Thread: Think I buggered my new razor. :(

Hi all, My wife got me a Dovo straight razor for christmas from "the classic edge shaving store" in Hamilton. The first thing the instructions showed was how to strop

properly on the strop board it came with, so like an idiot I tried stropping right away. When I got to the bottom of the instructions it says only to strop after several

shaves as it comes "shave ready" from the shop. DOE! So I watched some you tube videos and decided to give it a whirl. I managed to shave my cheek with

discomfort and pulling of wiskers, but once I got to chin and mustache area it was pretty much impossible. Im fairly certain I dulled blade while stropping like a

moron. Can I bring it back with proper stropping? Or does it need honed again?

Greetings and welcome, debrusk519!

It is often possible to bring back an edge with proper stropping, if it is just a little misaligned. You could try by going nice and slow, keeping the strop as straight and flat as possible and the razor perfectly flat on the strop. With very little or even no pressure between razor and strop move the razor with the spine (back) of the blade leading and the edge trailing. Don't attempt any fancy "flips"; on each pass slow carefully to a stop and turn the razor with the spine in contact with the strop and the edge rotating away from and gently coming to rest on the strop pointing the other way.

Good luck and have a Merry Christmas!

Jeff

Don't know about the perfect edge but not many "shave ready" razors truly are. If it is the factory edge then almost certainly not shave ready. Send it out to a member for honing. Then it will be truly Shave Ready.

Welcome to SRP!

If it came from Classic Edge, then it should have been good to go. While I have never used his services personally, Phil (the owner and honer) is quite well thought of. So I'd guess that possibility #1 is that you might have rolled the edge while stropping. But don't disregard possibility #2: any of the other many variables that go into a good shave. Chief amongst these are your preparation (getting your face/beard ready for the shave - did you use a brush & soap or canned goop? It makes a big difference), the amount of pressure used (less is good), and the angle at which you held the razor (keep the spine elevated approximately 2 spine widths and you should be in the ballpark).

Is this your first straight razor experience? If so, spend some time reading here on SRP. As you'll see there is plenty to learn, but it is all worth it in the end. Good luck!

If it's from, The Classic Edge in Ontario, Phil would have put a killer edge on the razor for sure.

Sounds like the edge was "rolled" with the stropping, which means it will need to be fixed, and would explain a bad shaving experience, my advice would be to use your "free" honing certificate (if he still gives them with a new razor) and get it fixed.

Next time, shave with it without stropping, then be watch some video's and practice, and remember, when you're starting out - speed kills.

Watch this

There are many tips and tricks hidden in there

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93zQP7CToWQ

Normally anything you do bad with a strop can be corrected with a good stropping, not always but mostly

Yup, I have had Phil from the Classic Edge hone a couple of razors for me and they were scary sharp. I hone my own now and shave with the edge I put on but they are not as sharp as Phil's were. My guess is that the edge was good to go.

You may or may not have bunged the edge by stropping it.

As a beginner you can have tugging and pulling with a shave ready SR because you lack good shaving technique. Well, at least that is what happened to me at the start.

You need a good lather from a brush and shaving soap/cream not canned goo for a start. You need to have a gap between face and the spine of the blade that is 1 to 2 spine widths wide. If you have too big a gap you are scraping not shaving. As little pressure on the blade as you can manage while stretching your skin. Just let the blade do the work.

You can try shaving just a cheek to see if it id technique. If the shave is better you know you need to work on your technique. If it is not better you can slowly and carefully strop the blade, retry the other cheek and see if that improves anything. If none of that works, I think Phil offers a free second honing when you buy the razor from him. Then you can start from square one but this time without stropping the fresh new edge.

Bob

Thanks for the advice everyone. I am using shaving soap and a brush that cam with the razor. Though I am new and my technique is not perfect, I am fairly sure I rolled the blade or something. I Just tried shaving the other cheek and found that the back of the blade closer to the heel cuts way better than the front. Does that make any sense? Oh well, I guess I will be using my free honing cupon I got a little early.

Thanks for the video gssixgun. My razor definitely doesnst pass the shave test.

Originally Posted by debrusk519

Thanks for the advice everyone. I am using shaving soap and a brush that cam with the razor. Though I am new and my technique is not perfect, I am fairly sure I rolled the blade or something. I Just tried shaving the other cheek and found that the back of the blade closer to the heel cuts way better than the front. Does that make any sense? Oh well, I guess I will be using my free honing cupon I got a little early.

Not to worry, I am sure lots of members had a similar start to SR shaving. I know I did. You could still try slowly, methodically and patiently stropping the razor and trying it again before sending it out. It takes a lot of time and patience to get decent using a SR, more than most think. A lot of members have said 100 shaves/3 months to get to that point and I think that is a pretty fair comment.

Bob