Thread: When is a razor dead?

I guess this applies to already owned razors as well as selecting potential restoration subjects...

When is a razor considered dead? Is there a general consensus as to when a razor's width has been honed past usability? Is a shouldered razor still viable when the hone starts grinding the shoulder?

Can you shave with what would essentially be a sharpened spine?

You see enough of that kind of old razors on eBay.
I guess it depends how much money you had to buy a new one.
Our demands are much higher nowadays.

IMO, if it shaves well, it's still a viable razor regardless of how it looks or how much hone wear it has. Of course we all prefer blades that are in good shape, but I have a few well past their prime that shave as well or better than razors in great shape. I may need to be a bit more creative with these on the hones, but that's half the fun.

I agree. I have a Robert Klaas coming that I got off the bay with a blade stamped Prussia. The blade has been unevenly honed but I plan on getting it sharp and using it anyway, just because its an interesting piece. It's basically personal preference, they can be used almost indefinitely if you feel like it.

That's a good question! If you were to get a new razor and treat it well, how long would it last until it's past it's prime? 20 years? 40?

Maybe it's the tootsi roll question...

Often it's a question of the honer's skill and experience. I've got an old Gotta that has some pretty significant wear both at the edge and the spine and no matter what I did I couldn't get it right. It always came out slightly dull or overhoned. I figured it was cooked but I took it along to my barber anyway. He honed it for me and then gave me a bit of a lesson on back-honing. That old Gotta still doesn't look like much, but it shaves a ton!

Best Regards

goshawk

I was thinking (dangerous, I know), most of the razors we are using provided they aren't customs, Dovo, or TI are anywhere from 60 to several hundred years old. Granted, most of them have not been used over their entire life spans, but I would imagine most quality razors should be good longer than any of us will be around to use them, provided they are maintained properly.

Properly maintained, a DOVO you bought today would probably outlive your grandchildren...

My general rule of thumb when bidding is if it has a shoulder, it is too far gone once honing reaches that shoulder (I feel it'll knock the honing angle out of whack). If it has a belly/double concave, once it hits the bumpy thing- once again a honing angle consideration (the bump thing is there for a reason, so once you reach it you're extending beyond its intended usage). If its near wedge, I really don't care, cus if you're careful you can maintain the same angle and just have it go from a 7/8 wedge to a 6/8 wedge to a 5/8 wedge etc till its gone.

To me, it's "dead" if it has rust so far up the bevel that resetting it would be prohibitively difficult, given my current set of hones.

Other than that, excluding a 1/4" frown, not much else would preclude me from saving it...assuming it is a blade worth saving.

A few layers of tape can make up for a LOT of wear.