Thread: Musings on the forgiveness of different grinds

So first off this isn't scientific, I was just shave testing a few different blades and thinking about them as I did so.

Depending on size, not-hollow grinds propel themselves- so you are already resisting their weight, so when you feel it catch you can just stop the blade easier. With the full hollows to some degree you have to pull them along a little, but this means when it catches your reflex has to switch muscles to reverse direction and I would assume this hinders your ability to mitigate a nick. Maybe its jerkier or something, but from personal experience I think its just harder to change directions. Like, when I'm weightlifting, and we're, let's say, squatting, this change of direction is very noticeable.

Almost everyone can lift the weight initially- from the rack straight up. Now, using the same weight, you move downward, stop, and have to move back up. People can hold the weight, and they can clearly resist it (you don't just drop, you go down real slow, much slower than the weight's gravitational acceleration), and 99% of the time can stop it (so they can hold it at full compression) but then either can't go anywhere or have to lift it. They either then collapse, or get it moving again at which point they'll be able to finish.

So the analogy is a little off- everyone can clearly lift a razor. My point is that maybe with the wedge one is already resisting edge-first motion, (think about holding up the razor to your face, if suddenly the razor disappeared and your muscles stayed in the same state, your hand would rise) so its easy to just realise it, resist a little more and stop/reverse the blade. With the hollow grind, one is pulling it, so when you feel a nick your nerves/muscles have to realise it, stop, switch muscles, and back out.

I dunno. What do you guys think? I realise there is the argument that full hollows are harsher/keener (not necessarily sharper though) than wedges. Im' just putting it out there that this may be a factor too. Feel free to shoot me down lol.