A Second Try At A First Shave

[DemonsDanceAlone]

So I joined this site a long time ago, after my purchase of a non-shaveready Dovo, Col. Conk Strop, and a useless stone. I tried it out a few hours after receiving shipment, got halfway down one cheek and went back to my mach5. Since then, the Dovo has been collecting dust, the strops severely warped, and the stone has been doing wonders for my kitchen knives.

Lesson learned, I started reading up on proper equipment and studying technique more in-depth. So, I was just as excited last week when I got my 7-day set of pro honed Wapi's from Mike. Now I have my AOS Silvertip brush soaking in hot water, steam towel wrapped around my face, awaiting the pre-shave oil and Penhaligon's Castile shaving cream, then stropping up with one of Mr. Miller's Red Latigo paddles (assuring myself that, if I screw it up this time, I can only blame myself).

Made 60 passes on the strop and plucked a hair. HHT didn't pass. Put another 40 laps on, concentrating more on speed and consistency, still no pass. Last chance, 20 passes, no split hairs. I try the thumb test, and it feels smooth (this is hard to determine with nothing to compare to, but I'm growing impatient), so I proceed.

Starting at the sideburns, the first passes come by very smooth and fairly easy. It's obviously taking off quite a bit of stubble, as opposed to my first first shave, which just ripped them out and left me burned. I can still see hairs I missed, so this test is far from a complete success. But, I did manage to clean up my face and neck (minus the part under my nose) with no blood...Success in my book. Even though I did have to finish with that old vibrating toy by Gillette. I'll be able to chalk that $2.50 loss up to the learning curve.

So, I've learned that proper equipment is the first step to getting it done right. The Wapis left no mark, as opposed to the razor burn from my Dovo. 2nd is the importance of being ambidextrous (after I spent some time trying to figure out how to see around the arm that was holding up my cheek). 3rd Concentration is key. It's a change from the safety of 5 blades and all the technology they put into making them verrrry expensive. Lastly is not to give up. If I had left my face after the first pass I would have been embarrassed to be seen with such a muddled mess of facial hair. But, it's a curve...and for the first time, one with which I'm happy to follow the posted speed limit.

The Good:
No Blood
No Irritation
The Soap (I think I'm addicted to Penhaligon's, which is gonna cost me)
The Blade and The Strop* (Big thanks to Mike and Tony)

The Bad:
Still rely on Gillette to finish the job (forget the vibrating toy remark...don't need to hear the punchline).
Took a small nick out of the strop due to carelessness (shouldn't affect performance)

The Questions:
HHT--Normal to not pass? My hair's pretty fine, is there another test that'll let me know if the blade's ready? I tried the thumbnail test, but I don't have anything for comparison, and I feel this would have some adverse effect on the blade.
Strop repair--Superglue? It's a really tiny nick on the very end, where, even if it were removed completely I doubt it'd have any adverse effect. Should I try to glue it down with a superglue or something just to make sure it doesn't get any worse?

Thanks again, everyone, for all the help!

[heavydutysg135]

The Questions:
HHT--Normal to not pass? My hair's pretty fine, is there another test that'll let me know if the blade's ready? I tried the thumbnail test, but I don't have anything for comparison, and I feel this would have some adverse effect on the blade.
Strop repair--Superglue? It's a really tiny nick on the very end, where, even if it were removed completely I doubt it'd have any adverse effect. Should I try to glue it down with a superglue or something just to make sure it doesn't get any worse?

Thanks again, everyone, for all the help!

Never do a thumbnail test on a shave ready edge because it will damage it. The thumbnail test should not be used past the 4K stage because after this point the edge is too delicate. I wish that this information was more readily available for beginners because it seems to be a very common mistake. If the razor shaves well then it is shave ready. Technique will improve things. Don't worry about the tiny nick on the strop, it won't be your last.