Hi!

I have been thinking about starting to use a straight razor for some years but still never really got into it. About six weeks ago, just on an impulse, I calculated how much shaving costs me per year. Holy cow! As I have quite thick beard, a Mach 3 cartridge basically lasts 1-2 shaves for me and I shave about once a day. I began looking for alternatives.

  1. Electric razor These suck. Period. I own a decent one but I almost never use it.
  2. Safety razor A friend of mine uses Merkur safety razors and he keeps praising them...
  3. Straight razor ...but why not just go for the real thing instead?


I have a bit of a weakness for learning things that require skill and patience, just for the heck of it, even when there is no practical benefit. Even though I'm a technology guy, I like "old school" way of making things to last, rather than designing them to be obsolete by the next year. I like steampunk aesthetics. And (I have to admit) Sweeney Todd. So maybe straight razors are my thing, I thought.

I was impatient and ordered a (pretty decent entry-level Dovo) razor and a strop right away. The razor was not presharpened, but I accepted this because I don't know any honemeisters ("honemeister" is such a cool word, BTW ) in Finland and besides, I wanted to get started NOW. So it was gonna be the hard way for me. I'm not new to sharpening knives (not a professional, either) so I though I could just learn the trade.

The result: weeks of trying to hone the razor, learning that it really differs from most knives more than I thought, buying more suitable hones and some cheap crappy razors for training, trying to shave with the thing, getting mixed results, lurking in SRP and reading a lot (many thanks to SRP folks and of course, Mr. Abrams!). But it has been fun for sure, and I have been improving. The improvements have kept me from frustration though my face has looked... ummm... less than perfect a couple of times.

Today, I was able to get the Dovo to a decent sharpness. As I'm a newbie and have no reference I'm not yet sure what can be ultimately achieved but it cuts hanging hair with no effort. I was also just able to perform my first shave that is honestly better than anything I have ever achieved with other shaving methods. It took quite a bit longer that using Mach 3:s, but I guess quicker shaves can be learned... so this is the point where I admit I'm a convert and there is no way I'm going back.

Here are a few things I have learned so far, or at least I think I have learned. All this has been obviously said previously and better, but here's my list anyway:

  1. Sharpness counts. "Almost sharp" is almost as bad as dull. I would not recommend starting with a non-shave-ready razor, and I would probably still do myself a favor by getting a expertly sharpened razor for reference.
  2. Good preparation really helps.
  3. Stretching the skin while shaving helps a lot.
  4. The correct angle is less than I thought. I find that somewhat less than the standard 30 degrees works for me.
  5. Having a light touch with the razor means even less pressure than I thought.
  6. What really irritates the skin (at least for me) is scraping the same spot over and over again in frustration. Don't do it even if the you are not satisfied. You can try again next time.
  7. Don't take it all too literally. I tried to hone and strop with almost no pressure because everyone was saying that. But some common sense must be used, too. If you put all your concentration to being afraid that excess pressure is going to ruin your blade, you begin holding the razor in a way that is weak and not confident, and the blade is not kept in perfect position any more. And the results will be poor. I don't know if it's just me. I was terribly afraid of overhoning, too, until I realized that it's not that easy to overhone a straight razor.
  8. Everyone is different. It has probably been easier for me than for some people who have written about their first experiences here. This has of course nothing to do with skills, but the fact that my skin seems to be able to take comparatively much abuse and bad shaves without major symptoms.
  9. This is not rocket science. Anyone can learn this.
  10. On the other hand, this is rocket science; there is always room for improvement. And it's easy to get addicted to getting better when you notice how little you know.


Anyway... SRP seems like a great community and I'm really glad I found my way here!

By the way, are there any other Finns around here?