St8 razor shaving - Help - didn't work, Technique issue or not sharp enough ?

[SiBurning]

Chris,

I hate to say it but I think you are right, it is the newbie who is dull

It helps to know that other people found their first shave rough and unbearable (that's how I would describe mine). Kind of feel bad to have second guessed my blade/honing.

I've been at it about two months, and I still don't look all that great after a shave. Somehow, I always manage to miss a few spots, and I'm not willing to do the extra pass or two. Like you, I went through the questioning, the bad shaves, and some irritation. My main problem was not stropping properly or enough. About two weeks ago I realized I wasn't stropping evenly in both directions. The only reason I even paid attention was that I always had bad irritation on one side of my moustache area. It shaved fine otherwise. Some people have posted that they've been at it for months and still don't feel ready to go ATG. Some people get the hang of this faster than others. I was going ATG within a week, and find it easier than WTG in some places. In other areas, I still can't figure out how to get the blade in there except in one direction, so WTG or ATG isn't even an option. The really odd thing is, my cheeks are never BBS, but my chin and parts of my neck often are. There's a large learing curve, and we pick things up at our own pace and in our own order. If you keep at it, you'll keep improving.

I think the most important thing to focus on--once you can actually cut a few hairs--is learning to eliminate any pressure. You won't really get that down until you've learned to maneuver the blade in a variety of angles. One of the hardest parts for me was to keep off the pressure when first moving the blade. This was especially hard around the chin and mouth. Most of my nicks happened when I first put the blade to my face, before even moving it. The blade would get stuck as soon as I tried to move it, and it would dig in and cut. Once you can keep the pressure off, the irritation should go away. The other frustrating thing is figuring out a way to get at different areas. With those two things, you can at least get a shave. I won't say a good shave because I'm not there yet.

Just for the record, I still can't cut arm hair. Okay, maybe one in a pass. Are you supposed to prep & lather for this test?

 

[SavantStrike]

I've been at it about two months, and I still don't look all that great after a shave. Somehow, I always manage to miss a few spots, and I'm not willing to do the extra pass or two. Like you, I went through the questioning, the bad shaves, and some irritation. My main problem was not stropping properly or enough. About two weeks ago I realized I wasn't stropping evenly in both directions. The only reason I even paid attention was that I always had bad irritation on one side of my moustache area. It shaved fine otherwise. Some people have posted that they've been at it for months and still don't feel ready to go ATG. Some people get the hang of this faster than others. I was going ATG within a week, and find it easier than WTG in some places. In other areas, I still can't figure out how to get the blade in there except in one direction, so WTG or ATG isn't even an option. The really odd thing is, my cheeks are never BBS, but my chin and parts of my neck often are. There's a large learing curve, and we pick things up at our own pace and in our own order. If you keep at it, you'll keep improving.

I think the most important thing to focus on--once you can actually cut a few hairs--is learning to eliminate any pressure. You won't really get that down until you've learned to maneuver the blade in a variety of angles. One of the hardest parts for me was to keep off the pressure when first moving the blade. This was especially hard around the chin and mouth. Most of my nicks happened when I first put the blade to my face, before even moving it. The blade would get stuck as soon as I tried to move it, and it would dig in and cut. Once you can keep the pressure off, the irritation should go away. The other frustrating thing is figuring out a way to get at different areas. With those two things, you can at least get a shave. I won't say a good shave because I'm not there yet.

Just for the record, I still can't cut arm hair. Okay, maybe one in a pass. Are you supposed to prep & lather for this test?

Hear, Hear!

I just realized I forgot to mention that I've been at this around 4 months now and still have not gotten the shaves I want consistently. I don't go for BBS, but DFS (my skin prefers this), and I always have trouble with my upper lip and chin (although things went suprisingly well today...).

Straight shaving has a steep learning curve, but it does pay off in the end!