Lol don't listen to all of that brother. You could shave with a Swiss Army knife if you really wanted to. Blade steel is only relevant when talking about the length of time to sharpen and how often honing is required. 440 is absolutely suitable to shave with "if" you can get it sharp enough. It's extremely east to sharpen as well as it is a softer stainless. Most of these guys scoff at Rough Rider because it is inexpensive, but have never even held one. I actually have a blue celluloid Rough Rider Straight razor that my dad stole from me and uses daily. If you didn't mention the brand no one would have had an issue with it. Just my two cents.