Thread: Straight feels like its pulling hair out :(

Originally Posted by gssixgun

Well there is no doubt that my door is always open to solve a mystery (Or in this case the Mailbox door) if you want to send the one I honed back up to the Northwoods I will check it under the microscope, and test shave it and see what there is to see..
Obviously if you send it up, my OCD won't allow for me to send it back without tweaking for ya anyway

PM me or better yet e-mail me over at the website and we can get together


ps; One thing that just caught my eye is the 30° mention, I honestly shy away from that, and call it 2 Spine Widths it is easier to relate to while shaving and also adjust for different razors as you use them.. Just a thought... but the offer still stands

Wow Glen very generous Thank you!!

I have two thoughts on all of this that no one has mentioned yet...

The first of which is how long is/was your facial hair when you tried the straights? I know if I go several days without shaving, especially with my coarse, wiry beard, I get what feels like a bit of tugging on the first pass, but the second is always like butter.

That kinda leads into my second thought... are you sure that what your experiencing isn't just the tactile feedback of the razor itself? Straight razors feel very different when shaving, and I know that what I initially thought was tugging actually turned out to be just the tactile feedback of the razor. I tend to feel it more if my beard has grown out a bit (as in four days to a week long growth). I always just make sure that if I have that long of growth I keep the pressure backed off and let the razor do it's thing.

With all that said, it sounds like you know what you're doing in the prep department, and I can tell you without a doubt Glen's honing is absolutely superb... that and he's just a stand up guy anyway. I know that if it's a rolled edge, he'll get you taken care of.

Don't lose heart... you'll get it figured out for sure. All it takes is a bit of patience and experimentation.

Hi Triad, and by the way, Welcome to SRP. You're in good hands here.

It sounds like you've got prep down pretty well; you've been wet-shaving a while. Here's what I experience when a blade is truly shave-ready and my angles are right: it takes no more force or pressure to remove the barbs than it does to scrape away the lather. If you aim for the lather, the barbs will follow it off as if by magic. If you aim for the barbs, you'll probably end up with a rash or worse. If this isn't your experience then maybe the edge is gone--I'd definitely take Glen up on his offer, so you can learn the most from this experience. When the blade comes back from him, just shave with it, don't strop it first.

Best wishes and happy shaving

Originally Posted by gssixgun

ps; One thing that just caught my eye is the 30° mention, I honestly shy away from that, and call it 2 Spine Widths it is easier to relate to while shaving and also adjust for different razors as you use them.. Just a thought... but the offer still stands

I absolutely agree with Glenn's comment, quoted above -- if you ask 5 people to show you a 30° angle, you'll get 5 answers and one of them may be close. Go with 2 spine widths, and sometimes less, and you'll find the "groove". Sometimes when I switch from 5/8 to 6/8 or back the other way, I start the first sideburn area with the spine against my face and move it away as I take the first few strokes until I'm getting it just right.

I got s similar problem. Sorry ment to say I picked up my new razor today but doesn't work as well as my small disposable straight edge I got. It feels more comfortable to shave with but do not shave as close enough. What am I doing wrong. Thanks

It might not be sharp enough or you might have an angle problem, try lowering the angle a little

Originally Posted by Ryan81

I got s similar problem. Sorry ment to say I picked up my new razor today but doesn't work as well as my small disposable straight edge I got. It feels more comfortable to shave with but do not shave as close enough. What am I doing wrong. Thanks

When I first started (a few months ago) I had the same issues. The biggest problem I had was not pulling my skin tight enough. This really caused my razor to to tug and pull.

If there is somebody experienced close to you, the best is to get together with them and you'll probably figure out the issue quickly.
Take a look at the list of mentors, and the local help page.

Thanks gugi just had a look at the list and unfortunately no one in South Africa.

Originally Posted by Swanny

When I first started (a few months ago) I had the same issues. The biggest problem I had was not pulling my skin tight enough. This really caused my razor to to tug and pull.

Over-stretching the skin can be problematic too. Also note the grain of the beard, this makes a big difference in how much whisker angle changing will happen when pulled taught.

Once again, I say that since this topic comes up quite regularly from guys who "started" by using a disposable-insert "straight" or "shavette" type razor that indeed most of the time it will be an angle issue as pointed out by Lynn Abrams in his beginner video i pasted further up this very topic. (#17)

The sharper the razor the less critical angle/pressure/stretching all becomes. One can "shave/scrape" his beard away with a slightly not sharp blade, but it takes work, too much pressure, too much x and atg, too much irritation.

So yes, knowing what's sharp enough from what seems sharp takes some experience and time (and cannot be conclusively derived from any sort of test but the one with lather and whiskers and a face involved).