Jordanalexearle Shave Journal

[jordanalexearle]

Good Morning!

I am very excited to say that I ave just finished my first straight razor shave!! Yay!!!!

I started with a hot shower, followed by unscented art of shaving pre-shave oil. I dont think the oil really did anything If anyone else has used it and has another opinion let me kow, cause as of now, i dont really see a point to pre-shave oil. I ran by blade along the strop 50 times, which may have been excessive, i am not sure. After this I used a little bit of hot water and by boars hair brush to lather up some art of shaving unscented shaving cream (all of this i got in sample form from visiting there shop). It turned out I didn't use enough water (or at least I don't think i did) because the lather dried rather quickly on my face, causing some problems. So I added more hot water and re-lathered. Every time I added more water (I think I did it 3 times in the end) it got better. I think I may have a good Idea of how much water to use now.

Now while I am excited to have been able to do it, I am a little disappointed with my results. As this is my first time, i know i will get better as time goes on. I started as I read on most sites, up in the sideburn area and went down. Unless otherwise stated I went with the grain. I then repeated on the left hand side of my face. I had some problems seeing at certain points, but I quickly figured out how to solve these problems. I then went onto my throat and chin. While under my chin was surprisingly easier than I would have though, my chin gave me a lot of problems. If anyone has any advice on it I would be really grateful for any tips. Every few passes I made sure to wipe off the cream and hair on a clean face towel. I may replace this with a sponge soon though, because I think it may be easier to clean after.

After this I hit up above my lip. I then repeated the process about 3 times, each time angling the blade more parallel with my face. Towards the end I went against the grain a little around my sideburns and under my chin, as well as my upper lip to get a feel for it. Again it wasn't that bad.

After I finished my four attacks, I finished by rinsing off the blade, making sure to keep water out of the pivot, and dried the blade. I then washed the part of the scales I got a little bit of shaving cream on. I made sure to dry it all then put them away after letting it sit out to breath for a few minutes while i cleaned the bowl and brush. I stropped it another 50 times before storing it. I washed my face and applied some after shave.

All in all it took almost 45 minutes to an hour to do. This was a long time and I need to get faster or I will only be able to shave on the weekend. Will I be faster or is this how long it takes yall to shave as well?

I did walk away with 2 slight nicks from when i jittered the point of the blade into my face, nothing major, didn't even require toilet paper to stop the bleeding I also have a nice bit of razor burn from where I think I went too fast or at too sharp of an angle. If anyone knows how to reduce razor burn please let me know. It is not as close of a shave as I would have liked but it is pretty good for a first time. I have some very small stubbles when I run my hand across my face, but I cannot see it and its not too much. I feel like maybe its something between 10-12 hours after a usual shave amount of stubbles.

So for next time I will be using more lather to start with and trying to reduce the amount of razor burn. I will also try some more against the grain.

For now I have a few questions. First is how do I attack the chin? Its very annoyingly shaped.

Second, How do I reduce razor burn?

Third, How much water do I use to lather up? Should it be a little liquid or more solid (the lather foam)?

Fourth, My girlfriend says my face smell like puke, why?!?!??!!?! Is it the boars hair brush or the "unscented" stuff from art of shaving? I washed it first with soap but maybe it wasn't good enough.

Final question, How do I stop the razor burn from feeling bleh now? I used aftershave but it still feels a little tight and sandy.

I hope this was a good format for the shave journal. Any and all feedback is welcome.

Thanks and I hoped you enjoyed. Here is a picture of my stuff to celebrate my first shave. Let me know what yall think.

 

[Kentos]

Hiya! Congrats on your inaugural shave!

Shaving the chin is hard at first, since you need to maintain the razor angle as you go "around the horn". As I get to the transition between horizontal and vertical, I tilt my head up as I flatten the angle of the razor so that as it goes pass the apex of the chin it is in the right orientation to continue under the chin and down the neck.

Razor burn is from too much pressure, too much angle, and too many passes. Reduce those and the burn should go away.

Your lather should be thin and slick, but not watery. Lather making is a whole 'nother technique that needs to be learned...I would check out the soap and cream forums for more advice.

That pukey smell could be the soap or the brush. Have the GF smell them to find out.

Good luck! It takes some time, but your shaves will improve before you know it!

 

[jordanalexearle]

Thank you for the advice. I will probably be going at it again tomorrow morning. So I will post how it goes. How do I make the brush smell less? Do I just have to use it more?

 

[Kentos]

I just so happened to leave one of my boars wet overnight....it smelt of barf the next morning lol.

Once rinsed out it was ok. So I would suggest you rinse it out well shake it out, and let it dry. Try smelling it before you use and see if it stinks or not.

 

[jordanalexearle]

Hello again,

I got to do my second shave this morning. It was a lot better than the first one. Only slight razor burn. I followed the same process as last time but had a much looser lather (more moisture) and went against the grain the third and final pass. I still feel as though I need to get a closer shave though, so im going to play around with it more.

I started with a hot shower, followed by unscented art of shaving pre-shave oil. I ran by blade along the strop 50 times, which may have been excessive, i am not sure. After this I used a little bit of hot water and by boars hair brush to lather up some art of shaving unscented shaving cream (all of this i got in sample form from visiting there shop). I used a lot more water this time but I still added more to make it better.

I started as I read on most sites, up in the side burn area and went down with the grain. I went with the grain this first pass. I then repeated on the left hand side of my face. I had some problems seeing at certain points, but I quickly figured out how to solve these problems. I then went onto my throat and chin. I was actually a lot more competent this time with the chin. While it isnt amazing, its a lot better than last time and on par with the rest of my shave.

After this I hit up above my lip. I then repeated the process, mixing in some across the grain. The final pass I took against the grain and managed to get a much smoother shave.

After I finished my three passes, I finished by rinsing off the blade, making sure to keep water out of the pivot, and dried the blade. I made sure to dry it all then put them away after letting it sit out to breath for a few minutes while i cleaned the bowl and brush. I stropped it another 50 times before storing it. I washed my face and applied some after shave.

This time it only took 20-30 minutes which I am more pleased with. Though I would still rather it be closer to 10-15 minutes.

As far as the shave went. It was a lot closer to what i used to get with the cartridge razor, though still a little less smooth. I am hoping that I will soon be able to have a smoother shave than with the cartridge razor.


For my next shave I plan on trying a hot towel before to see if that makes it smoother as well as making the lather richer but also holding enough moisture that it does not dry out on my face.

Does anyone know anything about preshave oil? What do y'all think about it? Does it make a difference?

Also I was wondering how many times you stropped your razor before and after and how you know when you have done it enough.

Also, how do you know for sure your razor is shave ready? I am not 100% sure mine was and that would explain why it tugs a little. Or is that normal?

Wish me luck next time!

Jordan

 

[jordanalexearle]

Hello again,

Its been about 5 days since my last shave and man did I need it. This time it was a rather short shave. Only 2 passes. I went WTG on the first and ATG with the second. A little sore and tight in one place and I have a nic or two from going so fast but other than that it was really nice and only took about 10 minutes. I feel as though I am getting the hang of this. I have a few spots that I am unhappy with the clossness of the shave, but other than that it was great! I am really enjoying the straight razor shaving. Sadly because it was a fast shave I did not get to use a warm towel like I wanted. Next time though. Next time.

I started with a hot shower, followed by unscented art of shaving pre-shave oil. I ran by blade along the strop 50 times, which may have been excessive, i am not sure. After this I used a little bit of hot water and by boars hair brush to lather up some art of shaving unscented shaving cream (all of this i got in sample form from visiting there shop). I used a lot more water this time but I still added more to make it better.

I started with WTG in the side burn area. I then repeated on the left hand side of my face. I then went onto my throat and chin. I was actually a lot more competent this time with the chin. While it isnt amazing, its a lot better than last time and on par with the rest of my shave. I still need to work on it though.

After this I hit up above my lip. I then repeated the process this time ATG.

After I finished my three passes, I finished by rinsing off the blade, making sure to keep water out of the pivot, and dried the blade. I made sure to dry it all then put them away after letting it sit out to breath for a few minutes while i cleaned the bowl and brush. I stropped it another 50 times before storing it. I washed my face and applied some after shave.

This time the shave only took 10-20 minutes. Though I should go slower so I dont cut my face.

As far as the shave went. It was a lot closer to what i used to get with the cartridge razor, though still a little less smooth. I am hoping that I will soon be able to have a smoother shave than with the cartridge razor.

I am still wondering about the preshave oil? What do y'all think about it? Does it make a difference?

Also I was wondering how many times you stropped your razor before and after and how you know when you have done it enough.

Finally I wanted to as again, how do you know for sure your razor is shave ready? I am not 100% sure mine was and that would explain why it tugs a little. Or is that normal?

Wish me luck next time!

Jordan

 

[Nxspam]

Hi Jordan,
im new at this too. In fact i haven't even tried it yet, so I'm in no position to offer actual shaving advice, but, I was looking for stropping info on this site and other places on the net and came across something on Dovos site. (I have dovo special SR and a wide dovo strop). Dovo recommend letting the blade rest after a shave and not stropping it. They say that the edge, when looked at under a microscope, is like fine jagged hairs, and they flatten during a shave. When allowed to rest after the shave, they line up again. Then you can safely strop before your next shave or wait a while longer.

im just getting into DE shaving right now, and the dovo strop and razor is my Xmas present from my wife. I'm not allowed to use it until after Christmas :-(

I can't wait to try, but I'll just have to be patient, and in the mean time, learn everything I can from people like your good self.
thanks for sharing, great post.

btw, I will be trying a pre-shave oil when I can get my hands on some. I want to speed up the shave just a little and avoid cutting my throat at the same time
-nick

 

[AjaxLepinski]

I'm up to about 20 straight shaves... 21 when I finally get off the computer!

I wish I had started years ago so, I'm not yet an expert either but, I read a lot of helpful posts before making my first attempt last month.
One of the most helpful threads I've read is a shaving journal by TKOcloser. He describes over 70 shaves in detail and his thread is full of great suggestions and comments from the more experienced B&B members: http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/286040-DE-Shaver-Goes-Straight-tkocloser-s-Journal

So, here is my 2 cents based on my own 20 straight shaves and what I have read:

It sounds like your doing well and I think you will have your face mapped out by your 10th shave or so. When shaving my chin and jawline I use either the top half or, bottom half, or a small part of the blade at various angles to work around hard-to-shave areas. It's just a matter of figuring out the geometry of your face and developing a confident hand. Both will come in time and I'm already getting good, presentable shaves without doing too much damage. The general consensus is that it takes about 100 straight shaves before you will get consistent DFS's.

I read, here on B&B, that stropping 50 times is about the norm and a few people suggest 80. It's funny how the manufacturers instructions differ from how B&B members like to stop. Some members like to strop both before and after each shave. I've been stropping 80 times before each shave and I've also read in a post that you can't over strop. I'm not a metallugist but, just about everyone here says that stropping is what lines up the micro-dings on the blade and there has been more than one thread/post discussing Dovo's controversial idea about giving the blade a rest.

I tried preshave oil a few times but, I didn't really think that it did much good however, there are some people who use it all the time. To me, it is more trouble than it's worth - it gets on your fingers and makes it hard to hold the razor and stretch your skin.

My first straight shave took a long time, as well, and it took a lot of hyper-concentration. I made every effort to avoid the loss of blood! The three times that I sprung a leak happened when I relaxed too much and got careless. I'm not getting too much razor burn any more... just on the difficult spots where I have to use extra passes or when I try to speed up the process by pressing too hard.

The best thing about having straights in the house is that my g/f no longer gives me any poo about my DE collection. She also thinks it gives me a manly, Charles Bronson aura and there are no complaints about that!

 

[Daithi]

Hi Jordan,
I'm also no expert, only about a month in, but for what it's worth I actually like using a pre-shave oil, and find I get better results with it, but I'd say its marginal if I'm being honest. Only advice I'd give you is that in a few more shave's time when you think your technique is somewhat constant, try changing one thing about the set-up, ie take out the pre-shave oil, and see if it makes a major difference for you. Probably the best way to answer that question for yourself in my opinion.
Sounds like you have your lather under control, but for what its worth, I decided one night to just keep adding water into my lather to see how far I could push it before it went too far. I was very surprised at how much water my soap was taking, and would probably never had added as much had I not tested it, and since then I've been getting great lathers and maybe one of the biggest steps forward I made in the learning curve. Might be worth a shot?

 

[jordanalexearle]

Thanks guys! I will have to look into stropping after and try to see if it is better or not. I will have to look into it.

Thanks for the links to other shave journals. I will be sure to look into them.

Hey NxSpam. That's cool that your wife got that for you! Sorry you have to wait though. I would hate to have to wait.

Ajax, my girlfriend thinks the same haha. She is very excited for me to straight shave. I like it a lot too. I think it's really cool to have the kind of control you have with the straight.

Dave, I will have to try changing it around when I get the hang of it. Sadly I wont be able to shave again until like Saturday :-/ Unless I get more stubble before then.

Thanks for all the advice and feedback. I cannot wait to get better at this!

 

[jordanalexearle]

Hey Everyone!

Happy New Year and Christmas. Sorry I have been inactive. I have been super busy with finals and with the holidays. I hope everyone had a fun holiday.

So I have had about 10 shaves since the last time I posted. I have had mixed results, and i am unsure why. Once I cut myself pretty badly I restarted as if from day 1. Since then it has been going better. I still feel as though I was getting a closer shave with a cartridge though, which is odd. Does anyone else feel that way or am I still doing something wrong?

I have now been doing 3 passes, one wth, one xtg and one against the grain. That has been working well with only minor irritations but I am still not sure why it isn't feeling as close. My face still feels jagged afterwards. Any thoughts? I should be shaving again in the morning so any opinions before I do would be great.

Thanks!

 

[jordanalexearle]

I did shave on the 4th. Just took a while to post it.

Rather disappointed this time. I have been following the same procedure for a while, but somehow I seemed to knick myself a lot more last time than ever before. I don't switch hands while shaving. Does anyone switch hands? I will have to look into other peoples journals to see what they did.

I have been using solid soap for a while now and I think I may finally have the lather down for it which is nice. I get the brush wet with hot water and swirl the brush on the soap bar for about 10 seconds, letting the runoff drip into the bowl. The I just lather up, and each time i lather I add a little hot water to the bowl to reheat it. Does anyone do anything different to reheat the soap?

I hope y'all are doing well, happy shaving!

 

[jordanalexearle]

Shave #12

Dovo Straight
Hanging Wall Strop
Art of Shaving Sample Kits
Boars Hair Brush

Todays shave was a decent shave. No bleeders, but my face is a little sore though. I am not sure why it is so sore but I need to figure it out.

Pre-Shave - Stropped my blade 50 times.

1st Pass: Went WTG while switching hands, it was a little rough but each pass I was getting hair which was nice.

2nd Pass: Against the Grain pass took most of the rest of the stubbles away. It feels quite nice, but it missed some of the stuff under my chin.

After Shave: 50 strops on my hanging wall strop.

As I said, it was a nice shave, but my face does burn a bit. I am not sure what to do differently since I actually had a goos shave other than the burning in the end. If anyone has any thoughts that would be great.

Does anyone exfoliate before shaving? Any ideas?

 

[jordanalexearle]

Hey all another day of shaving.

Shave #13

Dovo Straight
Hanging Poor Mans Wall Strop
Soap, AoS Sandalwood aftershave balm
Board Hair Brush

Today's shave was a bit worse than last times. I tried some new angles and some new ways of pulling the skin. I had a few tiny bleeders, and it definitively doesn't seem as close in some areas. I also feel like I have quite a bit of razor burn still. I tried changing the angle and I only did 3 passes, maybe I need to do XTG instead of with the grain followed by the against. Maybe the lower number of passes will sooth the razor burn more. I also lowered the pressure but still it stings a bit. I guess I will have to try again next time.

Pre-Shave - Stropped my blade 50 times.

1st Pass: Went WTG while switching hands, the lather was smoother than last time, since I followed the guide in the shave wiki on how to properly use the soap bar. I think this helped the shave greatly.

2nd Pass: XTG pass took most of the rest of the stubbles away. It was not as smooth as it was last time, but it was a more natural movement. I will have to change the angle somewhat next time.

3rd Pass: ATG pass took mroe of the hair, but I seem to have been unsure in some of the strokes because I have extra stubble in places I did not last time. I will have to be more careful with the next shave.

After Shave: 50 strops on my hanging wall strop. Used the AoS Sandalwood aftershave balm to sooth some of the razor burn. Face still feels a bit tender to the touch, and has some stubble's. Is the tenderness normal?

I am much happier with my lather this time, so hopefully next time it will go a bit better again. If anyone has any advice about the razor burn or the closeness I am all ears!

Thanks for reading!

Jordan

 

[jordanalexearle]

Hey All. I shaved this morning. Here is my report

Shave #14

Dovo Straight
Hanging Poor Mans Wall Strop
AoS preshave oil, shaving cream, and aftershave balm
Board Hair Brush

Mixed opinions about this shave. No real razor burn to speak of but the stubble that i missed is so sharp that it hurts a little to run my hand against it. I think the reduction in pressure helped a lot. I have some extra stubble right under my chin and under my ear. I had some problems holding the razor this morning. I could not find a comfortable way to shave against the grain. If anyone has any ways they hold it that work well I would be happy to hear about it. I want to get better at this but it is being a slow process.

Also I had some problems with my lather. It was nice at first, but when I went back to reapply for the second pass, it was gone and no lather could be reproduced. I am not sure what happened. Any thoughts?

Also my lather dried out really quickly on my face. I did not like that. I need to fix my mixture. Any ideas what I would need more of to make it stay wet longer?

Pre-Shave: Stropped my blade 50 times.

1st Pass: Went WTG while switching hands. As I sad, lather dried quickly and was not there for re-lather. Had to add more shaving cream.

2nd Pass: XTG pass took most of the rest of the stubbles away. Not very smooth and movement was more sharp than last time. I will have to try to calm down and take it easy next time.

3rd Pass: ATG pass took more of the hair. I was a bit nervous with my movement and just couldn't seem to get comfortable with the movement. I will have to be more careful with the next shave.

After Shave: 50 strops on my hanging wall strop. Used the AoS Sandalwood aftershave balm to sooth some of the razor burn. The stubble's feel tender but other than that no burn and no bleeders to speak of. Is the tenderness normal?

I alread left all comments and questions about the shave in the preshave report haha. So if anyone has any advice I would love to hear it!

Thanks for reading!

Jordan

 

[sychodelix]

Lather is paramount to having a good shave. I learned very quickly when straight shaving that if something is wrong with your lather... STOP! Straight shaving with bad lather is painful and irritating. You are much better off starting over with the lather, and make sure the water ratio is good. You face will thank you for it!

I've had lather collapse from both too little and way too much water. I suggest practicing with your lather when you aren't shaving until you are happy with it. Give it a few minutes to see if it collapses.

 

[Raithskar]

As far as stropping goes I always hit the Linen/Leather for 20/20 right after the shave. The will clean the edge from any moisture or residue that cannot be seen by the naked eye. I have tried not stropping after a shave, and one of my best shavers went from being superlative, to feeling like it needed a fresh hone just between shaves.

Just what I have learned based on experience.

Alot of good info for you abovr that I can only second. Keep at it and your shaves will just keep improving.

 

[jordanalexearle]

Hey All. I just shaved. I have to say, very unhappy with this shave. Here is my report anyways.

Also thanks to Raithskar for the advice about the stropping. I will have to look into a linen strop. Also thanks to Sychodelix for the lathering advice. Today I had to keep stopping to fix my lather, but it did help when I started having troubles and I can see why it is so important.

Onto the Shave!

Shave #15

Dovo Straight
Hanging Poor Mans Wall Strop
AoS preshave oil, shaving cream, and aftershave balm
Board Hair Brush

So as I said I did not have a really nice shave today. It has been 3 hours and my face is finally starting to cool down some. I had problems with my lather again, kept drying out on my face. I am not enjoying this, so I am going to have to rethink my lather some more.

Pre Shave: Stropped my razor 50 times. As I first picked up my razor I almost dropped it, and barely caught it. :O Scary stuff, but thankfully both the razor and my fingers are perfectly fine.

First Pass: Went WTG while switching hands. I felt better this time around with the WTG moments but I still was shaky and unsure in some areas.

Second Pass: XTG felt ok, but I a wondering if it really did much.

Third Pass: ATG was not good. I for some reason could not keep pressure off and the blade kept tugging and getting stuck.

I have not really had this happen before and I am very confused as to why it happened and how to fix it. I will have to check some other shave journals to see if anyone else had this problem. In the mean time if anyone has any ideas, comments or anything, I am all ears.

Post Shave: Stropped my razor 50 times. Warm water wash followed by a cold water wash. Then aftershave was applied.

Like I said in the beginning my face is not very happy following this shave. My face feels really smooth when going WTG, but if i run my hand against the grain I still have some stubbles. Also that causes it to hurt a bit. How do I get ride of those last stubbles? Do they go away or is that hair that I cannot get with the razor for some reason? I will be trying again in two or three days so wish me luck.

As always any advice would be greatly appreciated. Good luck with all your shaves!

Thanks for reading!

Jordan

 

[Nxspam]

Hi Jordan,

i finally got to use my Christmas present and I've just had shave #6 today. I've been learning waaaayyy too much lately. Restoring old blades, honing and shaving. My sixth shave was a big improvement after lapping the blade on 3M lapping film before stropping. Much smoother.

I still have trouble on the chin and finish the whole thing off with a DE, but I love it!

As the guys here say, prep is everything. I've switched from expensive pre-shave oil to natural almond oil. Like you said your self, I'm not convinced the oil is helping a whole lot, but I'm trying my hardest to get the prep down as best I can. As for the lather, I've been trying to hit the recommended slick but not watery for straight shaving. Being an amateur, I work slowly. That sometimes results in my lather getting prematurely dry. Also, cold lather sucks, so I might need to get a scuttle.

I've enjoyed reading your shave journal. Thanks.

 

[jordanalexearle]

Hey NX,

I remember you talking about that! You learned how to hone and such? What did you find to be the best style? How did you learn? Any tips? What is a scuttle?

I am glad you enjoy the journal. Are you starting one?

Thanks again!

Jordan