How sharp should a razor be?

Hi all,

Yesterday I have bought a new "shave ready" DOVO 5/8 Best Quality (I Know its only for the beginning and learning to hone).
But it didn't pass the HHT! I've read that it shouldn't be that very important to take in account.

I can shave my sidebeards very well. But when i come near my chin area, that's where the problem kicks in.
It's like all those hairs block the edge of the razor to slice through all those whiskers.

Is that saying that the edge is not sharp enough?

Cuz when I am shaving the sidebeards I don't have to push that hard. But in the chin area it feels like I have to!!
You can also see my skin is being pulled.


I really like the sharpness of an Feather DE blade and I think I wish I had an straight razor that is sharp like an Feather DE blade but is strong enough to be sharp for months with only stropping.

I have not had a good shave from a razor that wouldn't past the HHT. If you don't have anything to hone with, then you might be able to bring up the sharpness with a strop pasted with Ti paste, CrOx or diamond paste/ spray.

I am new to straight razor shaving too. I would trust the instinct that says the razor is not sharp enough. If you don't have the honing equipment send it out to one of the experts here in the forum and let them put a great edge on it for you. I think it is really important for us beginners to know what a good edge should feel like.

Depending on where you bought the razor, they might have a policy where they will take it back and hone it for you.

Best Journey!

You're much more likely to confuse a dull razor for a sharp one than vice versa. If you suspect a razor is dull, it is.

SliceOfLife said:

You're much more likely to confuse a dull razor for a sharp one than vice versa. If you suspect a razor is dull, it is.

Click to expand...

1+

I start to get irritation and need to touch up the edge when it's still hht sharp. In my opinion you need to be that sharp at least. Your new razor might just need a pasted strop/crox then linen then leather to bring it up.

Factory DOVOs aren't shave ready.

The straight I bought was made "shave ready" by the shop they told me. But at home it couldn't even pass the HHT.

As I look on the spine, you can see on the heel side (shoulder) there is more metal grinded off.

Where the toe part has less.
It's like the "honemeister" didn't put an even force on the whole straight while making it shave ready.

I only have a Naniwa SS 12K stone, and I am waiting for my Rasurpur exchangeable paddle strop.
So, i tried to hone on the 12K stone, but I can't seem to make it sharper, while the water isn't slipping underneath the edge.

Before I hone, I flat the stone on a wet sanding paper untop of a mirror. And I make light, straight forward motions (Not the X-motion). And I see that the stone leaves metal particals all allong the width of the stone.

But I am afraid I have to reset the bevel. What do you guys think?
I wasn't planning to give my straight to a 'honemeister', as I want to do the job myself for practice purpose. So I guess I need to order a 1K or 2K, 5K and 8K stone.


Here you can see some of the edge, and as you notice some heavy dragmarks.

You probably need to set the bevel. 12k stones polish, but you need the even bevel first so a sharp v is what the polisher is working on.

I have the exact same problem. Brand new Dovo 5/8 did not pass the HHT even after stropping it 3 times. (each time 35 canvas/65 leather). Also I live in the middle east in Abu Dhabi and no one here does honing. Shipping things back and forth or ordering a paste is very pricey... I am considering getting the water stones and learn to hone myself...

Recently acquired some stones from left to right.
Naniwa combined 1k/ 3k stone, JNS 6k Matukusuyama and the Naniwa 8k snow white.

also got a herolds hanging strop with juchten leather and canvas on the other side. Aswell a red stropping paste.


Had the Naniwa SS 12k allready.



Yesterday I have recieved an Rasurpur exchangable paddlestrop with napped, mineral oil tanned, latigo and english bridle leathers.


So i took my Dovo 'best quality' 5/8 SR and went over the stones, starting of with a 1k, 3k, 6k, 8k and 12K.
After that i stropped it on the canvas side to follow up on the mineral oil tanned and finish off on the english bridle.

The SR is now far more sharp than it ever was when i bought it, i can shave my arm with ease, get my cheeks done and neck.
But still when i get to my chin and moustache area it is still pulling and tugging.


Im thinking about to start over with 1K till 12k, or should i begin with the 6K stone till 12k and give it a strop with stropping paste?
I know im getting near the edge i'd want to, but not quite yet as I liked to.

Can you guys give me advice how to tackle this? Or give your point of view how'd you approach this...

Sharpness is set at the 1k bevel setting stage. I would start there. You want the entire edge to be sharp from heel to toe. I use a cherry tomato to test sharpness. That blade should sink deep in to the tomato as you draw it lightly (just the weight of the razor) along the tomato. Test every mm of the edge. Once that edge is sharp toe to heel then you progress up the line of stones polishing out the marks that were left by the last stone. It is really helpful to have a loupe to see the polish marks and know when they are disappearing. The edge will get sharper as you progress. Keep the cherry tomatoes nearby to make sure of this. The blade will sink deeper and faster after each stage. There are other tests too. I sometimes shave a little arm hair. I don't think you will get HHT till you get past the 8k level and a little stropping.

I was amazed how long it took me to get that first bevel set. The guys in the videos make it look so fast and easy. Yours shouldn't take too, too long as it is already pre-sharpened. Take that blade to the 1k stone and get to work. Make sure the stone has been leveled with a DMT. Keep the stone wet as you work on it. When the stone gets covered in swarf, (metal shaving dust mixed with water) clear the swarf off the stone under running water with your DMT and go back at it again. There are lots of videos that show how to do this.

I don't use pastes myself. I'd take the blade up through the 12k stone, give it 100 laps on the leather and see how it goes.

Honing is its own skill set. It took me hours over days to get my first bevel really set. Relax and take your time. It is really enjoyable to sharpen and shave with ones own razors.

I am a beginner too. Other guys here will weigh in with everything I have overlooked or don't know about yet. This is an outline. Look at videos and watch/read all the honing wiki's.

Best luck!

My advice would be to send it to a recognized honemeister here on the forums. Learning to shave AND trying to learn to hone at the same time is not recommended. Especially if you only own one razor. My suggestion is buy another one, doesn't have to be an expensive razor by any means. But that way you can have one that has been professionally sharpened by someone that is trusted so that you know what a properly sharp edge feels like. Then, with the first razor you can experiment with honing. Honing is a whole different skill set and best left to a bit later when you get more proficient at shaving.

Your situation at your chin is a common one. Many new shavers go through that and 9/10 times (assuming they got their razor from a reputable source) it is their angle to blame. You should have the blade no more than one spine width away from your face and stretch your skin as much as possible. While it is possible that this razor may not have been sharp enough, I suspect the issue could be technique related since you are still new to this.

3gor4: you have some nice honing stones. Get yourself a lighted 60x loupe from Ebay. They cost around six dollars. Even cheaper if you order from China directly. Being able to see the edge of your razor is a big help as you learn to hone. Add one piece of electrical tape to the spine of your razor. Go back to your 1K honing stone and be sure your bevel is set across the entire edge of the razor. You should be shaving arm hair easily at the 1K bevel setting level. Don't remove the electrical tape until you have finished honing and just before you strop the razor.

I think as newbies this is a question we all ask ourself. I'm starting my strait shaving journey and have worked part time as a butcher for 12 years. I know what a sharp blade is like but I'm still asking myself the question. I think part of the questioning is because people say you shave with that, these things are crazy you're gonna slice your throat and if you don't know somebody thats shaving with a strait it's hard to be sure. In you case I don't think it's sharp enough.

You will have a fair bit going on as a new str8 shaver, angles, lather, direction of your cuts etc, I would take up the advice of the other guys and get it professionally honed. The hones are nice to have however until you have mastered dragging a functional razor across your face there is no perspective on how it should opperate. A factory edge or one set by someone who does not shave is rarely shave ready IMO. Get a practice razor with a decent edge to hone and that way you can keep shaving if it is not 100% right with the professionally honed razor.

3gor4 said:

The straight I bought was made "shave ready" by the shop they told me. But at home it couldn't even pass the HHT.

As I look on the spine, you can see on the heel side (shoulder) there is more metal grinded off.

Where the toe part has less.
It's like the "honemeister" didn't put an even force on the whole straight while making it shave ready.

I only have a Naniwa SS 12K stone, and I am waiting for my Rasurpur exchangeable paddle strop.
So, i tried to hone on the 12K stone, but I can't seem to make it sharper, while the water isn't slipping underneath the edge.

Before I hone, I flat the stone on a wet sanding paper untop of a mirror. And I make light, straight forward motions (Not the X-motion). And I see that the stone leaves metal particals all allong the width of the stone.

But I am afraid I have to reset the bevel. What do you guys think?
I wasn't planning to give my straight to a 'honemeister', as I want to do the job myself for practice purpose. So I guess I need to order a 1K or 2K, 5K and 8K stone.

Here you can see some of the edge, and as you notice some heavy dragmarks.

Click to expand...

I don't think bevel and hone wear symmetry is a quality indicator of a good or bad edge... It really talks to either a grind issue or hone job.. And neither those are good indicators of a shave ready edge or not.

I'm with some of the other guys. Send the razor to a recognized honemeister. If it comes back and you still have problems with your chin, then you have to work on your technique.

Pete <:-}

lyndontravasso said:

I have the exact same problem. Brand new Dovo 5/8 did not pass the HHT even after stropping it 3 times. (each time 35 canvas/65 leather). Also I live in the middle east in Abu Dhabi and no one here does honing. Shipping things back and forth or ordering a paste is very pricey... I am considering getting the water stones and learn to hone myself...

Click to expand...

Go on over to the honing section of the forum. Having to do your own honing is unavoidable. But I have been able to improve upon the edge quality of every shave-ready razor I've received so far by doing my own honing and I'm new to the art. If money is no object I would invest in an entire set of hones right up front. There are two main types of hones: Natural and synthetic. Just realize that it's a learning curve full of success, failures, and frustrations early on.

To 3gor4: Rather than sending it off to a honing expert I would start out at the 6K point back up and keep the number of strokes to a minimum (say 10 laps per hone). I would do a light slurry on the 12K followed by water followed by lathering the hone. Then you can go to your strops. You will always be in a better position to tailor the edge to your own needs if you already have your own hones.