Thread: 1st shave issues

I tried my first shave yesterday. My Wapi arrived from Lynn super sharp. Razor was pulling alot. I took it the strop for at least 30 strokes. I took my time keeping the strop taught, using light slow passes, and rolling the blade over on the spine using X pattern. Maybe my technique needs work shaving, stropping or both. Not sure. I am using an ebay strop. It is real leather but not high quality. Could that be my problem too? I am not discouraged. I am ready to take another crack at it. The blade stick to my thumb so it feels keen. Could I have folded the edge and not be able to see it? Should I get a decent strop like a TM? Please help.

Originally Posted by G8torb8t

I tried my first shave yesterday. My Wapi arrived from Lynn super sharp. Razor was pulling alot. I took it the strop for at least 30 strokes. I took my time keeping the strop taught, using light slow passes, and rolling the blade over on the spine using X pattern. Maybe my technique needs work shaving, stropping or both. Not sure. I am using an ebay strop. It is real leather but not high quality. Could that be my problem too? I am not discouraged. I am ready to take another crack at it. The blade stick to my thumb so it feels keen. Could I have folded the edge and not be able to see it? Should I get a decent strop like a TM? Please help.

See how it goes with the next shave. It could have been an issue with the angle for the pull, and you will always have some pull on your whiskers (especially on your stache area).

It took me a few shaves to get used to the new feel of a straight, the amount of pull vs the cartrige type of shave. Keep working on your attention to the details as you mentioned, sounded good to me, and see how the next few shaves go.

I'm bummed......that suckah was hummin' when I did the test shave..........

Keep me posted. You can always shoot it back and I'll fix it up.....

Lynn

my first couple shaves were a bit on the rough side also. at first i thought it might be the razor but i kept at it. i found that i was using too steep of an angle. you might try tilting the spine of the blade back towards your face a bit, it made a hugh difference for me. keep at it! it gets way better. that wap honed by lynn should be a great shaver.

cheers,
ryan

Three things:
1. Blade angle is paramount. Try a shallower angle and see if that helps.
2. Stretch your skin. That was hard for me to get used to, but it really helps.
3. A straight feels different and sounds different. If you're not getting irritation, the pulling you feel may just be the difference in feel.

Good luck!

As a fellow newb I would guess it's more likely the angle of the blade and/or the stroke itself. I can testify Lynn's razors will shave wonderfully (got a Dovo honed by him as my first). I'm still working on this but every day gets better as I develope a feel for what I'm doing. Regardless, I suspect it will ALWAYS feel different than my Fusion. Love'n it, though.

Good luck and keep at it.

Ken

Originally Posted by kbuzbee

As a fellow newb I would guess it's more likely the angle of the blade and/or the stroke itself. I can testify Lynn's razors will shave wonderfully (got a Dovo honed by him as my first). I'm still working on this but every day gets better as I develope a feel for what I'm doing. Regardless, I suspect it will ALWAYS feel different than my Fusion. Love'n it, though.

Good luck and keep at it.

Ken

Very good point. Angle in both planes can make all the difference. Lower the angle of the blade to the face as mentioned but also try leading with the tip of the razor but not in a slicing motion (ouch) and lessen the pressure enough to keep contact but not stall in the beard. If you stall you will cut yourself.

Let us know how you get on.

PuFF