Well, I had my first straight razor shave last night. The weapons of choice:
Dovo Bismarck with the red scales purchased off of a fine member in the other forum I am a member of, sharpened profesionally by Lee at WSP.
Mike's Barber Shop (my best performing soap)
Rudy Vey R7 with a WSP Super Finest 26mm brush (my best brush)
Alum Block (er...an alum block!)
Krampert's Finest Bay Rum (my most protective, moisturizing and best AS for healing after a shave)
Basically the intent was to only shave my cheeks using the right hand for the right side and left hand for the left side. What I ended up doing was a bit more than that since the cheeks seemed to be no problem for me. I should mention at this point that in the past few weeks I have been devouring all the information I could on straight razor shaving and I have watched many, many you tube videos. I was as prepared as I could be I think, for the theoretical portion. Which is likely why the cheeks went so very well going N/S.
The left side was definitely more awkward. I'm curious how many of you folks just end up using your dominant hand to shave your whole face with a straight or if you do end up switching to the other hand for the other side of your face, neck. When I used my right hand to shave my left side it felt easier, but the view was definitely impeded to some extent. I tried to stretch the skin properly for the most part but I'm sure I could use some work in that dept. I'm sure it will only improve as I go on.
After my N/S pass on my cheeks with no blood and two day growth mowed down I decided to move on to my neck area. N/S on the neck was a bit more difficult and I'm sure the angle wasn't perfect as it was a bit more resistance and I did end up with a couple of tiny nicks. I possibly should have stopped at this point, but I figured nothing ventured nothing gained right? Well I moved on to the chin and moustache area. The area under my nose went really well, with only one tiny nick again when I placed the blade against the skin too hard as I started, it didn't happen again as I finished the area and it went very smoothly. The chin was where I ran into some difficulty. I ended up modifying my stroke a bit to go sideways instead of straight up and down, it seemed to go easier that way and avoided any further nicks. I did get one small nick again when I was trying to go N/S. I should mention too, that these nicks were very different than what I remember getting from my DE. These nicks closed up much more quickly and stopped with a cold water rinse with the exception of one on my neck which I used my Clubman styptic applicator with the sponge. I didn't have to break out the stronger styptic pencil to make it stop. Chin and moustache area completed first pass fully completed. Face feels quite smooth with the grain, but some areas still had a tiny bit of hair left as my angles weren't proper in all the areas.
One thing I noticed that was unusual was that I found the lather on my face was drying out near the end, so I reapplied a couple of times. Never happens with my DE shaves thats fore sure. I lathered up again (yes I know...I should have stopped there) and went to work going XTG. Cheeks and jawline very uneventful very smooth, pretty much easier than going N/S though the hair on my face grows N to S. Hmmmm keep going...? Sure why not! Neck area I decided to go S/N from halfway down my neck, not the lower neck area. This again went surprisingly well, no new nicks. Chin and moustache area XTG, one additional tiny blip in the middle of my chin when trying to get between the cleft. Nothing major stopped bleeding on it's own. I did the moustache area and beside the mouth with a XTG stroke. Definitely don't need ATG there.
So to sum up the results. Feeling it today, my moustache and sides of my mouth are BBS and the smoothest parts of my skin after the shave! My cheeks and neck are DFS I would say with better results overall than my first attempts with a DE razor. There is one small part of my neck that I can still notice a small bit of hair (if I look VERY closely) but nowhere else. My skin feels tender today but I don't see any razor burn and no major irritation. Perhaps my skin needs to adapt to using a straight blade? I know my angles and pressure usage will get better over time, and there was blood. But nothing major and looking myself in the mirror today I can't tell much of a difference from when I use my best DE razors.
Of course if I run my hand against the grain, I feel some stubble but not too much and it certainly isn't visible. Not BBS everywhere but that's ok. I'll take the results I got and improve on them. It can only get better right? The key will be to stay in the moment and not get confident once I get a bit better. I've heard that's when bad things can happen. One thing is for sure, the adrenaline was sure pumping and I was wide awake at the end of it! Overall I really enjoyed it and look forward to my next attempt.
Dovo Bismarck with the red scales purchased off of a fine member in the other forum I am a member of, sharpened profesionally by Lee at WSP.
Mike's Barber Shop (my best performing soap)
Rudy Vey R7 with a WSP Super Finest 26mm brush (my best brush)
Alum Block (er...an alum block!)
Krampert's Finest Bay Rum (my most protective, moisturizing and best AS for healing after a shave)
Basically the intent was to only shave my cheeks using the right hand for the right side and left hand for the left side. What I ended up doing was a bit more than that since the cheeks seemed to be no problem for me. I should mention at this point that in the past few weeks I have been devouring all the information I could on straight razor shaving and I have watched many, many you tube videos. I was as prepared as I could be I think, for the theoretical portion. Which is likely why the cheeks went so very well going N/S.
The left side was definitely more awkward. I'm curious how many of you folks just end up using your dominant hand to shave your whole face with a straight or if you do end up switching to the other hand for the other side of your face, neck. When I used my right hand to shave my left side it felt easier, but the view was definitely impeded to some extent. I tried to stretch the skin properly for the most part but I'm sure I could use some work in that dept. I'm sure it will only improve as I go on.
After my N/S pass on my cheeks with no blood and two day growth mowed down I decided to move on to my neck area. N/S on the neck was a bit more difficult and I'm sure the angle wasn't perfect as it was a bit more resistance and I did end up with a couple of tiny nicks. I possibly should have stopped at this point, but I figured nothing ventured nothing gained right? Well I moved on to the chin and moustache area. The area under my nose went really well, with only one tiny nick again when I placed the blade against the skin too hard as I started, it didn't happen again as I finished the area and it went very smoothly. The chin was where I ran into some difficulty. I ended up modifying my stroke a bit to go sideways instead of straight up and down, it seemed to go easier that way and avoided any further nicks. I did get one small nick again when I was trying to go N/S. I should mention too, that these nicks were very different than what I remember getting from my DE. These nicks closed up much more quickly and stopped with a cold water rinse with the exception of one on my neck which I used my Clubman styptic applicator with the sponge. I didn't have to break out the stronger styptic pencil to make it stop. Chin and moustache area completed first pass fully completed. Face feels quite smooth with the grain, but some areas still had a tiny bit of hair left as my angles weren't proper in all the areas.
One thing I noticed that was unusual was that I found the lather on my face was drying out near the end, so I reapplied a couple of times. Never happens with my DE shaves thats fore sure. I lathered up again (yes I know...I should have stopped there) and went to work going XTG. Cheeks and jawline very uneventful very smooth, pretty much easier than going N/S though the hair on my face grows N to S. Hmmmm keep going...? Sure why not! Neck area I decided to go S/N from halfway down my neck, not the lower neck area. This again went surprisingly well, no new nicks. Chin and moustache area XTG, one additional tiny blip in the middle of my chin when trying to get between the cleft. Nothing major stopped bleeding on it's own. I did the moustache area and beside the mouth with a XTG stroke. Definitely don't need ATG there.
So to sum up the results. Feeling it today, my moustache and sides of my mouth are BBS and the smoothest parts of my skin after the shave! My cheeks and neck are DFS I would say with better results overall than my first attempts with a DE razor. There is one small part of my neck that I can still notice a small bit of hair (if I look VERY closely) but nowhere else. My skin feels tender today but I don't see any razor burn and no major irritation. Perhaps my skin needs to adapt to using a straight blade? I know my angles and pressure usage will get better over time, and there was blood. But nothing major and looking myself in the mirror today I can't tell much of a difference from when I use my best DE razors.
Of course if I run my hand against the grain, I feel some stubble but not too much and it certainly isn't visible. Not BBS everywhere but that's ok. I'll take the results I got and improve on them. It can only get better right? The key will be to stay in the moment and not get confident once I get a bit better. I've heard that's when bad things can happen. One thing is for sure, the adrenaline was sure pumping and I was wide awake at the end of it! Overall I really enjoyed it and look forward to my next attempt.
