One week Beteen honing?

[Fish Slayer]

I guess I have no reason to complain, but with Doc226 getting 100 shaves out of a blade without re honing, why do I feel my razors tugging after only 1 week of shaving?

Is it my shaving technique? I try to keep the blade angled as low as possible with the spine just off my face and minimal pressure.

Is it my stropping technique? Spine in constant contact, light pressure, lots of reps about 50 between every shave.

Is it that my edge just is not very good to start with? I finish on a Cnat that seems very fine and I do think that I am getting good shaves off of this stone. I started with shave ready razors but that was 6 months ago and with improvement in technique and time it is difficult to compare to someone else's edges.

Is it the quality of my razors? I have 3 working razors in rotation, all vintage, but none are famous makers.

Or is it a combination of all things? I have been shaving with a straight for about 6 months. I rarely resort to touching up with a DE anymore so have come along with that part of the equation. I am able to get my blades back into shape with a few dozen laps on my Cnat, I have not felt the need to go back to coarser grits or set the bevel after going through it once. It sounds like others have a similar experience, that is they go to a pasted strop or finisher after 5 to 20 shaves, but there do seem to be a few that can go much longer without honing. Is this a realistic goal, should I be able to go longer and longer between honing as I gain more experience, or is this just how it goes for some?

Overall not a bad routine, no real reason to complain, but why???? Maybe it is just one of those YMMV things.

 

[paco664]

Its the stropping....

 

[Doc226]

Likely all three.

Honing? Not sure if the blade is shave ready then it's shave ready.
Shaving? Sure bad technique can dull a blade quick.
Stropping? Absolutely, easy to mess up an edge.

 

[global_dev]

i like the feel of a certain type of edge, for me that edge changes way before 100 shaves… i use no pastes or sprays.

it could be all kinds of environmental variables… just gotta keep trying

 

[Fish Slayer]

Thanks for the replies. I will keep on going and will pay more attention to my stropping. Even if I have to take a razor to a finish hone every week, it is still not a bad routine.

 

[johnmrson]

I'd guess that it's either your stropping or the razor wasn't really shave ready in the first place. Having a shave ready straight is more about how well the bevel was set rather than what it was finished with.

 

[California Cajun]

Thanks for the replies. I will keep on going and will pay more attention to my stropping. Even if I have to take a razor to a finish hone every week, it is still not a bad routine.

Try washing and wiping the blade, then stropping again after your shave. That ensures that no water and soap residue is left on your edge.

 

[Brianskeet]

I am no Doc and don't get nearly a hundred shaves! Course I love playing with my coticules too much to even try, but a months worth of shaves is easily attainable without needing pastes. At that point only a very light touch up will put my razors back into a fully shave ready state. I have to state that after a month I am usually playing with a different coticule so rarely can I make myself stick to only a light touch up. I suspect the difference for you is in the stropping. I love to strop and put on a good number of laps before and after every shave. The best linen you can find and then plenty of laps on your favorite leather. Watch your pressure. It is not "just the weight of the blade" that works best for me.

 

[Tony1951]

Is fifty passes on the strop enough? I do way more, but I'm new obviously. I do about thirty on newspaper after shaving and a hundred on leather next day before putting the blade to my face.

 

[Fish Slayer]

" It is not "just the weight of the blade" that works best for me" I am begining to suspect that may be the case, just like the advide of just the weight of the razor for DE shaving.

I am experimenting with a little more pressure while stropping now. and thanks Cal Cajun. I have been rinsing with hot tap water, drying then stropping after my shave. I subscribe to the thought that the very high survace area of the edge is suseptable to corrosion much more so than on the face of the razor and that the fabric component of the strop probably does more to remove soap scum, hair and skin that can foster corrosion than it does to sharpen the razor.