I was about 17-1/2. I was in Basic Training at Fort Jackson in August 77 (weeks after my 17th birthday) and was in Neu Ulm, Germany by December 1st. As soon as I wandered around the Munster and found a great knife shop, the first thing I did was get a big honking 8/8 straight razor. No one else in my barracks shaved with a straight razor, but... no one f$!%d with me while I was shaving, either.