Quote Originally Posted by hector View Post
What really did it for me was that i discovered in some old straight razor tutorial book it said that the heel of the blade should be leading just ever so slightly...and that made a world of difference for me.

but ofcourse assuming that the edge is not damaged
It's funny. I do exactly the opposite.

Because the several barber manuals I have read all indicate you should lead with the toe, not the heel. the razor is honed in such a way that the back edge of the teeth will be used when you lead with the toe or move at a right angle to the blade.

In fact, I have tried leading with the heel, and experienced much worse irritation, and even cut myself with the razor hung up on a whisker.