Thread: "honed" razor still failed HHT-3?

i received a new razor which was supposedly honed and shave ready. i decided to do some HHT's and they all failed. following that i did my first shave with the blade and found it to be uncomfortable (vs my recent disposable single-blade straight razor). the seller tells me that the all blades he sells are honed and shave ready (which is fair enough). is it possible to have a 'honed and shave ready' razor that feels this way? i am relatively new to straights but i do try my best to make sure my angles and strokes are rather precise (it currently takes me about 45 mins to shave my face with wtg, atg and sometimes xtg). i know that HHT's may or may not be a secure way of telling a blades sharpness/shave quality, but i'm also making my decision on the shave. feedback?

The only way the HHT will ever be meaningful for you is if you do it on a lot of razors of varying sharpness to see how YOUR hair reacts to different edges.
Your hair might be a HHT-3 on a blade and someone elses could be a HHT-12 on the same blade. (I don't really know the number system, but you get the idea...)

As to the discomfort it could be that the blade is not quite sharp, it could be bad stropping, it could be bad shave-prep, or it could be your technique.

Originally Posted by HNSB

As to the discomfort it could be that the blade is not quite sharp, it could be bad stropping, it could be bad shave-prep, or it could be your technique.

And that about says it all

I can't speak to the HHT results because there are too many variables. One thing I will say is that the root of the hair should be pointed away ...... where the edge of the blade is cutting towards the root, rather than away from it. A clean hair, not greasy is best and a dry and clean blade. Some guys hydrate the strand of hair as well, though I don't go that far.

As to the shave, if you're taking 45 minutes to shave, I would suspect your shave technique is at the beginner's level. That can make a big difference in the feel of the blade regardless of how well it is honed. I can't say whether your razor is well honed and shave ready without seeing and feeling it for myself but I do know that nuances of skin stretching, blade angle and stroke play a large part in the success or failure of a shave. Just IMHO.

Shavette and straight razor are not the same animal when it comes to shaving. Disposable blades are much sharper, that being said a well honed straight razor should feel very comfortable when shaving. How shave ready the razor is heard to tell, a way to know is to shave with a pro honed razor so you have some baseline to compare against. As said above apart from the blade, there are other factors that can affect the shave, stropping, technique, prep etc.

Originally Posted by mainaman

Disposable blades are much sharper, that being said a well honed straight razor should feel very comfortable when shaving..

Thank you for your honesty. some people refuse to accept this fact. for a while there I was so disappointed with my honing because I was told "you can get to the sharpness level of a feather blade easily with 8k norton followed by crox".

Originally Posted by danielghofrani

Thank you for your honesty. some people refuse to accept this fact. for a while there I was so disappointed with my honing because I was told "you can get to the sharpness level of a feather blade easily with 8k norton followed by crox".

That is because it ain't a fact, now I could start with all kinds of micron measurments about how sharp blades of all kinds can get.. Or you can track down the info yourself ..

Search out the Voerhaven (sp) paper first that will give you some needed info to start your journey into sharpness

Honestly it is much better if you learn it yourself rather than have me preach about it

Originally Posted by gssixgun

That is because it ain't a fact, now I could start with all kinds of micron measurments about how sharp blades of all kinds can get.. Or you can track down the info yourself ..

Search out the Voerhaven (sp) paper first that will give you some needed info to start your journey into sharpness

Honestly it is much better if you learn it yourself rather than have me preach about it

what is the Voerhaven (sp) paper and how can I find it?

Originally Posted by danielghofrani

what is the Voerhaven (sp) paper and how can I find it?

Link here. http://www.bushcraftuk.com/downloads...nifeshexps.pdf

& another good read

WONDER PHOTOS REVEAL UNSUSPECTED FACTS ABOUT Razor Blades and Shaving (Oct, 1931)

Originally Posted by mainaman

Shavette and straight razor are not the same animal when it comes to shaving. Disposable blades are much sharper, that being said a well honed straight razor should feel very comfortable when shaving. How shave ready the razor is heard to tell, a way to know is to shave with a pro honed razor so you have some baseline to compare against. As said above apart from the blade, there are other factors that can affect the shave, stropping, technique, prep etc.

How close to the sharpness of disposable blades can a straight razor get? Are there any advanced or alternate honing methods that challenge this limitation?