Thread: First attempt

Originally Posted by gugi

Welcome Zac,

I would suggest that you take Lynn's advice and shave just your sideburns/cheeks slowly expanding the area as you get more comfortable. The recommended angle between the razor and your skin is 30 degrees, you can vary it in either direction and see what works best. As you get more comfortable with holding the razor you will find out that it gets easier.

+ 1 Agree 100%

Hey Zac,

I agree with the advice youve been given, but I'd like to commend you on trusting that someone actually honed your razor. Too often we see first-timers post here that their razor didn't give them a good shave, so whoever sold them their pre-honed razor must have just taken their 20 bucks and shipped them a dull razor. Then the guy drags the honemeisters name through the mud here on the forums becasue they didn't get a shave easier than with a Mach 3 or whatever.

Mechanics often joke that the biggest problem with some cars is right between the driver seat and the steering wheel, and that's the way it is with straight razors. Some people do great their first time, others take a couple of weeks to get a good shave, and others still take much longer than that. You seem pretty level-headed and I'm sure you'll get the hang of it soon enough.

Kudos,

Thanks for the responses, gave it another go, get more comfortable handling the blade around the face and more ambidextrous use. Still haven't got the shaving part down yet though. At least I took everyones' advice and am using the hand-me down strop, I thought I was being super careful and I nicked it twice, pretty seriously, now I gotta go read the strop forum. At least I know a Christmas present to ask for!
Thanks,
Zac