Thread: Is this a feature, or a defect or something else...?

It is hard to show on pictures, but the notch on this John Shaw razor is uneven. I do not know if this is was the norm, fixable or something I have to live and deal.

It's pretty normal for the notches to run at an angle.
Since we don't know for sure what the notches were for, it's really difficult to say why they were ground at an angle.

It was suggested once that it might be as simple as the grinder being in a hurry, and the notches don't need to be perpindicular. That being the case, the angle would be determined by whether the grinder was right or left handed.

Who knows?

A couple more pics to better illustrate my point

Only a couple barber's notches I have seen where actually perpendicular. Most of them where at an angle. The angle shouldn't have any effect on the shaving ability of the razor.

It's not a defect.

I think they used the edge of a large grinding wheel to make these notches, if so it would be difficult to allign the blade perfectly in a mass production atmosphere.
Just my thoughts.
Eric

do you guys think the notch could be reground to make it look even without losing its temper?

As long as it doesn't impare the performance of the razor during shaving or honing I wouldn't worry too much about it.

Originally Posted by rocarule

do you guys think the notch could be reground to make it look even without losing its temper?

I agree with Catrentshaving, you don't NEED to do anything to it. To answer your question, yes you can even it out without loosing the temper. You need to follow the rules with regards to heat management. I manage heat with the following paradigm ... If my finger can't stand the heat (I leave it on the back of where I am buffing) neither an the blade. I then cool the blade using water.

I went ahead and used an emery stone attachment on my knock off dremel and this is what I got