Thread: Too Sharp

Ok I think I am going to loose any of the cred I had if I had any at all, asking this but...

Watching Lynn shave with his DE, he stated that the Feather Blade is better on the second shave. I for one agree 100%. I love my Feathers but man that first shave... Hence, I moved to Personas.

Anyway, it kind of set off a thought process that I have been mulling over for some time now. I know a well honed straight gives, or should give a buttery smooth shave, and on many of my blades it does but sometimes, well that's not the case. For me. Some of my blades act very much like those Feathers, and are seemingly just too sharp and produce a rather harsh shave on that first go. After a shave or two though... heaven!

Is this a product of bad stropping? Poor honing?

To be very specific; it happens on my Boker extra hollow, and my Revisor. I use my Naniwa's to hone, strop with Dovo Red then Black paste, then linen to leather - a quick 6 on the diamond paste and then back to the linen and then ultimately the Roo.

On my second and onward - I use the Dovo Black, Linen, Roo.

Be gentle, and thanks for any insights

If the edge is honed correctly then the "Too Sharp" feeling is in your stropping..

A straight razor's true advantage over the other forms of shaving has to do with your ability to infinitely adjust the feel to your face.. no other form of shaving allows all that adjustment..

Honing is often the culprit of the "Too Sharp" feeling there is a maximum sharpness that each razor is capable of attaining and holding on to, this is determined by Steel, Geometry, and Grind, the trick is knowing when you are there...
Some smart guy on this forum once said "Knowing how to hone is the easy part, Knowing when to stop is the hard part"
This has nothing to do with the stones/hones you are using, this has to do with using the stones/hones you have to the fullest potential of the match to the razor..

Myself reading what you are doing after the razor comes off the hone I would dial it way down, simplify, and see what happens.. Try just Leather, then try Linen and Leather, and keep adding until you get the feel you are after... JMHO

Dunno exactly. I'd have to see, feel the razor. In the past, before I began finishing exclusively with an escher, I had 'scary sharp' razors at times. I know guys that like that but I'm not one of them. The Feather DE first shave is a good comparison. I have found that 10 round trips on chrom-ox on my Livi loom will tame such an edge. If we're talking about the same thing.

Of course YMMV, but I have found that if my edges feel sharp but slightly harsh, I go back to the Naniwa 12k and sharpen from a light slurry to clear water, (approx 30-40 laps) and after that 30/30 linen leather and shave again, the edge is much smoother. I use a pasted strop only after the edge starts to go and stropping on leather won't bring it back.

Thanks Glen!!

Why I didn't think of toning it down is beyond me. I think it's a function of a noob having too many razors. I have been giving all my blades the same treatment here lately, and to be honest, it took me forever just to pin-point the razors that were doing that.

Every razor is an individual lol!! I'll give it a shot - though that might be quite some time from now as they were just honed

Thanks again!

Wow a few great responses as I was typing . Thanks gents!

Going to tone it down as Glen states, but I'll say that in the past Jimmy, chrom-ox has done the same for me. So yes I think we are on the same page.

Thanks Joe - the 12k is something - but being I am all cock sure and all lol - going back to the stone is counter intuitive to me right now. If it happens after I tone down the paste/diamond regiment, I'll certainly give it a go! Thanks.

And to think at one time I just wanted a blade or two, a coti, and a strop... Bahahahaha

Recently I just finished my 6th or 7th razor which fails the HHT but shaves wonderfully. Not even most of my razors fall into this category.

These razors all came off the stones popping my hair which is difficult to accomplish but when I shaved them they were harsh and I could feel the edge. The alum block located some damage which didn't bleed but had been cut too close.

After the shave test they all went back to the THuri for a few (about 10) very very very light passes followed by leather. They all then failed the HHT. THEY ALL SHAVED WONDERFULLY!

Not all the razors I have honed do this but it happens enough for me to have lost my fixation on HHT. Sharpness tests of any type only tell me I am near the destination. The steel on my face makes my decisions.

My gut feeling is for HHT on MY HAIR a very slight tooth on the blade aids the feeling of sharp but means I am not going to have a pleasant shave. Removing that tooth or teeth makes the shave comfortable.

I think the same thing applies to some DE blades which need to be abraded just enough to smooth the teeth and get the steel to ride along the skin. In that regard I believe the OP is correct too say it is possible to have a blade too sharp.

Glen consistently makes the point here and elsewhere the advantage to straights is the control we have to obtain the result we individually want. YMMV isn't a catchphrase as much as it is a benefit. With enough experience I think the decisions of which stones, methods, and techniques to employ obtaining the best from a specific razor become less daunting and more obvious.

It just keeps getting better.

Stropping on diamond paste can leave a harsh edge as well. The particles are jaggy and leave a jaggy edge. CrOx leaves a much gentler edge.

I too began the hobby with simpler hopes than I have realized. I'm hopelessly beyond the "It'll save money" excuse.

Originally Posted by earcutter

And to think at one time I just wanted a blade or two, a coti, and a strop... Bahahahaha

Originally Posted by roughkype

I too began the hobby with simpler hopes than I have realized. I'm hopelessly beyond the "It'll save money" excuse.

OMG you two are funny heheheheheheheheehe I just about spit my coffee from laughing at those two


The Big Lie: "Honest Honey, we will save money by shaving this way, I will only need one hone, and two razors for the rest of my life, and possibly our son's too" "And think of how we are saving the Planet too"

Originally Posted by roughkype

"It'll save money" excuse.

Ha Ha Ha Ha he said "It'll save money" ohhohohohoho hahaha

I will have to live for 216 more years for this to pay for itself and I haven't got it bad. I can stop anytime I want. Really I just don't want to stop quite yet.