Interesting thing happened yesterday I'm looking for some insight into. I picked up an older Duck on the bay and it needed work. Once I completed the restoration it came out looking very nice. From a shave perspective I was thrown for a loop though.

The blade had a small nick about halfway down the middle of the edge so after I butter-knifed it and got a decent bevel again I decide to go with an aggressive Norton pyramid using only the 4K/8K Nortons. After the aggressive pyramid I went with a more conservative pyramid using 8K and 12K stones. The 12K was with one of the stones from SRD. After completing that I did a few tests and while not perfect, it came through well (my head hair is too fine for a HHT). Following that all I gave it about 80 laps on the strop and shaved my very well prepared face.

Here's where I get confused - the first pass was harsh as compare to my normal razors. The Duck cut the whiskers but seemed to drag some and I had to use a bit of pressure at times. No stropping after the first pass. The second pass was much smoother and more like what I'm used to as far as sharp blades go. I'm wondering if that second "pyramid" using the 8K/12K created a little foil of metal that I somehow manage to lose during the first pass - or could the "settling down" of the edge be due to something else?

Anyone have any experience with an edge starting out rough and then settling down after a shaving pass? If all it takes to smooth out a Duck edge is to shave with it, then I understand all the interest in them! :-)