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Monday evening I was shaving with my Tonsorial Gem (I gotta get more razors) when I noticed kind of an odd thing...
As I was making my ATG run, it appeared almost as if my razor was(for lack of a better phrase) stuttering... it almost looked as if it had gotten stuck on my skin, then skipped up, leaving a few thin lines of lather on my face where it looked like the blade had skipped.
Would this be because of angle, or inadequate lather, or am I just an idiot who needs more practice?
It could be technique but it sounds like the edge may need honed up a bit. Seems most likely that it's dull. Is that possible? A few laps on a pasted strop may do the trick.
Dewey speaketh the truth.
Try 40/50 laps on linen else a few laps on a pasted strop and see how it improves. If it still isn't up to scratch, then it's gonna need honed.
Your blade is not stuttering, it's sending a message, " Sharpen me"!
If the shave with the grain was smooth and close, you might try to re-lather with the ATG. Pay attention to the angles and see what happens. Short strokes ATG also work very well because of the angles in many cases. If it continues to stutter at all, it probably could use a touch up.
Lynn
Same happens to me. As soon as I start getting hesitation when going across the grain under my chin, it's time for a quick pass on the swaty, and more attention to my stropping.
My stropping technique is most likely to blame then, as it was just honed last week by Josh Earl.
Lynn is correct that my WTG strokes were smooth as silk, and I did end up with a very nice shave, but I will still do more stropping before my shave tomorrow morning.
Thank you all for the assistance!
Try hotter water longer too. Gets everything softer.
I also sometimes get a stuttering straight when shaving ATG under the chin. Usually happens with a full hollow grind -- never seems to happen with a 1/4 or 1/2 hollow. I'd go with Lynn's first suggestion: lower the angle. I've noticed it only seems to happen with a steeper angle, even on shave-ready razors.
Well, I shaved again yesterday. Took a few extra minutes with my strop, and lowered my angle..
No stuttering, and once again I got a great shave!
Thank you all for the advice and assistance.