Thread: How much do people cut themselves?

My strop is made entirely of skin I have flayed from my face while shaving!

Still quite the noob but good for the most part.

I have one spot on the right side of my chin though that I may cut clean off before I figure out how to properly shave it!

No idea why it is kicking my arse, but it is annoying! All in the technique....


v/r

Allen

Technique, luck... We all get small cuts from time to time, but the Mach 3 is an outright face mangler compared to a straight.
Follow Lynn's tip, start small, and build your comfort level.
It took me 2 months of shaving cheeks and sideburns before I was ready to try my chin, and another 3 months before I could get my chin reasonably clean.
all in all about 10 months before I was both competent and confident enough to chuck my Mach3 in the bin.

I still get cuts, or weepers when I get too agressive, (usually on my chin) but as long as I keep my razor sharp, it isn't painful.
I could dry shave with one of my straights and still get less irritation than I did from my mach3, or from an electric for that matter...

Originally Posted by jnich67

The cuts I've gotten on my face are really no worse then you would get with any other razor. If you're reasonably careful you should be fine.

+1

I have been shaving exclusively with a straight for almost two months now, and have yet to give myself a real "cut." I did give myself two tiny nicks, however. Both were on the same spot on the side of my nose, and both happened while the razor was off my face, and I was not paying attention.

Speaking as a relative newbie, I think that as long as you read up on what to do before you start, have a shave-ready razor, go reasonably slow, and don't aim for a perfectly smooth shave right away, you should be fine. Shaving with a straight is really not all that difficult...it's the stropping and honing parts that are tricky.

tatsuo

I had very few cuts with sharp razors, maybe 2.

One was when I set the razor on my left cheek with my left hand (I am right handed) and paused before starting the stroke. It just sunk in a little and I felt the sting. The other was on my earlobe--got a little too close with a round point.

All of my other facial cuts came from razors that were not really sharp enough to shave (when I was practising honing).

Originally Posted by Doc

My strop is made entirely of skin I have flayed from my face while shaving!

THAT"S the spirit of dedication to the craft!

My third shave or so, I had the best shave with a straight razor to that point. The next shave, I got rushed and didn't pay enough attention. I bled well. IT's almost healed. Today, I had the best shave I've ever had with a straight, just shy of BBS. My next shave haunts me already!