of pulling, the razors cut smoothly, and I got a close shave. I only went WTG (because I only ever shave WTG), and each razor got one stroke on my cheek and one stroke on my neck (again, just to get some diversity).

Next time I head over to visit JoeD & Co, I'll have to remember to bring some razors to finish off a Norton 4k. How low can you go? Haha.

I suppose now I'll have to update my signature....

As for low, for me it has been (shapton pro)1k, I guess because i have never sharpened a razor at a lower grit. I finished with a light touch, ending with a couple backstrokes. Following the same practice through on 5 and 8 there seemed to be no advantage to pushing the edge on the lower end; as when I got to 8- it was just like 8k

Kevin, were you able to get a smooth, comfortable shave off the Shapton 1k, or was it the kind of shave where you only call it a shave because the razor is cutting hairs?

A perfect shave, no. The blade is duller after all. There are some whiskers that edge just will not cut. Going over and over trying to get them leads to irritation. I felt like I had a good shave at least and if necessary I could continue and perhaps with enough linen and hide adapt to it

The edge feels smooth on the skin and aggressive. I did not strop; but i feel like the backstrokes really help smooth the edge. as I progressed it seemed the backstroke effect was less noticeable; but i went of recollection not with a different honed blade for direct comparison.

I think if someone were wanting to improve their honing, then shave testing each stone would be a great help. It shows you where you're at, at each stage, and quantifies the changes. If your using an armhair or thumb pad to gauge, it sure is nice to have some idea of what a given result might feel like on the face.

After the discussion in that combo king stone thread, I grabbed my King 6k and finished a razor on it, Dovo Best quality to be exact. I then did a few laps on CrO , a few laps on CeO and had a really nice shave. Now the edge could take some refinement but for the level of polish I'd say it was very good, even ATG. Using pastes probably is a bit of a cheat but I was not looking forward to shave off the hone. I'll have to repeat with no pastes involved.

Originally Posted by holli4pirating

I'll have to remember to bring some razors to finish off a Norton 4k. How low can you go? Haha.

I'm sure you can get a comfortable shave off lower grits, though I'm not sure how much further you could push it. I imagine the key is using the incredibly light touch for the last few laps in order to reduce the depth of the scratch pattern as much as possible. From what I've read here over the last couple of years, it wasn't that long ago that the Norton 8k was considered a perfectly good place to stop.
It's the obsessive nature of us, & the fact that we seem to encourage trends as a pack that we largely strive for the mirror finished edge.
I look forward to your "Shaving off the sidewalk" thread.

(Though we British call it a pavement, I just wasn't sure you'd understand me!)

This doesn't surprise me. I used to shave off the Belgian Blue before I discovered SRP.

I never posted about it as I didn't wish to get into arguements with people telling me it was not possible, especially as I was a new member at the time, but I did get comfortable shaves back then. After a while I started refining it with green paste.

Originally Posted by ben.mid

...I look forward to your "Shaving off the sidewalk" thread.

(Though we British call it a pavement, I just wasn't sure you'd understand me!)

I already did. It's just for some reason when you walk outside wearing just your towel after taking a shower people freak out and call the police especially when you sit down so you can run a few laps with your razor on the sidewalk. Kinda like this... *hears a scream*

j/k

Interesting thread, Dylan. Makes me want to try this.

I've gotten what I believed to be a decent, comfortable shave from my 4000. Then along came my 8000 and I said, "Aha! So, this is what I've been missing."

http://straightrazorpalace.com/advan...lation-me.html

I went with the Shapton 1k in the link above...

There are a few of us that have been trying to explain the Sharp-vs-Smooth difference for about the last year, these lower grit shaving experiments help everyone to realize that the Voerhoven* (sp) Paper explained this quite well...
Basically you are done with sharpening at much lower grits then you think, he targeted 4k... After that point you pretty much are just polishing the bevel..
Yes, to you engineer types that will argue the last .01 microns to the edge as you polish the bevel...

Keep in mind that a a confident hand really makes a huge difference too but the sharpness is there at very low grits...

Now you know why I argue the "Too Sharp" statemenet every time it comes up, razors get to the "Sharp" point way before they get to the finishing stone... So a finisher imparts the smooth factor, not the sharp factor.... A razor can feel harsh to YOUR face, that doesn't mean it is to sharp, it means that finish, doesn't agree with YOUR face...

http://straightrazorpalace.com/advan...ller-edge.html


Enjoy and keep testing....