How do you know when you need sharpening versus stropping?

[TechnicallyMarcus]

Lots of information

So based on the info in the thread from you and others I have developed a plan of attack so to speak.

There is a local Sally's I can hit after work. $10 for a Magic Shave according to the website, and couple bucks more for a pack of blades. That way I can rule out a dull blade. I can work solely on technique and know the blade is good.

Once I have that down, I'll give the Imperial another shot and possibly send out/find a local hone/sharpen/refresh (are these terms interchangeable?)

I think it's easier to learn by starting with a DE or SE for the first passes and finishing with a straight as it allows you to develop a feel for steel on skin more easily.

I've got an old DE somewhere, can you describe more of what you mean there? It sounds like that may be something to integrate as well. First pass DE, then the Magic Razor suggested above, and easing up to my imperial.

 

[GearNoir]

It’s up to you.

The DE will accomplish most of the beard reduction for you to hopefully help you get your feet wet and not have so many hang ups with the SR. It should help you practice your passes easier not having to worry too much if you are cutting hair or getting caught in an hour long shave session.

The Magic shavette is an option to continue practicing SR-like technique while your razor is honed. It will however punish you severely for any mistakes, so be warned!

 

[TechnicallyMarcus]

Looks like a vintage boar brush or around 20mm but can't really tell with it up to its neck in lather.

It looks a little scraggly cause it's still pretty damp when I took the picture, but here's a better image of the brush. It does have pure badger on the other side of it, opposite the fancy e.

 

[Slash McCoy]

Well I have seen nicer badgers but you can make it work. It might not hold enough lather for a full three pass shave, but no biggie.

 

[lightfoot]

I like the magic razor with the personna blades a lot. You just cut one of the DE blades in half, put it in the blade holder and slide it back in.

 

[kingfisher]

What a great thread, guys. Slash with a veritable primer on straight shaving. Others with great contributions. Thanks.

I, too, am a beginner, in the early 30s for straight shaves and early 70s for open blade shaves. The learning curve is a lot steeper than I thought it would be, but things come around over time if you are patient.

I think starting out very gradually is the way to go. So I agree with ouch that for the first bit, anyway, just use the straight razor for a second pass and on the cheeks only. Get the feel for how to hold and move the blade, and how it feels and sounds on the face, before moving on to more difficult challenges. Nobody is going to put you in jail or anything if it takes you 3 or even 6 months to learn how to shave with a straight. Or even if it took you a year.

It's your shave. Do it how you want! But I think learning very gradually is the way to go. Otherwise frustration takes the fun out of it, and I think shaving should be fun. And straight razor shaving is actually quite fun, as long as you don't get frustrated with it. So I am doing what I can do, and trying to improve/expand a little bit day by day or week by week. And as soon as I hit a tough spot and feel myself getting frustrated, I just rinse it, dry it off, put it down, and finish the shave with something else. No shame in that at all.

Good luck to you in your journey.

 

[Slash McCoy]

View attachment 867729 View attachment 867731 View attachment 867732 View attachment 867734 I like the magic razor with the personna blades a lot. You just cut one of the DE blades in half, put it in the blade holder and slide it back in.

Personna? Looks like a Feather blade, to me. My favorite!

 

[lightfoot]

Yeah that feather was just laying around so I just grabbed it for the pic.

 

[TechnicallyMarcus]

Well I have seen nicer badgers

Couldn't tell you how old it is. I tried DE off and on for a bit and got it when I first ventured into wet shaving. Even when I used my cartridge, I still lathered up with the brush and a nice creme and it worked okay to suit me at the time.

What a great thread, guys. Slash with a veritable primer on straight shaving. Others with great contributions. Thanks.

Yeah, turned into a lot more than I anticipated when I stumbled in here.

I like the magic razor with the personna blades a lot.

On the suggestion elsewhere I ended up stopping by Sally's and getting one. Haven't tried using it, but did the arm hair test suggested and yeah, lost a couple of hair tops pretty easily. I can already tell it's sharper than the SR I was trying.

I'm looking forward to paying my blood sacrifice to this steel and getting the longer term payoff.

 

[Slash McCoy]

Hah! No need to treetop test a shavette, if you use a quality blade and don't try to make it last for 60 shaves! But I guess trying it showed you what the treetop test is all about. Enjoy your first bloodbath, er, I mean shavette shave.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Hah! No need to treetop test a shavette, if you use a quality blade and don't try to make it last for 60 shaves! But I guess trying it showed you what the treetop test is all about. Enjoy your first bloodbath, er, I mean shavette shave.

I've never been able to make the treetop test work for me which makes me wonder about the sharpness of my razors's edges; they do shave well enough. I mostly rely on the shave and also use the thumbnail test as outlined by Keith @Gamma on his Honing 101/Setting the Bevel video.

Good idea to try the treetop with a manufactured blade known for sure to be sharp. I have the Feather barber razor and Prolines. My guess is they won't work for me either, but I know how to test that guess.

Happy shaves,

Jim

P.S. The women at my Sally's have been very welcoming and nice to me. I'll admit to chatting them up just a tiny bit. The employees of my closest Sally's don't look like they have much going for them, but when I ask questions and such or talk about products I want and show a genuine interest in their wares and such I've found they really know their stuff and are very happy to talk with a guy about it.

They tell me they have more and more men coming in.

The other beauty supply place I frequent has lots of products but has employees who are not very interested in having me in their store (or something).

 

[life2short1971]

^^This is a great point. I'm not sure what to expect with any of this really, and that's something I'm trying to keep in mind.

It was 'shave ready' by /u/RocTraitor over on Reddit. I don't know him personally but he has a good reputation over there. Though I can't speak for the condition it's in after all my newbie handling.

Here's to slowing down. I kinda zoned out once and got a nice 'peel' on my strop. Clipped it off and a nail file smoothed it out. I know some learning curve is expected, but I'm still in that new user frustration.

In te future take a toothpick and put a slight dab of super glue on the end and lightly and i mean lightly apply a tad into the slice and press together. Tht will fix the strop like new and you won't have any missing chunks

 

[street]

A ruined edge needs honing.
For stropping keep your strop tight and keep the razor flat.
Lift from the strop at the turn of the stroke.

Don't strop at an angle like the the guy in the video does.

[youtube]

 

[Badgerstate36]

Typically, you need a honing when stropping no longer brings the edge back to where it shaves smoothly. One thing to remember is that stropping only realigns the edge, it doesnt actually sharpen the edge. If you were to look at the edge under a microscope, it would look a lot like a saw blade. So, when the edge is nice and pristine, the saw teeth are all straight but as you shave with it, the teeth kind of get bent and eventually dont cut so well. By stropping, you restraighten the teeth.