It has happened! It finally clicked! By George, I think heMs got it!!!
After ALL the irritated skin, cuts, weepers, scabs, and days of looking like I fought a house cat and lost, it FINALLY HAPPENED!!!
Today I had the best shave I’ve had to date with no blood, no irritation, no nothing but refreshment!
Two key factors I would press to new shavers:
1) Master the strop! The strop matters. If you have a lousy pre-shave strop, you are (I was) more prone to tugging. Don’t over strop. Just listen to the razor & let her plateau for a bit in the audible sweet spot. When you get it, you’ll know what I mean!
2) Angle! Angle! Angle!!!!! I shifted my “mindfulness” from the fear of cutting myself and how I was holding the razor with my fingers to angle. Angle matters! They say 30° is ideal, but I wouldn’t focus on the number of degrees & do what I did- go vertical / flat against your face & ever so slightly barely raise the spine off your cheek and go from there. Find that sweet spot. Once you find that angle, you can kiss your skin irritation and “when is the straight razor shave going to get as good as a safety razor shave?” GOODBYE!!!
I DID have a question:
Is anyone else a circus freak like me and “cross-draw”? I’m using my right hand to shave the left side & using my left hand to shave the right side EXCEPT the upper lip & chin. Anyone else do that? I’ve seen instructional after instructional & this ended up being more comfortable for me.
I only own 2 razors, a West Coast Shaving company 5/8 & some vintage German made stubby. I’ve pretty much been shaving with the stubby, just got the 5/8 in the mail & wanted to put it on a pasted basswood strop before trying it- this stubby is pretty awesome! I see all the big wedges and big honkin’ Spanish tips, but this thing reminds me of “the noisy cricket” from Men In Black
At any rate, today was the EUREKA!!! day and have answered the question of “when does it feel like a safety razor shave?!?!” Answer: when you master both the strop and the angle.
After ALL the irritated skin, cuts, weepers, scabs, and days of looking like I fought a house cat and lost, it FINALLY HAPPENED!!!
Today I had the best shave I’ve had to date with no blood, no irritation, no nothing but refreshment!
Two key factors I would press to new shavers:
1) Master the strop! The strop matters. If you have a lousy pre-shave strop, you are (I was) more prone to tugging. Don’t over strop. Just listen to the razor & let her plateau for a bit in the audible sweet spot. When you get it, you’ll know what I mean!
2) Angle! Angle! Angle!!!!! I shifted my “mindfulness” from the fear of cutting myself and how I was holding the razor with my fingers to angle. Angle matters! They say 30° is ideal, but I wouldn’t focus on the number of degrees & do what I did- go vertical / flat against your face & ever so slightly barely raise the spine off your cheek and go from there. Find that sweet spot. Once you find that angle, you can kiss your skin irritation and “when is the straight razor shave going to get as good as a safety razor shave?” GOODBYE!!!
I DID have a question:
Is anyone else a circus freak like me and “cross-draw”? I’m using my right hand to shave the left side & using my left hand to shave the right side EXCEPT the upper lip & chin. Anyone else do that? I’ve seen instructional after instructional & this ended up being more comfortable for me.
I only own 2 razors, a West Coast Shaving company 5/8 & some vintage German made stubby. I’ve pretty much been shaving with the stubby, just got the 5/8 in the mail & wanted to put it on a pasted basswood strop before trying it- this stubby is pretty awesome! I see all the big wedges and big honkin’ Spanish tips, but this thing reminds me of “the noisy cricket” from Men In Black
At any rate, today was the EUREKA!!! day and have answered the question of “when does it feel like a safety razor shave?!?!” Answer: when you master both the strop and the angle.
I finally master something & ya see what I get 
I cant win for losing 
