Very First Straight Shave - Some Questions

[onotoman]

Hi Guys,

I had my very first straight shave this morning with a vintage Kropp, kindly honed by Gary_Haywood.

I think I got on OK (didn't cut myself). I'm dark haired and I had 2 days growth and it was really uncomfortable shaving - should a straight get through this sort of growth? My safety does so in 2 passes - maybe I didn't strop enough, or I'm doing something else wrong?

Also, maybe an obvious question but what's the best thing to wipe the blade on? I used toilet roll, but it was really messy.

Lastly - again probaly obvious but if it OK to store the straight in the bathroom cabinet? With steam from showers etc, would the blade get rusted?

Anyway, I'm going to stick at it..

Best wishes

 

[Frowzy]

It should power through that growth -- once you get the angle right and have a confident stroke.

Just rinse it under water to clean off the lather.

YMMV but I wouldn't store them in the bathroom. I keep my straights and my strop in a different room.

EDIT: Congratulations!!

 

[onotoman]

Wow, thanks for the information - I thought straights and water didn't mix, that'll be much more convenient!

As you mention, keeping the razor in a different room is probably best - especially with a 7 year old son around

It should power through that growth -- once you get the angle right and have a confident stroke.

Just rinse it under water to clean off the lather.

YMMV but I wouldn't store them in the bathroom. I keep my straights and my strop in a different room.

EDIT: Congratulations!!

 

[conteins]

I've been wondering about this as well. I've had my would-be shave den in a small bathroom for a year now and i've not seen any development of rust, etc.

I think it is because the process of oxidation (the chemical process that causes rust) requires longer time than the time required for the condensated water to evaporate back into the air as your bathroom cools down. Same with the leather and linen.

It should power through that growth -- once you get the angle right and have a confident stroke.

Just rinse it under water to clean off the lather.

YMMV but I wouldn't store them in the bathroom. I keep my straights and my strop in a different room.

EDIT: Congratulations!!

 

[dancraig]

I rinse my razor under the water, but many recommend wiping the lather off with a towel. If you hit the edge against the faucet you can damage it. One big chip out of the edge and it's trashed.
That's one good thing about the lower priced straights, you don't have to be so anal about every little thing.

 

[forum9]

Let me upset the wisdom.

1. If you hit any razor against a faucet, you will trash it.
2. Any razor left over night in a damp atmosphere will rust. If yours hasn’t, the atmosphere isn’t damp.

It has nothing to do with how much the razor cost.

Just treat your razor with respect and it will respect you. Forget this very simple advice and one day, yes one day, your razor will bite you.

This advice is free.

 

[charismata]

Welcome to straight razor shaving. It will get better and probably quicker than you imagine. With the right equipment the only variable is your technique and it will probably improve rapidly.

I'm surprised more people don't jump right into straight shaving when they are leaving the disposable world behind, since there is very little ongoing expense involved.

Any razor will benefit by not being stored in a humid environment. Steel oxidises faster in a humid environment. The bathroom and the kitchen are 2 rooms in a house that usually have higher humidity. Even people who use disposables will find that their razors stay sharp longer if they store them outside of the bathroom. With that said, I do store my razors in the bathroom for convenience. But I hone my own razors. If I had to send them out for honing, I would probably pay more attention to keeping the edges sharp as long as possible.

 

[dancraig]

I used to shave vintage and wiped the lather with a towel. Then I tried the Gold Dollars and liked them. If I want to rinse, I rinse. I know a chip can happen on the faucet, but I have never chipped one. If I chip it, who really cares that much. The razor costs less than a pack of cartridges. I do my own honing, so that cost is not an issue.

Since you are using a nice vintage, I think you should wipe the lather off. That's what I do with a vintage.

 

[forum9]

That is true.

But you will find that a quality razor and that isn’t "Gold Dollars” is either difficult to find or quite expensive.The good things in life usually are.

When you do find quality, you actually find that you want to take care of it and you take extra care to protect it.

But I’m sure there will be many rusted “Gold Dollars” in the bin together with many other throw away shaving instruments.

I’m truly sorry if that sounds arrogant but you will find that once you find a really good razor, you will get my point.

Gold Dollars are just like many other mediocre metal devices that shave but to say they shave well shows the inexperience of the owner.

When an inexpensive quality razor arrives, it will be a day to celebrate. But it hasn’t happened yet.

 

[dancraig]

That is true.

But you will find that a quality razor and that isn’t "Gold Dollars” is either difficult to find or quite expensive.The good things in life usually are.

When you do find quality, you actually find that you want to take care of it and you take extra care to protect it.

But I’m sure there will be many rusted “Gold Dollars” in the bin together with many other throw away shaving instruments.

I’m truly sorry if that sounds arrogant but you will find that once you find a really good razor, you will get my point.

Gold Dollars are just like many other mediocre metal devices that shave but to say they shave well shows the inexperience of the owner.

When an inexpensive quality razor arrives, it will be a day to celebrate. But it hasn’t happened yet.

Oh I know. I've only been wet shaving for about forty years. I haven't quiet figured out what a good shave is yet.

 

[thanks]

That is true.

But you will find that a quality razor and that isn’t "Gold Dollars” is either difficult to find or quite expensive.The good things in life usually are.

When you do find quality, you actually find that you want to take care of it and you take extra care to protect it.

But I’m sure there will be many rusted “Gold Dollars” in the bin together with many other throw away shaving instruments.

I’m truly sorry if that sounds arrogant but you will find that once you find a really good razor, you will get my point.

Gold Dollars are just like many other mediocre metal devices that shave but to say they shave well shows the inexperience of the owner.

When an inexpensive quality razor arrives, it will be a day to celebrate. But it hasn’t happened yet.

I'm not the most experienced straight razor shaver around, but I will say I disagree with this. I'm not saying Gold Dollars are "really nice", and I don't think Dancraig was even saying that to begin with.

Vintage razors are plentiful, and a lot of really nice ones can be had for cheap. Even then I don't understand why people wouldn't rinse lather off their razors as they shave, it only seems natural. When you're done shaving just run the blade under really hot water, and use a towel to dry the blade without touching the edge. Strop it dry afterwards and you shouldn't run into any problems. If you're clumsy or uncoordinated to the point of chipping your razor on your faucet while rinsing it off, then you probably shouldn't be shaving with such a sharp blade against your face in the first place.

 

[Luc]

Hi Guys,

I had my very first straight shave this morning with a vintage Kropp, kindly honed by Gary_Haywood.

I think I got on OK (didn't cut myself). I'm dark haired and I had 2 days growth and it was really uncomfortable shaving - should a straight get through this sort of growth? My safety does so in 2 passes - maybe I didn't strop enough, or I'm doing something else wrong?

Also, maybe an obvious question but what's the best thing to wipe the blade on? I used toilet roll, but it was really messy.

Lastly - again probaly obvious but if it OK to store the straight in the bathroom cabinet? With steam from showers etc, would the blade get rusted?

Anyway, I'm going to stick at it..

Best wishes

Do not worry too much about it. Give the process some time. I don't think I shaved anything in my first few shaves. It was so bad, it felt like the blade was on fire and I was burning myself while I shaved. With time, it will get better for sure.

I don't think I even feel the burning sensation from the Splash anymore...

Next, TP. I tried it once and it's not that great... I tried the hand towel, I didn't find it great either... I usually rinse the razor in the sink (filled with water), always careful, I never knocked the razor on anything (touching wood).

I keep my razors on the water tank in the bathroom. I always make sure that I dried the whole razor before I put it away. It's possible that humidity can be trapped in the cabinet... I never had a razor that rusted (still touching wood)...

 

[Disburden]

My main concern is you said that you don't know if you stropped enough. If you're new to this and you stropped a well honed razor then you most likely rounded the edge and made it a bad shaver. This is the absolutely number one thing I see happen when new guys get a razor in the mail, they strop it and ruin the edge, then it needs to be honed again because it pulls hairs.

Two day growth is nothing for a straight, they can shave off full beards in a pass.