1st Straight Razor Shave

[Pistol]

Well, I gave myself my first self shave with my new Boker King Cutter today, and I gotta say that it went pretty well! I used an AOS pre shave oil, a TOOBS cream, and an Ogalla aftershave. I have to admit that I did have one tiny blood spot on my second pass, but it went away on its own. I was pretty happy that I didn't experience a real blood letting on my first try, but man did I feel awkward with that thing! After several short strokes with my right hand, I kind of got the hang of shaving with my dominant hand, but I couldn't get the hang of using my left hand by itself! In fact, I had to place my right hand on the end of the blade several times in order to maintain proper blade angle and contact when trying to shave with my left hand.

Unfortunately, the overall shave wasn't the closest I've ever had as I'd compare it to a single with the grain pass with my trusty old Mach 3, but I guess I can't complain because I had no real nicks or cuts on my first try. I did a with the grain pass on my whole face/neck, an across the grain pass on my cheeks, and an against the grain pass on my neck (that felt awesome). For those of you who have been at this for a while, how long did it take you to start getting those "holy grail" shaves that are barber close? I really enjoyed the process and the shave, but I can't wait to start getting closer shaves. I guess I'll give it another try tomorrow, cheers!

 

[jpcwon]

Wow, Sounds like you did REALLY well!!

I, and many others here, will tell you that our first shaves were very discouraging. I had a LOT of bloodshed, and the shave was not close at all..after 6 months, straight shaving is starting to become second nature, but it was very uncomfortable at first...

so the fact that you got such good results right off the bat should really make you proud!! And a King Cutter is a damn fine shaver!

 

[Kentos]

With enough practice they will be closer than a barber's best try. I won't lie to you though, it will take a little while

I got close shaves after a couple of weeks, but they were full of burn and irritation. Really close and comfortable shaves took months.

 

[Pistol]

Thanks for the kind words fellas, that was my first non-cartridge shave, and I don't know that I'llever shave with a cartridge at home again. I travel a lot for work, and I have a **** load of Mach 3s to go through, so I'll go through those on the road, but I'm sure I'll be buying a DE setup soon!

Quick question, my strop gets here next week, can I continue to use the straight razor until then, or do I need to strop between every shave? Thanks again!

 

[Gamma]

Nice - keep it going.
Each day you'll progress a bit - eventually you'll find your 'zone'.
Don't sweat the time it'll take to get 'there'.
Focus on your technique and it'll all come together eventually.

Edit - you can strop on newspaper or denim until your strop comes. Yeah - you'll need to strop between shaves.
Make sure that whatever you use is totally flat and clean. There are some threads on this around here somewhere.

 

[brianrush50]

I did my first straight shave today with a Boker as well! I just got a Boker Silver Steel Micarta 6/8" and did OK on the first round (just a few nicks . It was awkward for me to use my left (non-dominant) hand and I avoided it as best I could. Going to give it another go tomorrow for sure. Been wet-shaving with a Mergress and a Slant for about a year, but this will take some getting used to and not likely to happen on a weekday morning for a while.

 

[AjaxLepinski]

Yup, it took me about 3 months before I got my first, straight SAS (socially acceptable shave) and another month before my first DFS.
It's definitely the coolest way to shave!!! I like using a block of alum on my finger tips - it prevents slipping when pulling wet skin tight.
Have fun bro!!!

 

[Jc50]

Pistol,

It took me a couple of weeks to start getting close shaves, but I had several monster cases of razor burn chasing that close shave right away (same as Kentos). It took about 2 months shaving every time with a straight for me to get consistent good shaves (with no more razor burn). From then on the shaves and technique continued to get better. I've got a little over a year now shaving almost exclusively with a straight 4-6 times a week and can honestly say I'm still learning and refining my technique.

Take it slow, learn the feel and correct angle of your razor and finish your shave with your other razor for a few weeks and you will have a much easier/pain free time with the straight.

i switch hands as well which was very awkward with my non-dominant hand at first. But I think it is definitely beneficial in the long run if you stick with it. But do whatever works best.

Regards,

Jason