13 y/o son wants to shave with a straight razor…

[5whiskey]

I’m with Legion and Stubblebum. It’s a miracle, by the grace of God almighty, I survived my teenage years. If it had an engine, and I was in control, it was wide open. If it was animal (horse, bull, whatever) I wanted to ride it and tame it. Using a straight razor would have been one of the safer activities.

I also like the advice of letting him home and strop. Let him do some work on a razor that needs some edge work. If he’s willing to do that, and he’s successful, then by golly he’s earned it. And he has practiced the feel of being gentle with a razor.

 

[Biltong & Boerewors]

Great ideas here to teach the whole discipline starting from honing to shaving. Unfortunately, my son has expressed no interest in SR shaving, I would have loved teaching him.

Can't see any issue starting with teenage fluff that has to be removed every other week. For now, a few careful swipes WTG should be adequate. I would think the skill will grow with the whiskers.

Like some others, when I think back to my teenage years, SR shaving would have been one of my safer pursuits.

 

[jackgoldman123]

imho
Hand eye coordination is key here.
Can he peel a potato well?
Start him on shaving a peach.
If he's got good hand/eye then its a green light.

 

[Stubblebum]

...Start him on shaving a peach...

Great suggestion, I never would have thought of this.

Once he can shave a peach... can he shave a peach using a mirror?

 

[DEPenguin]

My first thought was "Words don't teach." Immediately following was the same concern OP had about a trip to the ER--which brought me back around to my initial thought. Giving him the dulled SR sounds like a solid compromise for a first step, but we all know using an actual performing blade is a whole 'nother game.

Next question: Where is @rbscebu? I thought for sure he'd be in here soon as the letters "SR" were typed!

 

[global_dev]

The idea wasn’t to use a dull blade to actually cut hair. But a REALLY dull (as in no useable edge) blade to show him how hard it is to hold the angles and scrape the lather.

is it hard to remove lather with a really dull/unusable edge? Sounds like a couple goes at it and it would be cake.

 

[Gamma]

Shaving with a straight isn't some big deal only for old men. Once upon a time, everyone learned to shave with one.
Young adults are usually more resourceful and capable than their 'elders' give them credit for.

A lot depends on personality type though, if they're the type to shove a fork into an electrical outlet just to see what happens, maybe wait a few years. If they built a working 4 stroke internal combustion engine out of their erector set, they might develop better shave skills faster than imagined. Just sayin' - to me its not an 'age thing', it's a 'type' thing.

 

[Matt O]

I'm with those who think he should do the balloon shave to show him what is possible and what happens if he is not careful. After that, a shave ready razor.
No matter when he starts, he's going to get some cuts or nicks, we all heal and the young heal quicker than the old.
Using a dull razor or other devices just increases the learning curve and throws in things he's going to have to unlearn.
In days of old, fathers taught their sons how to shave with a straight because there was no alternative. I believe that the sons survived the learning process.

I agree here…if you dull the edge and let him practice with that he will grow accustomed to shaving in a way that will lead to cuts later on…wrong angles…wrong pressure…wrong technique. He also won’t learn to properly care for his straight razor.

I have a 14 year old that is starting to get a 14 year old mustache…he told me eventually he wants to use an electric razor because it’s faster and easier. Where did I go wrong…I guess that’s alright…he has three younger brothers!

Vr

Matt

 

[Green manalishi]

I know that if I had seen my father use a straight I would have wanted one immediately!!lol
I think that it’s not a bad idea to start young as long as the proper instruction is given.
Most of it comes from feel.But if he does a little research or just listens to your guidance my opinion is that it’s only a little bit of peach fuzz in small areas(I assume)…
As more whiskers come in over time he will gain experience as it grows in..
That being said most of us have gained experience using sharp objects over a lifetime of learning from mistakes.
IMHO he may or may not be more likely to get a cut handling the razor(cleaning it)rather than shaving..That being said it could be dangerous..All depends on the person I guess.

 

[Eastcoast30]

I understand your apprehension. Three more years and he will want the keys to the car - more apprehension on the way.

 

[AdamAZ]

I remember coming across an instruction document by someone in the community which had some really good advice on beginning straight razor shaving. One thing that he emphasized was how to properly tend to cuts so that they do not become permanent scars which would be regrettable. I would recommend having the appropriate types of bandages on hand to minimize any cuts as they are sure to happen. Fortunately, I only had minor cuts which I learned from every time.
Now I very rarely cut myself and have never become overconfident which is a sure fire recipe for another cut.

 

[rbscebu]

I'm in the camp of staring him off with a truly shave-ready SR. Yes, he will probably cut himself. I think we all did. I haven't heard of anyone needing a doctor from a facial cut while SR shaving.

I know it might be hard to accept but your son is growing up. You need to let him learn by experience, like you did.

By all means guide and teach him but he (like you did) learns most from experience and making his own mistakes.

 

[camoloc]

if he plays ps5 or Xbox let him roll with shave ready.

young whippersnappers have great reflexes and coordination.

imagine having that much experience starting out that early???? he will thank you in his late 20's or 30's assuming your around by then. if not a pleasant memory of the beginnings and acquired skill of our but all lost art will be treasured.

I know this view is unapologetically straightforward........but that's how I see it.

camo

 

[Shutterbug57]

As my dearly departed dad used to say - “well, he ain’t gunna learn any younger.” My thoughts are that a shavette, like a Feather AC, would limit damage to nice straights (13 yo kids aren’t known for taking care of things) and allow him to get the experience without the bother of honing & stropping. I’d go for it.

 

[dabrock]

I agree with those saying start with a live blade and let him try his hand at it. I would probably go the route of having him shave a ballon, and the peach idea looked interesting too. For his first shave just doing a couple strokes along the cheeks should be fine as well, just to get him used to holding and moving the blade.

The most important thing, IMHO, is to teach respect for the tool and the rest should fall into place.

 

[Frank Shaves]

You should thank your lucky stars and let him try one of your less valuable straights but ask him to first watch a few videos and give him a few tips - like try to avoid getting any water into the pivot.

My one son uses a Gillette Tech and has tried my Feather AC, and one of my two daughters uses a Merkur 23C.

Kids love being supported!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[SilverGeezer]

Peach fuzz comes off easy, it shouldn't be too challenging for him with you guiding and teaching him.
Some of my fondest memories are of my father "trusting" me to do dangerous grown up things.

 

[Tomo]

I wish that I started with a straight. It would have shaved me a lot of grief and money over the years. 13 year old peach fuzz would be the perfect thing to learn on.

 

[Straight up]

I started my son (then 18) with a Gold Dollar type razor that I had validated as shave ready (no point learning with the wrong tools). I can't see a big difference between 13 & 18 (appart from maturity), he knows it's sharp & needs to be careful. You can guide him, as I guided my son, but he will make mistakes as we all do.

Just remeber Captain Lance Murdoch's famous utterance "Bones heal, chicks dig scars, and America has the best Doctor to Daredevil ratio in the world "

 

[Slash McCoy]

I can see a preliminary session with a dull razor, just to learn the different grips, angle, and pressure, but one session only, then immediately on to a proper shave ready razor. A dull razor can quickly develop and encourage bad habits.

You need styptic on hand, and he needs to understand that it will burn but will stop minor bleeding quickly. Yeah, he is probably going to cut himself a few times. Summer is a good time to do this. Send him to school with shaving cuts and someone will gasp in horror and call child protective services on you for allowing your son anywhere near a deadly sharp object like a straight razor. OTOH, a good shaving cut or two from a straight razor will set all the girls' hearts a-flutter and make all the boys envious.