Originally Posted by
onimaru55
This is a belief system held by mostly beginners & for some it can be true but a well honed full hollow will work equally well on tough beards.. The Fili 14 is as hollow as they get & designated "Especial Para Barbas Duras"
Iwasaki san's book on honing has an interesting section on How to use a Western razor.
In the instructions included with a German "Henckels" razor, it says that when shaving, "hold the razor almost flat against the face." Something very similar is printed on the front of English "Haddon" razor boxes.
And in our country, we are taught to hold the razor at a 45 degree angle when shaving. This 45 degree angle, whether it's in relation to the skin or to the hair, is a standing position. In other countries, the razor is used lying flat.
Since long ago, Kamisori have been used lying flat.
If you try using a razor at a standing angle, the edge will very quickly start to show signs of damage, and an edge that should shave 200 faces or more will only shave around ten. So if you think you'd like to preserve your edges as long as possible, keep the blade as flat as you can when you shave.
Of course, if you haven't put a good edge on the razor, when you lay it flat it won't shave at all, and you will have to raise the angle. But shaving with an edge like that is a mistake.