Thread: Re-Introduction

Hello, str8-shavers.

I'm Axel Hultman, I believe I used to have the handle Axel1 or something but my account was deleted from non-attendence. Anyway, I haven't stopped shaving with the straight, just didn't log on for awhile. I used to read here back in November and December.

I bought a shave-ready Dovo "Best Quality" 6/8 round tip from a kind soul from the board, received it Christmas eve and had a great shave (only above the chin) the first time I used it! I also have two paddle strops from Tony Miller, one a smooth/latigo and the other a smooth/smooth with 0.25 chromium paste on one side.

I also purchased a very fortuitous find at a local antique store, a trimmer made in Germany for a local barber, so it's nice to have a piece of my area's shaving history (Minnesota's metro area isn't exactly a mecca of straight-razors..). I'm working on honing away all the imperfections this very week, it's a square-tip 4/8 trimmer ("Krank") that has cleaned up nicely with the MAAS polish.

I have two Norton combination waterstones (220/1000 & 4000/8000) and a Spyderco ultra-fine (estimated 12,000) stone, which is probably the most important for touching up once in a while on the blades that are shave-ready. Working on the little trimmer has been quite a learning experience, I have done over 700 circles on 220 grit and I have about half-way to go! But this will be my pure Minnesotan baby: produced for a Minnesotan barber, purchased in a Minnesotan antique shop, honed in Minnesota by a Minnesotan and shaved with by the Minnesotan who honed it! I've promised myself to use the full sharpening equipment to make my own straight-edge edge. This one is mine. I have some VG1 and a Swedish high-carbon cobalt steel and a VG10 in my kitchen cutlery so I'm sure I will be using the 220-4000 for my kitchen beauties (eventually).

I have purchased a cheapo Geneva from eBetray that had a nasty notch at the tip and a cluster of 3 water spots that ate through the edge, it will become something in between a 4 and 5 eighths blade, but I wanted something "American" for my keratin-cutting. This way I will have at least two real straights in my "rotation" so I won't use the same one in the 48 hour period before the edge effectively and magically resets itself. I have been the loyal newbie and given my business to one of the fine honemeisters on this board to professionally hone the Geneva, I hope it works out. It was surprisingly clean and unrusted and I obviously got parts of the edge to look nice under a 60x-100x microscope, but because I don't trust myself to wear off that much metal without creating a honing imbalance I decided I might as well leave it to a seasoned steel veteran.

I have purchased from a Wapienica dealer in Poland, thanks to the informative threads on this board. I have the "Cussons Lider" and the "Wars" 65 gram shaving creams, for the price they are fantastic. I also got the Wilkinson shave soap. The currency exchange rate between the U.S. and Poland is mighty fine for us.. I'll say that much. I also purchased some shaving soaps from "Chelsea's Garden" (glycerin soaps that lather fairly well) and some of "Mama Bear's" soaps (nice, I LOVE "Awakenings" and the clary sage with lavender is good, too). I have an "Herban Cowboy" from my local co-op and a puck of the classic (and CHEAP!) J.B. Williams, which is by far the most impressive considering it's slickness and the price. The Williams' just doesn't lather well, that's all.

I hate the foaming gels and foam canisters they sell at all the regular stores now. I have become initiated into the higher realm of the shaving elite. And (yeah!) it is good! My father, learning of my departure from the disposables and cartridges, decided to get me a Christmas gift of a stand and drip tray with "Mach 3" holder and complimentary "Mach 3" handle and one free cartridge (first one's free...). The real gift was the stand and drip tray which holds.. a genuine badger brush! I had a "natural bristle" brush but it obviously doesn't hold the water like the badger hair. That damn Mach3 stares at me like some kind of stoic, upright-sitting hammerhead shark! Just lookin' at me as I'm shaving... what the hell are you looking at, filthy cartridge?! I'm only partly kidding, I've used it about 6-7 times and it still shaves well, but if I'm looking for fast and convenient I might as well use a double-edge shaver, it's more economical and I can still feel like it took some skill in order to shave my face suitably close.

I have Aqua Velva, Old Spice, Brut, Nivea cooling balm, and a cheapo "Harmony" for after-shaves. They work alright. Sometimes I don't even use them; I have had good results from leaving some residue from the shaving soaps on my face. I have modern, typical shave creams from Macy's ("Pro Lab Series"), Neutrogena's shave cream and "Bed, Bath & Beyond's" "Anthony" shave cream. They're okay but I think the Polish creams, especially for their price, are really excellent creams. I think the Pro Lab shave cream, at $16 for 5 ounces, is rather expensive but is very slick, which can make stretching the skin more difficult.

Whew! So that's my shaving life so far. Now I'm haunted by memories of the last gun show I went to (it was 3 blocks from my apartment so...). This one guy who had lots of knives also had a nice collection of unrestored vintage straight razors... mostly in the 30-40 dollar range so he must know something, nothing really too far gone either.. maybe I should clean one up and try to establish a shave-ready edge... no. NO! I've got enough as it is... I don't need a Wade & Butcher or anything else! I merely got those stones and the MAAS polish to bring my own set-up up to par, which is fine as it is.

Welcome back!

I do have a Hess Hair Milk Laboratory razor from St. Paul (I think). I don't know if they manufactured razors, but they sold them. Its a great shaver. I'm sure there were others. Go hunting!

Jordan

Welcome back to SRP!

Originally Posted by AxelH

Hello, str8-shavers.

I'm Axel Hultman, I believe I used to have the handle Axel1 or something but my account was deleted from non-attendence. Anyway, I haven't stopped shaving with the straight, just didn't log on for awhile. I used to read here back in November and December.

Welcome back, Axel.
I don't think you lost your account from non-attendance.
There was a big forum crash in January, they had to install a rather old back-up and all users that registered after October 2007 had to re-register.

Just so you would know. I'm not quite sure, but I don't think non-active accounts are ever deleted on SRP.

Best regards,
Bart.

Welcome back!

Your name suggests Swedish heritage, which is not uncommon in Mn!

Welcome back Axel, it's great to hear that you're still enjoying the
straight!

- Scott

Hey, thanks for the welcome. Yeah, that Dovo is nice. I feel it is a little wide to be comfortable on the uppermost part of my upper lip, but other than that it's been fine.

I have had the strange development of the corners of my jaw being very easy to get BBS, when I had originally feared that they would be the most difficult part, as had been my experience with all other shaving implements. I have arrived at the theory that it is my habit to use a more acute angle when shaving then is necessary, so obviously I have much to learn. I haven't been straight-shaving very much, after 4 months I'd say less than 20 times, going slow. I need to wake up earlier and give myself some leeway, timewise. I don't count the night sessions when I do it for the heck of it. I've been a bit of a night owl, lately.

Yet today I stropped the Dovo and went out grocery shopping, an accident occurred and I had to clean out my backpack, which made me pressed for time. But since I had already stropped the Dovo I was determined to shave with it today despite the time crunch. I did a one-pass on the sparse parts and have a modest blondish moustache so skipped that and only went XTG on the thicker parts of the sides of my chin. I wound up (pun intended) with 3 nicks on the right side of my face and a tiny cut, very thin and short, they didn't bleed much beyond the final face wash and aftershave. Just scab spots, I was worried because that's the uncompromising position of shaving just before going to the job: the bleeding. Had very little of it with the str8 razor. I didn't get the front of my chin well at all, not even WTG. I was too hurried, I was focused on using shorter, heavier, more confident strokes on the thickest parts of the chin.

My name... Yes, I actually have a Swedish ancestor whose name was Axel. I am comprised of quarters: Swedish, English, Polish and Austro-Hungarianish (I'm "ishy" that way). The Polish and Austro-Hungarian side is Jewish (I'm actually VERY "ishy") and is eternally at war with the Scandinavian/Germanic side of my soul (hey, it's a Jewish tradition!). I feel the loss to this day that I failed to pounce on a German razor that had a Swastika engraved on it. Man.. that really appeals to me. I occasionally get the urge to sell oil to the Nazis, but then I realize I don't even own a car or any oil refineries.. must the be distant glimmer of my unconscious from inherited morphogenetic fields of my ancestors.. darn it! But I'd love to shave my Jewish countenance with a keratin-column cutter made for the Aryan race. Axel these days is axually a rare name, and gets strange reactions from Minnesotans. We need to bring that one back, I'm cool just from the name (as all of you can already attest).

Originally Posted by AxelH

.....

I feel the loss to this day that I failed to pounce on a German razor that had a Swastika engraved on it. Man.. that really appeals to me. I occasionally get the urge to sell oil to the Nazis, but then I realize I don't even own a car or any oil refineries.. must the be distant glimmer of my unconscious from inherited morphogenetic fields of my ancestors.. darn it! But I'd love to shave my Jewish countenance with a keratin-column cutter made for the Aryan race....

Lots of the "swastika" razors were not made for nazis... but instead in honor of native American symbolism... remember it only took a couple decades to mar the memory of a multi-millennial symbol for peace and good fortune... as well as the eastern uses to identitify temples and shrines.

Hey Sebell, how many passes did you do on the Dovo at 12,000 grit? I want to know what I'm dealing with here...

Originally Posted by AxelH

My name... Yes, I actually have a Swedish ancestor whose name was Axel. I am comprised of quarters: Swedish, English, Polish and Austro-Hungarianish (I'm "ishy" that way). The Polish and Austro-Hungarian side is Jewish (I'm actually VERY "ishy") and is eternally at war with the Scandinavian/Germanic side of my soul (hey, it's a Jewish tradition!). I feel the loss to this day that I failed to pounce on a German razor that had a Swastika engraved on it. Man.. that really appeals to me. I occasionally get the urge to sell oil to the Nazis, but then I realize I don't even own a car or any oil refineries.. must the be distant glimmer of my unconscious from inherited morphogenetic fields of my ancestors.. darn it! But I'd love to shave my Jewish countenance with a keratin-column cutter made for the Aryan race. Axel these days is axually a rare name, and gets strange reactions from Minnesotans. We need to bring that one back, I'm cool just from the name (as all of you can already attest).

I guess the -ishyness is a testiment to "the american dream".

The swastika was hi-jacked by the nazis, before that, as syslight said, it was a religious sign all over the world.

As for "old names" they are coming back in fashion big time over here, Axel, Algot, Anton (just to mention some "A" names )etc etc are names that I see every day in birth-announcements in the papers, really cool!