Thread: Smoothness of the blade

Hello dear fellas!

A straightforward question looking for a straightforward answer:
Which type of steel do you believe that makes a straight razor blade feel smoother on the face?

I am asking this because I am aware of the fact that the contemporary blades of the safety razors are coated with chemical substances in order to feel smoother (correct me in case I am wrong). And this is the reason-according to many who have used both straights and safety razors-that a straight will never feel that sharp or that smooth compared to a blade of a safety razor, no matter how well honed it is.

I do not believe that using computer-guided machines to have our straights honed is an option, neither coating them with chemical substances so that they would feel smoother.

So for someone experienced with the straights (honing, shave technique etc) the question remains:
Is the steel type making the difference in the comfort and smoothness of the shave?

Waiting for your opinions!!

This is a topic we should discuss in more details. From what I've experienced, I think the Sheffield and Swedish steels are the most comfortable, stainless steel blades being some of the least comfortable. There is also the question of finishing the edge and how that feels compared to a different finish. On that I cannot weigh in with an opinion as I haven't fully formed one.

X

A straight forward question to to be sure, however there may not be a straight forward answer. All my Sheffield wedges and quarter hollow blades are smooth as silk, but so is the Livi regrind. I once owned a Clauss that was beyond even the Sheffield blades for smoothness. I'd have to say that, in my limited experience, there are many steels that can make a smooth shaving razor. The grind, shave prep, your skin, beard, and sharpness of the blade, even the medium used for the final finish, all seem to enter into the mix along with the steel. The devil of it is that some work in combination for a particular razor better than others (I'm working on this, but it is frustrating).
Oh my, I just realized how shave-geeky that sounds. Just hone a Sheffield blade at midnight during the Hunter's Moon and it will remain smooth for the next year, or some such rot.
I do not, by the way, agree that a straight razor never feels as sharp or smooth as a DE blade. I've used some very poor DE blades at one time or another. DE users can't agree which blade is the sharpest and smoothest overall anyway.

FWIT - This morning on a whim I used my DE for the first time since I started using straights in April. I used the same prep as for a straight, a new Persona blade and used the same routine as w/a straight - one pass WTG, one pass ATG. I wouldn't necessarily say it was smoother, just easier, quicker and different. It doesn't seem quite as close as I normally get with a straight but that could be sloppiness or blade quality. And of course "enjoyability" is no contest - nothing compares to using a straight!

Every blade is different. Every person also prefers a different edge-at least IMO.

To master the art of honing, is to be able to sharpen a razor AND to make it a pleasure to shave with. I find certain steels are more difficult to hone-but that said, the finished razor will give a nice shave.That's were experience, as well as the use of different hones can make what would be a lousy shaver,a great one. Some of my Stainless blades are VERY frustrating to hone-but in general, once you figure out what the blade "needs" success is possible.

There are alot of different paths to the same destination-when I have a razor that isn't giving me a nice shave- I place the blame on my honing and not the razor.

Just so long as we could agree that sharpness and smoothness can be two different aspects on the same edge then I think I could answer....
IMHO Filarmonica's have the smoothest feeling steel (followed closely by some of the Sheffield steels) that I have felt as of yet, (just to qualify that I have used upward of 500 razors) they however, are not the sharpest razors I have had though.... That distinction goes to some of the older American steel edges, followed by a close second by some of the SS edges from Solingen....
The real difference comes in the hands of the user though, using a wicked sharp American edge, can yield a very smooth feeling shave, but you have to use the razor correctly... Just to further this thread I use straights because of the comfort level, as do a lot of others, safety/disposables just can't even come close to the level of comfort, that a properly wielded straight razor achieves...

I've had a large collection of DEs and shaved with most of them. All of the celebrated Gillettes from the first double rings of 1903 to the adjustables of the 1960s. The British Aristocrats, Merkur Vision, various slants and more. The sharpest blades I found were the Gillette Swedes with the Feather being as sharp but not as smooth. No other blades came close for my personal beard and skin.

I have never had the irritation free shaves with DEs that I get with straight razors. With DEs I usually got weepers and occasionally nicks. In 8 months of shaving exclusively with straights it rarely ever happens . I can count them on one hand and have fingers to spare. I have a large assortment of straight razors that I hone myself. Some are better then others but I do better with them then with the DEs. If it were not so I would be shaving with a DE. This is just my personal experience needless to say others may have a different experience.

In my limited experience, carbon steel blades are smoother than SS. On the whole and not counting my Williams custom, my Sheffield blades are the smoothest, along with my Filly (this is curious because I'll bet the S-field blades are softer steel and the Filly is very hard steel). American, and German blades follow. YMMV

Of course, this could just be the way they were honed.

Jordan

I wonder if carbide size plays much part, or if it is more about edge finish due to honing and stropping. Typically razor steels like 13c26 are very fine grained with small carbides.

The smoothest shave that I have had so far has come from a livi custom of Takeda. But beyond that I would say that the carbon steels that I have shaved with would be at the top of smooth and at the bottom being the stainless steels that I have shaved with.