shavette vs straight

[FredGeorge]

I just wonder what others think. I really like the idea of resharpenable straights. I've read numerous articles, watched videos, etc. Doing my best, I try again and again to set a bevel, hone with progressively finer grits, then strop. I've tried lots of combinations. Lots of different steels, manufacturers, including "the best".
I admit, maybe my technique isn't as good as others.
All that being said, when I shave with many of the above, I get what seems to be a dragging sensation, as though my blade is dull.
That's markedly different than using a Feather shavette, with any number of blades. Always, it feels like I'm using a hot knife through butter. No dragging, just whiskers gone.
Is this just my failure at honing, stropping, or does everyone share this experience?
With all the money I've spent on razors, stones, strops, I could have bought a lifetime supply of single edge blades. That's not the point; I'd just like to be a wizard ar resharpening.
I'd appreciate others experience and wisdom.

 

[Milton]

Honing a SR is an art in itself, just like SR shaving. It is possible to get a SR edge to the same level of keenness as a Feather DE blade. I often get close, sometimes match it and occasionally exceed it - just. To do this has required a lot of experience and using diamond pasted balsa strops.

It is not just the keenness of the edge that determines how your SR shaves. SR shaving technique is also very important. Shaving with a shavette is similar to shaving with a SR - but different. You don't (shouldn't) shave the same way with both.

If you are properly setting your bevels, you should be able to shave directly off your bevel-set, before any further edge refinement. It may not be comfortable but it still should shave your face.

 

[drmoss_ca]

I think a shavette is a dead end in terms of satisfaction. They are tricky to shave with, requiring a much defter touch than a traditional straight, and TBH, you'd be better off putting the blade in a DE. The same is true for the boss shavette, the Feather AC. Very difficult to avoid cuts, and even with good technique, consistent use will take of the top layer of skin so that you become sore and tender. Again, you'd be better off putting those AC blades in a safety razor (I like the General for that job).
If your razor drags more than is normal (people hate it when I point this out, but there is more sensation from shaving with a straight, however sharp it is. A combination of weight and blade thickness), then it needs to be honed properly. I've been using straights for about twenty years, and I'm still learning. It's not that there is a secret: the proper approach has been preached to beginners all along. Consistent light strokes on a sequence of hones, and 20 years of practice means I'm just decent at it. Perhaps I'm a slow learner, but even if I am, the fact I got to where I'm happy means that others can do it too. I am quite sure that if you have a chance to sit down with someone who can hone and take a lesson it would speed up the process enormously. Living in the middle of nowhere, I didn't have that option, so it took me a lot longer to figure it all out.
So don't lose heart, take a break and use a DE if you have to, but don't give up!

Chris

 

[Bogie]

Take a break from it and use a DE if you get fustrated. I also have about twenty years in this adventure. It doesn't take twenty years to get a good bead or edge on things. But after twenty years there is still some tweaking that you can learn. That said, It was a few months honing before I felt pretty good at it. From there, it just got better. Get the right tools (stones) and learn the right strokes and techniques and you never consider a shavette again. Stick with it and you'll get the return you're looking for. Not to mention you'll be saving what otherwise will be a lost art. I have twenty or so in rotation and I still pick up a 'dog' here and there to keep my hand in restoring and sharpening 100+ year old blades. Not to mention every once in a while you can pick up what turns out to be a 'diamond in the rough'. You can choose to find good blades and hone them to shave ready edges. You can find blades that needs some restoration and return them to their earlier grandeur. You will see some folks that do some amazing work in restoration. Then there are folks like me that clean up old blades , put a smooth edge on them, and call it a day. I now have my seven day set of ivory scaled blades. They are all English steel, Sheffield and Liverpool origins. Not a matched set, but all in great shape and not a crack in the ivory to be seen! There are so many ways to go.