Blade Sharp Enough?

Ok...i know everyone posts about the I get a better shave after a few days of growth...but here is where that differs...I think

Great shaves with 4 days of growth...smooth..no irritation. With one or two days of growth I find the blade lacks. After 2 passes I usually am peppered or have random single hairs everywhere...that just dont want to be cut with the razor. Sometimes...And dont laugh..I have to go back with a pair of tweezers and pull them out.

I usually give myself a great case of razorburn trying to clean up the areas that the blade is just missing..

Now my blades are sharp. I honed all my Livi's on a shapton 4k/8k/16k before I came to NY. I have 7 blades in rotation so to speak..so I know they arent dull....is it that they just arent sharp enough for so small of a growth?

Geez I don't know. You've been at it a long time. If it was someone with less time I would think it was that the razor is not sharp enough or poor preparation and technique. Or a combination of the three. :shrug:

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And dont laugh..I have to go back with a pair of tweezers and pull them out.

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That's what she said! j/k

IssacRN ....your not alone man. I have at least 10 razors in my rotation, and some are sharper then others, even though all have been honed on;

1k/5k/8k/Naniwa's and 1u/.5 diamond film.

I'm finding that some of my blades whisk through hair while others fail to do the job. I think it's a combination of differing blade grinds and the sharpness of each. Having differing blade types and manufacturers is putting many variables into both honing and stropping imho. This is why back in the day seven day sets were of one grind and one brand to keep things simple.

I also feel that I am way too particular about my edges n have a tendency to overhone/strop my blades into a wire edge. A wire edge can be very uncomfortable whilst shaving and yet it can be very sharp.

I'm finding lately the blades I mess with the least are the sharpest. Go figure.

I duhno I have no real answer these are simply my craz hypothesis.

cheers
D

Sounds like those odd hairs are not absorbing water. Maybe they are still coated with whatever conditioner you used following the previous shave? Washing your face an extra time before shaving might help.

Do you go ATG?

Yeah..i do a hot shower...and facial wash..

My hair grows from ear to nose...so I do a wtg/xtg type of cut..that kinda goes ATG. The funny thing is...on the left side of my face I have alot of double and triple folicles...literally 2 or 3 hairs grow out of one spot.

Like I said its not a problem with 4 day shaving...just every other or 3rd day shaving. The blade just doesnt want to cut the hairs..

I am unsure what you mean by forth day shaving. Are you letting your facial hair grow in for four days first, then shaving it, and getting good results? That's because hair gets softer the longer it grows, especially facial hair. Short stubs are the hardest hairs to cut. If that's not what you mean I apologize.

What was the razor honed on? What is your stropping routine? Do you use cream or soaps? Maybe pictures of your results?!

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Originally Posted by IsaacRN

Yeah..i do a hot shower...and facial wash..

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This is going to sound odd. If you are an oily skin kind of guy (I am) most shampoo or soap doesn't always "cut it". I have to shave every day. Every few days I use Woolite.

Don't laugh.

Woolite (Diluted) really improves the wet-ability of hair (Kind of what it is made for). It's hard on your skin so you can't do it more often. I also have done this with a dilute solution of Dawn. Dawn is a great grease detergent and does the same thing. I am not sure it does it as well, but it's easier on the skin.

i know you have been in here long enough and should know already what is shave ready etc etc.
i think when you shave there is in some spots hair left could be in some point of the blade chip or something .Question is do you have same problem only using 1 prticular razor or all off them?
Now
another possibility could be while you shave you are using shaving oil.?
Lastly if your blade not shaveready and you are sharpening your blades you will have same problem with your all blades?
All this just imagination.
Do you have loop or anything you could check the edge to see what is going on?
Hope this helps.

Add
i went back and read your post again this is just interestiong?

Great shaves with 4 days of growth...smooth..no irritation. With one or two days of growth I find the blade lacks. After 2 passes I usually am peppered or have random single hairs everywhere...that just dont want to be cut with the razor.

This makes me think your blades are really not sharp?
2 days growth hair isn't stiff enough but after 4 th days they are. by using a little pressure you shave great with 4th day growth but 2 days will not. they are will just bend.?

are you using cream or soap? I have noticed that I get a more comfortable shave with cream but the closest is with soap. Soap also has the least "touch up" for me.

Usually all my blades do this to me. It doesnt matter who hones them...from Lynn..to Tim Zowada...To Joe Chandler.

Im wondering if as much of you have stated...If my blades truly arent sharp enough. I have thought they were because they do shave well with a few days of growth, but maybe they are only shapr enough for that?

Im just perplexed..

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Originally Posted by IsaacRN

Usually all my blades do this to me. It doesnt matter who hones them...from Lynn..to Tim Zowada...To Joe Chandler.

Im wondering if as much of you have stated...If my blades truly arent sharp enough. I have thought they were because they do shave well with a few days of growth, but maybe they are only shapr enough for that?

Im just perplexed..

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Did you have that problem with the blades honed by those gentlemen when you first got them ? I've got razors honed by them and they were all as slick as a whistle when it came to shaving my whiskers. OTOH, I have two areas on either side of my windpipe that I have to really stretch to flatten out and I have to approach them just right to get them no matter how sharp the razor is. You may have a very tough beard or the razors may not be as sharp as they were.

I really think i need to find a honemeister here in NYC. Anyone have any suggestions?

Hello Isaac. I have only one Livi but still had to go to the hones at least three times to get what I call shave ready for me. It was an ATS-34.

bj

i have seen in person how Lynn sharpens blades. i am sure if you have blade sharpened by him it is shave ready. You may using some oil?etc.

As a daily shaver, this post has really had me thinking, because to me it seems it is the best test of the sharpness of your blade if you can get a close and comfortable shave with 24 hours growth, and you're having issues with 3 days growth so something dramatic must be going wrong with your shaves. First, considering you've had this experience with professionally honed blades, are your blades passing sharpness tests after you strop? This seems to be the one thing that could've affected the sharpness between honing and shaving. Try some different strops, make sure stropping technique is right?

I would think the next thing to try is to use more passes, but to do this with a lighter touch since you are describing razor burn in your problem areas.

With three days growth, for me, the major length of every hair is gone after a single careful downwards pass, except the curved area of my chin, which requires a few more downwards passes. This occurs even if I use a blade that isn't optimally sharp. I'll feel the lack of super-sharpness on the against the grain passes, especially on my upper lip and on my neck, but I won't feel it as much with the grain. If you're not clearing the longest part of the hairs on your first downwards pass in most places, I can only think of 3 possible reasons: blade super dull (unlikely), technique (with all due respect, maybe even though you've been doing this for a while you've developed some bad habits?), or super-duper tough beard. I know from reading other threads that user Disburden seems to have a tough beard, perhaps he can give you good advice for ways to deal with this comfortably.

Can anyone think of a different explanation than the above three?

Personally, I don't find much difference between daily shaves (which I do normally Monday-Friday) and the shaves I get after skipping a few days.

I usually test razor with a one or two day growth and if they leave hair behind on first pass,I go back to the chromium oxide paddle strop.If that dont work it goes back to my double sided Tonsorial Gem hone (my favorite hone along with my Escher)and then chromium Oxide strop.Not being a real hoemeister I tend to worry about being shave ready.If it dont shave Big Al It dont shave you.So far so good.Ive been lucky.:shrug:

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Originally Posted by UtopianShaver

As a daily shaver, this post has really had me thinking, because to me it seems it is the best test of the sharpness of your blade if you can get a close and comfortable shave with 24 hours growth, and you're having issues with 3 days growth so something dramatic must be going wrong with your shaves. First, considering you've had this experience with professionally honed blades, are your blades passing sharpness tests after you strop? This seems to be the one thing that could've affected the sharpness between honing and shaving. Try some different strops, make sure stropping technique is right?

I would think the next thing to try is to use more passes, but to do this with a lighter touch since you are describing razor burn in your problem areas.

With three days growth, for me, the major length of every hair is gone after a single careful downwards pass, except the curved area of my chin, which requires a few more downwards passes. This occurs even if I use a blade that isn't optimally sharp. I'll feel the lack of super-sharpness on the against the grain passes, especially on my upper lip and on my neck, but I won't feel it as much with the grain. If you're not clearing the longest part of the hairs on your first downwards pass in most places, I can only think of 3 possible reasons: blade super dull (unlikely), technique (with all due respect, maybe even though you've been doing this for a while you've developed some bad habits?), or super-duper tough beard. I know from reading other threads that user Disburden seems to have a tough beard, perhaps he can give you good advice for ways to deal with this comfortably.

Can anyone think of a different explanation than the above three?

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Just wanted to reply that the problems were with daily shaves. Three days growth really isnt giving me much of a problem. Its 42hrs or less that gives me a problems :)

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Originally Posted by IsaacRN

Just wanted to reply that the problems were with daily shaves. Three days growth really isnt giving me much of a problem. Its 42hrs or less that gives me a problems :)

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On a tangent. I just received 4 of my razors back from a former member. All of them had been previously honed by somebody else. They feel different now. Meaning, there's a balance to be struck between sharp and smooth. Looks like the Europeans do things differently, but whatever they do, it works better for me. Just for the record, I used to have the same problem as you. But not any more.

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Originally Posted by Pyment

This is going to sound odd. If you are an oily skin kind of guy (I am) most shampoo or soap doesn't always "cut it". I have to shave every day. Every few days I use Woolite.

Don't laugh.

Woolite (Diluted) really improves the wet-ability of hair (Kind of what it is made for). It's hard on your skin so you can't do it more often. I also have done this with a dilute solution of Dawn. Dawn is a great grease detergent and does the same thing. I am not sure it does it as well, but it's easier on the skin.

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You can degrease oily skin with a little sodium bicarbonate ( baking soda).
About a teaspoon rubbed on the face with water will degrease and exfoliate without drying your skin like a detergent.

As for the OP, do your razors tug slightly on a 4 day growth ? That to me would be a sign of a less than perfect edge tho it may well shave you fairly close.
So many factors could be in play you may need to eliminate one by one.
That you say your skin is "peppered" after a 1 day shave sounds like a blade smoothness or shaving pressure issue rather than sharpness but lottsa variables.

For daily shaves, the blade needs to be sharper than what you can shave with for multiple day growth.

Pabster

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Originally Posted by Pabster

For daily shaves, the blade needs to be sharper than what you can shave with for multiple day growth.

Pabster

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I agree with that. But I try to keep all my razors as sharp as I can get them.:soapbox:

Gentlemen,

Under such circumstances, I keep the lather slightly lighter and more watery than usual and shorten the strokes to near buffing. It seems to work.

I also agree that razors vary in degrees of sharpness, even if sharpened by such masters as Lynn. After all, I look at a straight razor as a living entity with its own temperament. Some days the blade feels sharper and some not, which is the way I feel.

My shave world includes a double edge razor, with Feather blades, and that must be the sharpest instrument on earth. Yet it is not so much that my double edge feels sharper than my straight; rather, it is the case of two different types of shave.

For one thing, straight razor shaving is more strategic, with more obstacles to conquer. More so, the straight is a work of art and it requires a master's hand.

I know I still have a long way to go to master the art of straight razor shaving, to touch the straight edge rainbow, but I will get there, someday, and realize that my straights often were as sharp as possible and that my hands had to learn to use them the best way possible.

Regards,

Obie