Thread: Need help interpreting a shave test

Thanks for the reassurance Lazarus and Ace! This razor feels like it has almost no draw, like only the spine is touching. But, the spine and the edge are touching the strop, so I know the edge is getting contact. Good to hear some razors are just different and have a different feel on the strop.

one of my strops is fairly shiny and hard... i personally dont really like the marble on glass feel, so i strop the offenders on a softer piece of leather.

Sounds similar to my strop. I'm thinking about asking for a new one for Christmas.

An admirable plan if ever i've seen one

Update. I shaved again with the razor. Still comfortable, but I just don't feel like its quite there. So, I'm going to go back to the hones.

Thanks again,

Ken

Originally Posted by KenL

Thanks for the reassurance Lazarus and Ace! This razor feels like it has almost no draw, like only the spine is touching. But, the spine and the edge are touching the strop, so I know the edge is getting contact. Good to hear some razors are just different and have a different feel on the strop.

If you like plenty of draw, and I do, I've found that applying lather to the strop, letting it dry overnight, then wiping off the residue with a soft damp cloth the next morning works wonders. Most here are adamantly against this procedure and find it unnecessary, but I have had great results with it. The only downside of this is that the razor will pick up some stain from the strop as you strop it. Actually this is quite easy to remove with a damp paper towel. I've been doing this for over a year with no negative effects. If you are happy with a slick strop, then all you have to do is run your palm over it. On the other hand, if you want to create a "draw monster", then lather is the way to go. Me, I love draw and plenty of it. My face seems to appreciate it too.

Thanks for the suggestion Ace. I'm a little hesitant because I only have one strop, but I might try it.

Shave update: I brought the razor back to the 4/8k (left the PHIG out of the equation this time) last night and gave it a good stropping. Just shaved with it and it cut MUCH better. Pretty near effortless to wipe the stubble away and cheeks were almost BBS with just wtg and xtg. In fact, now I realize that my other razor probably isn't as what as this one.

This weekend I'll finish it on the Ch12k, then give it another try.

Finished the razor on the ch12k last week, but it didn't feel as smooth during the shave, something went wrong. So, I dropped back down to the 8k for a bit, then back up to the ch12k. Test shaved today and I think I've got it. It wiped away a weekend's worth of growth easily this morning with no irritation (wtg and xtg). I know there's room for improvement, but I think it's one of the better edges I've got from my own honing. Feels good knowing I took a dull, 80+ year old razor and made it shave ready!

Thanks again for all your help!

Ken

You just learned the most important lesson of honing all by yourself

If it doesn't feel right and you have the ability, take it down to the 8k level and test the shave, stay there until it shaves good then and only then move higher...

You have 4 stages of honing
Bevel
Sharpen
Polish
Finish

You have to make sure each stage is maxed out before moving up...


Good Job on the honing

Thanks Glen. Your videos helped a lot! I have learned so much from this razor (and this forum). It's great to have a razor that you're not afraid to mess up and experiment on. It also gave me the confidence to hone with one hand (I had been steadying the tip with my off hand). I don't know why I didn't pick up an low cost ebay razor sooner!


Ken