Woo Hoo! I think I'm starting to get it.

Just got my pre-sharpened Dovo last week; today was the fourth time playing with it. First time I just went with the grain under my sideburns...next time went with the grain on the cheek also then did a cross grain stroke. Got a small nick (didn't even feel it) going cross grain but still had some stubble. Yesterday I stropped and did with the grain on the sideburns and cheek, then re-lathered and did against the grain. Worked real good. Then today did the same thing, and then went over it again with my Gillette Fusion and it didn't seem like the cartridge cut anything except a little spot at the top of my cheekbone and a little spot under my sideburn where I didn't get with the straight.

It still feels awkward trying to hold the razor right and at the correct agle, along with keeping the skin stretched and getting my head at the right angle to see what I'm doing. Guess it will take a little time to get the muscle memory built up to get good control over the blade.

It was surprisingly easy to strop...with the built in "guide" of holding the razor flat it's easier than holding a blade on the bevel like you have to do a knife. I just went slow and easy. Hopefully in a month or two I'll get where I can do the whole face. Some of the videos I watched really helped on how to contort your face to stretch the skin and hold the razor.

I think I'm gonna like this. :)

Welcome to SRP! Ive been shaving with a straight for many years now and it never ceases to amaze me how much of a joy it is!

Welcome to SRP!. It only gets better as time goes on. If you haven't already done so check out the Wiki at the top of the page. Lots of good info there. :gl:

Take your time. No need to move too quickly. Get comfortable with handling the razor and how it feels against your skin. Work on your angles on easy spots (like the area between your sideburn and jawline). As you gain confidence, you can start to add other facila areas and techniques (XG and AGT).

Congrats! You'll get more and more comfortable with each shave. There are still areas of my face where I try a few different grips because it feels awkward. The more you do it the more comfortable you feel with the whole process. The angle comes naturally pretty quickly though I still have to make a conscious effort to adjust as I do my chin.

Thanks guys...I'm sure I'll have tons more questions as I progress.

And I am being careful and taking my time...it's my blood I'll lose. :eek:

Today I just went WTG then ATG as that is how I use my cartridge razor; WTG then ATG. And I only did my strong hand side of my face with the straight today and used the cartridge on everything else.

It was amazing...it seems the straight side was smoother than the cartridge side. :)

Only did my neck WTG once, think I'll save trying that again until later.

I was really suprised at the ease of stropping...maybe it helped that I used to work as a butcher many years ago and we bought the old Green River knives at work. We had to use a belt sander to get the primary and secondary bevel on them...then use a coarse stone, then the fine grit side to get the edge...then use a sharpening steel. I'd do the across the thumbnail thing and shave the forearm hair as a sharpness test on the knives; if it didn't shave the arm hair it wasn't sharp enough. This thing of having a built in guide by just holding the blade flat is great!

What got me into this was that my grandpa used a straight razor when I was very little...so little that I don't think I ever remember seeing him shave. I bought a cheap straight for about $3 U.S. a year or two ago just for decoration, and then got all of the accessories. After looking at the edge on the cheap straight it is nicked and it looks like someone had tried to put a more angled bevel on the edge than just holding it flat to sharpen...and I don't have a belt sander to redo it. The Dovo is great though.

Depending on the quality of the steel, that $3 blade might be salvageable. It would probably take a long time to reset the bevel, but it could be done.

The problem with using a belt sander (from my understanding) is that power tools create a lot of heat, which can ruin the steel. If it isn't a Zeepk, I'd try to reset the bevel by hand on wet/dry sandpaper.
J.

congrats man sounds like you are really getting the hang of it now there aint much of a better feeling than getting a successful shave with a straight :D