Hello again all. I've reregistered (is that a real word ?) from the crash, and have been doing a lot of lurking, reading, and practicing. It really is amazing how much good information and advice can be found here. I offer my heartfelt thanks to everyone on the forum - you really can't imagine how much help you have been.
Anyway, I have been shaving with a straight exclusively since my first shave on New Year's Eve. While that first shave wasn't what I would call bad, it wasn't exactly great either (the results, anyway - the experience was way cool.) I kept reading and practicing, and along the way I corrected so many things I was doing wrong. I learned the importance of proper prep, and what happens when I skimp. I also learned about proper stropping, or more particularly that 10 or 15 laps is NOT the same thing as, say, 50. (I think I am starting to see a pattern here regarding shortcuts.) I have even managed to hone a couple of my razors to a point where I can get a decent shave from them, though I still have a loooong way to go on this skill.
The upshot of all this is that pretty much every shave has been an improvement on the last - some big, some small, but an improvement nonetheless.
Then, Sat. night, I had a breakthrough. I had been having a bit of a problem with razor burn (OK, a real problem with razor burn), and I had been blaming it on the razor. As I lathered up, I remembered someone's advice that too much pressure/incorrect angle could also cause burn. I made a minor adjustment to my angle, and a major one to the amount of pressure I was using, and presto - a nice close shave with no razor burn at all. It wasn't BBS, but it was dang close, and far better than any I ever got with my Mach3/Fusion. I could hardly wait for last night (I only have to shave every other day now). I showered, prepped, and shaved. Son of a gun, I did it again - no razor burn !:y If it get's better than this, I don't think I can stand myself.
By the way, the wife is tickled pink that I'm shaving so much. I used to put it off as long as I could, shaving only when I had to or when my beard got to that itchy phase. Now, for the first time, I really look forward to shaving. :D :D :D :D
I apologize for the long post, but I had to share my excitement with you good folks on SRP.
Dave
