First Shave

[tam.audio]

Shaved with a straight for the first time. Kinda frightening at first. It seems I got the hang of it fairly quickly, but I did run into a few things.

1. I had 3 days growth, it seemed to get hung up and couldn't "plow" through the hair, so I did one pass with a DE to get the stubble down.

2. I did 2 passes with the grain and 1 across, I typically do an against the grain with a DE but didn't want to over do it. The shave I got was ok, definitly rough against the grain, but smooth with the grain.

Is my blade maybe NOT shave ready as it was sold on the B/S/T or should a straight not be able to go through 3 days growth? Could my stropping skill be to blame?

I am happy to report, however, that I managed to have no razor burn, no nicks, no weepers, no blood! Maybe I'm not using enough pressure??

 

[Hawkeye5]

These are always difficult questions to answer. Normally a razor will take care of three days growth, but as someone new to using a straight there are questions about your technique that may have more impact than the condition of the edge. Stropping errors are also very common among new straight shavers. I'm not trying to be critical. Just take a look at all the posts by new straight razor users questioning the sharpness of their razor to get my drift.
And congratulation on your first shave

 

[mparker762]

I am happy to report, however, that I managed to have no razor burn, no nicks, no weepers, no blood! Maybe I'm not using enough pressure??

Then your first shave was a success. The primary objective of that first shave is simply to get through it without serious incident. Beyond that you really can't read too much into the details of that first shave. There's simply too much new stuff to absorb to really hope to do it well that first time. Next time some of the newness of the experience will have worn off, you'll be more calm and confident, and you'll be better able to focus on what you're doing. Pay careful attention to your stropping, and to the angle of the blade against your skin, and let us know how your second shave goes.

 

[strr]

I had the same problem. My razor was pulling and not shaving. After meeting up with mparker762 (who replied above my post) getting my razor honed by him and learning stropping/shaving techniques it made the world difference. If you can meet up with someone and learn techniques from them it will help. Also reading these forums over help a lot as well. My shaves have improved 100%

 

[adonnellyr]

I would be pretty pleased if I were you! The first straight shave I undertook left me with a little scar along my jawline, so consider yourself lucky! I would say you might want to work on your stropping a bit. How many passes across your strop would you say you gave the straight before shaving?

 

[just1nsturm]

My first shave was pretty comfortable but not that close either. For me, it was mostly technique. Just keep at it, things that are worth it take time

 

[tam.audio]

I would be pretty pleased if I were you! The first straight shave I undertook left me with a little scar along my jawline, so consider yourself lucky! I would say you might want to work on your stropping a bit. How many passes across your strop would you say you gave the straight before shaving?

I did about 20 passes; I don't have a linen/canvas side, I purchased the beginner strop from The Well Shaved Gentleman.

 

[adonnellyr]

I don't think you need the linen side as much as people say. It sounds like you were doing the right thing, but your technique will likely improve with time. I suspect my stropping technique is still not up to snuff...I can never get my razors as nice as when the come in freshly honed and it frustrates me a little. But hey, it wouldn't be as fun or rewarding if you didnt have to work for it!

 

[OldSchoolYoungin]

It was your first shave, sounds like it went well all things considered! Sooner or later, things will begin to fall into place and you'll wonder why you ever had trouble in the first place.

I can't offer you much advice on whether your blade is shave-ready or not. Along with everything else, stropping is fairly simple but it does improve a lot once you get a little more experience under your belt. However, you mentioned doing only 20 passes. I'd go for 50 and concentrate on perfect form.

 

[tam.audio]

It was your first shave, sounds like it went well all things considered! Sooner or later, things will begin to fall into place and you'll wonder why you ever had trouble in the first place.

I can't offer you much advice on whether your blade is shave-ready or not. Along with everything else, stropping is fairly simple but it does improve a lot once you get a little more experience under your belt. However, you mentioned doing only 20 passes. I'd go for 50 and concentrate on perfect form.

Okay, second shave. I did 30 passes on the strop. Same result, it's like I'm not getting anything cut. I check the lather left on the blade and it is taking some hairs. I will try doing upwards of 50 passes on the strop tonight, it's kind of hard to keep track, I get distracted easily