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How do you know if your razor is properly honed?

F

Fischinthelake

I purchased a razor a while back that was "ready to shave", however, it pulls so hard on my face that I can not even use it. I have never used a straight before so I dont know if I am not good at it or it was a dud. What tests can I do to see if I need to send it in to get honed. Thank you for the help

I have tried to split a hair with the blade but was unsuccessful.
 
jlindy

jlindy

You've done the test... Shaving, or trying to is the best test of "is it sharp enough". If it's not up to scratch then it needs honing. Chances are if your razor has it's factory edge it isn't shave ready despite claims to the contrary. But there are vendors that will sell razors that really are shave ready. So what kind of razor is it, and where did you buy it? :)
 
Alum of Potash

Alum of Potash

First way to know, or at least believe, that it is shave-ready is to purchase a razor marked as shave-ready by a reputable dealer. Upon arrival, try a hanging-hair test, as has been mentioned, and see if it passes or not. If it passes, that is a good sign. If it doesn't pass, then either your method is off or the edge needs more work. Finally, if it is indeed shave-ready, it is important to shave with it the first time without stropping, so as to know how the edge really is as received (I always spritz the blade off with alcohol before doing this). Then, after the shave, you can strop it for the first time.
 
F

Fischinthelake

jlindy said:
You've done the test... Shaving, or trying to is the best test of "is it sharp enough". If it's not up to scratch then it needs honing. Chances are if your razor has it's factory edge it isn't shave ready despite claims to the contrary. But there are vendors that will sell razors that really are shave ready. So what kind of razor is it, and where did you buy it? :)
Click to expand...

It is a Ralf Aust and I bought it from Straight Razor Designs. I will take up Buca on his offer. Thank you to everyone that has responded.
 
Gamma

Gamma

It's not uncommon for new straight users to think the edge is dull when it isn't.
Lack of prep, lack of technique, etc.
It's also not uncommon for someone to screw up a fresh edge any number of ways without even knowing it.
Or - perhaps the razor wasn't honed correctly in the first place.

Two things I find interesting here though, is that you 'purchased it a while back'.
And you opted to post here without contacting the vendor.

When I buy something and I'm not happy, i usually contact the person I got it from.
If I paid for a new Razor, that was honed, I think I'd shave with it when it arrived - not 'a while later'.
 
Slash McCoy

Slash McCoy

I freehand dog rockets
Fischinthelake said:
It is a Ralf Aust and I bought it from Straight Razor Designs. I will take up Buca on his offer. Thank you to everyone that has responded.
Click to expand...

I think SRD needs some new honemeisters. This isn't the first report in recent weeks of poorly honed "shave-ready" blades from them.
 
Slash McCoy

Slash McCoy

I freehand dog rockets
Gamma brings up a good point... did you contact SRD?

When you get your razor back from Bill, it will be shave-ready. No need to strop for the first shave. No point in risking rolling the edge. Keep your shave angle nice and low. Lay the razor flat against your face, then rotate the spine out away from your face so that there is a gap between the spine of the razor, and your face, equal to the spine thickness. That is your basic shave angle. Too big of an angle and you are not shaving; you are scraping. Too shallow of an angle and the razor might not cut well. A very sharp razor will shave with the spine practically dragging on the face, but use the basic shave angle for now, until you get a handle on when to go steeper or shallower. Be sure to stretch the skin well. Good prep is important.

The idea is not to try to split a hair, but to cut it cleanly while it hangs by an end pinched between thumb and forefinger of your off hand. Actually it may not cut cleanly. Only the sharpest edges will cut cleanly with absolutely no tug or sound. Usually there is a slight pull and snap-back felt as the hair is caught and severed, and a slight ping or "tink" sound also. Maybe it just catches but does not cut. There are varying levels of response to this test, called "HHT" for Hanging Hair Test. And it is subjective, due to differeces in technique, and hair sample.

My test is somewhat similar. I pass the razor 1/4" over my forearm and observe how many hairs are "treetopped" by the razor, and how much fuss this generates. The tug and release of catch/cut, and the "tink" sound it makes. This varies with the razor grind, and how many times I have recently performed this test on one of my only two forearms in my posession. Right now both arms are sporting short, clean crew-cuts lol. Did you go into this first shave armed with the knowledge required to get a good shave? Did you do your homework, or did you just spray some foam out of a can, smear it on face, and get bizzy with the razor? I dont doubt that the razor was dull, but I want to make sure that when you try again, there is no question that you will succeed.

While your razor is in transit and in honing, you might visit your local Sallys Beauty Supply. Pick up a big honking bottle of Pinaud Clubman, for starters. Great stuff, and cheap. But mainly, get yourself a "Magic Razor" shavette, and a pack of Personna DE blades. You snap the blade in half to use in the shavette. With the blade properly installed, you will have a straight razor shaped whisker whacker that is sharper than all but a very few straight razors. If you cant get that thing to cut whiskers, then I think it was your technique at fault after all. Actually it is pretty easy to cut whiskers with a shavette and a nice fresh blade, but it is also easy to cut skin. A few days shaving with a shavette will definitely get your technique dialed in. It is quite unforgiving. If you can shave with a shavette, then you can certainly shave with a straight.
 
F

Fischinthelake

Slash McCoy said:
Gamma brings up a good point... did you contact SRD?

When you get your razor back from Bill, it will be shave-ready. No need to strop for the first shave. No point in risking rolling the edge. Keep your shave angle nice and low. Lay the razor flat against your face, then rotate the spine out away from your face so that there is a gap between the spine of the razor, and your face, equal to the spine thickness. That is your basic shave angle. Too big of an angle and you are not shaving; you are scraping. Too shallow of an angle and the razor might not cut well. A very sharp razor will shave with the spine practically dragging on the face, but use the basic shave angle for now, until you get a handle on when to go steeper or shallower. Be sure to stretch the skin well. Good prep is important.

The idea is not to try to split a hair, but to cut it cleanly while it hangs by an end pinched between thumb and forefinger of your off hand. Actually it may not cut cleanly. Only the sharpest edges will cut cleanly with absolutely no tug or sound. Usually there is a slight pull and snap-back felt as the hair is caught and severed, and a slight ping or "tink" sound also. Maybe it just catches but does not cut. There are varying levels of response to this test, called "HHT" for Hanging Hair Test. And it is subjective, due to differeces in technique, and hair sample.

My test is somewhat similar. I pass the razor 1/4" over my forearm and observe how many hairs are "treetopped" by the razor, and how much fuss this generates. The tug and release of catch/cut, and the "tink" sound it makes. This varies with the razor grind, and how many times I have recently performed this test on one of my only two forearms in my posession. Right now both arms are sporting short, clean crew-cuts lol. Did you go into this first shave armed with the knowledge required to get a good shave? Did you do your homework, or did you just spray some foam out of a can, smear it on face, and get bizzy with the razor? I dont doubt that the razor was dull, but I want to make sure that when you try again, there is no question that you will succeed.

While your razor is in transit and in honing, you might visit your local Sallys Beauty Supply. Pick up a big honking bottle of Pinaud Clubman, for starters. Great stuff, and cheap. But mainly, get yourself a "Magic Razor" shavette, and a pack of Personna DE blades. You snap the blade in half to use in the shavette. With the blade properly installed, you will have a straight razor shaped whisker whacker that is sharper than all but a very few straight razors. If you cant get that thing to cut whiskers, then I think it was your technique at fault after all. Actually it is pretty easy to cut whiskers with a shavette and a nice fresh blade, but it is also easy to cut skin. A few days shaving with a shavette will definitely get your technique dialed in. It is quite unforgiving. If you can shave with a shavette, then you can certainly shave with a straight.
Click to expand...


Thank you for all the information!!
To answer some of your questions; The razor does not cut hair off my arm when I try that. I also, did try to use it on my face multiple times thinking it was me being new at Straight Razors but it pulls so bad on my hairs.
I was told to stay away from Shavettes because it teaches bad technique?
Thank you again for being so informative.
 
F

Fischinthelake

Gamma said:
It's not uncommon for new straight users to think the edge is dull when it isn't.
Lack of prep, lack of technique, etc.
It's also not uncommon for someone to screw up a fresh edge any number of ways without even knowing it.
Or - perhaps the razor wasn't honed correctly in the first place.

Two things I find interesting here though, is that you 'purchased it a while back'.
And you opted to post here without contacting the vendor.

When I buy something and I'm not happy, i usually contact the person I got it from.
If I paid for a new Razor, that was honed, I think I'd shave with it when it arrived - not 'a while later'.
Click to expand...

I purchased it in July. When I first tried to use the razor, I thought it tugged the hairs because I was bad at using the razor. That leads to why I did not contact the vendor. I did not contact the vendor because football season started and I coach for a living and l didnt have time to use the Straight Razor during the season. I work 7 days a week and long hours. (I used my DE).. Since football season ended, I thought it would be fun to learn straight razor. That leads me to where I am now.
 
Slash McCoy

Slash McCoy

I freehand dog rockets
I dont think shavettes teach bad technique at all. Actually I think they enforce good technique. Angle too high? Pay for your sin, in blood. Pressure too heavy? Your punishment is to bleed. Not stretching? The shavette will extract the blood price for your lapse. The shavette will punish you for mistakes that you can sorta sometimes get away with, using a straight, especially one that is not fearsomely sharp. Do it like you feel it. If you want to try a shavette for a few days while waiting on your razor to get back to you, go for it. Just be aware that it has a lot of cutting power. OTOH it also cuts whiskers quite well. Be sure to only go WTG initially, or as close as possible. Keep the shave angle EXTRA low until you have a handle on it. Even if you dont cut your face to bits, poor technique will cause a lot of irritation. But dont fear the shavette. Just respect it. Even though it is cheap, it is no toy.
 
B

buca3152

Only thing about shavettes, we'll the ones I used anyway is the angle was higher than a real straight. I used one for 7 years and it took me.a while to get used to the lower flat to the face angle. It does teach you to.have respect for the razor for sure.
 
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