My 2nd Vintage SR. Tell Me About This Edge, Please.
- Thread starter Chan Eil Whiskers
- Start date
Just send the razor to Doc226 .Ask him for one of his Kita J-Nat edges .Alfredo will put a special edge that razor .J.R. sent you a good razor .It probably is a factory edge that oxidized over the years,The razor will probably shave very well with a quick refresh .I usually have to tweak an edge on a brand new razor. I set it up the way I like it in terms of smoothness and keenness .Maintaining and refreshing an edge is not a big deal .Just normal maintenance .Do not over think this .
If it's not sharp, if won't shave very well. It's not going to cut your throat. Why not shave with it instead of spending so much effort not to shave with it?
- Thread starter
- #24
Chan Eil Whiskers
Fumbling about.
One thing I'm not doing is sending it back (returning it). I didn't mention this, but JR said he'd hone it for me when it needs honing. I assume that means free.
One of these will be my choice.
It looks like a nice razor other than the edge. I'm keeping it.
I'll decide on an initial course soon.
Thanks, everyone, and happy shaves,
Jim
One of these will be my choice.
- Shave with it as it is.
- Hone it myself and shave with it.
- Take up an offer to have a skilled member hone it.
It looks like a nice razor other than the edge. I'm keeping it.
I'll decide on an initial course soon.
Thanks, everyone, and happy shaves,
Jim
Glad you are keeping it, Jim. There is no reason to send it out. If you take your time and pay attention there is no reason you cannot produce an edge that is right for you. When @steveclarkus sent me a razor he said was shave ready, I still stropped it on linen and horse hide. It shave great and he is just into this stuff since April.
@steveclarkus held my hands and taught me well. Just do it, Jim. Trust me, you will be happy you did.
@steveclarkus held my hands and taught me well. Just do it, Jim. Trust me, you will be happy you did.
Really?? He has more stones than I do.
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Who has more stones?
This is just a personal thing, but if I send something out it will be what someone else thinks is right. Having honed only two and stopped a bunch, I now can get what I want, but YMMV (I suppose).
Our friend with the razor from JR, here!!
Speaking of honing, JR re-scaled three of my razors and I need to go refresh edges.
Hey, good to speak with you today, my friend.
- Thread starter
- #34
Chan Eil Whiskers
Fumbling about.
Part of this post was most helpful to me. ("If it's not sharp, if won't shave very well. It's not going to cut your throat.")
I've got an old and horrible history with SR shaves (and the scars to prove it). Plus, I'm a big time newbie to SR razors and honing. I'm fine with all of that. We all start with nothing, right. Being afraid of these razors and trying to be quite prudent will remain part of who I am until I have the knowledge, understanding, and experience to gain what I think of as an informed confidence.
Naive about the bad stuff a SR can do is not part of my makeup. I've been badly cut!
That's why just hearing that this razor wasn't going to do anything other than shave or not shave did the trick for me.
I've now shaved with the razor. It actually shaved much, much, much better than I would have dreamed possible having viewed the edge with my eyes and various optical tools. I have no idea how that can be.
My shave report is linked here.
I'll shave with this razor again tomorrow probably making an effort to get a better shave. Today I was mostly seeing if it would shave.
Thanks for all the help you gentlemen have given me on this and other threads and in private messages.
Happy shaves,
Jim
An idea, if you want to know if you are cutting hair, get a sponge to wipe your blade. You'll notice bits of hair mingled in with the lather if you are cutting. I picked up a nice sponge at Home Depot's janitor section and halved it. Less than $3.
- Thread starter
- #36
Chan Eil Whiskers
Fumbling about.
Good idea.
- Thread starter
- #37
Chan Eil Whiskers
Fumbling about.
I think I have an understanding of how you're using the clip on microscope.
- You have the phone flat on a surface (table) with the screen pointing up.
- The microscope is set up so its lens is towards the ceiling and it's eye piece is clipped to the part of the phone where the lens is for taking selfies.
- You're holding the razor in your hand above the microscope's lens.
- You can see on your screen exactly what the microscope/camera sees (in the same way you'd see what you're doing when taking a selfie).
I can find the spot of my screen when the selfie-taking lens is. I find it by getting set up for a selfie and moving my thumb around until I can cover and uncover the lens. However, trying to get the microscope over that spot has thus far eluded me.
I'll try it again later, but I want to thank you for running how to do do this by me again and for telling me about this cool clip on microscope and camera attachment.
Happy shaves,
Jim
Yes, that describes how I am using this scope. It is a bit fussy, and finding the spot where the camera looks directly into the scope is only half the hard part - the other half is keeping it that way. The phone will not lay quite flat with the clip under it, and the scope has to remain at a right angle to the phone surface, or the camera gets blocked - it's a bit of a balancing act.
However, balancing act though it may be, it is far easier than trying to get this thing to focus on a blade that is sitting on a flat surface - the focal depth is super narrow, and right at the "window" formed by the clear plastic. Thus, there is no real room for error in thickness of the blade trying it the other way around. I've found this to be the easiest way.
Once you get the hang of it, it becomes pretty easy to slide the blade along and get a view along the bevel.
I don't think anyone can look at the edge of a blade and tell how it will shave. You can tell if the edge has pitting or if one blade doesn't look like all the others that you have seen but you can't tell how it will shave.
It's mostly just a gross tool. It's a fun tool and I have one but I don't use it all that often.
You can cut yourself with even a dull razor if you use it like a knife. If you use it like a straight razor you won't cut yourself other than just minor nicks as with any razor.
Good to hear that you had a decent shave. I think you are overthinking shaving with a straight razor. It's just a matter of experience, repetitions.
It's mostly just a gross tool. It's a fun tool and I have one but I don't use it all that often.
You can cut yourself with even a dull razor if you use it like a knife. If you use it like a straight razor you won't cut yourself other than just minor nicks as with any razor.
Good to hear that you had a decent shave. I think you are overthinking shaving with a straight razor. It's just a matter of experience, repetitions.
- Thread starter
- #40
Chan Eil Whiskers
Fumbling about.
You're right. Well, I hope you're right about the "won't cut yourself" part.
I think maybe, from this one razor, you're right about our, certainly my, inability to judge a razor's ability to shave by how it looks; I don't have the experience to know if you're globally right or not.
Logic and my gut say appearance should be consistent with function, and thus you're wrong. Still, my limited experience says you're right. Both my logic and my gut are uninformed, so you're probably right.
I'll learn more as I gain experience. This razor has been a learning experience so far.
You're certainly right about me overthinking it. I overthink things + scars tend to be permanent. I want the lessons my scars remind me of to encourage me to exercise prudence and safety.
Happy shaves,
Jim
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