The 365 Touch Ups Challenge (I'm the one being challenged)

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So, the gauntlet was laid down tonight over a few beers. My DE enthusiast friend thought it was impossible for a straight to last more than 40 years. Of course, I vehemently told him how wrong he was. This of course led to the eventual challenge and proving. And of course, money is on the line.

The challenge is thus: Instead of waiting around for 40 years, we're going to accelerate the process by touching up the razor needlessly every day for one year. So, 365 touch ups. I have decided that the average touch up involves twenty laps, however, for the sake of thoroughness I'm going to use 30 laps. So, that's 30 laps every day on a finishing stone for 365 days. The deciding factor will be 1/8", that is, I win if less than 1/8" of the blade is removed, he wins if more than 1/8" is removed.

I will be blogging about the challenge on my blog and I'll post updates here if there is any interest. I'll get around to it once I decide which razor I want.

The question posed to the forum is which modern straight razor should I buy myself. I've decided that instead of pulling out a classic blade or getting a cheap Double Arrow, I am going to treat myself to a new razor for this challenge. The question then becomes, which modern made razor do I want?

The only modern mass production makers I can think of off the top of my head are as follows, in the order of preference at this time. Which is to say, for the most part, arbitrarily.
Hart Steel
Revisor
Thiers Issard
Dovo
China

So, TSR, is there a consensus on which razor I should procure for my future collection? I really dislike modern Dovos. I love the NOS TI's, haven't owned any new ones, but they are pretty. Have not tried the HS or Revisors yet.
 
Re: The 365 Touch Ups Challenge (I'm the one being challenge

Well, I haven´t owned a modern TI either, but I like the vintage ones. I would say Revisor, that way you´ve got plenty to pick from and they´re of good quality (I´ve had a couple).

Interesting test, you´ve out factored the aging process though. I would say it would be hard to use one razor for 40 years and excpect it to last in a good way ... It prob would survive and work. Would you be shaving with it aswell or is it "just" a hone test?
 
Re: The 365 Touch Ups Challenge (I'm the one being challenge

To be honest, I can't see the point of the "challenge" - a little forethought would show that an open razor would last many generations with just touch-ups, and if the razor was a solid, chunky grind of a decent width then it would last for even longer. Some of us - Mikael and me included - regularly use open razors that are about two hundred years old and which have had an enormous amount of metal removed from them during honing. Some shave as good as or better than modern open-razors (which is no surprise given that a lot of modern open razors are cr@p, but they perform well if compared with good vintage blades, too).

A delicate full hollow would obviously not last as well as a near-wedge - not if the delicacy of the blade is something you value, but it will still perform - albeit it more like a half- or quarter hollow - even if a significant amount of metal is removed.

If someone is capable of honing and stropping properly and does not damage the blade, then regular light touch-ups will suffice for an extended amount of time - a touch-up can be as light a five gentle laps on a finishing stone and the amount of metal removed is exceedingly minute. I touch-up my own razors much more than this - maybe once or twice a month, sometimes more often if experimenting with different hones, and have not seen any significant amount of metal having been removed after initial bevel-setting. A regular user would only need to touch-up once every month or two if technique is spot on.

So - how many light touch-ups until the razor is, to all extents and purposes unusable? Quite a few thousand maybe - maybe in the order of tens of thousands. That's a challenge for you!

I reckon your friend must have been drunk when he accepted the 'challenge' - his money is as good as in your pocket: if you decide that taking candy off a baby is a good thing, that is.

Recommendations for a modern razor? Revisor, TI or a good Dovo - but I would not buy any Dovo without examining it in person, which would include taking a dead-level straight edge with me: I have seen far too many warped Dovos to trust them much. Of the three I would go for Revisor, but that's just a personal thing.

Regards,
Neil
 
Re: The 365 Touch Ups Challenge (I'm the one being challenge

I agree with Neil, you're going to win the bet comfortably, even with an extra hollow - we're only talking 11,000 laps or thereabouts on a finisher. And I'd vote for Revisor too, for no particularly strong reason.
 
Re: The 365 Touch Ups Challenge (I'm the one being challenge

After some actual thought, I decided that honing the razor every day would suck up a lot of hours. Now obviously I'd win the bet, and the bet was for a substantial amount of money. I also realized that my friend was definitely not sober and may or may not remember making it. I've also realized that if I were to blog about it, it would be the most boring blog ever and probably pretty pointless.

Therefore, unless my friend reaffirms the challenge and the actually very large sum of money involved, I'm not going to put in the man hours. It was an interesting idea while it lasted. Who knows, maybe he'll still be willing to throw his money away and I'll get a down payment for a new car. :p
 
Re: The 365 Touch Ups Challenge (I'm the one being challenge

The TI are the best finished I've seen from the selection you made. You have not mentioned Wacker that I found better than Hartsteel, I have one and it's a wonderful shaver
 
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