Just had my 3rd straight shave

[STF]

Hello Everyone,

I didn't shave yesterday as I was pretty nicely cut up from my first two shaves and I was advised by Paul to maybe give it a break for a day or two to heal a bit.

Anyway I have been using Henri et Victoria Cognac & Cuban Cigars but my new Rocky Mountain Sandalwood came yesterday and I couldn't wait to try it so had my third shave this morning.

I decided to man up and shave like I meant it instead of being so scared that the blade skipped down my face and made me bleed a lot.

What a difference. I shaved like I meant it today and although I did get a war wound it was only one and I feel like I have had a half decent shave.

I do have some problems though.

I use my left hand on the left side of my face and it goes really well, never a cut.

Although I am right handed, when I do the right side with my right hand it feels really awkward and all my cuts have been on the right side.

I find it hard to shave down my neck, it's easier to shave upwards but my neck grows sideways and I just know I will bleed a lot if I try to shave my neck sideways.

I did 2 passes and although my neck is not cut it is kind of grazed as if I shaved my skin off.

Any idea whats going wrong?

Last question. I can't get the smell of the soap out if my brush so changing to a different soap is not as nice as it should be.

[tcrideshd]

whats going wrong you just said it yourself, 3 shaves, you are a long way from being decent with a straight. you will pay your dues. dont know anything about you, but heres the gist of it.m go slow, dont try to get fancy, dont even try to get the evr famous "baby butt smooth", in the beginnign prep is important, have a blade that is honed properly, (by someone who has done this a long time and shaves with one too) have an extra razor that is honed right. learn to strop!!!! this is more important than anything else, this takes time just like learning to shave, most cant strop till they have been doing it 6 months or so. so there is the short version.

all new guys think they can learn it in a couple of shaves. so you,ll get better but not for a few months.

[HungeJ0e]

You'll get better with the right hand. About 1/3 of shavers seem to not be able to shave using the non-dominant hand... that doesn't seem to be an issue for you. You'll get there.

Don't sweat shaving the neck. You'll get better. Jockeys has some good videos where does some nice work on the neck... his videos are worth a watch (there are several)...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWk4XUkDI90

[PaulFLUS]

TC Hit a lot of the areas I was going to touch on. I was thinking earlier today after seeing your razor, which is nice by the way but it's the only one you have, it would be a good idea to get a second one. You've got that one that came shave ready and When you become proficient at stropping that edge should last you for quite some time but until you get to where you can hone them yourself which also takes a while to learn You will need something else to use in the meanwhile. I can't emphasize enough how important it is to get good at stropping. It's not unusual for beginners to complain that their razor won't stay sharp. It's sharp enough You just need practice stropping which only comes with time.
I totally understand how it is. You get some new products in your eager or to use it whether it be a brush, soap, a strop, a new razor, whatever it is your initial reaction is I want to try it as soon as I can. Still you have to be patient and one day of not shaving is not enough for your face to heal. It's not unusual for me to cut myself and then open that wound up repeatedly for days after that. You'll get there don't worry.
As far as using one hand or the other the only thing that will sort that out is practice and you're just going to have to bleed some until you figure it out. sounds like you're excited about it though and that will take you through all the pain. Just take your time and it will come to you. It may be that even as a right hander you shave left handed. It's not at all unusual to be semi ambidextrous especially if you're cross coordinated like I am. I am left eyed, right handed and left footed. In my situation dominance is sort of a fluid issue but I shave my entire face with my right hand, always have, my dad did it that way too. Maybe that's why but I don't even try with my left hand.
If you've got burn, which is what it sounds like you're talking about on your neck, you may want to let several days or even a week go by before you try it again. There's no shame and going back to a safety razor if you can't just go caveman for that long. Just make sure to strop every single time before you use it and it's also best to strop after you shave, after you've dried it off... Oh, and make sure to use a piece of toilet paper or something to dry it in between the scales also... The final strop helps to realign the edge and dry off any moisture left over that you didn't get with the towel.

[Haroldg48]

One observation to add--When I first started I was very intimidated by using my left hand, because I am very right hand dominant. It felt a little clumsy to try to do anything with a sharp edge left-handed, especially in a mirror. However, I had the same results you have -- I got a better shave with my left hand, and irritated the right side of my face with my right hand.

I discovered over time (a few weeks), that it was because I was applying more pressure with my right hand both since it is stronger and I was more confident with it. My left hand, I was just gliding along, afraid of losing control. Once I had that epiphany, I eased up the pressure (and number of strokes) with my right hand and things get better almost immediately. It did take a lot of concentration to get over my inclination to "muscle" the razor with my dominant hand, but after a few weeks it became more natural.

Take your time, let your face rest, and most of all have fun! It's a great treat to be able to do things the "old" and better way!

[BobH]

As has been said, the learning curve to be able to use a straight razor is a lot longer than most think. It just takes time and patience.

Biggest thing is to gat the angle on the blade right and that is normally 1 to 2 spine widths gap between face and spine for me. You will have to try and maintain that angle around all the curves on your face. Use little to no pressure on the blade.

Learn to make a good lather by sticking with one soap till you get that part down pat. No sense changing things around every shave at the start.

It is normal to dull a blade faster when just starting out through poor shaving and stropping technique.

There is a balance point between being scared of the blade and being over confident. Be confident when you shave but maintain a healthy respect for the blade. Never let your mind wonder.

Yup just take it slow and easy. You'll get there eventually as we all did.

Bob

[STF]

Thanks Guys,

Some very good advice. Trouble is I pick up and admire my razor every time I go into the bathroom and I oil it every day.

I don't know if I can bear to not use it for a week.

To be honest and it might sound ridiculous but I would shave a couple of times a day if I could. It's just that exciting.

Paul suggested that I get another razor for when this one needs to be sent away.

I hummed and har'd for a couple of months before I hit the buy now because the beginners set with the strop and soap as well as the razor was such a lot of money compared to my old cartridge that I just picked up blades for at Costco.

I did buy a cheap shavette when I ordered my scuttle from Amazon. The theory is that I can keep myself going for the time it takes to get my Dovo back with the shavette.

That being said, I have seen cut throats for just $35 Canadian on Amazon.ca for when I eventually progress to honing my own.

It's interesting that some Honer's say that they won't sharpen Gold Dollars. Wonder why that is?

Do you think a $35 straight razor should even be considered, some of them seem to have reasonable revues but obviously not shave ready.

[outback]

Thanks Guys,

Some very good advice. Trouble is I pick up and admire my razor every time I go into the bathroom and I oil it every day.

I don't know if I can bear to not use it for a week.

To be honest and it might sound ridiculous but I would shave a couple of times a day if I could. It's just that exciting.

Paul suggested that I get another razor for when this one needs to be sent away.

I hummed and har'd for a couple of months before I hit the buy now because the beginners set with the strop and soap as well as the razor was such a lot of money compared to my old cartridge that I just picked up blades for at Costco.

I did buy a cheap shavette when I ordered my scuttle from Amazon. The theory is that I can keep myself going for the time it takes to get my Dovo back with the shavette.

That being said, I have seen cut throats for just $35 Canadian on Amazon.ca for when I eventually progress to honing my own.

It's interesting that some Honer's say that they won't sharpen Gold Dollars. Wonder why that is?

Do you think a $35 straight razor should even be considered, some of them seem to have reasonable revues but obviously not shave ready.

I've done it for others....
Would you like another razor.? I'll send ya one. Vintage of course. Will have some hone wear, but nothing drastic, and honed to perfection, stropped and ready to shave.

Free...!!!!

[Euclid440]

Most new guys use too much pressure, stropping and shaving. If you use too much pressure stropping, you can easily roll a shave ready edge.

So, lets check the edge. Take a QTip and with just the cotton tip, run it along the edge from the heel to the toe, very lightly so you are just touching the edge. Go slowly, if you have the slightest chip it will snag the cotton, you will feel and see it. You can repeat this test as often as needed, without damaging the edge.

If there is no damage to the edge, strop lightly with the spine and edge in contact with the leather, stop when you reach the end and flip. Keep the spine on the leather at all times and go back to strop the other side. Use only enough pressure to keep the razor flat on the strop. Do 10 laps. It is easy to use too much pressure on a paddle strop, because the strop does not give.

Start out by shaving just one downward pass, then finish shaving with which ever razor you were using. Do this for a solid week.

After a week you should have some confidence, have a better grasp of pressure and not be a bloody mess. To use a styptic pencil, first wipe the blood off with a wet towel or piece of tissue, dab the end of the stypic pencil in a drop of water and immediately dab the cut. Try to let the blood clot with out touching the cut, but if you have to, dab around the cut with a tissue to absorb the blood. It should clot in a few minutes, if needed dampen and dab again after a few minutes. Rinse off the stypic by dabbing in a drop of water and wipe on a clean tissue. Do not dip in water or under running water it will melt, a quick dab in a single drop of water is all you need, then dry. Stypic are cheap, buy a couple, at any drug store.

For me more that one application will not improve much, then its tissue time over the cut and let it clot. A dab of a good antibiotic, Bacitracin or Neosporin will speed healing, especially if you apply at night before bed. If you cut badly let it heal for a couple to 3 days before shaving over or you will just cut off the scab.

After the first week do 2 downward passes, on the 3rd week do 2 passes and an against the grain pass. Go slow take your time. Make sure your razor is stropped and chip free, (Q Tip test).

Most everyone’s beard grows in various directions, so on your last pass I go ATG on the weird spots. I do 2 (WTG) with the grain, and 1 (ATG) passed with soap, and a water cleanup, no soap on just the wild spots, for me corners of my mouth and neck below the ears where it grows at a 45-degree angle.

You can also try a pre shave with Noxzema or Trader Joe’s Honey Mango shave cream, my favorite. Rub on a thin coat on a wet face, then get your gear together. A pre shave will soften your beard and add slickness.

You also may want to try a high-end soap like Martin de Candre or Castle Forbes, two of my all-time favorites, they really are worth every penny. They are creamy, smell great, slick and a tub last a long time.

The trick is to go slow, use a truly Shave Ready razor, a good slick soap and ease up on the pressure.

Take up Outback on his offer, and if you want to buy, look at the Buy Sell Trade forum, ask any Mentor for a recomendation by PM, on anything you are interested in. You will likely buy a much better razor at a way better price and shave ready from a known member here.

[Haroldg48]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Great advice!