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Edge or Technique?

Wait...you asked him *not* to strop it after he honed it? Okay....you probably should have led with that.

Get a strop. Make a strop. Strop on the inside of your forearm. Whatever. It's part of the process. Not optional, as you've discovered.
 
The concavity and extra length of you bevel is probably only a few microns in difference from a flat bevel, but it can make a difference. When you go from a convex surface to a hanging strop you do need to be a little more carful to avoid folding over your edge.

I have done calculations of the theoretical effects of these concave bevels. To be honest, the theory does not match with the practical results when shaving. I would really like to see an open minded discussion why there is difference here. It makes no sense just from the geometry. From that standpoint i really do understand the people who dismiss this. To be honest, i would to if i had not tested the concept.

The only explanation i see now is that the lower part of the bevel bends a little over the small contact point you are working over.

I hope it works out for you. It was not my intention to to derail your thread.
I believe the rationale is thicker material behind the edge which is closer to the edge (achievable with this concave design) adds more meat and a longer-lived blade. A chisel with a 15 degree bevel is ideal for cutting, but too weak and not practical because of this lack of steel behind the blade. A 30° bevel is a trade off between effective cutting and longevity. At least that's my take on it.
 
Wait...you asked him *not* to strop it after he honed it? Okay....you probably should have led with that.

Get a strop. Make a strop. Strop on the inside of your forearm. Whatever. It's part of the process. Not optional, as you've discovered.
LOL. "You might have led with that." Yeah. I didn't think to because I'm not coming from a position of knowledge. I am getting leather, no doubt.
 
I believe the rationale is thicker material behind the edge which is closer to the edge (achievable with this concave design) adds more meat and a longer-lived blade. A chisel with a 15 degree bevel is ideal for cutting, but too weak and not practical because of this lack of steel behind the blade. A 30° bevel is a trade off between effective cutting and longevity. At least that's my take on it.
As you improve you technique you rely less on having a ultra sharp edge. A traditional coticule edge can be all you need, but you might need to adjust your technique a little.
 
@Titleist after I sort out my leather; since you mention, my lather seems a bit sub-par. I only have Proraso in a tube. I can make lather from it, but it's not as wet as I think it could be. I happen to have some glycerin and some pure lanolin. Would it avail me at all to add a few drops of each or either to a mug to mix my lather? If not, or even if so, what could I be doing to improve the condition of my face? I have the hot water and towel regimen as part of the routine, but my face always feels like it's cooled off quite a bit when it comes time to shave. Maybe part of it is a simple order of events thing?
 
@Titleist after I sort out my leather; since you mention, my lather seems a bit sub-par. I only have Proraso in a tube. I can make lather from it, but it's not as wet as I think it could be. I happen to have some glycerin and some pure lanolin. Would it avail me at all to add a few drops of each or either to a mug to mix my lather? If not, or even if so, what could I be doing to improve the condition of my face? I have the hot water and towel regimen as part of the routine, but my face always feels like it's cooled off quite a bit when it comes time to shave. Maybe part of it is a simple order of events thing?
Ive been using proraso red from a tube. I make the lather first but when I’ve worked it into my beard I dip the tips of the brush in the sink and make it a little wetter on my face and work it in a little more.
 
Using a mister/spray bottle can also help if you face lather with a soap or cream that is sensitive to the water ratio. Adding glycerine can add some slickness by allowing the lather to hold more water.
 
Leather.

I hope this garners affirmative nods rather than gets me laughed off the forum, but desperate times call for desperate measures. I've owned this couch for more than 20 years and the small section on the back rail (from the stitching closest to the camera, to the next one out) is about 5" wide by 23" long. I pulled it away from the wall, stood behind it; and got 50 round trips on supple, smooth leather with plenty of stout upholstery filling underneath. I'm sure it by no means approximates a proper strop, but it did get me strokes on leather. It appears quite curved in the picture (the place where you would rest your head), but where I "stropped" was pretty flat.

I was careful not to press so hard that the surface swelled in front of the blade, but spine-leading felt very good. I looked under a watchmaker's loupe afterwards and can still see the delineation of a shiny edge.

I'm going to take some more advice now and report back when I'm done shaving.
leather.jpg
 
I never tried that one before. lol.
I think I would have wiped it down with a microfiber cloth and dried it well. /Then covered the spot and let dry for an hour or so before stropping on it. Clean leather is important as dust can scratch an edge too. Let us know if it feels better for ya.
 
If you look closely you can see where I dusted. I didn't moisten it at all, but dusted it with a microfiber cloth.

Best shave yet. Very comfortable, not terribly close, but best so far. Confidence is building. I got an alum block today and rubbed it for a minute on my face afterwards and it felt like ice. Left it there for two minutes and put aftershave right over it. No cold water rinse.

Face feels REALLY good. :)
 
When starting out with a straight the odds of getting a real close shave is minimal. Doing a three-pass shave will get you closer but it takes time before it all comes together. With a very close shave, you will get a bit of a sting from alum. And I'd recommend rinsing it off before applying A.S. but that's my opinion. I don't like the idea of leaving it on my face for very long. It's not like its a conditioner. lol.

Keep it up. By this time next year, you won't understand why you had a hard time learning to use a straight.
 
When starting out with a straight the odds of getting a real close shave is minimal.

Keep it up. By this time next year, you won't understand why you had a hard time learning to use a straight.
Thank you, Hazmat. That first sentence makes me feel better about things. Most importantly I’m becoming more confident.
 
confidence is good but don't get cocky! Them razors will take an ear lobe or finger off if you don't respect it.

Start with the flats of your face. maybe a couple more areas. Then finish with your standard razor. little at a time slowly gaining more ground and it will be a much smoother transition from one razor to the next. Good luck and enjoy it. Oh, and buy five more razors. Everyone needs 100 or more. At least that's what keeps me from thinking I have a problem. lol.
 
If you look closely you can see where I dusted. I didn't moisten it at all, but dusted it with a microfiber cloth.

Best shave yet. Very comfortable, not terribly close, but best so far. Confidence is building. I got an alum block today and rubbed it for a minute on my face afterwards and it felt like ice. Left it there for two minutes and put aftershave right over it. No cold water rinse.

Face feels REALLY good. :)

This may be a Badger & Blade first. Amazing about the leather, right? Your journey is now officially underway. May the gods of shaving smile down on you!
 

rbscebu

Girls call me Makaluod
Spline distance and shave angle are slightly subjective based the edge. Freehand honing can give a slight variation on the optimum cutting angle 📐 so experiment on the hold. I can tell you the blade barely touches my face at about a 20-30 angle and it’s ready to shave a month old beard off with the slightest of blade pressure. Think of a butter knife gliding through soft butter pressure.
I'm curious. What do you mean by "freehand" honing? I am picturing you honing with the spine raised above the honing surface.
 
BTW, people have brought it up but I don't think I answered: I told Jarrod NOT to strop before sending the razor out; so the stars are all aligned if I transition to leather ONLY, right now, correct?

In stropping on the pasted balsa sequence, you have changed the edge from the state it was in when Jarrod sent it out (i.e., from an intended coticule edge to a diamond-pasted edge or hybrid of the two). That said, you probably haven't altered things all that much with regard to shave-effectiveness and actually may have things better as far as relative "shave effectiveness" is concerned for you right now (highly subjective). Subsequent stropping on plain leather can only improve things in either case, so don't sweat it. Main thing to be concerned with now is that inexperienced or improper stropping on plain leather can roll or damage the edge, which is one reason why asking to honer to strop the "shave-ready" razor before sending it out can be helpful as a starting point of reference.
 
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I'm curious. What do you mean by "freehand" honing? I am picturing you honing with the spine raised above the honing surface.
Don’t picture me honing with the spline off the surface, but many others might. Plenty of great knife sharpeners jack their SRs edges up, so a fair number of folk who are worried about scratching their SR‘s spline.
 
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