Thread: shave guidance

It was suggested by a member here that I start a thread posting in detail my shaving woes and troubles for ongoing assistance so here goes.

For the past 10 years I have been shaving with cartridge razors. Usually they leave my skin with problems and not a good shave at all. My beard is very stiff and tough. Sharp even. The cartridge razors have been lasting me no more than a week, and if I changed the razor everytime It needed to be changed it would last less.

So in the past 3 or three weeks I decided I would try to take up straight shaving. I started with a Heirloom starter set from Tony. My first shave was with the Dovo Best Quality razor that was included in the kit. The shave was actually worse then a cartridge. I could not get the razor to cut my beard. I spent an hour at a time for the first 5 shaves trying to better my technique but with no luck. The soap that came with the kit I think may be part of the issue so I have ordered a Taylors Cream from Classic shaving and guess what (it was delivered to the wrong address, or someone took it off the porch because I didn't get it.) Classic is working to resolve this issue now but I haven not heard back from them yet.

Thinking my stropping technique might be to blame I had the razor sent to Lynn to be honed and am waiting for it to return in the next week. I tried stropping exactly as I have been reading about on the paddle, and following the instructions that came with the kit. The strop is narrow and the razor is supposed to be stropped at quite an angle with a large amount of the blade starting off of the edge. I tried stropping at more of a flat angle, but apparently this is not helping. Some members have suggested using a 7/8 half hollow or wedge but I have not been able to find one. Also, thinking a better brush may help over the Boar bristle that came with the kit, but have not found one that I wanted to but yet. I am not sure what brand or type to start with. I bought a quality oil and have been using that as well as prepping my face the best I know how. Shower, Oil, towel, lather, towel, lather shave. I watched Lynn Abrams DVD and found it interesting but not much of help as far as the actual shave is concerned.

My beard grows heavily on the neck and some spots grow at odd angles. Usually with a cartridge two passes and I still have spots that are not cutting well. Well that is all I am sure most of you want to read for now if you are still reading at all so I will end this post here. Talk to you all soon.

Matt,

This is all helpful info. A few questions, followed by a few thoughts:

- What would you say is your number one problem? Is it just that your shaves aren't close enough, lots of stubble no matter what you use? Are you getting a lot of irritation too? Ingrown hairs?

- Are you using a cartridge now while you wait for Lynn to hone up your razor? If so, which one?

- How did you prep before you started with the straight razor? Has the cartridge shave improved since you started doing more extensive prep?

And the thoughts:

- Take a deep breath. This is going to take some time to resolve, but the end result will almost certainly be a lifetime of greatly improved shaves. It'll be worth it, even if it takes a couple of months. (It's taken me eight months to get the shaves I've been after, but I was always miserable shaving before that.)

- The brush should serve you well, but a badger brush will probably feel much better on your face. It'll also help you build a better lather, which will help with the shave overall. I use a $35 Vulfix best badger, which suits me just fine. A lot of guys like the best badger brush by Crabtree & Evelyn, which is in the same price range. A badger brush will be softer, though, which may not scrub your stiff hairs as well. Conclusion: you can't go wrong getting a badger, but you may find you still like the boar brush. I don't think the brush is the problem here.

- A bigger razor might help, but it might not. Personally I think that a sharp razor will shave just as well no matter what the size, but others will disagree.

- The Williams soap you've been using is perfectly good, but it's not the best for beginners, I think. You'll be happier with the Trumpers. While you're waiting for that, you might want to run to Target and get some Proraso cream in the green tube. (It's in the spa section, with a lot of girly things that Justin would probably like. ) Use a lot of water--enough that the lather is almost, but not quite, runny. That'll help keep your beard wet throughout the process.

- Spend some more time studying the grain of your beard. I recently let my beard grow for two days and then used a handheld mirror to look at it from different angles. I realized that I'd been going at it all wrong. You mentioned crazy angles; it's really important to go with, or at least across, the grain on the first pass. Otherwise--ouch.

- If you still have trouble with this stuff in a few weeks, other options you might consider include a double-edge razor or a Feather AC straight razor. The advantage to these is that you KNOW you have a sharp blade to work with, and you won't mess it up stropping. You can focus on technique and learning to get a good shave.

Let us know how things go,
Josh

What would you say is your number one problem? Is it just that your shaves aren't close enough, lots of stubble no matter what you use? Are you getting a lot of irritation too? Ingrown hairs?

- Are you using a cartridge now while you wait for Lynn to hone up your razor? If so, which one?

- How did you prep before you started with the straight razor? Has the cartridge shave improved since you started doing more extensive prep?

My shaves are not close enough. And there is lots of stubble no matter what i use. My skin is tight and sensitive after the shave and irritated. Not ingrown haris

I am using a Track II razor why I wait.

Before I started with the straight I would shower, wet my face and shave with Gel.

Matt:
I definately understand how you feel since my beard seems very similar to yours based on your description. It is fast growing, very tough, thick, and even sharp the morning after I shave. For me, shaving has never been the easy experience that it seems to be for others. My wrestling buddies would make fun of me in high school because I had a 5 o'clock shadow all the time (even after I thought I had a good shave). Cartrige razors would irritate my skin and I would put off shaving for a few days since I hated it so much.

In my view there are several variables that make up a perfect shave. They are good beard prep, good technique, and a sharp razor. With straight razors this last variable requires good honing and stroping.

I am going to go against the grain with some of my recommendations but this is what worked for me. If you just want a very close and irritation free shave I recommend that you spend a few weeks to a few months shaving with a DE razor. The Merkur HD and a sharp blade like a feather would be a good choice. The learning curve with a DE is much easier and it will take away the variables of honing and stropping. This will allow you to focus on perfecting your beard prep and blade angle with the DE. IMO With a DE razor it is possible to get a shave that is 95% as good as that with a straight razor, only the learning curve is much quicker. I would also highly recommend using something other that the William's mug soap. It was always very hard for me to get a good lather that would not dry out.

When you start getting consistently great shaves with the DE then it will be much easier to move on to the straight if and when you decide to do so because you will have perfected your beard prep. Then if you have a shave ready razor you will know that the only variables that you need to perfect to get a great shave are the stropping (which is just dragging the razor evenly against leather) and the straight razor technique (which is not very difficult). I know many people will disagree with me about starting with the DE since this is the straightrazorplace; however, this is what worked very well for me.

Good luck with whatever you choose, and feel free to PM me or give me a call with any other questions that you have. I am not even close to considering myself an expert yet, but it sounds like we have a similar beard type, and maybe my struggles can help you. I am now consistently getting the best shaves of my life with the straight razor; however, I was also very happy with the shaves that the DE produced. There is just something special about shaving with straights.

Matt,

How's it coming? I thought I'd throw out a few more questions.

-Has your Taylor cream arrived yet? Notice any improvement with it?
-Are you shaving in multiple passes with your Trac II or just one?
-Do you have areas that are a particular problem, or is the shave just lousy all over?

Your prep sounds decent, but it's possible that your beard just needs a bit more. What I do is get in the shower and wash my beard area with soap to clean off the oils. Then I put hair conditioner on it and let that soak in while I finish up my shower. Washing your face first is key; I didn't do that initially and the conditioner didn't have much effect.

If you're not already doing so, start shaving in at least two passes with your Trac II. Do a with-the-grain pass and an against the grain pass. You could also try a cross-grain pass, but that might be a bit much with a two-bladed razor. The goal each time should be to reduce, not eliminate, the stubble. Are you using a lot of pressure? Try varying the pressure to see if light or firm pressure makes a difference.

Keep at it,
Josh

Has your Taylor cream arrived yet? Notice any improvement with it?
-Are you shaving in multiple passes with your Trac II or just one?
-Do you have areas that are a particular problem, or is the shave just lousy all over?

There has been some improvement with the taylors. I have been using two passes with the trac II and have noticed my shave become a little nicer but not enough to be excited over. My neck area under my jaw and chin is usually very hard to shave. I am not sure if I am shaving the right directions for the way the beard grows. I just got my razor back from lynn today and I am going to try shaving with it without stropping just to see how sharp it is and to make sure my stropping technique is not to blame. Should I just rinse the oil off the blade with water or use soap?

Originally Posted by matt

There has been some improvement with the taylors. I have been using two passes with the trac II and have noticed my shave become a little nicer but not enough to be excited over. My neck area under my jaw and chin is usually very hard to shave. I am not sure if I am shaving the right directions for the way the beard grows. I just got my razor back from lynn today and I am going to try shaving with it without stropping just to see how sharp it is and to make sure my stropping technique is not to blame. Should I just rinse the oil off the blade with water or use soap?

I would not reccomnd a whole shave without stropping the blade. a swipe or two is ok but you really should strop it. As for removing the oil on the blade hot tap water has worked fine for me.

I am afraid to strop first, i dont want to ruin the edge. My 4 sided paddle strop is going to be the strop for the job, since it is the only one I have. It is the heirloom strop that comes in the set from The Well shaved gentlemen. Do you think a hanging strop would be easier to use? It after all has a leather and linen surface and could be big enough to accomodate the entire length of the blade without having to make adjustments in angles as I am stropping.

matt I pmd you with my cell num call me if you need help...charlie

Originally Posted by clarman

matt I pmd you with my cell num call me if you need help...charlie

Thanks,

I will probably end up calling tomorrow as I will be trying out my freshly honed blade.