Thread: Theirs-Issard problem-2

There is another thread started recently concerning theirs-Issard that got me thinking. In this post, Lynn pointed out that sometimes these razors come in with spines that are uneven. Since i didn't want to hijack that thread i thought i would post here. do you think this uneven spine would affect the ability of a strop to work properly causing the blade to dull slighlty upon stropping? i got a new TI razor for fathers day that is absolutely stunning, but the first shave was the only one i would consider great, after stropping for the second, it seemed less sharp, and barely gets through my thick wiskers. im new, but fairly certain my stropping technique is adequate. Originally i thought i applied too much paste to the strop. upon inspection, i don't think this is the case. Unfortunately i don't currently have a hone, but am planning on purchasing a Norton to try and bring this beauty back. until then ive abandoned her and postponed my perfecting straight razor shaving technique.

Welcome to SRP. If you are new at this I would suggest sending it out to a known expert for honing. TI isn't the easiest to hone and learning honing is better on relatively inexpensive used razors than new ones IMO. An experienced honer will be able to tell if the spine of the razor is an issue. I'd say it is unlikely to cause a problem unless it was really far out, but that is not something I could tell without having it in hand. Send it out and you'll have your answer.

I will post pics of both the razor and the strop tonight when i get home, Id really like to not have to send it out since it is brand new and set my wife back a few bills. Im afraid she will quickly doubt the investment, as well as my sanity (which is already largely in question). thanks for the welcome BTW im finding the forum full of information, and so far really helpful in all aspects. any honemeisters in the columbia MO area on Sunday? I am heading that way with my family and could bring the razor and strop with me.

Originally Posted by jblincoe

but the first shave was the only one i would consider great, after stropping for the second, it seemed less sharp, and barely gets through my thick wiskers

+1
this is identical to my story with my new TI.

Kelly (Nun2sharp) has been kind enough to offer to take a look at the razor, but with his schedule and mine haven't really worked out a time to meet yet, i believe we both live and work close to each other so maybe things will work out soon. Until then, I keep looking at my beautiful razor and strop it occasionally hoping that some magic happens that will help it bounce back to shave ready. Ive been bitten by the bug, I felt i had good shave technique with razor in hand. I only question my ability to keep a good edge whether that be in stropping technique or materials.

Originally Posted by jblincoe

do you think this uneven spine would affect the ability of a strop to work properly causing the blade to dull slighlty upon stropping?

Highly unlikely, especially with a hanging strop - there is more than enough give to the strop to compensate for whatever unevenness a functional razor would have on its spine.
You don't need pasted strop though - clean fabric and leather is the stroping regimen between shaves.
Also, whatever damage you can do with a strop is magnified by many orders of magnitude with a hone.
I'd say your best option is to hook up with Kelly - he'll help you out with whatever you need helping out with.

Originally Posted by gugi

Highly unlikely, especially with a hanging strop - there is more than enough give to the strop to compensate for whatever unevenness a functional razor would have on its spine.
You don't need pasted strop though - clean fabric and leather is the stroping regimen between shaves.
Also, whatever damage you can do with a strop is magnified by many orders of magnitude with a hone.
I'd say your best option is to hook up with Kelly - he'll help you out with whatever you need helping out with.

appreciate that, my razor and supplies all came from The Art of Shaving here. Its a very nice store, but they reccommended the paste with the strop, unfortunately i found this site too late, it was only after i had applied it that i came to SRP. Im gonna try to clean it with a leather cleaner, should i condition the strop after i clean it with a leather conditioner as well?

I'm not sure you can clean it up - the abrasive particles are really tiny (micron sized) and it doesn't take all that many to keep abrading the steel. I think it's best to just leave the strop as it is and get a new one.
Short term you can strop your razor on newspaper (on flat surface) - it'll work well enough, though leather afterwards would improve it a bit. Again, this is just temporary until you are able to meet with Kelly, it's really hard to troubleshoot things like these over the internet, so our advise could be wrong just because we can't see your gear in person, inspect it, test it - see what the issues may be and how to fix it. So I'd err on the 'don't do stuff that could cause more damage' side.

jblincoe,

The C135 steel TI razors do take a little more work to get the edge dialed in. When this is done, they are absolutely superb shavers (for me).

The steel is hard, so you have to 'sneak' up on the edge. They respond superbly to 0.5 micron diamond or 0.25 micron CBN for touch-ups.

When you get your edge sorted, I think you will love that razor

Have fun !

Best regards

Russ

Question???

The way I am reading this post is that you bought the razor from AOS and it has not yet gone out for Professional honing...


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