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Confused about a blade being to sharp

I am confused by people who say a blade is to sharp. To dull I understand, but to sharp just doesn't make sense to me. In a similar vein this applies to razors. Take the Karve razor as an example. I hear people say Plate C isn't efficient enough but plate E is to aggressive so D is perfect.

As I continue this wet shaving journey, I can't think of a blade or razor that strikes me as to sharp or to aggressive. I have also never heard a straight razor user complain about honing their razor to sharp.
 
People mean different things with the term aggressive. While I agree that the sharpest tools tend to be the best, there is something to be said for comfort and ease of use.

What many people would like is a razor and blade combo that gives a close shave more or less on autopilot when they are still half-asleep in the morning. They can get away with small mistakes in technique.

If a person cannot relax while shaving because they feel the razor will nick or cut them if not perfectly controlled at all times, that is sometimes called aggressive. For example, the Ikon Tek. If a razor offers a lot of blade feel, many people consider that uncomfortable.

The too sharp blade concern is mostly to do with post-shave irritation. A blade that is forgiving, and does not cause irritation if you shave less than perfectly is what many people prefer. To a large extent, this is a matter of matching a blade to a razor. A very sharp blade such as Feather can work well in a mild razor such as a Gillette Tech. Maybe an Ikon Tek would work better with a milder blade such as Astra.
 

Rhody

I'm a Lumberjack.
Terms vary but sharpness and aggressiveness have degrees. Karve makes different plates and some people feel that d is too aggressive or a is too mild.
 
People mean different things with the term aggressive. While I agree that the sharpest tools tend to be the best, there is something to be said for comfort and ease of use.

What many people would like is a razor and blade combo that gives a close shave more or less on autopilot when they are still half-asleep in the morning. They can get away with small mistakes in technique.

If a person cannot relax while shaving because they feel the razor will nick or cut them if not perfectly controlled at all times, that is sometimes called aggressive. For example, the Ikon Tek. If a razor offers a lot of blade feel, many people consider that uncomfortable.

The too sharp blade concern is mostly to do with post-shave irritation. A blade that is forgiving, and does not cause irritation if you shave less than perfectly is what many people prefer. To a large extent, this is a matter of matching a blade to a razor. A very sharp blade such as Feather can work well in a mild razor such as a Gillette Tech. Maybe an Ikon Tek would work better with a milder blade such as Astra.
I can only agree most are looking for a comfy combination. I like sharp blades in my mild razors. But some combinations work wonders while others are only usable when very concentrated or not at all.
From time to time an I-idiot monkey proof no thinking shave is just what you need.
 

lasta

Blade Biter
I'm with you, sharper = better.

But, I also believe that our "perception" of sharpness and smoothness is inherently biased.

My first impression of Nacet is that it is not as sharp or smooth as GSB. But after 6 consecutive Nacet blades and ~26 days of back to back irritation free BBS, I changed to a GSB again this morning. Got some irritation under the chin and a small weeper on the stash.

Now Nacet>GSB.

Catch my drift?
 
I enjoy sharp blades in ‘mild/moderate’ razors!

That said, other blade characteristics are also important: smoothness (comfort), longevity, etc. In the end my favorite blades offer a great combination of these characteristics!! :a21: :a21:
 
Because if your beard doesn't require a sharp blade, then why not try a blade that still does the job but you can comfortably shave with half asleep in the morning? Sharper blades demand more attention. Using a BIC or a Silver Star is quite different from using a Shark SS. With the Shark, you can shave blindfolded and you won't cut yourself and you won't feel the blade even in the most aggressive razors. I use sharp blades because I have to, but if Shark SS was sharp enough for me, I'd never ever look at any sharper blades than that.
 
Gillette figured out decades ago people could not reliably distinguish between blades of varying sharpness. With the first use Feather vs Merkur/Shark exception noted, it's mostly the difference in coatings that determine the feel of a blade.

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Razor and blade combinations are one of the finer things that I came to understand in this hobby.

My Game Changer 84 Open Comb prevailed but never excelled with the Gillette 7 O'clock Super Platinum, Shark Super Chrome among other blades, but it excelled with the Feather Hi-Stainless Steel Platinum coated blades.

Similarly my Lupo 95 excelled with the Shark Super Chrome and totally impressed me with the Feather blades.

On the other hand, RazoRock BBS (standard) and Wunderbar doesn't show any noticeable improvement in the performance with Feather blade and they work well with the Gillette 7 O'clock Super Platinum.

We tend to use different terms to express out experience and understanding of the razor - blade combination and tends to call the blades as too sharp to use, while it would have meant to be said that a blade was too sharp to be used 'with certain razor'.

Razor blade combinations when worked out to our preference and according to the razor's efficiency, all (most of them) the blades are usable and none (almost) aren't too sharp to use.

Even if I've found a few good combinations of razor and blade, I've barely touched the surface and there are a lot of blades to try, who knows I might get even better combinations with my razors.

It's how we use the tools will decide how good a shave we get, that is why cost doesn't always equal to the performance in this hobby and therefore neither should be the sharpness of the blade IF we pair it with a suitable razor and of course "No pressure" while shaving.
 
.... and of course "No pressure" while shaving.

This is just something people on forums like to say but razors with negative exposure require pressure, as may those with neutral to slightly positive depending on angle, it's a matter of basic geometry. "Use no more pressure than necessary to maintain consistent edge/skin contact" is messier but more accurate.



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This is just something people on forums like to say but razors with negative exposure require pressure, as may those with neutral to slightly positive depending on angle, it's a matter of basic geometry. "Use no more pressure than necessary to maintain consistent edge/skin contact" is messier but more accurate.



Sent from my Pixel 4a using Tapatalk
True.

It also depends upon the type of razor we are using -

I use Feather Artist Club 'Kamisori', Wunderbar, Lupo 95 and Game Changer 84 Open Comb - all of these have positive blade exposure and it actually works best for me to use little to no pressure and let the blade do the work.

When we look closely, as you said - just enough pressure to maintain effective contact of blade with the shave area.

With the razors that I have and use, their head geometry, weight distribution and positive blade exposure actually works in such a way that all I need is the placement of the razor at effective angle and shaves are done with minimal abrasion on skin, which is also our aim.

Pressure is not really required, consistent contact without pushing the razor is my requirement for a smooth shave.

I must admit that I don't have extensive experience with the negative and neutral blade exposure razors, so I cannot comment on the requirements of pressure or contact with those razors.
 
True.

It also depends upon the type of razor we are using -

I use Feather Artist Club 'Kamisori', Wunderbar, Lupo 95 and Game Changer 84 Open Comb - all of these have positive blade exposure and it actually works best for me to use little to no pressure and let the blade do the work.

When we look closely, as you said - just enough pressure to maintain effective contact of blade with the shave area.

With the razors that I have and use, their head geometry, weight distribution and positive blade exposure actually works in such a way that all I need is the placement of the razor at effective angle and shaves are done with minimal abrasion on skin, which is also our aim.

Pressure is not really required, consistent contact without pushing the razor is my requirement for a smooth shave.

I must admit that I don't have extensive experience with the negative and neutral blade exposure razors, so I cannot comment on the requirements of pressure or contact with those razors.

Sure. Most prewar Gillettes, for example, have marginally positive exposure (I think, I'm not a Gillette guy) with smallish gap, so if you stray from the sweet spot angle to reach a tricky area you'll be using pressure if you want to do much cutting. I also prefer razors with some blade feel but have my favorites -- eg Stahly and Vib'Raz -- thst won't do anything at all without pressure.

Now back to the regularly scheduled program.

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Sharper does not equal better. Sharp enough and smooth = better. Feathers are too sharp and we’re developed only to make their inefficient razors usable. Why don’t they make a more efficient razor and bag the hyper sharp blades? I dunno.
 
Sharper does not equal better. Sharp enough and smooth = better. Feathers are too sharp and we’re developed only to make etheir inefficient razors usable. Why don’t they make a more efficient razor and bag the hyper sharp blades? I dunno.
I agree!
 

Ron R

I survived a lathey foreman
When I first started shaving traditional wet shaving (Greenhorn) with a Gillette Tech it seemed I could shave with a Personna red blade OK and then tried a Feather and I got nicked more with the Feather blade. 4 years later and now a seasoned shaver I can shave with a Feather blade and not get nicked. I believe as you gain experience in DE & SE you get to know the limits of your skin and you automatically adjust pressure to accommodate for the sharpness (you know you got a nicked sensation before it even starts bleeding ). I can use any Safety razor now and by the 1st pass I can dial in what the blade and razor combination pressure or approach to take. I have a rotation of 40 different razors and enjoy the differences they offer and they have taught myself how to shave better IMO.
Ideal blade is Sharp & smoooth with reasonable longevity is all I like to use some fellows who use straight razors shave go by just blade feel the whole session and don't get nicked.
 
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