Bart
Well-Known Member
Since a lot of us are playing with Coticules and lather these days, I like to share something I tried this morning.
I had a 7/8 Friodur that had a number of Coticule+water touch-ups on the counter, but was clearly in need of a more powerful treatment. Under the microscope its edge looked a bit worn, with the occasional microchip, and the lack of a crisp straightness. If you ever saw a worn, tired edge at 40X magnification, you know what I'm talking about.
I took the razor through a dilution phase on a La Dressante, but I didn't finish it on clear water. Probed with the HHT, it was violining like hell, but no popping whatsoever. I put the hair I used aside and did something ludicrous. I rinsed and dried the La Dressante, took a chunk of hard shaving soap, and rubbed it over the stone's surface, as if I was using a slurry stone. I did this dry, no water involved. I rubbed the stone with my hands, to further even out the coat of soap that was now present on the Coticule. Then I took the razor and performed 40 X-strokes (I counted them). It was completely awkward. The razor cut halfway through the coat of soap during the first passes. Soap was gunking up on the blade, right behind the edge. The draw was cantankerous and uneven. I hated it.
After I finished the 40 laps I cleaned most of the dry soap gunk of the edge and took the hair I'd put aside. I could sever it at 40mm from the holding point, and next I trimmed little pieces of about 2mm from the far end, all the way till I arrived at my fingers that were holding the hair. This is typically a result I get *after* the blade is stropped, and occasionally after a Unicot, but never at the end of Dilcuot. That usually only allows me to pop medium to thick hair at 10-15mm from the holding point. The Coticule + lather process I shared a couple days ago, yielded similar great HHT-scores, and I think it basically relies on the same principle. It aims to fill up the abrasive matrix (not sure that word applies here, but I can't think of something better right now) with something solid enough to support the edge, yet completely nonabrasive of its own. It seems to make a Coticule finer than it already is. Candle wax, perhaps, could work too, but that would be more hassle to clean off the stone. I have never been able to get significantly better results of a dry Coticule, hence I believe the coating must be accounted for something.
I rinsed the blade a bit better with hot water, dried it and gave it the normal stropping routine. HHT score was 4 to 5. The shave was excellent. I'm not saying it outperformed, but it was most certainly on par with everything I've come to expect of a perfectly succeeded Coticule edge. The edge was mellow while I'd normally get engaging results of this hone.
I left that La Dressante as it is, with the coat of soap on top, and I'll be using it for future edge finishing, to find out if I can copy these results and how long the soap treatment lasts. With some luck, the coat will thin out, offering a less awkward draw, while still retaining the improved keenness limit.
It's of course only one small success, with this particular variation of the lather experiments, but edges don't get sharp by accident, hence I think this idea is worth pursuing.
Kind regards,
Bart
I had a 7/8 Friodur that had a number of Coticule+water touch-ups on the counter, but was clearly in need of a more powerful treatment. Under the microscope its edge looked a bit worn, with the occasional microchip, and the lack of a crisp straightness. If you ever saw a worn, tired edge at 40X magnification, you know what I'm talking about.
I took the razor through a dilution phase on a La Dressante, but I didn't finish it on clear water. Probed with the HHT, it was violining like hell, but no popping whatsoever. I put the hair I used aside and did something ludicrous. I rinsed and dried the La Dressante, took a chunk of hard shaving soap, and rubbed it over the stone's surface, as if I was using a slurry stone. I did this dry, no water involved. I rubbed the stone with my hands, to further even out the coat of soap that was now present on the Coticule. Then I took the razor and performed 40 X-strokes (I counted them). It was completely awkward. The razor cut halfway through the coat of soap during the first passes. Soap was gunking up on the blade, right behind the edge. The draw was cantankerous and uneven. I hated it.
After I finished the 40 laps I cleaned most of the dry soap gunk of the edge and took the hair I'd put aside. I could sever it at 40mm from the holding point, and next I trimmed little pieces of about 2mm from the far end, all the way till I arrived at my fingers that were holding the hair. This is typically a result I get *after* the blade is stropped, and occasionally after a Unicot, but never at the end of Dilcuot. That usually only allows me to pop medium to thick hair at 10-15mm from the holding point. The Coticule + lather process I shared a couple days ago, yielded similar great HHT-scores, and I think it basically relies on the same principle. It aims to fill up the abrasive matrix (not sure that word applies here, but I can't think of something better right now) with something solid enough to support the edge, yet completely nonabrasive of its own. It seems to make a Coticule finer than it already is. Candle wax, perhaps, could work too, but that would be more hassle to clean off the stone. I have never been able to get significantly better results of a dry Coticule, hence I believe the coating must be accounted for something.
I rinsed the blade a bit better with hot water, dried it and gave it the normal stropping routine. HHT score was 4 to 5. The shave was excellent. I'm not saying it outperformed, but it was most certainly on par with everything I've come to expect of a perfectly succeeded Coticule edge. The edge was mellow while I'd normally get engaging results of this hone.
I left that La Dressante as it is, with the coat of soap on top, and I'll be using it for future edge finishing, to find out if I can copy these results and how long the soap treatment lasts. With some luck, the coat will thin out, offering a less awkward draw, while still retaining the improved keenness limit.
It's of course only one small success, with this particular variation of the lather experiments, but edges don't get sharp by accident, hence I think this idea is worth pursuing.
Kind regards,
Bart