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- #861
I have been busy in the workshop.......
njt's shave journey v2
- Thread starter njtnjt
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- #862
I've been busy working on honing technique. I'm posting because my edges took another jump recently. For the past 6 months to a year I have been playing with "Science of Sharp's" simple honing technique.
If you are familiar with his technique it involves making a foil edge on the razor and then polishing it away with pasted denim and diamond sprayed strops. The technique works for sure. It gave me my first truly keen edges. I didn't like the idea of creating a foil edge
But, hey, it works.
In pursuit of better edges I started to experiment with a hybrid approach that doesn't involve manufacturing foil edges and polishing them away. As a foundation I started to use The Ax method. Its a pyramid honing approach espoused by Alex Gilmore of The Japan Stone. Alex is a master honer. He has been refining his skills since the 1970's. I listen to anyone with that much experience but where the rubber meets the road is "does it work for me". The answer is mostly. His stropping technique is way beyond mine still.
I was attracted to the edge leading strokes that he makes in his videos, always pulling the blade towards his body. That seemed to make a lot of sense to me. My stroke changes in terms of pressure and angle when I push the razor edge away from me. I also, like Alex, favor a two handed technique. I am better able to distribute pressures on the various parts of the blade better with two hands.
In essence, I gave up on the edge trailing strokes, started making my strokes by just pulling the edge towards my body, and instead of alternating sides with every pass I now start with 10 strokes on one side, then 10 on the other gradually decreasing to one stroke per side. You can see his videos for more in depth explanations.
I also started to use the slurry created when I lap my stones before use. I always lap my stones every time I use them. Maybe not much, but I like to make sure the stones are flat. Now I use that slurry before moving on to the Tomo of the day and then finish on a light slurry of mostly water (depending on the stone). Alex seems to always slurry the stones with a well worn diamond plate.
...After 4 or 5 years of honing I assure everyone I still fell like a beginner. I'm fascinated by these 500 million year old stones from Japan and how they work an edge to shaving keenness.
I go from the stone to 30 passes on a lightly Flitz loaded piece of denim taped to the work bench. Then clean leather. I'm not sure what the denim does but without it I don't get HHT. With it I am mostly hht 4 to 5. Go figure...
What I haven't quite figured out to my satisfaction is stropping. I see so much deflection in videos. How can folks not be rolling edges? I am working on it. I think I would like to be able to eliminate the denim step and come off the stones to clean linen then the horse. But so far no-go.
I also think my ability to keep an edge going is suffering. Still much work left to do in this department.
But - I am getting better shaves than I ever could with Feather razors and the Merkur HD I used for many, many years.
More to come. Happy New Years all.
If you are familiar with his technique it involves making a foil edge on the razor and then polishing it away with pasted denim and diamond sprayed strops. The technique works for sure. It gave me my first truly keen edges. I didn't like the idea of creating a foil edge
But, hey, it works. In pursuit of better edges I started to experiment with a hybrid approach that doesn't involve manufacturing foil edges and polishing them away. As a foundation I started to use The Ax method. Its a pyramid honing approach espoused by Alex Gilmore of The Japan Stone. Alex is a master honer. He has been refining his skills since the 1970's. I listen to anyone with that much experience but where the rubber meets the road is "does it work for me". The answer is mostly. His stropping technique is way beyond mine still.
I was attracted to the edge leading strokes that he makes in his videos, always pulling the blade towards his body. That seemed to make a lot of sense to me. My stroke changes in terms of pressure and angle when I push the razor edge away from me. I also, like Alex, favor a two handed technique. I am better able to distribute pressures on the various parts of the blade better with two hands.
In essence, I gave up on the edge trailing strokes, started making my strokes by just pulling the edge towards my body, and instead of alternating sides with every pass I now start with 10 strokes on one side, then 10 on the other gradually decreasing to one stroke per side. You can see his videos for more in depth explanations.
I also started to use the slurry created when I lap my stones before use. I always lap my stones every time I use them. Maybe not much, but I like to make sure the stones are flat. Now I use that slurry before moving on to the Tomo of the day and then finish on a light slurry of mostly water (depending on the stone). Alex seems to always slurry the stones with a well worn diamond plate.
...After 4 or 5 years of honing I assure everyone I still fell like a beginner. I'm fascinated by these 500 million year old stones from Japan and how they work an edge to shaving keenness.
I go from the stone to 30 passes on a lightly Flitz loaded piece of denim taped to the work bench. Then clean leather. I'm not sure what the denim does but without it I don't get HHT. With it I am mostly hht 4 to 5. Go figure...
What I haven't quite figured out to my satisfaction is stropping. I see so much deflection in videos. How can folks not be rolling edges? I am working on it. I think I would like to be able to eliminate the denim step and come off the stones to clean linen then the horse. But so far no-go.
I also think my ability to keep an edge going is suffering. Still much work left to do in this department.
But - I am getting better shaves than I ever could with Feather razors and the Merkur HD I used for many, many years.
More to come. Happy New Years all.
Welcome back! Glad to hear that you are doing well with your honing.
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- #864
Thank you Chris. I'm shuffling along... I appreciate the shout out.
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- #865
Watched a helpful stropping video on coticule.be last night. Tried gripping the razor as demonstrated, using a strop with more draw and relaxing the tautness of the strop. Gave it all a test on a couple razors and am pleased to report had some success. My guess is that I have been holding the leather so taught that not much was happening on the edge. Also learned that some draw is a good thing on a strop. Otherwise a user has to push really hard in order to get the razor to make contact with the leather. Look at that video and read what is written next to it if like myself you are finding that you are unable to get as many shaves out of an edge as you would like. I counted 3 things that needed changing in my technique - I'm going to change all 3 and work for better results.
Great info on the honing. I've tried the foil edge to pasted denim once, and it seemed to work pretty well for me, but I wasn't really crazy about purposefully creating a foil edge either. I'll have to check out some of Alex's videos.
Good luck with the stropping! What strop do you use?
Good luck with the stropping! What strop do you use?
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- #867
Hi Eric, thanks for the shout out.
I have 3 strops but primarily use a Kanayama 60,000. It is working perfectly with the new stropping techniques I learned last night. I highly recommend them. The gentleman who makes them is in his 80's and there won't be anymore when he decides to stop.
I also have a Walkin Horse Horsebutt strop. I'm not sure if they are in business anymore. Maybe someone could enlighten us? There is very little draw on this strop. The linen portion is wonderful to work with. I don't use this strop anymore.
Lastly I have a Tony Miller travel strop. This little guy has almost no draw at all. It came in a little round travel can, and has a leather thong with a sliding wooden "button" for tightening the thong to door knobs while away from home. Its a great strop for vacations and trips. I am tempted to take the Kanayama in a box or pouch instead but am afraid something might happen to it like lost luggage. Maybe I will buy another for traveling with......
I was going to wait to post about stropping again. I like to have a few weeks of experience with any new technique. But the very early results are great. Following the cuticle.be video and written directions I was able to maintain hht 3 to 4 across my half hollow Brian Brown razor this morning. Usually I would not see any hht4 after the first shave off the stones, which was yesterday. This morning I saw plenty. Time will tell if its working but I think I have finally seen the light on stropping technique.
Thanks for reading!
Welcome back, Nicholas. I have the WH and TM strops you mention. I love the WH 3", especially for large, heavy grinds. The travel strop doesn't get much use anymore since a couple of razors took fliers off it; too small and slick for this clumsy oaf.
Good to see you around again.
Good to see you around again.
Fascinating stuff Nicholas! Definitely some good reads. I wish I had the diligent to focus on my honing skills. I am sure your edges are quite killer.
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- #870
I have been busy in my honing workshop of managed expectations. A recent Nakayama Kiita acquisition is worth mentioning here. I have a Nakayama Asagi that I have been using over the past year or more and was content with it. The shaves I was getting were at least as good as the Feather/Merkur combo that I used before becoming a straight razor addict. But then,,,, the lure of pretty got me. So many, many pretty stones being marched past my eyes on the forums. I decided I needed one. But pretty is as pretty does. I didn't want something that just looked good for the sake of it. It had to perform too. I didn't think anything would perform much better than what I already owned. My hubris and lack of experience talking here. Alex at The Japan Stone recently got a load of Kiita stone that were found in an air raid shelter in Japan. These are stones that were mined in the 20's. He cleaned them up and tested them. One caught my eye. The grit hardness, fineness and cutting ability were at the top of his scale. I had to try it. Now I'm no expert after only a handful of years of honing. But this stone took the comfort and closeness of my edges to a whole new level I didn't dream possible. I was prepared to be disappointed. I thought I'd get a little bump, and a much larger piece of rock to hone on. But I was wrong. I told Alex I could write songs and poems about the shave I got from my Brian Brown shorty the next day. I have used that razor every day for the past year so I know what it is capable of. It had to be the stone that made the difference.
I have another of Brian's razors on the way to me. I want to take the daily shaver out of daily service and see just how far I can take her. Mind you - I am very very happy right where I am. But its in my personality to explore and learn. Ive been a bit timid having only the one razor to work on. That will change soon and hopefully I can deepen the honing trip a bit more. Down the rabbit hole indeed.
I have another of Brian's razors on the way to me. I want to take the daily shaver out of daily service and see just how far I can take her. Mind you - I am very very happy right where I am. But its in my personality to explore and learn. Ive been a bit timid having only the one razor to work on. That will change soon and hopefully I can deepen the honing trip a bit more. Down the rabbit hole indeed.
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- #871
I had the great pleasure of speaking to Brian Brown tonight. He called to let me know he had posted a YouTube video for me outlining how to tighten up the scale pin on a razor I have of his. How great is that? He made a video, then posted it, then called me to let me know it was up and ask if I had any questions!
We had a leisurely hour long chat about..... mostly steel. I want to learn about the different steel used in razors and he really let me know what was what. American, German, Swiss, Japanese,... you name it. We traveled the globe. Really interesting stuff.
And this guy is an enthusiast. He has been straight razor shaving since he was 15. Reminds me of me. I turned my love of cameras and photography in to a career now in my 27th year. Its great when you can take something you love to do and make a life of it.
He is sending these out to me tomorrow. I'll have a mini-rotation so that I can dig into the honing arts a bit deeper without fear of botching my daily shaver edges up.
We had a leisurely hour long chat about..... mostly steel. I want to learn about the different steel used in razors and he really let me know what was what. American, German, Swiss, Japanese,... you name it. We traveled the globe. Really interesting stuff.
And this guy is an enthusiast. He has been straight razor shaving since he was 15. Reminds me of me. I turned my love of cameras and photography in to a career now in my 27th year. Its great when you can take something you love to do and make a life of it.
He is sending these out to me tomorrow. I'll have a mini-rotation so that I can dig into the honing arts a bit deeper without fear of botching my daily shaver edges up.
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- #872
My goodness.... it’s been a while since I posted. I am close in terms of equipment still to my last post. A small rotation of Brian Brown Spanish tip shorties straights and a Kiita that was mined with hand tools pre 1920 purchased from Alex. I’m super happy with these last few pieces. It took a couple years but I finally learned how to put a great edge on my razors. That stone was key. I can make the same moves on two other Jnats that I own and not get the same result; a curious combination of smooth and keen ~ the velvet squeegee. My tough Scicillian beard has never been happier.
What has changed over time is how relaxed I have become around the equipment and shave technique. I am a classic white knuckler. If I wasn’t also classic type A stubborn I would have given up long ago. I’m thankful for all those who encouraged me and for my own brand of bull headed stubbornness. Tension creates mixed results. Beware.
I have been getting great results with a steeper razor angle compared to how I started. The idea is to cut those hairs off at the base. I used a very shallow angle while learning - which I think is the way to go at first. Very few cuts or troubles that way.. keep that spine right down on your face till you have a bunch of shaves under your belt.
With increased security of my skills has come increased feel. This has allowed me to raise that spine up a bit. The razors are cutting more efficiently and cleaner now. It’s all good. Just takes some time to get it down.
The whole journey has been very gratifying.
Best to you all wherever you are in your journey..
What has changed over time is how relaxed I have become around the equipment and shave technique. I am a classic white knuckler. If I wasn’t also classic type A stubborn I would have given up long ago. I’m thankful for all those who encouraged me and for my own brand of bull headed stubbornness. Tension creates mixed results. Beware.
I have been getting great results with a steeper razor angle compared to how I started. The idea is to cut those hairs off at the base. I used a very shallow angle while learning - which I think is the way to go at first. Very few cuts or troubles that way.. keep that spine right down on your face till you have a bunch of shaves under your belt.
With increased security of my skills has come increased feel. This has allowed me to raise that spine up a bit. The razors are cutting more efficiently and cleaner now. It’s all good. Just takes some time to get it down.
The whole journey has been very gratifying.
Best to you all wherever you are in your journey..
Holy Moley Guacamole! Welcome back, Nicholas!
Yup, a solid but relaxed grip is the right way to go. Just like holding a steering wheel; too tight or too light = no good.
Yup, a solid but relaxed grip is the right way to go. Just like holding a steering wheel; too tight or too light = no good.
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- #874
Thanks so much. I have been lurking from time to time to see if there were any earth shattering developments in gear or technique
What I haven’t mentioned is PTSD. Let’s say it’s severe enough to interfere in almost everything I do. But, as I get a handle on it, everything improves. Including wet shaving
Best to you all.
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- #875
Restless ~
Time to change things up. Evolve. I’m going to try another razor soon. I’ve been using Brian Brown razors exclusively for the past couple of years. A small rotation of 3, shortie, Spanish points. Now I want something big. I’ve been shaving at a much steeper angle recently. Pushing the limits a bit to see what’s possible. A bigger, heavier razor might help me find a happy medium between weight and angle. I feel much more comfortable and think I am moving out of the beginner technique. All the work done on honing and touch-ups has allowed technique to improve.
Prices seem so have fallen a bit on the razors that caught my attention when I first started straight shaving.... thankfully. I also believe that guys like Brian have helped us all by supplying great great steel at reasonable prices. There is no longer a need to chase vintage hardware exclusively. But chase the vintage I will do. There are a couple stones I want to turn over and look under.
In the meantime I continue to refine my technique in order to achieve the most close, comfortable but efficient shave I can. I want to thank all the people who helped me with honing advice and cheerleading. Without great edges there wouldn’t be any refinement of technique. I was so behind the 8 ball when I first wished to hone a razor. I had never even sharpened a kitchen knife let alone a razor. It was several long years to make sense of it all and achieve results. And then another 1 or 2 of refinement of stropping experiments coming off the stones to find the key to hht5 results.
Wishing you all well. Thanks for reading.
Time to change things up. Evolve. I’m going to try another razor soon. I’ve been using Brian Brown razors exclusively for the past couple of years. A small rotation of 3, shortie, Spanish points. Now I want something big. I’ve been shaving at a much steeper angle recently. Pushing the limits a bit to see what’s possible. A bigger, heavier razor might help me find a happy medium between weight and angle. I feel much more comfortable and think I am moving out of the beginner technique. All the work done on honing and touch-ups has allowed technique to improve.
Prices seem so have fallen a bit on the razors that caught my attention when I first started straight shaving.... thankfully. I also believe that guys like Brian have helped us all by supplying great great steel at reasonable prices. There is no longer a need to chase vintage hardware exclusively. But chase the vintage I will do. There are a couple stones I want to turn over and look under.
In the meantime I continue to refine my technique in order to achieve the most close, comfortable but efficient shave I can. I want to thank all the people who helped me with honing advice and cheerleading. Without great edges there wouldn’t be any refinement of technique. I was so behind the 8 ball when I first wished to hone a razor. I had never even sharpened a kitchen knife let alone a razor. It was several long years to make sense of it all and achieve results. And then another 1 or 2 of refinement of stropping experiments coming off the stones to find the key to hht5 results.
Wishing you all well. Thanks for reading.
- Thread starter
- #876
Chewing the Fat
Mitchels Wool Fat soap that is. I have been using Tabac for the past 5 years. I had read the countless threads and perspectives on other soaps but the consensus seemed to be that Tabac was in the top echelon so I stuck with it. I was on a honing journey and didn't want to change any variables in the morning shave. I had 3 straight razors of the same design and size from Brian Brown, same Kanayama strop, same Saville Row brush. I felt restless about this soap in particular. I wanted to try something new. My honing journey has mostly ended. My edges are as good or better than any I have paid for or tried. Mostly better. Only took about 5 years of trial and error
But I digress.... I tried the MWF and LOVED it. Super slick, super easy to use, etc,... I was trying steeper shaving angles and gliding around corners that I wouldn't have tried with Tabac. I'm about 6 months and half a puck down on the MWF now. Still ringing my bell every morning. Super stuff.
This is what I learned; you have to try everything for yourself. Seems stupid but everyones technique, tools and touch are different, so don't believe everything you read in a review. Including this one.
In the future if I am attracted to a product I'm going to give it a try. I had good reason not to as I refined my shave and honing techniques. But I don't feel I have those limitations anymore so now its time for some fun. But not before the last scrap of the MFW has been lifted from the saving bowl.
Be safe and kind to one another Happy shaving.
Mitchels Wool Fat soap that is. I have been using Tabac for the past 5 years. I had read the countless threads and perspectives on other soaps but the consensus seemed to be that Tabac was in the top echelon so I stuck with it. I was on a honing journey and didn't want to change any variables in the morning shave. I had 3 straight razors of the same design and size from Brian Brown, same Kanayama strop, same Saville Row brush. I felt restless about this soap in particular. I wanted to try something new. My honing journey has mostly ended. My edges are as good or better than any I have paid for or tried. Mostly better. Only took about 5 years of trial and error
But I digress.... I tried the MWF and LOVED it. Super slick, super easy to use, etc,... I was trying steeper shaving angles and gliding around corners that I wouldn't have tried with Tabac. I'm about 6 months and half a puck down on the MWF now. Still ringing my bell every morning. Super stuff.
This is what I learned; you have to try everything for yourself. Seems stupid but everyones technique, tools and touch are different, so don't believe everything you read in a review. Including this one.
In the future if I am attracted to a product I'm going to give it a try. I had good reason not to as I refined my shave and honing techniques. But I don't feel I have those limitations anymore so now its time for some fun. But not before the last scrap of the MFW has been lifted from the saving bowl.
Be safe and kind to one another
Happy shaving.- Thread starter
- #877
Stropping
This is the final frontier for me. Proper stropping technique has eluded me for almost 10 years. I’ve tried every move I could think of, watched and read all the junk I could find online. My best hope was not to dull my edge too too fast. Some weeks went better than others. I could get maybe 15 shaves off a really keen edge before it started to noticeably deteriorate. But having read of users getting 40, 80, over 100 shaves off an edge had me scratching my head.
Finally, something clicked not too long ago... I watched a how-to video by a shaver I admire. I could never figure out how the strop would be deflecting so much without completely ruining the edge. But something clicked. I started pushing the spine into the strop harder to get the deflection but staying very light on the trailing edge. Voila - it was like magic. My edges are lasting a very long time now. I haven’t found the limit yet. I’m a little shaky on committing to the new move every morning but it’s working great so far.
More to come. Thanks for reading.
This is the final frontier for me. Proper stropping technique has eluded me for almost 10 years. I’ve tried every move I could think of, watched and read all the junk I could find online. My best hope was not to dull my edge too too fast. Some weeks went better than others. I could get maybe 15 shaves off a really keen edge before it started to noticeably deteriorate. But having read of users getting 40, 80, over 100 shaves off an edge had me scratching my head.
Finally, something clicked not too long ago... I watched a how-to video by a shaver I admire. I could never figure out how the strop would be deflecting so much without completely ruining the edge. But something clicked. I started pushing the spine into the strop harder to get the deflection but staying very light on the trailing edge. Voila - it was like magic. My edges are lasting a very long time now. I haven’t found the limit yet. I’m a little shaky on committing to the new move every morning but it’s working great so far.
More to come. Thanks for reading.
Glad to hear you found something that works for you!
- Thread starter
- #879
Hi Clay,
Thank you. I wish I could put into words what it is that I found. Straight razor shaving seems to be a game of pressures. Being that our bodies are all so different its not a one size fits all space. The way my mind works I want everything to fit into neat little boxes
Good luck with that! Its a fun journey. I've learned some things about myself and getting great shaves to boot. Its helpful to read other journals and follow along with the struggles and successes. Reminds me that it all gets messy sometimes.
Thanks for reading.
- Thread starter
- #880
Stropping again.....
Well I’m back at the stropping again. It’s definitely a feel thing. I think I did the proper feel for only a few days before I changed some subtle thing and felt the edge start to degrade. Im close but it’s so agravating how a really awesome edge can be destroyed with just a couple lousy passes on the leather. I am trying to bring the edge back with just stropping. It’s a Filarmonica Especial and responds well to leather. It’s perfect steel to test on. I am hoping it’s just a bump in the road and that the breakthrough I felt happen last week will revisit me soon. I think I can get edge back tomorrow. We shall see.
I’ll choose to look at the positive. It’s been a long road. Stubborn persistence in the face of talentless flailing is paying off. Once I get this last piece I’ll be satisfied.
Well I’m back at the stropping again. It’s definitely a feel thing. I think I did the proper feel for only a few days before I changed some subtle thing and felt the edge start to degrade. Im close but it’s so agravating how a really awesome edge can be destroyed with just a couple lousy passes on the leather. I am trying to bring the edge back with just stropping. It’s a Filarmonica Especial and responds well to leather. It’s perfect steel to test on. I am hoping it’s just a bump in the road and that the breakthrough I felt happen last week will revisit me soon. I think I can get edge back tomorrow. We shall see.
I’ll choose to look at the positive. It’s been a long road. Stubborn persistence in the face of talentless flailing is paying off. Once I get this last piece I’ll be satisfied.
