Straights are scary

[mikromicke]

Just tried my first shave with a straight today. I only tried the cheeks but it was still a nervous experience. No cuts, nicks or irritation but just the feel of the blade kind of catching the hair which provided more resistance than I thought it would. Can't imagine how it'll be with the trickier parts of the face.

Let the learning begin

 

[FiveOhNine]

Grow a pair!

Just kidding, it can be pretty daunting - but these generally aren't any more sharp than the DEs, you just have more control over them. Keep at it until its second nature.

 

[charismata]

You will be surprise how quickly it becomes comfortable for you. Before you know it, you won't even remember the awkwardness that you experienced tonight.

 

[Kyle Hyde]

I think straights are scary because the AD that comes with them is much worse than any other I've had

 

[mikromicke]

I think straights are scary because the AD that comes with them is much worse than any other I've had

That scares me too

 

[redwoolf]

I haven't even got my first one yet, but I've setup a few shopping carts with hones in them at various places online and I've planned a trip so i can stop at an antique store to see what I find....

 

[Austin]

Just tried my first shave with a straight today. I only tried the cheeks but it was still a nervous experience. No cuts, nicks or irritation but just the feel of the blade kind of catching the hair which provided more resistance than I thought it would. Can't imagine how it'll be with the trickier parts of the face.

Let the learning begin

Your blade is probably dull. I tried straights twice but I am too impatient to take the time to master the blade. I need my shave to be under 15 minutes. I'm sure with time and practice I could achieve a fast shave with straights.

 

[Luc]

If you're scared of going on the throat, that fine, don't worry about it. Take this slow. When you feel confortable, then try it but keep the learning curve in mind...

As Austin said, it might be good to have a look at the blade to see if it's still shave ready... It was honed by a honemeister? Do you use a strop?

 

[JPM]

It is a bit scary at first, but it is addictive. When it starts coming together I think you will enjoy the sense of accomplishment you will feel.

 

[bluefoxicy]

If you're scared of going on the throat, that fine, don't worry about it. Take this slow. When you feel confortable, then try it but keep the learning curve in mind...

I'll never understand this.

My first try with a straight razor, I was a bit nervous about how to get it on my face. I brought it down on the cheek very slowly, touched, drew the blade down... ouch, dull straight. I gave it another shot, tried to clean the cheeks up but no dice; but by the time I finished the first stroke I was fine with it. Then gave up and had Lynn hone it.

It never occurred to me that I might not want it near my neck. Actually, the straight cut me least out of anything; the worst injury I've sustained came out of a Norelco with rotating circle blades, which ate my throat. Huge f****** hole the size of my fist, ripped the skin clear off.

Dad said my face needs a few months(!!!) to get used to the electric, and then the stinging will go away. Anything that makes me cry for 3 hours is not going to happen every day for a few months.

Straight razors are not scary. Just relax and go slow; you'll feel that hot, fluid sensation as the blade dips into the skin, but at worst it'll give you a minor flesh wound unless you're drawing it hard across your throat. It doesn't even really hurt if you manage to cut yourself; you just stop, and back off, and it finally starts bleeding 5 minutes later. I find it really hard to actually cut myself though

 

[Akoni]

Mikromicke - keep it up. Respect the blade but don't fear it. There is a lot of great advice on this forum from the other members with a lot of experience. And it is true the sense of accomplishment and the great shave str8's render are worth it. Just take your time and follow closely the tips and it should start clicking. I am fairly new at this but it has been getting better and better. My poor HD looks at me every morning with that "pick me! pick me!" look but I have been passing it over and reaching for my str8's.

 

[professorchaos]

you will be surprise how quickly it becomes comfortable for you. Before you know it, you won't even remember the awkwardness that you experienced tonight.

+1

 

[mikromicke]

Thanks. I'll definitely keep it up ... can't wait to try it again. I believe it is sharp enough even though it's hard to judge as a beginner. It was from B/S/T, honed and stropped which makes me guess it should be good enough

And I totally agree with you bluefoxicy about electrical razor. I've never been able to use them ... and this is more fun

 

[sffone]

It is a bit scary at first, but it is addictive. When it starts coming together I think you will enjoy the sense of accomplishment you will feel.

This is exactly right -- shaving with a straight requires a significant learning curve, but the reward is tremendous when things start coming together. Just take it slow and enjoy the learning process. It probably took me a couple of months before I could consistently get a good, clean shave with no cuts. Now, I actually look forward to my morning shave.

 

[flylot]

. No cuts, nicks or irritation but just the feel of the blade kind of catching the hair which provided more resistance than I thought it would.

If the blade is providing you with resistance, I wish to chime in as well about questioning the sharpness of the blade. Are you sure the blade is "shave ready"? Where did you purchase the razor? Did you properly strop the razor prior to shaving? How is your shave prep? Did you stretch your skin? Inquiring minds want to know.

If you are getting resistance on a WTG pass on your cheeks, something is amiss. Please resolve these issues before continuing.

Regards

 

[blackfoot]

You will be surprise how quickly it becomes comfortable for you. Before you know it, you won't even remember the awkwardness that you experienced tonight.

+1

The part that scares me is at the rear of my jaw. I cut myself a couple of times there and one was really bad.

 

[mikromicke]

If the blade is providing you with resistance, I wish to chime in as well about questioning the sharpness of the blade. Are you sure the blade is "shave ready"? Where did you purchase the razor? Did you properly strop the razor prior to shaving? How is your shave prep? Did you stretch your skin? Inquiring minds want to know.

If you are getting resistance on a WTG pass on your cheeks, something is amiss. Please resolve these issues before continuing.

Regards

Hmm, well it's hard for me to know if it's shave ready but as it came from B/S/T and was honed and stropped I assumed it was ok. It does not pass the HHT but I've read that that doesn't have to mean that much. I does pop hairs on my arm and I did strop it although my stropping technique most likely needs working as well

The prep was my normal one which isn't a problem with DE shaving: a shower and washing my face. And I did stretch my skin.

Before the next shave I'll make sure to spend some more time on the strop I guess and see if it changes anything.

 

[kimfella]

....It does not pass the HHT but I've read that that doesn't have to mean that much. I does pop hairs on my arm and I did strop it although my stropping technique most likely needs working as well ....

I still can't get my razors to pass the HHT consistently, but I can pop hairs ABOVE my arm. By this I mean I draw the razor through the hair about 1/2" above my arm, never touching the skin. They won't cut every hair, but once I see that they are catching and cutting at least a couple, I'm ready to shave.

I started stropping with a paddle strop and got mediochre results. Then I picked up an old barber strop at an antique store (actually two strops on one swivel-clamp) and immediately got better results. I used neatsfoote oil to recondition them. One side is quite soft -any softer an it'd be suede!- and the other seems to have a bit of glaze on it. I'm still playing with technique to see if one system works better than another. i.e. strop on the glaze & follow up on the soft; strop on the soft and follow up on the glaze; just the glaze; or just the soft. The jury is still out.

My point being, keep trying to find a system that works for you. As long as you're not actively dulling the blade you're not doing it wrong.

 

[mikromicke]

Ah, well it only "pops" the hairs if I'm going along the arm, on the skin, at a certain angle. Too much angle and it goes into my skin, ouch, and too little and it's just going over the hairs/skin

 

[Alacrity59]

I've been using a straight razor everyday for nearly 2 months now. What I've found for myself is that I am safest when the blade is moving. Where I tend to do damage is when I place the blade on my face and not move right away. This happens when I have been trying to get a clean edge on my beard for example. I've found it better to even my beard going perpendicular to it so that the toe or heel cleans off the edge. For sideburns I've already got the blade in motion before I touch it on my face.

I'm almost ready for a touch up honing session. I've been putting it off as I'm a little concerned I'll make the blade duller. The last time I honed my razors I went all the way back to the 1K and setting the bevel. This time I'll start somewhere in the middle. I've not decided if it will be at 4K or 8K . . also I'm not sure if I should keep using the CrO strop or whether it is hiding something I'm not doing right hone wise.

Anyway . . . good to see another convert!