Did a stupid thing today..

[rbscebu]

@Hydguy if you take up @Steve56's offer I suggest that, as a n00bie to SR's, you seriously consider using diamond pasted balsa strops to maintain your shave-ready SR. A summary of their use can be found here:

How To Use a Pasted Balsa Strop

lol camo

www.badgerandblade.com

This will then give you plenty of time to learn and develop your honing skills while keeping your shave-0ready SR in perfect condition.

 

[Aidah]

Well, I have to admit that posts in the SOTD from you, @camoloc, and @Vaporstang certainly got my curiosity up with those beautiful straights...

I made the plunge last month for the same reasons after spending too much time in the straight threads here. Starting for me has had plenty of hurdles but I’m incredibly pleased I made the jump. It’s completely fine to start off just focusing on learning how to shave with your razor. Take it slow and don’t let a bad shave discourage you. You’ll be learning a completely brand new skill and it takes time and practice. I’m in the double digits in shaves now and couldn’t be happier. Also listen to @rbscebu advice on balsa strops. They’ll help maintain your edge so you can go much longer in between honings.

Honing is a separate rabbit hole to go down on its own. Feel free to start off learning how to shave and to focus on honing later.

 

[Vaporstang]

And bought a SR, with 2 stones and strop...

Never thought I'd try it.. but I guess in about a week I'll find out if it's for me..


Specs on the razor: 6/8 Henckles 72 1/2 straight
Stones: Imperia La Roccia 12-15K Finishing, 8 & 3K honing

And what the 6/8 and 72 1/2 mean is greek to me...

Congratulations! And don't worry about cutting yourself in the beginning - because you will. In the long run it will be worth it!

 

[Ravenonrock]

Well, I have to admit that posts in the SOTD from you, @camoloc, and @Vaporstang certainly got my curiosity up with those beautiful straights...

That‘s what inspired me to re start an interest I had long ago, the enthusiastic posts. I’m a relative newbie also, but I jumped in with both feet and haven’t looked back. I’m also new to honing and am learning as I go. My SR’s are mostly castaways, purchased to learn on. I’ve happily managed to salvage a few as keepers. I fully agree that there are some truly beautiful SR’s posted, pristine examples and real artwork. I’ve certainly got a wish list, but the utilitarian examples will have to do for now. Hang on for the ride!

 

[SgtCrppls]

And bought a SR, with 2 stones and strop...

Never thought I'd try it.. but I guess in about a week I'll find out if it's for me..


Specs on the razor: 6/8 Henckles 72 1/2 straight
Stones: Imperia La Roccia 12-15K Finishing, 8 & 3K honing

And what the 6/8 and 72 1/2 mean is greek to me...

Keep me updated please, Leather Neck

 

[Lightcs1776]

Το 6/8 είναι το πλάτος της λεπίδας και το 72½ είναι ο αριθμός μοντέλου.

Now that is funny! My dad took Greek for his M. Div degree.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

 

[Vaporstang]

Το 6/8 είναι το πλάτος της λεπίδας και το 72½ είναι ο αριθμός μοντέλου.

LOL I gravitated straight to the Greek without reading anything else. I called my on Son over, who studied in Greece for three years, to the screen to translate. While he was translating I noticed the English quote right above it.

 

[Mr Oldschool]

Welcome to the wide world of straight razor shaving. Make sure to take baby steps in your new journey. The first time you touch a sharp open blade to your face, it can ne quite startling. It is literally like no other experience on earth. Probably the hardest thing to learn is the right hold/feel. At first you're afraid of cutting your face, so you'll tend to use too little pressure and the blade will want to hop and skip across your face. This is where many early cuts come from. Then as you get a more confident grip, the tendency is to start putting on too much pressure, or start shaving against the grain too soon which invariably leads to razor burn and weepers. As they say, "if you chase the baby, you get burned".
Start slow. First shave or three, just shave your cheeks. Once you're starting to get used to what it feels like, expand your area to your jaw and throat. Save your chin and upper lip for later. They are by far the hardest parts to learn and you need to have some acquired dexterity to be able to tackle them. Above all, don't rush the process. It takes most people a couple months to begin to feel like they have the hang of it. It takes several more months to actually get truly proficient. When you first start, don't get discouraged if you have a bad shave. It's hard to get a good shave when you're first learning it. Just push through and you will be rewarded with the best shaves possible. Nothing good in life comes easy, but this is worth the effort.

 

[njtnjt]

So many enablers Welcome to the club.

 

[Hydguy]

Welcome, and I hope that you enjoy the zen and mindfulness that shaving with a straight razor can bring you for a short time during the day! It is a skill that takes time to learn, but like anything else worth learning, the payoff is great..and you get out of it what you put into it.

I know everyone has advice, but I will offer just a few pieces:

1. Take Steve up on his offer to put a nice edge on the razor for the cost of return postage. This will enable you to feel what an edge is supposed to feel like as you are starting out, instead of taking the risk of learning what an edge is not supposed to feel like and being put off.

2. If you are going to get serious about learning to hone your own razors, invest in a Chosera 1k for bevel setting and a DMT 325. The 325 is nice for flattening your stones, and cleaning them up after use.

3. I also recommend buying a 10x or 30x loupe to check things out along the edge, and on the bevel near the edge, as you progress through your stones. This will enable you to identify issues before moving on to the next stone in your progression, so that they can be corrected as soon as possible.

You will figure out the rest of it as you go, and there are encyclopedias worth of information on the various forums and in YouTube videos. Good luck!

Vr

Matt

Thanks for the advice.. I have a 10x eyepiece somewhere around here from my days in the service and being NDI qualed. I'll have to look for it..

Don't see myself shaving the goatee and stache any time soon. It's been many years since I've been without them. I've mowed
them down to stubble a few times, but haven't put a blade of any kind to either in well over a decade.

 

[Hydguy]

Aside from using a loupe to examine the edge, how can one tell if a straight is 'shave ready', aside from shaving, and cutting myself up if it isn't ?
Would it be a smart move to order one of the shave ready Crescent City GDs to have on hand to work with?

 

[Biltong & Boerewors]

Most SR shavers wish they had started in their teens. I know I wish that.

30 Years ago I read an article in Men's Health about the importance of preparing for a shave. They highly recommended using a brush and a good shaving soap.
Living in South Africa at the time, I started looking for a brush and soap in the pharmacies where I bought all my cartridges and canned foam, but simply couldn't find any. Brush? Shaving soap? Don't be silly, nobody use them anymore! Those were the days before internet, don't know how we managed, but somehow we did and were fine with it.
It was only when I came to Scotland thirteen years ago that I saw Wilkinson Sword shaving soap and brushes on the shelf in a supermarket where I did my usual shopping. Huge improvement!
Three years ago, straight razor shaving caught my fancy and I can honestly say I won't go back as long as my hands are steady enough to do it safely.
These days, in the UK, and I suppose most other countries, you can find everything you need easily and conveniently.

 

[camoloc]

Aside from using a loupe to examine the edge, how can one tell if a straight is 'shave ready', aside from shaving, and cutting myself up if it isn't ?
Would it be a smart move to order one of the shave ready Crescent City GDs to have on hand to work with?

determining shave ready will vary in opinion with most. treetopping and HHT are general indicators for me. my arm hair is fine so I tree top belly & chest hair. usually put oil on the blade to catch all the remnants for evaluation.

ultimately, just shaving is the one that really matters. it shaves or it doesn't do well and leaves stubble.

buying a verified shave ready razor is a good idea to know what the benchmark standard would be.

the loupe will just show you changes in honing striations or "scratch" patterns when transitioning from one stone, medium, etc to the next. it won't tell you "shave ready."

Crescent razors would be a good economical start as the craftsman uses a balsa progression which is undoubtedly sharp.

camo

 

[global_dev]

Couple bevel set tests exist

like said above treetop test
Thumbnail test - how does it stick
Thumbpad test - how does it stick
Cherry tomato test - how does it cut

Does it shave test - how does it cut

i reserve hht for post stropping (maybe because i dont strop where i hone).

the crescent golden monkey will be a good to go razor, i might even get a third vintage cheap american or solingen in good condition.

 

[Frank Shaves]

Aside from using a loupe to examine the edge, how can one tell if a straight is 'shave ready', aside from shaving, and cutting myself up if it isn't ?
Would it be a smart move to order one of the shave ready Crescent City GDs to have on hand to work with?

You definitely want to start out with a razor that is deemed shave ready by a reputable honer. But ultimately only you can determine what shave ready means for you, and this will take some experience/trial and error. Another advantage of starting with shave ready razors is that as long as the stars align you should only need a finishing stone, a strop and possibly diamond paste for the short term.

 

[stone and strop]

Aside from using a loupe to examine the edge, how can one tell if a straight is 'shave ready', aside from shaving, and cutting myself up if it isn't ?
Would it be a smart move to order one of the shave ready Crescent City GDs to have on hand to work with?

I would just lather up and do a couple of short passes with the grain.
If it is not butter smooth finish with something else. If it pulls at all or feels uncomfortable then send it out.
Do not worry about any other test if you are not familiar with them anyway and looking at the edge means little if you don't know what you are looking for with exception of chips or missing pieces.

 

[Matt O]

Aside from using a loupe to examine the edge, how can one tell if a straight is 'shave ready', aside from shaving, and cutting myself up if it isn't ?
Would it be a smart move to order one of the shave ready Crescent City GDs to have on hand to work with?

Shave ready...shave ready means different things to different people...what is shave ready to you may not be shave ready to someone else. You will figure out “shave ready” with experience...how you hone the edge, use the edge, and maintain the edge...you will start to instinctively know when it is shave ready, and if the edge is lagging what will bring it back to “shave ready” once you develop your own tastes for an edge, and techniques for maintaining one/bringing one back to what will deliver you a nice shave.

It’s all trial and error, and you will probably chase perfection if you really get into it...your perfect razor, your perfect strop, your perfect method of keeping an edge, your perfect stones for honing, etc etc...that’s why people call it a rabbit hole, and why many folks, myself included, spend a lot of money as we collect new kit, try new things, etc etc.

If it was just about hair removal, I could use a can of barbasol, and a Gillette sensor excel. However, it’s not just about removing hair from the face, at least not for me.

A hanging hair test and looking at things along the edge and bevel near the edge helped me to guess at when something was shave ready when I was starting out. Now...I know when it’s ready. However, I still look at things with the loupe, and do the HHT, because they have become good habits. Plus, I do sometimes find something that surprises me...which I don’t like, and fix before it becomes an issue. The other day, under the 30x loupe I found the slightest imperfection on the edge...looked like a micro chip. I dropped the edge back to the 4k stone, and redid it to my idea of perfection.

At any rate, you will figure out “shave ready.”

Vr

Matt

 

[Hydguy]

The Henckel arrived today. Sadly, it's nowhere near shave ready, and when the edge is placed in the side of the stone, it appears to have a slight smile to it, so I will get in touch with @Steve56 to arrange for him to hone it.
The strop has a crease in it, so I'm not sure it is even suitable for use.
It's an Illinois Leather strop, and they don't seem to have good reviews here.
But for the price I paid for the whole setup (along with some soaps and AS), I think needing a new strop isn't a bad deal overall.
Just means I will have to wait a little longer to try straight shaving.

 

[Slash McCoy]

Well, Illinois strops arent all THAT bad. The one you have is creased up a bit. Try a soak in warm water, then hang it in your shower or other humid location. Let it slowly dry. When it seems nearly dry, rub a few drops of neatsfoot oil into it. A few drops only. Dribble it into your hand and rub your hands together, then rub the strop. Keep at it for a while. Then rub it down with just your hand, no more oil, every day for a couple weeks and see if it doesn't smooth out a little. It's not an heirloom quality strop so not much to lose. TBH as it is, it will probably work okay-ish but hand rubbing will improve it. Nervous about soaking? No biggie. Skip that part if you like. But rub it every day for a while and give it a chance. I have used strops in a lot worse shape than that one.

Rubbing with neatsfoot oil is sort of the straight shaving equivelant to "take two aspirins and call me in the morning". Sometimes it helps, and it almost never hurts, as long as you don't overdo it.

 

[rbscebu]

@Hydguy by all means take @Steve56 up on his most kind offer. I wouldn't worry about the slight smile. I prefer a slight smile on my edges, others more or less. It's a personal preference.

While the SR is away with Steve, take Mr. McCoy's advice on correcting the strop. All should then be good by the time you get your SR back from Steve.

If you have the time and inclination, start now putting together three balsa strops; 0.5um, 0.25um and 0.1um. You will not regret doing so.