I shave with a Merkur razor with feather blades. I decided to try a straight razor. I watched a lot of videos, I purchased a Hart Steel razor and leather strap. I tried to gentle shave with it on my check but my skin moved and I cut my face pretty bad. I was told it was best to have it professional honed which I did and when I got it back I tried it again. Sadly after 3 or 4 attempts, I did not have great success and was only able to shave my check areas and I was a little afraid to try it again. I don't know how you guys do it. It seems like its the next level of the art of shaving. But for now when I am in a rush I use my Mach 3 turbo and when I have more time, I use my Merkur Futur shaver. But I really do enjoy shaving with my Simpsons brush and I would love to try it again, but I need more direction on how to prevent the mistakes I previously made. Also how often would I even need to sharpen the blade, and how often should it be honed?
I would love to learn to shave with a straight razor, but I dont think its right for me.
- Thread starter Jason smooth
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Ease into it. Shave your cheeks at first and finish with a DE. Save your chin for last. Hold your spine close to your face and don’t use much pressure.
It’s not a quick study. I have a little over 400 triple pass shaves under my belt snd it took about 50 to be decent and 100 to be good.
I still am trying to master keeping a good edge. Have fun with it and it won’t seem so daunting.
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It’s not a quick study. I have a little over 400 triple pass shaves under my belt snd it took about 50 to be decent and 100 to be good.
I still am trying to master keeping a good edge. Have fun with it and it won’t seem so daunting.
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Buy a shavette. Practice using it without any blade in it. Watch online videos of popular straight shavers, and mimic their actions with the empty shavette. Practice switching hands and being ambidextrous. Learn to stretch skin with one hand, while you shave with the other. When you feel confident (and take as much time getting comfortable as you need), load a blade and try it live. It's a big, scary deal until it isn't - just like learning to drive. Once you have your first successful straight shave, you'll walk on air and never look back. Shavettes are cheap, you don't have to worry about honing or stropping, and you'll get your technique down. Round the corner points of the razor blade on the rough part on the bottom of a coffee cup before your first shave.
Just go at your own pace and have fun, and you will gradually become more proficient.
Regarding maintenance, two popular options are to 1) strop your razor on diamond paste on balsa wood between shaves or 2) finish/polish your razor on a polishing stone about once a week. And after each, strop on leather.
The maintenance may sound like a lot but once you become proficient it only takes a few minutes and is therapeutic/Zen like.
I have been using a straight since September and can now finish a razor in about 10 minutes.
A great skill to have.
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Regarding maintenance, two popular options are to 1) strop your razor on diamond paste on balsa wood between shaves or 2) finish/polish your razor on a polishing stone about once a week. And after each, strop on leather.
The maintenance may sound like a lot but once you become proficient it only takes a few minutes and is therapeutic/Zen like.
I have been using a straight since September and can now finish a razor in about 10 minutes.
A great skill to have.
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I may be a one off, but I have found straight razors more forgiving than shavette. Just my two cents, or possibly less.
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learn to pull skin taut and smooth the stroke.. good luck!
I've heard that before. I think it's easier to go from shavettes to straights, than vice versa. YMMV. I love and use both.
No you’re not off and I agree with you.
i might also take this opportunity to add if you try a shavette and then go to a real straight blade you’ll notice they feel entirely differently from each other on your face.
What's your advice to the o.p.?
I encourage trying new things and I look forward to SR shaving now. It wasn’t that way when I started, more challenge than pleasure for me, it took time. I‘ve had lapses of judgment with my SR and come out unscathed, grateful I wasn’t brandishing my Feather AC.......things would have been different. Ultimately you want to enjoy the experience and at some point you have to make a decision. That being said, I encourage patience and persistence for those new to SR shaving. Good luck!
Remember these things
1. Always use a sharp blade. At a minimum it should tree top well and pass a hanging hair test
2. Keep a low angle. Maybe a spines width off your face
3. Light pressure. Aim to shave the lather not the whiskers.
4. Always stretch the skin
5. Try to use both hands as much as you can
6. NEVER MOVE THE BLADE SIDEWAYS!
7. Keep the blade moving when it’s on your skin
8. If it doesn’t feel right. Stop and try a different way. Don’t force it or push through a tough spot. There shouldn’t be much resistance.
You will figure it out. It starts to click after 30 shaves. I touch the blade up every 3-4 shaves YMMV.
The hardest part is getting started. You’ve done that now. Keep going.
1. Always use a sharp blade. At a minimum it should tree top well and pass a hanging hair test
2. Keep a low angle. Maybe a spines width off your face
3. Light pressure. Aim to shave the lather not the whiskers.
4. Always stretch the skin
5. Try to use both hands as much as you can
6. NEVER MOVE THE BLADE SIDEWAYS!
7. Keep the blade moving when it’s on your skin
8. If it doesn’t feel right. Stop and try a different way. Don’t force it or push through a tough spot. There shouldn’t be much resistance.
You will figure it out. It starts to click after 30 shaves. I touch the blade up every 3-4 shaves YMMV.
The hardest part is getting started. You’ve done that now. Keep going.
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rbscebu
Girls call me Makaluod
@Jason smooth don't give up. It takes time and patience. We all felt a certain fear when we started SR shaving. We all cut ourselves a few time.
Just start with a single WTG pass on your cheeks, stretching the skin. Keep the blade angle low to your skin, with the razor's spine about ½ to 1 spine thickness off your skin. (Forget that 30° stuff many state on YouTube.) Almost no pressure, just enough to remove the lather. Don't worry about trying to cut your whiskers, that will happen as you technique improves.
After about 30 SR shaves you will wonder what all the fuss was about. Just remember that most who master the basics of SR shaving would never go back to any other form of shaving and they wish that they had started SR shaving in their teens. Yes, it's that good.
As for sharpening/honing, with a truly shave-ready SR just stropping it about 50 to 60 laps on clean lesther before each shave should keep it very shaveable for 50 to 100 shaves. By then the edge may need to be refreshed. When stropping keep the strop tight and only use very light pressure. You should see only very little deflection in the strop.
Just start with a single WTG pass on your cheeks, stretching the skin. Keep the blade angle low to your skin, with the razor's spine about ½ to 1 spine thickness off your skin. (Forget that 30° stuff many state on YouTube.) Almost no pressure, just enough to remove the lather. Don't worry about trying to cut your whiskers, that will happen as you technique improves.
After about 30 SR shaves you will wonder what all the fuss was about. Just remember that most who master the basics of SR shaving would never go back to any other form of shaving and they wish that they had started SR shaving in their teens. Yes, it's that good.
As for sharpening/honing, with a truly shave-ready SR just stropping it about 50 to 60 laps on clean lesther before each shave should keep it very shaveable for 50 to 100 shaves. By then the edge may need to be refreshed. When stropping keep the strop tight and only use very light pressure. You should see only very little deflection in the strop.
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Slash McCoy
I freehand dog rockets
Who did you send it out to? Not just anybody who SAYS he can hone a razor, can. Many think they can, but cannot. Nobody who does not shave daily with a straight razor is qualified in the slightest, to hone one. Be sure it is someone in the community.
And now, to test your razor's edge. You might think you can test it by shaving forearm hair. WRONG! That is how you test your pocketknife's edge, not a razor. Pass the razor over your forearm, not touching it, 1/4" ABOVE the skin. It should lop off at least one or two hair tips on each pass. This is called treetopping. Doing that means you have a pretty darn good edge. If you have to go down to 1/8" above the skin to get treetopping, then you have a barely marginal but sort of usable edge. If it won't treetop at all at 1/8", it isn't going to shave very well even for an experienced shaver. You might also want to do a web search for HHT, another sharpness test that is very popular.
The real test is the face shave test, but if you are not yet skilled at face shaving with a straight razor, it isn't much of a test. So do another sharpness test so you know if there is any hope for that razor as it is, or not.
Next, you MUST stretch the skin tightly as you shave. Tight skin isn't cut or irritated as easily as loose flappy skin. Keep the angle low. A mediocre edge shaves best at ONE spine thickness gap between the spine and skin. A very sharp razor needs a smaller angle than that. A higher angle is not shaving. It is scraping. Don't scrape. Not doing your face any favors, that.
Strop, not strap. It is a strop. Make sure you understand stropping before you strop your razor. There are lots of youtube tutorials but basically pull the strop fairly tight but not like leaning away with full body weight tight. Pressure of the razor onto the strop should be about the weight of your hand only. Less is better. ALWAYS touch down with the spine first, then the edge. ALWAYS lift the edge off, then the spine. ALWAYS when you get to the end and change directions, flip the edge up and over, keeping the spine on the strop. There is more but that is the high points.
Go WTG only. Two passes is a good beginner shave. That shouldn't be enough to cause serious irritation if you do your prep good, use light pressure and low shave angle, stretch the skin, and go WTG or as close as practical. Don't worry about getting a close shave. Just try to survive the experience. Unscathed, and unbloodied.
I have always felt that total immersion is the best way to learn this. IOW, start on Friday evening. Shave every evening. Don't touch your DE or Mach III for a couple of weeks, at least. No training wheels, no prisoners, do or die. Remember the basic rules. Light pressure, blah blah blah. Don't thing about removing whiskers. Think about removing the lather. Whiskers will come if you are doing this right, without even thinking about the whiskers. Serious. That's why you start over the weekend, so you don't have a need to worry about the closeness of your shave. Keep all your blood inside, that's it. That's your goal. Closeness will come soon enough.
Good Luck, and Happy Shaves.
- Thread starter
- #14
Thanks for your replies. I think the one thing I really need to do is make sure the skin is tight. As it was moved while shaving, as it moved back to its original position after the blade pushed it down and it was moving back up is when I received my cut. When your hands are wet with cream, stretching the skin can be a challenge. I also think the angle of the blade is something I have to get better at as well.
Wet your fingers with an alum block and then dry them. You’ll notice a much improved grip. It’s like putting rosin on your fingers. You’ll be able to stretch the skin right through a film of soap. BTW the improved grip is both on the skin and holding the razor itself.Never hold a straight with WET HANDS
EclipseRedRing
I smell like a Christmas pudding
You are quite right, my Feather Artist Club DX will punish the slightest loss in concentration far more than my straight razor. I would start with just the flat areas with the straight and finish with a DE then gradually move to the more difficult areas. I recommend a very shallow angle with the spine barely away from the skin, very very light pressure, and a wetter lather than you might use for a DE shave. No matter how light your pressure is, go lighter, just try to remove the lather almost without touching the skin. If you ever shave in the shower, never ever be tempted to use the straight.
I couldn't help but note your phrasing above ...
The blade should never "push the skin down". People talk about "light" or even "zero" pressure when shaving. People talk about trying to "remove the lather, not remove the whiskers". The whole idea is to only use enough pressure to keep the edge in contact with your skin. It's the sharpness of the edge, not applied pressure, that cuts whiskers. Applied pressure cuts skin.
The blade should never "push the skin down". People talk about "light" or even "zero" pressure when shaving. People talk about trying to "remove the lather, not remove the whiskers". The whole idea is to only use enough pressure to keep the edge in contact with your skin. It's the sharpness of the edge, not applied pressure, that cuts whiskers. Applied pressure cuts skin.
Alan is right.
The problem with trying straights after starting off with cartridges and spending many years with cartridges is that your muscle memory is all based on cartridges. You push too much.
Yes, they cartridges don't nick you, but that's because the edge of the blade is tucked way safely back between the plastic protective clamshell.
So to shave with disposable cartridges, you learn to push down into the skin. It's the only way. Also you never think about keeping the edge flat against the skin because again, the edge is so protected you just can't nick yourself no matter what angle you use.
Those are two bad habits when you try for the first time to shave with an open, unprotected, edge. With an unprotected edge, you use a light touch and a flat angle. You don't push into the skin.
It took me ages to get rid of that bad muscle memory. After a year I got sick of trying and went back to DE for a year. But then I tried straights again and then got it.
It's a lot like trying a stick shift for the first time at age fifty. You'll stall out on hills at first. But keep at it. You get past the frustrating stage of not knowing how to do it, and move into the rewarding stage of being satisfied with your new skills.
Plus you're not filling landfills any more.
The problem with trying straights after starting off with cartridges and spending many years with cartridges is that your muscle memory is all based on cartridges. You push too much.
Yes, they cartridges don't nick you, but that's because the edge of the blade is tucked way safely back between the plastic protective clamshell.
So to shave with disposable cartridges, you learn to push down into the skin. It's the only way. Also you never think about keeping the edge flat against the skin because again, the edge is so protected you just can't nick yourself no matter what angle you use.
Those are two bad habits when you try for the first time to shave with an open, unprotected, edge. With an unprotected edge, you use a light touch and a flat angle. You don't push into the skin.
It took me ages to get rid of that bad muscle memory. After a year I got sick of trying and went back to DE for a year. But then I tried straights again and then got it.
It's a lot like trying a stick shift for the first time at age fifty. You'll stall out on hills at first. But keep at it. You get past the frustrating stage of not knowing how to do it, and move into the rewarding stage of being satisfied with your new skills.
Plus you're not filling landfills any more.
Thinking about getting into this also, just started using my double edge again after a long time. I love the rituals associated with wet shaving it sets my zen for me. I am wondering if going to straight shave would add to the zen with the added ritual.
Slash McCoy
I freehand dog rockets
Indubitably.
