It will be a bit of a leap of faith on my side. I wasn’t able to hone (or try) my AA razor before we left for vacation. I shipped my AA setup and my honing equipment to where were will be tomorrow evening and I’ll have to make it work 😅
I have a busy month coming up and was not convinced I could find the time. I think going without stropping will be an interesting enough challenge. I noticed that this year’s headless horseman allows stropping. 31 shaves on a good edge that is stropped daily doesn’t seem like much of a stretch to me.
31 shaves on a good edge that is stropped daily doesn’t seem like much of a stretch to me.
I think that’s part of the point. 31 shaves on an edge shouldn’t be difficult, and AA leads people to this realisation. At least for me, that’s how it went😅
I suspect that we over-strop straight razors. If the edge has the right geometry off the stone, it typically is not as keen (Science of Sharp definition) as a DE blade. One can take a DE blade for 31 shaves without too much loss of closeness and comfort. I don’t see why that can’t be done with a straight.
Maybe sputtering the edge with platinum or tungsten or whatever different manufacturers do with their disposable blades held with longevity. It’s the only thing I can think of why a disposable could outlast an unstropped straight.
Pure speculation on my part, and I’m curious to follow your AA story
Yeah, I thought of that too. Normally, that wears away after the first few days, though. (Among the many useful takeaways I’ve had from previous AAs 🙂)
Yes. It’s generally gone within the first few days. I think, now, that the added comfort of the sputtered material comes from reducing the harshness of a freshly machined edge.
See you tomorrow for the start of our 31-step AA program.
Yes, looking forward to it!
It will be a bit of a leap of faith on my side. I wasn’t able to hone (or try) my AA razor before we left for vacation. I shipped my AA setup and my honing equipment to where were will be tomorrow evening and I’ll have to make it work 😅
Hey, what happened to BBS August? Don’t you have a 62-step AA program?
I have a busy month coming up and was not convinced I could find the time. I think going without stropping will be an interesting enough challenge. I noticed that this year’s headless horseman allows stropping. 31 shaves on a good edge that is stropped daily doesn’t seem like much of a stretch to me.
Fair. BBS months take a lot of time.
I think that’s part of the point. 31 shaves on an edge shouldn’t be difficult, and AA leads people to this realisation. At least for me, that’s how it went😅
I suspect that we over-strop straight razors. If the edge has the right geometry off the stone, it typically is not as keen (Science of Sharp definition) as a DE blade. One can take a DE blade for 31 shaves without too much loss of closeness and comfort. I don’t see why that can’t be done with a straight.
Maybe sputtering the edge with platinum or tungsten or whatever different manufacturers do with their disposable blades held with longevity. It’s the only thing I can think of why a disposable could outlast an unstropped straight.
Pure speculation on my part, and I’m curious to follow your AA story
Yeah, I thought of that too. Normally, that wears away after the first few days, though. (Among the many useful takeaways I’ve had from previous AAs 🙂)
I must have missed our forgotten the evidence of that. Is the sputtered metal (and its removal) visible under your microscope?
Yes. It’s generally gone within the first few days. I think, now, that the added comfort of the sputtered material comes from reducing the harshness of a freshly machined edge.