Straight Razor Shave of the Day

Isn't it the diamond balsa that gives that sharper harsher edge? I'm asking from a point of information gathering, as so far that's all I have got for maintaining my edges. I do have a Welsh slate but have had limited success with it. But I've heard people say diamond can make it too sharp, or not as smooth. I don't have enough experience to know, I got the idea of diamond balsa ('the Method') from one of the US forums and have basically kept my razors going with it, but which were probably jnat edges when I got the razors, and in my memory they were smoother and sharper then.
 
Last edited:
Most of my best performance razors now are from diamond-pasted balsa.
When I first started using it, yes it does feel too bitey sharp, and I tend to get post-shave irritations (a few hours later). Somehow I now can get the edge to be buttery smooth yet crisply keen from stroping on good leather. My favorite was the Kanayama and now the Kangaroo.

I have 2 natural stones now and am still unable to get the edge as good as from diamond-pasted balsa. Today's shave is with a razor I wanted to be fully maintained on the HBA just for experiment purposes on my skills. Otherwise, I prefer the diamond-pasted balsa, including for my heavy grind wedges too...the results of the shaves are really lasting compared to a DE...as a result, I am enjoying SR shaving more than ever...

Hope this helps...
 
chard52142 said:
Most of my best performance razors now are from diamond-pasted balsa.
When I first started using it, yes it does feel too bitey sharp, and I tend to get post-shave irritations (a few hours later). Somehow I now can get the edge to be buttery smooth yet crisply keen from stroping on good leather. My favorite was the Kanayama and now the Kangaroo.

I have 2 natural stones now and am still unable to get the edge as good as from diamond-pasted balsa. Today's shave is with a razor I wanted to be fully maintained on the HBA just for experiment purposes on my skills. Otherwise, I prefer the diamond-pasted balsa, including for my heavy grind wedges too...the results of the shaves are really lasting compared to a DE...as a result, I am enjoying SR shaving more than ever...

Hope this helps...
Click to expand...
Hi Richard, out of interest which natural stones do you have? I have a coticule (& a couple of Welsh stones) which I can get a reasonable edge but it takes a lot of time, where as the Shapton synthetics are quick and consistent.
 
I've got a diamond 400/1000 which can be used as a stone flattener or bevel setter, then a rather cheap 2000/5000 double sided stone, really for kitchen knives, then I've got a Miniog slate, the ordinary one that's supposed to be about 8k. After that I've got 2/1/0.5/0.25/0.1um diamond on balsa. I did try to buy a Naniwa 12k in the BST but got done over for it when the offending member was barred and so I never got far with learning to hone properly, I just strop on the balsa (mounted on thick acrylic bars) which has kept me going. I feel like I want to send them to someone to put a proper edge on them again but actually, what I really want is to learn to do it myself properly. Trouble is the time it takes, finding someone to show me (I've watched YouTube already) and the expense of getting a full progression of decent stones, even synthetics are quite an investment if I bought a full Naniwa progression to 12k.
 
I found it reasonably straight forward to learn on Naniwa and Shapton stones, just taking time and being consistent. It's the naturals that seem to have a mind if their own!
 
Yes, that's exactly why I was going to start building up a collection of Naniwa, I think for someone learning, consistency is key, otherwise you never know what you're doing wrong (if anything). I've just shaved with my Koraat that I took through 0.5-0.1um diamond and then linen and leather and whilst it did shave me, it wasn't comfortable. It seems the difference between nearly there and there is a country mile!
 
MarkP said:
Hi Richard, out of interest which natural stones do you have? I have a coticule (& a couple of Welsh stones) which I can get a reasonable edge but it takes a lot of time, where as the Shapton synthetics are quick and consistent.
Click to expand...
Hi Mark, I have a small LaLune 120x50mm and a Hard Black Arkansas 8x2in.

I have not been able to get a satisfactory edge for my whiskers on the LaLune with water or oil but if I followed up with the full diamond balsa progression...then it's a wow edge!

I am just starting with the HBA...and it's a similar pattern to the LaLune, I need to finish on the diamond balsa.

I do have some cheap Chinese stones from 1000 to 10000 and unbelievably, I was able to hone my only french frameback easily (with tape) with LaLune and diamond finishing. This frameback remains a gem of a great shaver. I have another french rattler waiting for work when I am free.

I find the different leathers do affect the edge quality...like making a harsh laser sharp edge to be smoother...
 
Baurmann 5/8 extra hollow round point.
Wickham Gothic Revival set (soap, splash and balm)
Vintage Rubberset 400

Last time I used the Baurmann I was a bit unhappy, the edge had gone and I couldn't seem to get it back. However I had some time the other day so I went back to the Miniog Welsh slate (8k ish) then took it back through the diamond balsa progression (one/ half/qtr/tenth micrometers) and then canvas and bare leather. Still not deserving of any superlatives, but I'm fairly pleased with myself and had a good, albeit not stellar, shave. The end result was pretty good but took a little more effort. Software was excellent of course. So a good start to the day and I'm feeling a little more confident refreshing this edge.

These are a few of my favourite things...
20230405_091424.jpg
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom