Thread: What Micron to use to get "shave ready"?

Hi all,

I see some great info here so far and am hoping you can help me out too. I Bought a Dovo "shave ready" razor - not so much shave ready.....sent it to a sharpening place that claimed they could do straight razors....same deal....sent to SRD and they sent it back to me pretty close but it still catches on hairs, stings a bit when I shave and isn't quite right yet. I have a strop with both leather and canvas, which I've used to try and finish it off by giving 50 strokes on the canvas then 30 or so on the leather, but it still isn't there yet after doing this process twice. I want to get a strop to add paste to so that I can get it truly shave ready. What would be recommended as a type of strop that I can add paste to? I'm picturing getting just a single leather strop and then adding two different grits on to each side. I thought about getting a paddle strop for this too. What would you recommend for the grit? Also, should I go with the diamond or the chromium oxide? not sure about the difference there. Please forgive my ignorance and any and all advise is much appreciated.

Thanks,

J Bain

how many shaves do you have in your experience?
If you are new you will experience pulling and some discomfort until you figure out all the angles, stretching, prep, stropping.
I am sure the razor shaves just fine especially if it was honed by Lynn.

Reading your post I assume this is your first straight, and that you're new to straight shaving?

If you have gotten the razor honed by SRD (Lynn) I'm pretty sure the razor is truly shave ready, the problems you got is more likely to have to do with your technique (Angle, skin stretching etc.) rather than the razor.

It's quite common for beginners to experience what you do

You can also have managed to roll the edge while stropping (also a common problem until you got your stropping right)

A rule of thumb is that you don't strop the razor before shaving the first time after recieving it from honing (specially if you're new)

If you haven''t already done so, I can recommend to take a look at the wiki pages for some tips and information about shaving with a straight:

First straight razor shave

Beginner's guide to straight razor shaving

Shaving videos


Good luck

Just another vote for inexperience being the issue. Lynn (SRD) has an established, and unquestionable level of skill in razor sharpening. +1 to everyone else's comments. They're sending you in the right direction IMHO.

+1 to what already said. You have to learn to shave.
Your razor is shave ready, but you are not. (Yet)

Like they said it isn't the razor, even the best honed razor won't make your first weeks of shaving effortless, it's a skill that you have to learn, it'll come, in a few months there will be a big improvement in the stropping and shaving.

ok - to all the "you are a rookie" messages - that could be the issue, but I've been shaving with a disposable blade straight razor for over a year now and when I went back to it just recently, it shaved perfectly and I had a nice close shave with no pulling or discomfort. I thought I may have dulled it by my clumsy attempts to strop it the first time I had it honed and when SRD honed it for me I was more careful with my technique and don't think that is the cause of my poor shaves since then.

Could it be that I need to finish the hone off with a pasted strop? Or you all still think that rookiedom is the cause of my bad shaves?

Do I need to have a pasted strop on hand going forward even if I get my technique down? Could Lynn have over sharpened it?

Thanks again for all the help

J Bain

Originally Posted by jsitlerbain

ok - to all the "you are a rookie" messages - that could be the issue, but I've been shaving with a disposable blade straight razor for over a year now and when I went back to it just recently, it shaved perfectly and I had a nice close shave with no pulling or discomfort. I thought I may have dulled it by my clumsy attempts to strop it the first time I had it honed and when SRD honed it for me I was more careful with my technique and don't think that is the cause of my poor shaves since then.

Could it be that I need to finish the hone off with a pasted strop? Or you all still think that rookiedom is the cause of my bad shaves?

Do I need to have a pasted strop on hand going forward even if I get my technique down? Could Lynn have over sharpened it?

Thanks again for all the help

J Bain

You ARE a rookie, using a shavette means little/nothing, simple as that.

You don't need as pasted strop, you need to learn to shave with a straight.

Originally Posted by Blix

You ARE a rookie, using a shavette means little/nothing, simple as that.

You don't need as pasted strop, you need to learn to shave with a straight.

+1.

Lynn has honed an AMAZING (jawdropping really) amount of straight razors. YOU DO NOT NEED A PASTED STROP TO MAKE THE RAZOR SHAVE READY. Shavettes shave completely different than a straight. Completely. Now, you may know how to hold a razor, but that's about where the similarities end. There is a learning curve to real straight shaving, and standing in the street refusing to believe that the road curves is just gonna make you end up in the ditch. The fact is, you are a rookie with real straight shaving. Listen very carefully, there is NOTHING wrong about being new at something. However, refusing to take advice about it is going to make you more frustrated in the end. Wait about 10 shaves, see where you're at, then come back and report. It does get better. The "I don't think my razor is sharp enough" threads are second only to "how do I make a knife from this file" threads.

Your comment above makes it clear you are judging a straight razor edge based on a Shavette edge. You will always be disappointed! In my opinion, even the best honed straight razors are not as sharp as a commercial blade like a Shavette.

At first, I was put off by "dull" razors honed by those with good reputations like Lynn. (Believe me and everyone above. Lynn hones very well!) Now that I have learned the technique of straight razor shaving, I prefer the edge of a straight razor, and get as good or better shaves.

So, as above, work on your technique. Just remember that in all ways, in sharpness and especially in technique used, there is much difference between commercial edges and straight razor edges.

As an aside to everyone...

Possibly, my "not as sharp as commercial" comments above weren't well received. So, let's say that you can create a straight razor edge as sharp as a commercial blade. That will only be that sharp for part of your first shave, or at most the first shave. After you strop a time or two, you are no longer shaving with your scary sharp edge. You are shaving with your strop-created edge. And, surely no one is going to claim that edge is as sharp as a Shavette-like edge!