Thread: understanding how price vs. quality of a razor

I've always had trouble with discerning what would separate an average shaver with a good hone job from a great shaver with a good hone job. There are a LOT of brands that get touted as "excellent" or "some of my best shavers", but I rarely hear what they are better than.

In putting razor to face, I won't much notice the edge hardness unless it is extremely low. I'm much more likely to prefer based on tang shape and length, blade profile, degree of hollow to the grind, blade weight and width, and honing quality. A part of me still wants to focus on the steel and heat treat, but I cannot from my shaves tell you if my Cattaraugus, Tosuke, Iwasaki, or anything else, has a superior steel or heat treat. Perhaps from honing wear I can pick things apart, but if someone told me my Tosuke was harder than my Iwasaki (which is probably not true), I couldn't from shaving experience confirm or deny the claim.

Good luck trying to get more info.