As i see it he got the blade for free. It does not get any cheaper then that
Uneven edge on Dovo Bismarck?
- Thread starter jasonco
- Start date
OP did you get the razor back? How does it shave?
Bargain! You got a free razor.
Quite a few of my razors have warped spines, but that is only really a cosmetic issue, if it's within reason. If it was mine, seeing that a new one is on it's way, I will keep going until I have set the bevel properly. You only need to do it once, after that the geometry will be fine and it will hone as normal. The spine wear will be uneven, but some of my best shavers look similar.
Just take care to be sure the uneven wear is not due to uneven pressure when you hone. It is possible to achieve that when you press down with fingers on the blade when honing. I never do anymore, exactly for that reason. I have learned to hone by only holding the razor by the shank and applying pressure on the edge by torquing towards the edge.
Quite a few of my razors have warped spines, but that is only really a cosmetic issue, if it's within reason. If it was mine, seeing that a new one is on it's way, I will keep going until I have set the bevel properly. You only need to do it once, after that the geometry will be fine and it will hone as normal. The spine wear will be uneven, but some of my best shavers look similar.
Just take care to be sure the uneven wear is not due to uneven pressure when you hone. It is possible to achieve that when you press down with fingers on the blade when honing. I never do anymore, exactly for that reason. I have learned to hone by only holding the razor by the shank and applying pressure on the edge by torquing towards the edge.
- Thread starter
- #24
So i sent the free Bismarck to get honed, and i honed the replacement on a Naniwa 1k-5k-8k-12k progression and it came out fine, along the line of the same sharpness(maybe a bit sharper actually) as the one i sent out to get honed which was done on Arkansas stones.
However they both tug way too much when trying to shave my face, it feels like going from a nice rigidly held DE blade to something like a Futur, it just feels awful, ive been trying to use them for a bit over one month now but there is no way i can tolerate it anymore, i do have very thick fast growing Mediterranean type hair though which is very resistive(even after a hot towel soak) they only tug slightly when shaving forearm hair, but once i try to shave my facial hair with either of them it feels absolutely terrible. I made sure to not strop the one i sent out to get honed to remove that variable. I'm absolutely convinced i need something sharper to comfortably cut my facial hair. Would a Suehiro Gokumyo 20k stone be the next step to take?
However they both tug way too much when trying to shave my face, it feels like going from a nice rigidly held DE blade to something like a Futur, it just feels awful, ive been trying to use them for a bit over one month now but there is no way i can tolerate it anymore, i do have very thick fast growing Mediterranean type hair though which is very resistive(even after a hot towel soak) they only tug slightly when shaving forearm hair, but once i try to shave my facial hair with either of them it feels absolutely terrible. I made sure to not strop the one i sent out to get honed to remove that variable. I'm absolutely convinced i need something sharper to comfortably cut my facial hair. Would a Suehiro Gokumyo 20k stone be the next step to take?
When you say it tugs slightly when shaving arm hair, are you talking right at skin level or floating a 1/4 inch above the skin ("tree topping")?
Well it seems the razors have failed the ultimate test which is the shave test.
Are these your first SR's or do you have others and if yes how do they compare?
It's either your shaving technique or the razors are not properly honed. A 12k when done well shouldn't feel horrible.
If it's the razor then tugging and horrible feeling means back to the hones and properly setting the bevel.
Are these your first SR's or do you have others and if yes how do they compare?
It's either your shaving technique or the razors are not properly honed. A 12k when done well shouldn't feel horrible.
If it's the razor then tugging and horrible feeling means back to the hones and properly setting the bevel.
No offense to the OP maybe you are new to straights and need more practice honing? Did you even shave test the original Bismark before setting the bevel? Yeah factory edges maybe aren't as good as they should be but I would never go back to bevel set a brand new razor without at least giving it a good thorough strop and a shave test.
Assuming the OP is experienced with honing and the original razor was warped, with some skill on the stone it just isn't an issue, ultimately, if you sight down the edge and it looks straight you're talking about a warp in the thousandths of inches range, not a big deal imo. Yeah the bevel is aesthetically "unpleasing" but the razor can be made to shave just fine. I mean look at a lot of the old Sheffield wedges, once you start honing back the grinds are fairly uneven on a lot of them but they shave brilliantly assuming they're honed well.
As far as the tugging, again, how much have you used a straight? A razor honed to 12K should shave extremely well, and the one on the Arkansas should be phenomenal assuming the honing was done well. Going to a finer stone won't improve anything if you cant shave comfortably off a 12K Naniwa. If the honing was a dud that's another story.
Assuming the OP is experienced with honing and the original razor was warped, with some skill on the stone it just isn't an issue, ultimately, if you sight down the edge and it looks straight you're talking about a warp in the thousandths of inches range, not a big deal imo. Yeah the bevel is aesthetically "unpleasing" but the razor can be made to shave just fine. I mean look at a lot of the old Sheffield wedges, once you start honing back the grinds are fairly uneven on a lot of them but they shave brilliantly assuming they're honed well.
As far as the tugging, again, how much have you used a straight? A razor honed to 12K should shave extremely well, and the one on the Arkansas should be phenomenal assuming the honing was done well. Going to a finer stone won't improve anything if you cant shave comfortably off a 12K Naniwa. If the honing was a dud that's another story.
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If the edge is right and your prep and technique is good you should be getting a good shave. I thought i had a tough beard until i watched some of Brown Man Shaves video. If you have beard like him, you have a worse starting point then me at least.
I am not telling you to buy a new razor, but different grinds and size can make a difference.
I had a hard time with my Bismark in the beginning, but did just fine with my 7/8 hart razor. Now that my technique is better they are just different.
I am not telling you to buy a new razor, but different grinds and size can make a difference.
I had a hard time with my Bismark in the beginning, but did just fine with my 7/8 hart razor. Now that my technique is better they are just different.
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