I have about 5 straights and some lapping film however I let them go too long without a refresh so I would need to send them in to get professionally honed. I have enough de blades to last at least until the next 4 years at least so will probably end up selling my straights. I loved the concept of straight razor shaving and can get irritation free bbs from them but never really factored in learning and perfecting the critical process of edge maintenance.
Why Don't You Use A Straight Razor?
- Thread starter rbscebu
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Fear and respect. I know how clumsy I am.
Marriage is far more dangerous.
I was about 14 or 15 at the time and playing catcher for my high school baseball team (go Comets!) when a collision put me down on the umpire's foot. Shattered the ump's ankle, broke the base runner's nose, and popped my left arm out of the socket. My shoulder since then every now and then pops again.
In the Army it popped and did a slight but of nerve damage. Not much really, but I don't have full feeling in my left hand. It's very very easy for me to be putting more pressure than I think. I can also grab hot pans off the stove without pot holders. It's uncomfortable, but not painful.
So anyways, the short answer to OP's question is fear. I shave right handed. And it felt very awkward trying it with a rubber blade. Felt better using my left hand, but looking in the mirror and setting how much my cheeks were giving, I decided on a safety razor.
In the Army it popped and did a slight but of nerve damage. Not much really, but I don't have full feeling in my left hand. It's very very easy for me to be putting more pressure than I think. I can also grab hot pans off the stove without pot holders. It's uncomfortable, but not painful.
So anyways, the short answer to OP's question is fear. I shave right handed. And it felt very awkward trying it with a rubber blade. Felt better using my left hand, but looking in the mirror and setting how much my cheeks were giving, I decided on a safety razor.
I braved a shavette. I’m old. My reflex movements don’t always go along with my brain. I tend to go too fast even with my de. I started fine. Cut the hairs nicel, for the first few strokes. Then instinct took over. It was not pretty.
After taking a significant gouge out of my cheek, I decided it wasn’t for me.
I’ll leave the straight blades to you kids.
After taking a significant gouge out of my cheek, I decided it wasn’t for me.
I’ll leave the straight blades to you kids.
I dont use one because traditional straight razors require too much maintenance and because most shavettes arent very well made.
Who wants to deal with the hassle of a straight or a shavette when I can just buy a vintage Gillette that will last the rest of my life and that I can just swap out the blade after a few shaves and not have the hassle of stropping and honing?
Who wants to deal with the hassle of a straight or a shavette when I can just buy a vintage Gillette that will last the rest of my life and that I can just swap out the blade after a few shaves and not have the hassle of stropping and honing?
My son, filled with the hubris of youth, requested a straight razor as a graduation gift. I told him, "OK, but don't look at me for mentorship. You want DE, SE, AC, slant...I'm yer guy. You want a SR, you have to build that skill on your own." Then I got him a Feather shavette and a pack of blades.
I can appreciate that if it was all I could get, and I needed a shave, I might have to learn.
But like @Ed Gcom said, "I'm old." Old enough that I can get enough excitement with a new slant razor. Old enough to know that sometimes the nerves in my back will fire randomly and my arm's gonna jerk. Too bad if I'm holding a transcendently sharp blade near my skin. At least with a "safety" razor I only get a nick when I do that.
Endless respect for those who can and those who want to -- as for me, I got enough challenges to keep me happy.
O.H.
I can appreciate that if it was all I could get, and I needed a shave, I might have to learn.
But like @Ed Gcom said, "I'm old." Old enough that I can get enough excitement with a new slant razor. Old enough to know that sometimes the nerves in my back will fire randomly and my arm's gonna jerk. Too bad if I'm holding a transcendently sharp blade near my skin. At least with a "safety" razor I only get a nick when I do that.
Endless respect for those who can and those who want to -- as for me, I got enough challenges to keep me happy.
O.H.
I read: “Definitely after wedding season! Maybe earlier..” LOL
Nonsense. Been married since 87.
I do not trust myself with an ultra sharp, completely exposed blade anywhere near my neck region . No thank you.
Sent from my VOG-L09 using Tapatalk
Sent from my VOG-L09 using Tapatalk
You haven't met my ex.
I own a Parker shavette that was my intro to wet shaving, I managed to get some smooth shaves but not consistently and caused enough irritation that I couldn't shave more than twice a week often times(yes, I know this is entirely operator error). Then I bought some vintage straights and sharpening and honing stones, never could get them sharp enough to slice the hair on my face, would just painfully tug at it. Spent some money to have them honed at a shave shop, same deal.
Sent them out of country to have them honed by a reputable seller and restorer of vintage straights, and once again it felt about as comfortable as plucking the hairs from my face with tweezers. Since then they have sat in a box, though one day when I have way more free time than I do now I'll pick them up again, learn how to set bevel, sharpen, and hone properly and play with them again......it just won't be any time soon I'm guessing.
Sent them out of country to have them honed by a reputable seller and restorer of vintage straights, and once again it felt about as comfortable as plucking the hairs from my face with tweezers. Since then they have sat in a box, though one day when I have way more free time than I do now I'll pick them up again, learn how to set bevel, sharpen, and hone properly and play with them again......it just won't be any time soon I'm guessing.
This reminds me a little of my own resent experience although not nearly as extreme. All I can say is that there is some great advise on this forum from Slash McCoy on how to get a wickedly sharp edge at home with not much money and not much skill. When you’ve got it right you will instantly see what all the fuss is about. It will sweep and glide through hair as easily as a feather blade. The magic is how the blade is somehow able to differentiate between hair and skin. I’m afraid that no factory is ever likely to devote as much time as you would to refining the edge. Even if they did, sharpness is a temporary state that needs to be brought back regularly.
I spent the best part of 20 years shaving with a DE razor. I put up with the occasional razor burn, itchiness and ingrown hairs until finally giving up on shaving and resorting to clippers. I eventually tried straight shaving and had zero irritation. Ingrown hairs are now well and truly a thing of the past. I bought a Belgian cuticule and a nice English bridle strop and have never looked back. I love the challenge of honing with a single stone, and I enjoy the daily shaving ritual - my favourite part of the day really.
rbscebu:
Well, since you asked...damn...I'm just too nervous to try myself...although I have a few
'display' str8's.
“One Razor, One Lather; One Shave at a Time”. CBJ
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tankerjohn
A little poofier than I prefer
I’d love to try it someday, but I just don’t have the time and inclination to keep up with the maintenance of a straight right now. Also, I have little kids at home who get into everything. I keep my DE stuff up and everything, but you really can’t hurt yourself too terribly with a DE razor. A straight, though... Anyway, hopefully one day.
I tried straight shaving for a while...never got that good at it, but I didn't really try long enough to get out of the newbie phase. However, I realized a couple of things: first, that I'd never be able to get my straight as sharp as my favorite DE blades (and I love a sharp blade), and second that having a handle that sticks out the side of the razor rather than the back was throwing me off...the tang and the scales kept running into my ear when I was trying to shave the back of my cheek. I was also having trouble with how long most straights are, but I solved that by getting a Japanese kamisori.
But the big thing is the blade sharpness. I was obsessing about super-fine hones and how sharp I could possibly get my poor kamisori when I finally realized that maybe DE shaving was the better approach for me.
But the big thing is the blade sharpness. I was obsessing about super-fine hones and how sharp I could possibly get my poor kamisori when I finally realized that maybe DE shaving was the better approach for me.
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rbscebu
Girls call me Makaluod
I never considered it that way, but you are so right.
When I got back into wet shaving I started out with a Feather SS. I used it for about a month but never could figure out how to go atg on my upper lip and cheeks without getting a lot of blade chatter and cuts. After a while I got frustrated and have been using DE razors more successfully for the past couple months.
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