Thread: Which is sharper?

I have a Feather and have used all three of the common types of blades produced for it. I have also used the Feather blades in an injector and a Classic Cobra. They are, for sure, about as sharp as you would ever want in a razor. At least they feel that way which may be a byproduct of their coating, as mparker points out.

It has been my experience that a few of my conventional straights will reach the same level of apparent sharpness as a Feather. They are all customs with very hard blades and well refined and polished edges (again, to mparker's point). One in particular seems to get even sharper than a Feather. That could be because Lynn played around with it with a Charnley, an Asagi and some diamond spray at the last NC get together and then I shaved with it. Whatever the reason, the thing gets wickedly keen.

Note that once a Feather has a few shaves on it the sharpness drops back to that of a really good shave ready straight and it is much smoother than when it is new. I find that I get a better shave with a conventional straight than with the Feather. They both give you a "sticky" smooth face, but the Feather shave starts to develop stubble sooner than the shave with a straight.

Originally Posted by Bill S

I have a Feather and have used all three of the common types of blades produced for it. I have also used the Feather blades in an injector and a Classic Cobra. They are, for sure, about as sharp as you would ever want in a razor. At least they feel that way which may be a byproduct of their coating, as mparker points out.

It has been my experience that a few of my conventional straights will reach the same level of apparent sharpness as a Feather. They are all customs with very hard blades and well refined and polished edges (again, to mparker's point). One in particular seems to get even sharper than a Feather. That could be because Lynn played around with it with a Charnley, an Asagi and some diamond spray at the last NC get together and then I shaved with it. Whatever the reason, the thing gets wickedly keen.

Note that once a Feather has a few shaves on it the sharpness drops back to that of a really good shave ready straight and it is much smoother than when it is new. I find that I get a better shave with a conventional straight than with the Feather. They both give you a "sticky" smooth face, but the Feather shave starts to develop stubble sooner than the shave with a straight.

I too have tried the Feather and the different disposable blades. The Pro Guard comes closest to a well-honed straight right out of the box. The other two are much more likely to cut you than any a regular straight. But even here, you can quickly get used to the sharpness (and the much flatter blade angle) and the weepers will stay away. After 4-5 shaves, the Pro Super shaves like a regular straight.

Some folks run the blade along styrofoam or cork to take away some of the harshness.

I used to think that the sharpest possible blade would be the best thing. Regular straights are better, in my experience, because they are quite forgiving and many of the different grinds give excellent feedback.

Certain straights !!!!!

I really think it comes down to that statement, There are certain straights out there that can get as "sharp" if not "sharper" then Feathers... As Mr Parker pointed out there is an absolute level at which the "thinness" of the cutting edge stops... Let's just say there are certain straights that reach that level....Or they reach that level of slickness or polish on the bevel that make them just a touch "sharper" then their cousins... Anyone who has honed a lot of razors has found them, in my experience they are normally American brands with extra hollow grinds....Oh yeah, and it is usually not all of that type, like not every single Green Lizard 131b or every single Shumate #850, it is like certain ones everything came together right with....

Originally Posted by gssixgun

Certain straights !!!!!

I really think it comes down to that statement, There are certain straights out there that can get as "sharp" if not "sharper" then Feathers...

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Yes. Agree completely.

I think they can both be equally as sharp. What you get with teh Feather for the first couple of shaves anyhow, is the friction reducion PTFE coating which really helps out with glide.

I took 200x pics comparing a new Feather edge with a self honed edge. The Feather actually looked a bit rougher, which may have something to do with the PTFE coating, but I'm not sure.

Feather 200x:




Sheffield steel 200x: