Thread: Yikes and ouch

Originally Posted by bastinado

Please excuse my ignorance, but I'm new to straight razors. When you say you used a feather ... what does that mean?

Feather is a Japanese brand razor and surgical equipment company. So Shaving Samurai is talking about a feather brand, straight razor.

I attempt to use one too, they aren't the friendliest when first starting, I sure hope with practice it gets better.

Originally Posted by bastinado

I have a straight razor - dovo. I sent my razor to have it sharpen somewhere local. The problem is I couldn't shave with it. It didn't glide and was pulling on the hair to where it hurt to much to keep going.

Not sure what's going on.

Sorry to hear that your locally honed dovo is killing you! It sounds as though it is not sharp enough or possibly has a wire edge if overhoned. Is there a member in your area that can help you? I bet you could out a note in the hone section and find someone to meet with you - otherwise you could mail it to one of the members that offer services or send it to Lynn (AdjustMe69) who does 'em for $20. You owe it to yourself to get it done right the first time so that you have a benchmark.
Good luck and welcome!

If you tear up your face bad, rub in some rubbing alcohol. Yes, it burns like crazy, but it beats the all day burn. I have really sensitive skin, and if I happen to carve my face up for whatever reason or another, my face feels exactly like you describe- heat and needles.

Most of the guys here think I'm nuts, but give it a shot. I rub it in real good after all my shaves. It makes for a cheap, though painful, aftershave with no scent. Plus, it's only for a few seconds.

Another good story on that is a friend that I sold a straight to. I was teaching him how to shave and he wasn't really listening to me as far as numbers of passes. I didn't count, but he WAAAAAY overshaved. I made him soak up some alcohol and he barely got some redness from shaving.

I've been shaving with a Feather Artist Club DX razor almost exclusively for many months now, using the Super Pro blades. The results are quite satisfactory, and the shave is comfortable, but if I strive for BBS on the chin, which I usually do, the area is a little sensitive during the morning hours. I don't use an alcohol aftershave, but rather a Walgreens skin lotion that has just a little isopropyl alcohol in it, and that seems to work out quite well.

All that said, it's been so long since I've had a decently sharp str8 to shave with, I actually don't remember what it's like. One of these days, I hope to succeed in honing my own razor! Meantime, I like the Feather a lot.

-denis

Originally Posted by bastinado

Please excuse my ignorance, but I'm new to straight razors. When you say you used a feather ... what does that mean?

I have a straight razor - dovo. I sent my razor to have it sharpen somewhere local. The problem is I couldn't shave with it. It didn't glide and was pulling on the hair to where it hurt to much to keep going.

Not sure what's going on.

Odds are your razor was improperly sharpened. I second sending it to Lyn to get it done right.

Originally Posted by shavingsamurai

Moreover, will something like a henkel, or dubl duck etc sheer off that much skin as well?

No.
A DE is much more aggressive to your skin than a straight. Before using a straight, I shaved a couple of months with a DE and it did much more harm to my face than later with a straight. It would be unthinkable to use my straight shaving technique with a DE, I'd probably be disfigured...
A straight is much more forgiving, yet it shaves just as good or even better than a DE - it's the real thing

Originally Posted by Leon

No.
A DE is much more aggressive to your skin than a straight. Before using a straight, I shaved a couple of months with a DE and it did much more harm to my face than later with a straight. It would be unthinkable to use my straight shaving technique with a DE, I'd probably be disfigured...
A straight is much more forgiving, yet it shaves just as good or even better than a DE - it's the real thing

Except he wasn't talking about a DE, he was talking about a Feather straight.