New Dovo LaForme - Chipped and scraping my strop :(

So, my wife got me my first SR a Dovo La Forme for Xmas. I've had it not quite a month, shaving daily to every other day in order to try and improve my skills which are very novice (I follow up with my DE to really get it short.)

It was a razor from SRD, so it was honed by Lynn and ready to go out of the box.

I noticed a few days ago, all of a sudden, while I was stropping, that it was putting scratches in my strop. It literally never was scratching the strop until that day then I get what looks like the picture in this thread: http://straightrazorpalace.com/begin...cratching.html

I examined the blade and holding it in the light I could see a chip in the center of it (50% between heel/toe) as well as some possible chipping about 33% across (on the toe side). I am not aware of ever having hit the blade on the sink, the strop hardware, or the scales. I know my technique is probably bad but I'm shocked it could be that bad of a shaving technique to cause this in less than a month.

My 2 questions are:

1.) If I can see a chip, should I send it in to be honed? I haven't bought any honing supplies yet as I had read that you can probably go a few months between hones, so I will probably have to use my one free hone certificate.

2.) What are likely causes for this? I've read posts where people say regular shaving can cause it, but it seems too soon and too much to have been like that, and I'm pretty sure I didn't hit it on something. Could stropping have caused it?

Marc

I highly doubt that lynn or anyone at SRD would let a razor come out of their shop with a chip in it so it must have been a mistake on your part. Since you don't have any honing equipment your only option is going to be to send it in. as for what caused it? deffinatly NOT shaving cream. there is no shaving cream that would cause a razor's edge to chip. for a chip to be in the edge it had to have been hit on something or closed in a way that caused some damage. hope this helps.

Is there any way stropping could cause it? (So long as I'm not hitting any hardware?) Either angle/pressure, etc? (I'm pretty sure I have light pressure and flat but who knows.)

Does anyone else have access to your razor? Kids maybe?

Either way I vote for sending it for repair.

Michael

This is actually a pretty common thing to happen to new guys. Most can't recall it, but usually it is a result of tapping the razor against something. Sometimes, you can chip up a blade if you drop it even when it's closed. You can hit it against something when stropping. Just a ton of things can happen. If you can see it or see the scratching in your strop when stropping, I would recommend having it honed again to remove it.

I think this and new guys trying to cut a hair with a razor that has been oiled before rinsing off the blade and re-stropping (not that any HHT is meaningful for shave ready to a new person) are probably the two most common things we see here. All part of the learning curve.

Welcome to the sport.


Have fun.

Thanks for all the info guys.

My kids are too small to reach up on the counter. My wife or the cleaning ladies may have moved it and "dropped" the case (which I keep it in when not in use) on the counter or something. But I think the most likely thing is I did something as everyone is pointing out. I'll send it in for honing and pay really close attention to the small movements when I get it back and hopefully avoid this next time around.

I'm still really excited and enjoying the heck out of it. Just a small setback. :)

I can tell you first hand that this is very common when you start using a SR. A couple of days ago I was on my last rinse and very slightly hit the faucet. I didn't think much of it until I started stroping and realized that I was scratching the leather. What made the experience even worse was that the blade had just been honed a few days prior.

Like the rest of the guys above said, send it out to be honed again and just be extra careful next time.

Just thought I would give an update post on this issue.

I send my razor back to Lynn for honing. When it got back they let me know that there was more damage in the chips than a honing could fix and it would require a bit of regrinding. I went ahead and had them do the repairs and honing and I just got the razor back today.

I have been shaving with a Parker shavette that I purchased to keep practicing while the razor was out. The thing I noticed was how much better of a shave I got from the shavette. Not much irritation and very close.

When I got the razor back today, I shaved and the shave was pretty comparable with the shavette, and a world of difference from prior to the repair. What a great feeling to realize my technique wasn't THAT terrible :) My shave today was very serviceable 2-pass shave. The only cut was a previous cut that I keep opening back up every day because I forget about it until I shave!

I will post back in a month or so once I have had similar # of uses and let you know how the razor is holding up now that I am much more aware!

Thanks!

I have chipped my blade setting it down in a I shape rather than an L shape and it tapped harder than I would have liked against my sink. Don't know of maybe that's what caused it but I now make sure it is always in an L shape or closed when I set it down to stop the razor from touching anything.

It's been shaving great for the past few weeks since I got it back. :) Being extremely careful when setting it down and hopefully will not have a repeat of the chipping.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by PieThief

Just thought I would give an update post on this issue.

I send my razor back to Lynn for honing. When it got back they let me know that there was more damage in the chips than a honing could fix and it would require a bit of regrinding. I went ahead and had them do the repairs and honing and I just got the razor back today.

I have been shaving with a Parker shavette that I purchased to keep practicing while the razor was out. The thing I noticed was how much better of a shave I got from the shavette. Not much irritation and very close.

When I got the razor back today, I shaved and the shave was pretty comparable with the shavette, and a world of difference from prior to the repair. What a great feeling to realize my technique wasn't THAT terrible :) My shave today was very serviceable 2-pass shave. The only cut was a previous cut that I keep opening back up every day because I forget about it until I shave!

I will post back in a month or so once I have had similar # of uses and let you know how the razor is holding up now that I am much more aware!

Thanks!

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Great that it's all fixed and you are enjoying it even more.

Can someone clarify though why it would be reground?

I always lay my razor on a wash cloth in the bathroom when shaving and later to air dry. I avoid tapping the faucet, so far at least, by using a damp sponge to wipe the lather off on. The only time the blade goes near the faucet is for the final rinse and then a wipe dry with TP. Even with all those precautions I did manage to chip a blade, I dropped the razor. Sometimes you just can't win. Sooner or later everyone, I think, will damage a blade somehow.

Bob

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BobH

I always lay my razor on a wash cloth in the bathroom when shaving and later to air dry. I avoid tapping the faucet, so far at least, by using a damp sponge to wipe the lather off on. The only time the blade goes near the faucet is for the final rinse and then a wipe dry with TP. Even with all those precautions I did manage to chip a blade, I dropped the razor. Sometimes you just can't win. Sooner or later everyone, I think, will damage a blade somehow.

Bob

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Dropping a razor is scary!
I was clumsy and dropped it once and for a 1/100 of a second my hands were going for it in the air but then I stopped and let it fall.
The razor was fine, a Bengall wedge, they can take a lot.

Yea, trying to catch a falling sharp object is scary but a natural reaction. I learned the hard way to not follow that impulse by trying to catch a 12 inch diameter slitter for a Kraft pulp machine layboy that I dropped. OTH could have been worse and if you are lucky you only do it once.

Bob

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BobH

Yea, trying to catch a falling sharp object is scary but a natural reaction. I learned the hard way to not follow that impulse by trying to catch a 12 inch diameter slitter for a Kraft pulp machine layboy that I dropped. OTH could have been worse and if you are lucky you only do it once.

Bob

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On the other hand your hands will usually heal, a broken tool will not! ;)

Unless it's a dull razor, then you only need to let it rest and it will fix itself!
The million dollar question; will it be better if it rests with tape? ;)