It's working! But I may have a wire edge??

So I can officially say that I can now shave with both of the razors in my possession! I haven't touched the DE Safety Razor in weeks!

Thanks to everyone here for your help. What really did the trick was the pyramid honing guide and treating my strop with olive oil. I saw a HUGE difference since I did both and haven't had to hone since.

I am sure I would still be shaving with the Safety Razor right now if it weren't for you all.

One of my razors seems to dull quite quickly. Over several days I noticed that it dragged significantly less on the first pass than second and third, but that stropping really seemed to spruce up the edge.

I have since started stropping (15x canvas 30x leather) between passes: WTG, XTG, ATG.

This particular razor works much better now but I don't think I 'should' have to strop so much.

Do I have a wire edge that I am correcting after each pass?

What type of razor is it?

Friedr Baubmann & Sohne produced in Solingen Germany.

It's quite unlikely to get a wire edge...if you did it would give you quite an uncomfortable shave. It's hard to tell without pics of the edge or actually shaving with it.
Have you tried stropping more before the shave? I'll strop at least 30/60 linen/leather before each shave. I personally find no need to strop between passes and have tried it before just to test and felt no improvement what so ever.

30 canvas 60 leather is what I was doing with this razor initially (and what I still do with my other razor).

I simply noticed that about half way through the shave it became quite uncomfortable to use so I began stropping between passes and found that it made a difference.

This doesn't happen with my other razor (a Bengall).

For what it's worth, I just shaved and tried to go without stropping three times. I tried:

strop 15x30
WTG
strop 15x30
XTG
ATG

About halfway through ATG the shave became quite uncomfortable.

Right side of my face is pretty smooth. Left side not so much.

I didn't even bother to try my upper lip.

Bengalls are very hard steel & would not be likely to need stropping thru even a 6 pass shave. ;)

Something does sound wrong with the other razor. I would rehone it from bevel set but it is possible the steel is not the best.

When in doubt have it rehoned but don't strop before first shave.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by apamburn

So I can officially say that I can now shave with both of the razors in my possession! I haven't touched the DE Safety Razor in weeks!

Thanks to everyone here for your help. What really did the trick was the pyramid honing guide and treating my strop with olive oil. I saw a HUGE difference since I did both and haven't had to hone since.

I am sure I would still be shaving with the Safety Razor right now if it weren't for you all.

One of my razors seems to dull quite quickly. Over several days I noticed that it dragged significantly less on the first pass than second and third, but that stropping really seemed to spruce up the edge.

I have since started stropping (15x canvas 30x leather) between passes: WTG, XTG, ATG.

This particular razor works much better now but I don't think I 'should' have to strop so much.

Do I have a wire edge that I am correcting after each pass?

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I can truly only speak for myself, but many of my concerns about my razor's edge were psychological when I was starting out. I was always blaming myself for faulty technique, faulty honing, etc. Nobody (including me) is as stupid as I made myself out to be every time something didn't go right when shaving.

What I did (and still do after three years experience) to put worries about the edge of the blade to rest is use an inexpensive 100X microscope and look at my edge up close. You can get one of these things for around $15 and they are battery operated (some take AAA batteries, others take watch batteries).

One thing I have never done was strop between passes. I guess I don't understand the rationale behind doing that. I have changed razors if after the first pass the razor doesn't feel shave ready. I strop 30 laps on the felt/canvas/fabric side and 60 laps on the leather. I do this both before and after the shave. This is to make sure the edge is free of metal debris after honing, and free of water and soap residue. It also helps make sure the blade is dry before putting the razor away. Stropping keeps your blade clean. It doesn't sharpen it.

I'm confident that I have never "rolled" or dulled the edge while stropping. I read a lot of comments from people who are concerned that they may have done this, and although I could be wrong, I think you would have to be abusive to do that.

Don't worry about "messing up" while learning how to use the straight. In time the positive feedback will tell you that you've done everything right. I can tell from reading between the lines of your post that you are on the right track, and in fact are doing better than I did at a comparable level of experience.