So I finally sent my razor off to Straight Razor Design to be honed. I just got it back yesterday. I had included a note asking them to give me some indication as to the quality of the razor, but alas, nothing but the razor.
I gave it a try last night. I wanted to have the best possible first experience, so I spent some extra time on the prep. I let the brush soak in hot water, while I splashed hot water on my face until it was red. I lathered up some nice thick lather and put it on my face to let it soak in and (hopefully) soften the whiskers a bit. Keep in mind that I have very coarse whiskers. I then rinsed it off with some more hot water before applying the lather to the first cheek.
The cheek was relatively rewarding, with very little pull, although it was a bit louder than I expected (is this normal?). I was able to progress over the jawbone with relative ease (given that I was scared stupid that I would cut myself). However, I came to a bit of an issue when it came to the neck.
For some reason, even though the majority of my neck whiskers run in the same direction as my cheek, I experienced a lot more resistance and a lot of irritation. I was dumbfounded when I came to the adams apple. I could figure out how to do the actual adams apple, but the concave portions on the either side don't make things easy, especially given the fact that the whiskers there go in about 5 directions. I stumbled through with a very poor shave in that area, and continued back up to the opposite cheek before finishing above the lip (also very difficult, due to the presence of the nose). I have a goatee covering my chin so I was able to skip that.
Results: I am relatively pleased with the shave on the cheeks, although it is only just as close as a week old cartridge razor can get it. I think that with some practice I might find the secret to a closer shave. I cut myself only twice (not counting raised bumps that had it coming anyways), and that was because I accidentally introduced a sawing motion rather than perpendicular. The neck, however, remained very sore and not very close. I think that with some acrobatics, I may be able to get those valleys on either side of the adam's apple, but overall I think there may be something flawed with my neck strategy. It felt nothing like shaving the cheeks, and I feel I must be doing something wrong.
Back to the quality of the equipment, here's my "beginners" rating. 1 means that no beginner should consider buying one, and 10 meaning that it makes life so much easier for a beginner to start shaving.
Razor (solingen): OK, I don't actually have a rating on this one yet. It works, so maybe a 6?
Strop (unkown pakistani): 0 - It's brittle, bumpy, and seems like it would do more harm than good. First item to be replaced
Shaving cream (tub of truefit & hill): 9 - Excellent cream, no matter what style of shaving. However, I am docking a point as I feel that for a beginner, they may be able to find something cheaper
Shaving mug (oversized coffee mug from bed, bath, and beyond): 10 - awesome, great value, easy to use, and looks great in my bathroom
Brush (synthetic hair): 10 - There are (obviously) better brushes out there, but I think that synthetic is great for beginners due to cost vs quality
Stone (colonel conk): 4 - It may sharpen, but it isn't easy or intuitive, I think it would frustrate any beginner long before they were able to get to their first shave. Second item to be replaced
