Resting the blade.

Hi folks,

I have a question about straight razors and I want to separate myth from reality.

Is it true that you need to "rest the blade" of a razor after each shave? By this I mean, having shaved with razor A, you need to, after stropping it, leave it be for at least 24-48 hours before shaving with it again? And during that 'rest time', move to razor B instead?

Was this one of the reasons behind those seven-day razor sets (apart from also having more razors and thus less honing to do)?

I ask because about two weeks ago, I nicked myself with my straight razor. I waited a couple of days and shaved again...again I nicked myself. I waited a little longer and shaved again. Nicked myself again. I finally stopped shaving for about a week to give the nick time to heal. When it was done healing, I had another shave with that same razor (which was also freshly stropped) and the shave was horrible. I didn't hurt myself, but the shave was crap. It wasn't cutting anything. I put the razor down and picked up my OTHER straight razor (also freshly stropped) and went to town with it.

In five minutes I'd shaved off four days of stubble and my face was perfect. I hadn't used this razor in at least two weeks while during that time, I'd used the other one (with varying degrees of success) during the same time.

Does this mean I need to hone the other razor 'cause it's gone dull? Or is it just not complying with me because I've used it too frequently over the last couple of weeks and it needs to 'rest'? Because despite the stropping, it wasn't doing much good...

My feeling has always been that the "resting a razor" idea was a brilliant marketing ploy dreamed up by razor salesmen to make buyers buy lots of razors. I can think of no scientific reason why letting a razor sit unused for a length of time would improve its performance. In fact, while it is sitting around it would be slowly oxidising and getting blunter. As long as you keep it maintained there is no reason to not use the same blade each day, IMO.

Right. Then it's probably just time for another honing.

Ditto with Legion. Remember that barbers shaved multiple people a day with one or two razors, mostly just stropping in between.

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Originally Posted by Shangas

I ask because about two weeks ago, I nicked myself with my straight razor. I waited a couple of days and shaved again...again I nicked myself. I waited a little longer and shaved again. Nicked myself again. I finally stopped shaving for about a week to give the nick time to heal. When it was done healing, I had another shave with that same razor (which was also freshly stropped) and the shave was horrible. I didn't hurt myself, but the shave was crap. It wasn't cutting anything. I put the razor down and picked up my OTHER straight razor (also freshly stropped) and went to town with it.

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Get any blood on the blade ? It's corrosive to steel but anyway if you were nicking yourself with one razor & not the other sounds like a hone is in order. You were maybe compensating with pressure for a degraded edge.

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the replies. I have since taken the offending razor and given it a touch up on my honing-stone followed by a good stropping. Usual excellent sharpness and shave-quality has returned. Nothing more to worry about.

I use the "Resting the blade" theory to justify my RAD to the misses.:tuWorks so far

I have also read this (I think Dovo says this in their literature) but like many aspects of wet shaving there is often no one definitive answer. The reasoning behind this is that resting a razor allows the microscopic teeth on the end of the blade to realign themselves naturally (whether or not this is true I have no idea). However I have also read the exact opposite and in my personal experience I have never felt or experienced any difference between blades that have been rested as opposed to unrested. Does that confuse you anymore?

I have looked at razors that have rested and those that have not up to 90x on a stereomicroscope and cannot see any difference in the edges. I have not noticed any difference in how they shave either. It seems to me that if the edge is that sensitive and needs time to "rest" as soon as you either strop it once or make that first shaving motion, the edge would be screwed up again. So... go figure. But, hey, I'm not a metallurgist.

Thanks for the replies, everyone. Had another excellent shave with this razor this morning and it's doing very well.

Still...I might like to get a seven-piece straight-set...one day.

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Originally Posted by Shangas

Thanks for the replies, everyone. Had another excellent shave with this razor this morning and it's doing very well.

Still...I might like to get a seven-piece straight-set...one day.

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I here you. It would be really nice to have a weekly rotation with a super, special one for those important days. That means 8 str8s! Need to start saving my pennies and dimes like the old Beach Boys' song 409. "Giddy up, giddy up, 409!"

I noticed how you said the razor you didn't use for two weeks was a better cutter.

This makes me think that you might have to work on your stropping and shave technique. That way your not damaging the edge making the razor shave ready for longer n

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Originally Posted by Shangas

Thanks for the replies, everyone. Had another excellent shave with this razor this morning and it's doing very well.

Still...I might like to get a seven-piece straight-set...one day.

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In the meantime you can just get seven* different razors! :)

* actual amount of razors to acquire is likely to increase continually

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Originally Posted by borebrush

The reasoning behind this is that resting a razor allows the microscopic teeth on the end of the blade to realign themselves naturally

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In order to move, steel or any other metal needs force or temperature change to be applied to it.
Unless of course your name is Uri Geller.

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Originally Posted by Firedug

I use the "Resting the blade" theory to justify my RAD to the misses.:tuWorks so far

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I'm working on convincing my wife that razors need about six months of rest between uses... :p

The fact is that razors don't need "rest" time, just a marketing ploy as mentioned previously...however you can "pretend" that the steel must rest (after a few strokes on the strop to clean the micro-crud from the edge) and justify a few more razors. It's also nice to have a few extra razors so that once one needs touch-up you can wait until you have a few to hone at once. For me, I hate to hone just one razor, the cleanup takes more time than the actual honing...

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Originally Posted by shooter74743

For me, I hate to hone just one razor, the cleanup takes more time than the actual honing...

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speaking right from my heart, right there.

btw, i believe that 'razors need resting' thing is a marketing ploy as well... as if the iron atoms needed at least 24 hours to 'rearrange'... ever wondered why we strop our razors? to rearrange the iron atoms, yes.

I don't know about my razor, but I know I sure need a rest regularly!

if razors need resting then knives would too,but they don't that's what butcher steels are for and razors don't cut what knives do,it's a great excuse to own seven razors just like i own several of the same knives but i am really curious as to how the whole resting to allow the edge to straighten thing got started and how it keps popping up,i've come across it quite regulary on the net and some refferences date back to the 19th centuary and i've wondered if it was because of the real early steel used back then

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Originally Posted by Alucard73

if razors need resting then knives would too,but they don't that's what butcher steels are for and razors don't cut what knives do,it's a great excuse to own seven razors just like i own several of the same knives but i am really curious as to how the whole resting to allow the edge to straighten thing got started and how it keps popping up,i've come across it quite regulary on the net and some refferences date back to the 19th centuary and i've wondered if it was because of the real early steel used back then

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If we are talking about most butcher work, then I must disagree. As long as a butcher doesn't get into a bone, their media (meat) that they are cutting is much softer than what a razor has to deal with. The common facial hair of a man has the similar toughness of a pure copper wire the same diameter. That is actually quite amazing considering all of the hairs a razor mows down in one shaving....straights are some pretty tough blades. As far as the resting theory...what did a barber do then?

Carbon steel doesn't need to "rest", unless you are justifying your RAD to the significant other...that's the only time I would agree this point.

I too had read somewhere about resting the blade 24 +- hours, so that still implied daily use. However, my SRAD has pleasantly allowed me to use 'sets' of razors each month. I pick two razors each month and rotate between those two razors for the month.