Thread: Rambling thoughts on "Sharpness Tests"

TPT from bevel to penultimate finish along with feel of capillary action of edge on stone. Final test after last strop is quick arm hair just to make sure. Ultimate test is comming down the philtrum, if it pulls or worse my eyes water, back to the strop or stones if required. The blade angle on this cut is acute so it has to be dialled in for my thick hair, especially if I have done the rest of my face this is my fourth last cut and will tell me if I have a solid edge.

Originally Posted by tcrideshd

Your really needing to see how the other side lives, cause that factory Dovo edge ain't that great either. Tc

Thanks for the reply Tc, I guess I still have a lot to learn, I think Im in the right place!. You say the Dovo factory edge"aint that great" so with a factory new Dovo edge, what would be the steps to improve/perfect it?
Trying to learn here, thanks for all the great input guys!
Cam

Sometimes just a real god stropping gets it dialed in better, but we are all looking for the "perfect" edge, the factory edge is put on with a wheel and they don't spend much time on it or really see if it's ready. I would approach it starting at my highest finisher with a few laps after looking at the edge with some magnification so I didn't have to do much to see if it works, if not then go down again, it's not that's it's a terrible edge, it just isn't what we're used to nowadays. Tc

Originally Posted by CamMorris

Wow, This is getting deep! Ive been shaving with straight razors for a couple of years now, and I thought I knew what "sharp" was, I have many different hones , natural and synthetic, and am able to get an edge on my blades that shaves decently, or so I thought! I just treated myself to a new razor, full hollow Dovo, Swedish carbon steel. Straight from the factory factory sealed. This thing is wickedly sharp!!! I have to go back to honing school! what do they use to put this kinda of edge on a blade, I quite frankly didnt believe such an edge was possible! It makes a feather DE blade seem dull! I am in awe! I am almost afraid to shave with the thing!

They use a large wheel to set the bevel and a convex stone for the final polish. I assume since they're actually done by hand it's hit or miss depending on who did the honing. I couldn't identify what kind of stone they use, probably something synthetic and in the 8K range. They do a hanging hair test before shipping, but it's not like factory honers can take the time to test shave any of them.

It's kind of tricky because we all have different standards for a comfortable shave, and just about every stone seems to have it's own 'feel.' My guess is they just go with generic 'sharp enough' and leave it to the end user to tailor it to their tastes if that doesn't meet their individual needs/wants. And since most of us hone our own, or are spoiled by edges from pro honers with all manner of exotic stones, the bar for the enthusiast crowd is likely set higher than any factory could produce in a cost effective manner.

This is another resurrected thread, and I am glad that it has been really.

I have been trying the AHT with no real success. I thought that I was just not getting a good edge, but they seem comfortable and give me close shaves. I read Glen's OP and saw that he said that not everyone can get an edge to cut arm hair. I was encouraged by this. My arm hair is actually very fine and so it just bends over, it cuts if I get the blade close to the skin but not otherwise.

I figure that I need a different metric now that I can rule the AHT out.

TC talked about looking at the edge under magnification and I have tried this. Truth be told I don't really know what I am looking for there either. I currently only have a 10 x loup but have a 30 x on its way. When I look I can see that the edge is shiny and free from scratches, but that's about it really. Do I need to look for anything else. I have looked at videos and they vary greatly in quality and some seem to show the edge under some truly powerful magnification. That seems a little OTT to me.

Anyway, thank you in advance for any clarification you can offer.

Porl - this thread has a ton of bevel pics taken by PCM as folks helped him through the learning process. It'll give you a good idea what you're looking for under magnification:

http://straightrazorpalace.com/honin...ggestions.html

"One thing I have learned, an experienced shaver can shave a much worse edge then a newb can and that works the other way too.. A newb that thinks the edge isn't "shave ready" should probably go back to the shave test and KISS to actually see if it is the edge that is lacking, or the skill that is lacking..."

As I read thru your post, this sentence really struck me. As a "newb", I hope I can get some insight on this. My first straight is a Solingen Deutchsche pictured below. I purchased it from an administrator on this site so I am confident it was shave ready (although I'm not so confident I didn't dull the blade myself while stropping). I recently purchased a brand new straight from the Portland Razor Company. The Solingen actually performs better on the hair tests (hanging hair and tree topping). But when I shave, the PRC feels like it is getting thru my facial hair better. Any thoughts on that other than "figure it out, newb"?

They're both great looking razors. The difference in feel could well be the grind. The Solingen seems to be a full hollow and the PRC maybe 1/2 or 1/4.

It feels different, but the results may well be comparable.

Whenever I hone razors I just see how they cut through my arm air (blade above my arm so it gets hairs sticking up) and if it is cutting really nicely then I test shave. And Sixpstar it might just be how the blades were finished. I know PRC or believe it goes to 12k then chromium then strop so it is really sharp. The other razor might have been finished on a coti or something so it was not as sharp but easy to use without cutting as easily or something like that.

Originally Posted by sixptstar

"One thing I have learned, an experienced shaver can shave a much worse edge then a newb can and that works the other way too.. A newb that thinks the edge isn't "shave ready" should probably go back to the shave test and KISS to actually see if it is the edge that is lacking, or the skill that is lacking..."

As I read thru your post, this sentence really struck me. As a "newb", I hope I can get some insight on this. My first straight is a Solingen Deutchsche pictured below. I purchased it from an administrator on this site so I am confident it was shave ready (although I'm not so confident I didn't dull the blade myself while stropping). I recently purchased a brand new straight from the Portland Razor Company. The Solingen actually performs better on the hair tests (hanging hair and tree topping). But when I shave, the PRC feels like it is getting thru my facial hair better. Any thoughts on that other than "figure it out, newb"?

Just out of curiosity did you try the hair test on each immediately after stropping?

This is a primo example of why you see it said often, "The only test that matters is the shave test."

Could be as Porl said. I find heavier blades tend to get through hair easier. Could simply be the fact that they were finished on different stones/pastes/etc. Or you may have dulled it a tick. I've got no idea exactly why the one that passes the hair tests better doesn't perform as well on the shave test though. If you have a pasted strop you could maybe try a few careful laps to tune the Solingen up some.