Thread: My Rodgers, it won't pass the HHT but boy does it shave well. What gives?

I've known for some time that my wife has very fine hair & this makes the HHT all the harder to pass but I can't get this edge to split one of her hairs.

Today I used it and was amazed to find that it really shaved quite well? Is the HHT not all it's cracked up to be?

Originally Posted by ChayesFSS

Is the HHT not all it's cracked up to be?

The HHT is one of many tests that might indicate the shavereadyness of a a razor, but, it's not the ultimate test. I said "might", so don''t be surprised if it fails on the HHT and passes on the shave.
The ultimate test is Shaving with the razor! That's the test that must count. That's why I always shave with the razors I get from customers that asked me to hone them.

Basically you hit the nail on the head there!

Dont get too caught up on getting a razor to pass the HHT. Its totally subjective and varies dependant on the person and the condition of their hair.

To prove a point (and I keep using this story, but I was curious so I tried it out one day!), my Boker Edelweisse, which I got from SRD and is honed by Lynn, wont pass the HHT for me on all hairs right after I've had a shower. It only does some. After a few hours it'll pass it on most of them.

Now for my dad with the same razor, it'll pass with every hair every time. A friend of mine couldnt get it to work at all, no matter what.

The best and, IMHO, the only true test is the SHAVE TEST! If it shaves well and is comfortable, then you have a good edge. If not, it'll need more work on the stones.

If you sit there trying to get the razor to pass the HHT and keep blasting it on the hones to achieve that mythical level of sharpness, all you risk doing is over honing the razor and wearing down the spine. The HHT is a bit of a party trick and is definately not the best way to test your razors sharpness.

So basically, yes. The HHT is not all its cracked up to be!

In your post it makes me think that you have had successfully HHT's with your wife's hair and those lend themselves to a shave ready razor....

The riddle here is how well you have qualified your personal HHT with her hair????

I use the same indicator, my wife has this baby fine stuff that only the sharpest razor will pop on HHT... Now it doesn't mean that if I couldn't get an HHT off her hair, that I won't have a great shave, but in my mind that razor is not at it's best level yet....

Basically I am asking, how much confidence do you have in your test???

Now as Leon and Stu pointed out the shave test is the only test that really matters, and if you are going to use another test it has to be made as reliable....Otherwise it is as Stu called it just a parlor trick..

Originally Posted by gssixgun

In your post it makes me think that you have had successfully HHT's with your wife's hair and those lend themselves to a shave ready razor....

The riddle here is how well you have qualified your personal HHT with her hair????

I use the same indicator, my wife has this baby fine stuff that only the sharpest razor will pop on HHT... Now it doesn't mean that if I couldn't get an HHT off her hair, that I won't have a great shave, but in my mind that razor is not at it's best level yet....

Basically I am asking, how much confidence do you have in your test???

Now as Leon and Stu pointed out the shave test is the only test that really matters, and if you are going to use another test it has to be made as reliable....

Yes, I've had a lot of razors pass the HHT w/my wifes fine hair. The easiest ones seem to be Solingen/Germany in origin. The SHeffields seem to require more love from the get go but shave really well.

This specific Sheffield would pass it on specific points but not on others. After 100 more laps on the strop I just went for the shave and was surprised at the results.

Most of the time I won't even try to shave if it won't pass the HHT. I'm pretty confident that when I get a razor to pass the HHT with my wifes hair it really is shave ready.

You sound like me, I know if I pop HHT with her hair it passes the shave test, it hasn't failed me yet...

Now it comes down to your personality

Me, I couldn't leave it alone, my slight OCD would kick in, and I would have to keep trying until it passed, then I would have to repeat it....Because I would have to know what I did to get that razor to pass works again....

Yes, I drive my wife nutz sometimes!!!

I've had the same experience..... not with your wife's hair ..... .... with my fine hair. I get the HHT with some and not with others. More now than I used to but if the razor pops hair easily on my forearm or leg it is almost always going to give me a great shave.

I find the HHT to be a general indicator of sharpness, at best, and not a totally reliable predictor of a razor's shave readiness. That said, I've seldom had a blade pass the HHT but not be shave ready, but I often have had blades fail the test, but prove to be quite shave ready.

Defining an HHT

If you look at Bart's Wiki entry you will see a road map to how to build an effective HHT...The guy takes it to a whole different level....

Here is something to ponder on HHT though...

If your razor never passes HHT and doesn't shave well = You need honing lessons

If your razor never pass HHT but always shaves well = You need HHT lessons..

A shave ready razor, is a shave ready razor, it cuts hair, if it doesn't pass an HHT, it is your HHT that is off not the razor...