Thread: Only sharp on one side of the blade?

A burred edge could cut hairs on the side of the burr, I guess. The burr itself (if small enough) could catch the hairs and pop 'em. The other side would be curved, and therefore would test as a blunt side.

That being said, I think it's more likely to be something else that's causing this issue. As Jeff said, it's sometimes something as simple as a different angle of cutting, or it could be an incorrectly set bevel.

One other thing I've noticed with razors that are not honed to shave-readiness is that they'll cut arm hairs WTG a lot easier than they will ATG. I think it's easier to catch the shingles when going WTG on the arm, whereas it wouldn't work ATG, when real cutting would be required -- this would indicate that the blade is not shave-ready.

As an aside: How would having a bevel set like a kamisori affect the cutting, apart from requiring a change in cutting angle? The bevel in this case is still set correctly, and both sides should cut, though an adjustment in shaving angle would be necessary.