Thread: low end vs high end razors

I knew I was going to have to tell this story eventually, so here seems like as good a time as any. I ordered a "starter kit" from vintage blades with a Dovo 5/8"( the name of which I don't know), a Dovo strop, a 2.5-3 oz. cake of Col. Conk's shaving soap, a shaving mug, and Lynn's DVD. I also bought Lynn's honing for the extra $20. All together I spent $200 give or take and got a free styptic pencil out of the deal. After my first attempt at a straight shave I sent Lynn an e-mail all but crucifying the poor guy. Is this over-honed? Any chance you missed this one and it went from the "incoming" pile to the "outgoing" pile without being honed at all? Basically, "how is this your fault?" I'll make a sidenote here and mention that razors (at least from vintage blades) come with a sticker on the box that says "your razor has been professionally honed by Lynn Abrams, founder of StraightRazorPlace.com and does not need to be stropped before its first use." This last part in italics is total BS. No matter what any sticker says, strop your razor before shaving - at least 50 passes (there and back is one pass). On top of that, do it right.

My first "shave" had a horrible angle and I hadn't stropped at all as per the god-forsaken sticker. I removed almost no hair and had therefore concluded the above reasons why it had to be Lynn's fault. I was also well-studied (both videos and text). The moral of this long-winded story is that I was failing on technique. Pre-shave ritual (hot towels, proper lather, pre-shave oil, etc.) was being over-looked or performed incorrectly. Stropping, though i hadn't done it, seemed like a no-brainer. It's not. Stropping is the single make-or-break process which puts people in your shoes. There is no quicker well-intentioned way to dull a blade than rolling it on a strop. Sure, you can open 30 FedEx boxes with one and dull the hell out of it, but in trying to shave properly, stropping is the downfall of most. Study well and you will succeed.

My best shave to date was my second... It took me 90 minutes and 7-8 hot towel treatments, but I took my time, stropped slowly and efficiently, worked out my blade angle, and experimented very meticulously. In this regard, I am an exception. I picked it up on my second try and got BBS virtually across the board. This is rarely the case. All of these things stated, it can obviously be done and I assure you (as many others here will) that your M3 is garbage, both literally and figuratively. Don't give up. Shave small sections at a time and learn your pre-shave, blade angle, and stropping THOROUGHLY... Learn what works for you as far as pre-shave. Blade angle is different, only slightly, with each razor. Stropping properly is not easy. Accept these truths - embrace them. Be patient and learn to shave sections at a time, finishing with your M3 until you get the hang of it. Don't give up - you have a wealth of informative support at your fingertips RIGHT HERE...

Take a moment to look through a thread located in the Buy/Sell/Trade forum entitled "lurking...'" as there is bound to be some useful info regarding the title of your thread there.

Good night and good luck

Adam