Thread: Razor is pulling ... 1000 on the C12k?

My razor hasn't seen a whole hell of a lot of action, but it's tugged me a bit. Maybe a thing with the lather (I used Tabac instead of Proraso this time). I learned recently that the Dovo Astrale simply will not work if the lather is dry--the Feather AC works fantastically with thick, frothy lather, sure, but when you bring up a real straight razor you learn that you actually need 3-4 times as much water to get a good cut (and what a cut! Best damn shave I ever had! Prego!)

Anyway. Razor seems to be pulling. I don't think I'm warranted to go back to the Norton 4k/8k routine here. The Norton is fantastic for a truly dull blade, and I've buffed a knick out of a blade (hit the faucet pretty hard) in 20 minutes using only the 4k/8k, but that's the point: I don't want to remove a fantastic amount of metal.

To my senses, this is just maintenance. The blade has started to wear after a few dozen uses from a very amateur attempt at putting a blade on. That means I got it sharp enough to shave, but perhaps I didn't finish the job. Who knows? In any case a dozen or a hundred shaves, it matters not: eventually the blade will go from viciously sharp to less viciously sharp, and I'll notice less cutting power; I noticed a few weeks back that the blade was not pulling, but was cutting less spectacularly than it had initially. At that point I should have touched the blade up.

So now what?

Maybe 1000 laps on the Chinese 12k natural? I know it's a slow cutter, plus high grit--I'm aiming to put an edge on the blade without gratuitously grinding off metal.

What other options should I consider? I know some seem sold on glass stones or Nawina 30k(!); I feel this is excessive. Perhaps a stone that cuts faster and/or provide a better finish, maybe Nawina 15k? I don't think the 3k difference matters at this point, so much as that it's synthetic and would put a synthetic finish (mirror) on instead of a natural finish (cloudy).

I need to steady my hand some more first, and learn to make those long cross-strokes (X stroke etc) evenly so that I have a blade properly sharpened along its whole length rather than finished in sections.

This is what barber hones were made for... That said, my barber hone is somewhere around 8K. I think I would just do a reduced number of laps on the 8k side and finish on the PHIG. 1000 laps on anything is craziness.

Sorry, I completely missed the whole first paragraph. It seems you may be unsure of a few basic things. Considering that, are you sure that you put a shave ready edge on the razor in the first place? Do you have a shave ready edge to compare it to?

I am not sure what you experience level is, but I would start out with a few (perhaps 5) laps on your Chinese natural...If it is pulling a little but otherwise shaving well, you are probably not that far from home...heck some would just use a loaded strop.

In any event, I do not think it should warrant anywhere near 1000 strokes

Going farther, I feel if I need more than 10-20 strokes on my 12K I go back to my 8K. As much as I would like to get more time/value out of them, these expensive stones should get used the least...

The amount of pulling you are describing needs to be solved with sharpening level of honing (4Kish level). Barber's hones are perfect for this and are a higher grit level but will sharpen fast as well (5-9 strokes).

A finishing hone (12K) or higher is not going to help with the amount of pulling you are experiencing.

If I was in your situation I would do the following:

Soak the norton 4/8K
make light strokes on the 4K side (start with 20 and then flip the stone)
try the 8K side, if black comes off on the 8K side you did not finish on the 4K side and flip back over!

when you are done with the 8K side make VERY light strokes with the hone wiped off by your hand so it is damp. When you cut arm or leg hair the hairs should fall, not fly or jump and not pull. If they do you may have to go back to the 8K and make 10 more strokes....then 5 more...etc.

Try this.

Originally Posted by DFriedl

I think I would just do a reduced number of laps on the 8k side and finish on the PHIG. 1000 laps on anything is craziness.

Slow and steady wins the race. I thought going on a slower hone would just make it take longer? My thinking is that once technique is set I should be able to slowly remove metal and produce a sharp blade; having such skill as to understand the proper and correct sharpening of the blade, I should be able to use more advanced tools such as faster and deeper cutters (i.e. diamond or lower grit stones) to bypass portions of the work.

It occurs to me that a high amount of experience and skill is needed before one could effectively use intermediate levels of cutting grit. rather than blindly following vague prescribed sharpening schedules. A 4k grit synthetic hone has physically larger particles which cut physically deeper than a 15k grit synthetic; if you don't remove at least half the depth via an 8k (which we assume has particles 1/2 as large and thus cuts 1/2 as deep), you have not completed your job with the 8k. Beyond that point, every stroke with the 8k is wasted, yes? Yet up to that point, a large portion of the surface is out of reach of the 8k cutting surface, and so the 8k effectively strips the peaks and smooths the cut.

The skill to know when my razor benefits no further from a given grit and, conversely, when it would benefit more from a decreased grit is one I don't yet have. We can talk theory about how hones cut razors all day; this will not make me a honing expert, but it will perhaps give me a better starting point to hone my skill toward that end.

Cutting with a higher grit stone would both remove metal more slowly and provide valuable experience training myself to make the correct motions without defect; or so is my expectation. Perhaps this expectation is wrong? It is at least probable that the value of such experience is overestimated: my beard hair is as iron wire, it destroys razor blades.

PHIG?

Originally Posted by unit

heck some would just use a loaded strop.
Going farther, I feel if I need more than 10-20 strokes on my 12K I go back to my 8K. As much as I would like to get more time/value out of them, these expensive stones should get used the least...

I particularly avoid chromed/diamond strops. They appear to me an inferior shortcut. Plus leather flexes, and the direction of travel is wrong. As nobody has ever claimed there's nothing wrong with just using stones, I'd rather stick to stones.

The C12k is uh. 10 bucks. 20 if you want it lapped. Japanese synthetics might cost a good deal more though, yeah.

Originally Posted by DFriedl

Sorry, I completely missed the whole first paragraph. It seems you may be unsure of a few basic things. Considering that, are you sure that you put a shave ready edge on the razor in the first place? Do you have a shave ready edge to compare it to?

It shaved better than any DE and (once I got the lather mixed up right) it definitely outperformed the Feather AC with any blade (fresh or through a few uses) for a while there. I had Lynn hone it ages ago, but having no clue how to shave (it was painful AFTER I got it back from Lynn, obviously I did something wrong) and having damaged the blade hitting the faucet I had used the 4k to completely redo the edge. Eventually I put it away.

It's been a couple years, I just recently brought it out and gave it a few passes on the 8k and on the C12k and became determined to make the damn thing work for me. As such, at the moment I have no idea what I'm doing--a defect that requires as much attention as the dulling edge of my razor.

Originally Posted by Disburden

The amount of pulling you are describing needs to be solved with sharpening level of honing (4Kish level).

Interesting. So blade maintenance is not particularly obvious until it's time to start from zero again?

There are different levels of pulling that can happen with a razor that needs to be honed and a razor that needs a touch up. If you are experiencing a "wow that pulls...ough" kind of pulling then I would go back to the sharpening level.

Originally Posted by Disburden

There are different levels of pulling that can happen with a razor that needs to be honed and a razor that needs a touch up. If you are experiencing a "wow that pulls...ough" kind of pulling then I would go back to the sharpening level.

Interesting. I'll try again with a familiar lather to get a more controlled test.

What about if it doesn't feel like it pulls painfully, but doesn't seem to take it down past stubble? Like, after shaving I have stubble, and no increasing number of passes will shave the stubble, but it seems to shave general beard hair well enough?