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- #41
There is no obvious answer whether it’s right for people to prefer one angle over another, but I can argue that there is an optimal cutting line. Whenever cutting with a sharp point, one will always get the cleanest smoothest cut by drawing the point directly into the item. Drawing the point into the hair at an angle creates angle forces which can irritate the skin and ruin the cut. These forces that are not directed into the bevel don’t just have the potential to irritate the skin they can also can bend the bevel prematurely.Unfortunately, I think it will be impossible to verify it by testing. Razor blades vary in bevel angles, sharpness, dimensions, etc.
I measured thoroughly 14 different razor brands, and while the nominal width of a razor is 22.00 mm, in reality, depending on the razor, it varies from 21.90 till 22.20 mm.
And to be honest, I think the width of a razor blade has much bigger influence on shaving experience than the shaving angle, since it may change the blade exposure drastically.
The optimal cutting angle will not change whether the person has thick or thin hair, it makes no difference in which direction the hair grows and so on. All these factors may change the final cutting forces number, but an optimal clean-cut will always perform best as the point goes straight into the cutting surface. Cutting the hair at an angle will increase the diameter of the cut, but the optimal cutting angle is relative to the direction and the plane that the point is moving in
A straight blade has 100% blade exposure and has the potential to give the cleanest irritation free shave. Blade exposure is more important for steep angle shavers, as it’s really hard not to put too much pressure when scraping. Blade exposure is also really important for shallow angle shavers, because they need to use the cap as a fulcrum. Straight-edge razor’s also use a guide and that is the spine.