Thread: Different shaving results from either side of razor.

Another consideration might be differences in whiskers. I have areas on my phizzog that are coarser here and there, than other areas. A couple of patches on either side of my windpipe are tough as nails and require extra effort to get smooth.

Originally Posted by Neckbone

Yes, it's the same side.
I don't think it is blade pressure or angle.
It is the feel you get when an edge starts to degrade and thinking of pulling.
Seems to need a little more effort (push) to cut through the first pass of whiskers.
It sounds different too, but my two ears hear different, and can't be relied on.
Could maybe be a slightly different bevel on each side, but on so many razors?
It's just one of those quirks that is there on most shaves.

If you haven't already, try shaving the side that feels off, first. See if it's still the same result, or does the effect reverse too?

Sounds like a rolled edge to me. Try palm stropping and see if you can feel a rolled edge.

Lets think about this logically. The edge is the edge. The two bevels meet at an angle, Ideally forming an Isosceles triangle. The sharpness is the apex and there is only one. If it is not an Isosceles triangle, it requires an adjustment of the angle of the blade to present the same "angle of attack" to the whiskers.

Originally Posted by JoelLewicki

Sounds like a stropping technique problem to me. If you use a hanging strop, in the future try laying it on a flat surface. However, it sounds like you've rolled the edges, so the first thing will be getting them re-honed.

Stropped up some "pain" myself this morning. Was in there flying up and down the leather, and went from "Hero to zero" when I realized I was flipping it wrong and probably curled the edge. My concerns were validated when I spent the next 15 minutes pulling beard hair out instead of shaving it like it had done the day before. I'll fix it tonight but just a few moments of not paying attention to such detail and your headed down a "rabbit hole" on your shave.

I consider myself pretty damn good at sharpening since I've been sharpening my own hunting knives, wives kitchen collection, and pretty much everyone else's knives since I can remember but razor sharpening is a whole new level of complexity. Cutting arm hairs is easy.....cutting a single hair placed on top of the blade...not so easy.

Originally Posted by bluesman7

Sounds like a rolled edge to me. Try palm stropping and see if you can feel a rolled edge.

I was thinking along these lines. I'm a newbie so my opinion is not worth much. Not enough experience. I'm only posting about this now because a very similar discussion occurred on a knife forum. Someone said they could shave with his knife after sharpening it but only with one side on his arm. Flip the blade over and it wouldn't shave arm hair as well. Finally he determined he was leaving a microscopic burr on the edge. I don't know if it is relevant but the situations seemed similar. A high level of magnification would be nice (60x or higher) to examine the edge if only to eliminate the razor as a potential culprit.

If bevel is not very good, and the degree of polishing with higher grit stones is unequal, then could be.

Originally Posted by Neckbone

This sounds goofy, but on several of my razors, one side of my face feels like it shaves different than the other (razor seems sharper).
I switch hands, so the razor side is switched too.
Can the quality of the hone be different on each side?

I experience the same thing. I think it may be the blade, despite others' believing otherwise. But I think it may be more likely that your (and my) whiskers on that side of the face grow in a different direction.

Been there done that. It was lack of experience for me

It has to be (in my mind, anyway) the difference in technique between the two sides of the face. As Splashone has pointed out, there is only one edge on the razor...or you don't have an "edge". My beard grows differently in direction on the two sides of my face, so I have to alter my strokes. Maybe yours does too. Have you mapped it?