Thanks and an observation

[jascas]

Gentlemen,

I consider myself to be a pretty competent novice with my coticule (I don't have any other hones). All of my success is due to the help and encouragement I have found at this site. Many thanks.

My observation: I have ten high quality vintage razors in my rotation. They all shave very well, some exceptionally so. Four of them have, however, one or two micro-chips in the edge. Although very small they are visible to the naked eye. For me they don't seem to have an impact on the quality of the shave, in fact two of these razors are among the most comfortable and keenest in my stable. I don't even think about the chips and shave away with all of the razors using the same techniques. Aside from the obvious fact that an unblemished edge is closer to the ideal than one with a chip or two, I can't really notice the blemishes in use. Do you think I'm just "lucky" or is this an observable phenomena among others of you?

Thanks again for all of your help. I'm anxious to here your replies.

Jascas

 

[Jim1]

You echo a lot of my sentiments about this site!

I think that if you looked at a few of my better shavers under a microscope they wouldn't be all that pretty. Who cares?! they feel good on my face and I guess that's what matters to me. As a complete hypothesis, maybe the garnets in coticule slurry bounce around and soften the edges of what might otherwise be irritating microchips? Without proper magnification I can only guess. Usually if I see a chip with my eye I'll try to get rid of it, but if your face doesn't notice it, I think you can close your eyes, so to speak, to the chip.

 

[Emmanuel]

Do not spend steel for one microchip while your razors shave well.I've always been a perfectionist but as the years pass i give priority to the most important things.
Best regards
Emmanuel

 

[tat2Ralfy]

I am glad Coticule.be has been of service, and well done on the honing

As said from me too, I will always strive to completely remove any visible chips, when I am honing for someone else, but on my own razors I will let the smallest ones go, if the shave is good enough, as much as most of us (and I am one of the worst) strive for visual perfection, its the shave that counts at the end of the day :thumbup:

Best regards
Ralfson (Dr)

 

[Bart]

I have observed a couple of times, that a fresh chip, e.g. one that was caused by the edge accidentally hitting into one of the scales, can be gritty and scratchy on the skin. But once that same chip has been "honed", without actually removing it, the chip is usually rendered harmless, and can't be felt while shaving at all, as long as it's shallow enough to not capture beard hairs. It might even make a difference whether you're shaving a 2 day stubble or a one week beard with such a razor.

If the shave is nice, I wouldn't worry the slightest bit, and let the chip come out over the course of future honing jobs.

Kind regards,
Bart.

 

[Paul]

I'm kind of a loser, I guess. I don't give a rip about how the bevel looks under magnification, and while I could hypothetically care less about the evenness of the bevel, I don't really worry about that either. I hone until it shaves well, and what I very often find is that it looks quite if I do happen to examine the bevel or the edge... I'm just not into honing enough I think...

 

[pinklather]

Jascas, Bravo on your doing well w/ the coti. While I consider myself a remedial student, I completely share your appreciation for the kind help here.

Chips: Like others have said - if it shaves well - enjoy it.

 

[jascas]

Gentlemen:

Thank you all for your helpful replies. This is a great site. I'm really glad that I posed this question. The replies underscore the concept that we don't want to have the perfect become the enemy of the good. Having this reaffirmed goes a long ways towards building confidence in novices like me.

Thanks again.

Jascas