new SR shaver (GD 300)

[cstrickland]

SO one of my goals for this year is to become a proficient with a SR.

A little background . So I have been a DE safety razor convert for several years. I have an Edwin Jagger DE89 ( also just bought my 15 year old son one) and with Shark blades, Boar brush, Proraso white and a quick slap of witch hazel afterward I get great results. I did some research on technique and razors. I see many recommend getting a GD prehoned to start with , so that is what I did. I bought a GD 300 prehoned from a reputable source.

The razor came in and all I did was cleaned the oil from the blade and wiped it down with alcohol. I tried to test it with the tree top method but it would not cut the arm hairs, but only push them out of the way. I then laid the spine and edge along my arm and elevated the spine ever so slightly to shave angle. It cleared the hair from my arm without much trouble.

At this point it seemed like it should be sharper but I am not 100% sure. So I decided to give my SR technique a try. I had about a 4 day beard which for me would whiskers about 1/8" or so long. I washed my face and lathered as I normally would for a DE shave. I then attempted a pass. I laid the blade flat and just broke the spine off my face , pulled my skin flat and started . The razor cut but it was rough and left a lot of stubble. I tried a few more passes and the same result. It pulled and tugged at the whiskers and it was not smooth at all.

Now I am not sure if it is my technique, the razor or a combination of both. I will say I did nothing to the razor but clean, as I was under the impression pre honed to shave ready would be sufficient. I am wondering if I should have stropped it first. I did not have a strop at the time but have since ordered one.

Any suggestions ro thoughts are welcome.

Thanks

 

[shaversnapper]

I'll be watching for some expert replies as I had the EXACT (and I mean exact) same experience with my vintage razor Friday night. Although it did still tree top after the shave a little bit.

 

[cstrickland]

Based on what I read I bought a pre honed Sr. I did not want to add complications to the learning curve. Mine is not vintage and I could not get it to top the hairs .

 

[azwetshaver]

Patience is the key here. You have to decide you want to do it, and then stick to it. It will be rough at first. After 30 shaves it should start getting better. I hope this helps clear up your expectations.


Now for the razors. Shave ready is the key. You must with out a doubt trust the razor you have is shave ready. Many sellers sell razors as shave ready that simply aren't. Shave ready from a trusted honemeister should always shave with ease.

Two thoughts come to mind with your post.

You might have rolled your edge. It's really easy to do when you're new. Take your time with stropping and to not rush the process. Speed will come with time.

When you shave, raise the spine one spine width from your skin. This is a great starting point. Stretch your skin slightly and gently wipe of the lather with your blade. Absolutely no pressure at all. With the shallow angle, maybe your spine touched your skin and wiped the lather off and the edge was raised off. Could be why the blade tugged as you were pulling the hair and not shaving at the skin. Angle is very important and difficult to keep track of when your trying not to slice yourself.

 

[GearNoir]

Congratulations on your first SR shave, you’re on your way!

I’m thinking that your “trusted source” may not have done a proper job honing. Ideally, the razor will “ping” off arm hair easily at a reasonable length away from the skin.

The results of the actual shave are probably a combination of technique (this is to be expected, it was your first go; it will get exponentially better in the next 50 shaves with a properly honed razor and care attention) and less than satisfactory edge.

 

[Rotiv]

I agree with Gearnoir. Your razor it’s not properly honed or it would cut top tree. You did well not to strop it at first time , just to see if the razor was all honed and stroped. But now you have to strop it before every use. And expect that if you make a
Mistake stropping which is common, you need to correct it, stroping more.

You’ll be fine learning the tecnic.


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[Polarbeard]

From your description I'd say that you did everything exactly right. As the others I am suspicious regarding the shave readiness of your razor.
I'd also like to add that personally I wouldn't recommend Proraso as a soap when starting to shave with a straight razor. I'd go for a soap with more protection. That doesn't necessarily mean much more expensive, take Tabac for an example. You need all the glide and skin protection you can get. Later on, when you've got a some really good straight razor shaves Proraso would do fine. Just my two cents.

 

[steveclarkus]

SO one of my goals for this year is to become a proficient with a SR.

A little background . So I have been a DE safety razor convert for several years. I have an Edwin Jagger DE89 ( also just bought my 15 year old son one) and with Shark blades, Boar brush, Proraso white and a quick slap of witch hazel afterward I get great results. I did some research on technique and razors. I see many recommend getting a GD prehoned to start with , so that is what I did. I bought a GD 300 prehoned from a reputable source.

The razor came in and all I did was cleaned the oil from the blade and wiped it down with alcohol. I tried to test it with the tree top method but it would not cut the arm hairs, but only push them out of the way. I then laid the spine and edge along my arm and elevated the spine ever so slightly to shave angle. It cleared the hair from my arm without much trouble.

At this point it seemed like it should be sharper but I am not 100% sure. So I decided to give my SR technique a try. I had about a 4 day beard which for me would whiskers about 1/8" or so long. I washed my face and lathered as I normally would for a DE shave. I then attempted a pass. I laid the blade flat and just broke the spine off my face , pulled my skin flat and started . The razor cut but it was rough and left a lot of stubble. I tried a few more passes and the same result. It pulled and tugged at the whiskers and it was not smooth at all.

Now I am not sure if it is my technique, the razor or a combination of both. I will say I did nothing to the razor but clean, as I was under the impression pre honed to shave ready would be sufficient. I am wondering if I should have stropped it first. I did not have a strop at the time but have since ordered one.

Any suggestions ro thoughts are welcome.

Thanks

I’m quite sure your razor is not sharp enough. If you are in the US and want me to hone it, PM me. No cost.

 

[Polarbeard]

I’m quite sure your razor is not sharp enough. If you are in the US and want me to hone it, PM me. No cost.

That's very nice of you Steve.

 

[steveclarkus]

Something to do. Got a new bevel setter.

 

[Rotiv]

I also agree with polarbear about the proraso. Don’t know cheap leather creams or soaps there in US and I don’t known tobac but you won’t be wrong with tobs or Maca Root (very good) or more expensive Castel Farbes ou Nuavia (skyrocket).

Overall proraso produtos are not good enough to SR shaving.

But you try something cheaper and it works very: use preshave oil, and add some drops of the preshave oil when foaming. Your proraso will gain another status.


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[Slash McCoy]

The GD300 has the same 19 degree bevel angle as the 66, 100, etc, and so the bevel must be set and refined with care that the bevel surface remain very precise, for good results. A GD most certainly can be honed to the point where it will treetop. The seller obviously either does not know, or does not care, what makes a shave ready edge. Probably would never shave with one of his own razors even on a dare. There are way too many fleabay hucksters simply including the words "shave ready" in the item description in an effort to get more sales, and far too few that actually deliver on the promise. There are some, though. AFAIK it is okay to post an ebay item listing on the forum as long as it is not an auction that is still active. Get some opinions on the item and particularly on the seller before wasting your time and money. Most of the good ones are known to this forum.

Making the classic Gold Dollar models shave ready is a bit more involved than with most other razors. So, with the extra work involved, buying in quantity and honing them for resale is not a very attractive or lucrative sideline. If your time is worth say $35/hr and the razor costs $4 and shipping is $8 and you get occasional returns from buyers who can't figure out how to make the "defective" razor shave, and you still want to make say a 20% profit, then you can see you can't very sell sell them for $25 and consider it worth the hassle. Just sayin. Far better to go with the "W" series GD razors which are much easier to hone with fewer issues, or vintage beater razors similar in quality and cosmetics to Larry's "Sight Unseens" of days long past. When you can hone a razor in just a few minutes instead of an hour or more, and get a good smooth treetopping edge, then it makes sense to only mark up a razor $20 and shipping. So, what I am saying is don't expect too much from the classic GD models (66, 100, 105, 200, 300, 600, etc) listed as shave ready on fleabay. If you don't know what you are doing with those razors, it can easily take an hour or more to hone one. Two hours is not inconceivable.

The model 1996 has the same crazy fat bevel angle but otherwise has usually no major issues and is easier to hone. The "W" series have a bevel angle that is actually a bit TOO acute but not overly so, and they hone easiest of all the GD offerings and will give the skilled and meticulous honer a truly science fiction sharp edge if desired.

So there you have it. The only real option is to let Steve have at it. He is a Method honer and you cannot get a better edge on that razor than a Method edge.

If you stick with this shaving thing of ours, in all probability you will one day decide that you want to hone your own razors. Once you have learned to shave and understand, really understand, how a straight razor works and why all the design parameters are as they are, you will be ready to hone your own. Visit the sticky thread "Newbie Honing Compendium", AKA "The Method". Read. Read. Read. There is a lot to read and there is no point asking questions until you read the answers that are already written in the referenced threads. It is a lot to read and digest, but if you can follow directions perfectly, you can put a better than professional quality edge on a razor by your second or third attempt, maybe even your first go at it, with a fairly small outlay of cash for the tools you will need.

 

[cstrickland]

Ok at this point I have tried a couple of different times and have come to the conclusion that this particular razor is not for me. I have contacted the seller and he has offered a full refund, so it is going back this week . I still intend to hold true on my goal to become a proficient SR user this year. I am back to square one.

I will find my next razor and continue. I also feel that if I get one that is sharp enough to top the hairs it will be a much better learning experience.

Polarbeard and all other who mentioned the shaving cream. I will pick up some tabco and see if that also helps . thanks for the recommendation

steve thank you very much for the generous offer but the vendor is a standup guy and offered to refund my purchase. At this point that is the way I am going.

I have available to me an Boker Red Injun that is in good shape but is not shave ready. I was not leaning this way but I may take up the person on the offer and then have it honed, or maybe as Slash stated read through the method and tackle it myself. I will be making a decision here soon and I will be back for sur with questions , and hopefully a happy update

Thanks to everyone for the comments and feedback

 

[GearNoir]

Bummer way to start out! Hope the restart does you much better!

 

[global_dev]

proraso products should be fine. I just used a pretty old green tube on friday with my straight shave. the tube might be almost 10 years old. it was great.

just make sure its denser and wetter than you might use for DEs.

 

[steveclarkus]

Ok at this point I have tried a couple of different times and have come to the conclusion that this particular razor is not for me. I have contacted the seller and he has offered a full refund, so it is going back this week . I still intend to hold true on my goal to become a proficient SR user this year. I am back to square one.

I will find my next razor and continue. I also feel that if I get one that is sharp enough to top the hairs it will be a much better learning experience.

Polarbeard and all other who mentioned the shaving cream. I will pick up some tabco and see if that also helps . thanks for the recommendation

steve thank you very much for the generous offer but the vendor is a standup guy and offered to refund my purchase. At this point that is the way I am going.

I have available to me an Boker Red Injun that is in good shape but is not shave ready. I was not leaning this way but I may take up the person on the offer and then have it honed, or maybe as Slash stated read through the method and tackle it myself. I will be making a decision here soon and I will be back for sur with questions , and hopefully a happy update

Thanks to everyone for the comments and feedback

The offer is always open. Just find a razor you like and have it properly honed. I’ve used the Method (film & balsa) since I started and it is excellent. Slash is right! Also, a 5/8 is a good size to begin with.

 

[Robini]

It sounds like your on your way. My two cents, make sure you get decent razor, this by no means infers expensive, and make sure it comes from someone who is reputable at honing. I started with a Ralph Aust 5/8 round point which served me well. If I was doing it over again, it would be a 6/8 Spanish but this is just personal preference. I also tried two GD razors. I had to modify both of their geometry to get them to hone well but was able to get a wicked edge on them both. They were gifted to new guys like you to get them started.

Good luck!