Hello from the Grand Strand
Well, I've been looking at these forums for quite some time and have finally decided, what the heck, lets register and say "Hi" to everyone.
I became interested in the art of straight razor shaving after years of hearing my dad say "You'll never get a better shave than from a good barber." And for quite some time after moving to the Myrtle Beach area he went on the quest to find a barber who still did shaves. Finally we found one and I decided to get my first barber shave as well.
Unfortunately as it turns out, this guy HATED doing shaves. He griped and grumbled about it the whole time and complained that he couldn't use classic straight razors anymore, but disposable blade razors instead. (At this point it was all foreign to me) All I really knew was that I got a closer shave with my electric at home. Yet Dad still insisted that a quality barber could still do the best shave.
One day the misses dragged me kicking and screaming into Sally Beauty Supply and there was another guy in there who just happened to be asking for a straight razor. Of course they didn't carry them but they did have the disposable blade Fromm and it just happened to be on sale for like $3.50 so I bought it, took it home and tried it out with my Burma shave brush and 99 cent Williams Mug soap. I'm proud to say that I didn't cut myself once and for my first try, did every bit as good as that barber who complained the whole time.
Ever since that day I've been hooked. I went through a lot of trial and error before I found this place, even making the mistake of buying a Sanguine off of ebay. Since my dad found out about my new passion, he turned over about three staright razors to me, one of them being my great grand father's Dubl Duck 5/8 round point golden edge. With out a doubt it is my favorite and a better shave I have yet to get with another razor.
Anyway, I look forward to reading these posts and learning more and more about this wonderful lost art. I'm still amazed that something that has gone from being a morning chore, has become such an enjoyable past time.
Take Care!
Chris