Greetings! Along with some questions.

Hello everyone!

I am very happy to be a part of the site and I hope it'll be an enjoyable experience for me, learning to straight shave has been fun and difficult.

I have been a member of B&B for some time now and have been de shaving for well over 6 months. I get really nice BBS shaves with my Gillette 1926 NEW improved gold model a long with Feathers. I have always been interested in the straight razor process and I gave in about a week ago.

I bought a Wapi from Ken at Ruprazor last week and I have been learning with that. So far everyone seems OKAY but I can't get super smooth shaves (Duh). I also bought the Jimmy strop from ken to go along with the razor. The wapi has been tugging and getting snagged on my neck and chin a lot. Only when I go ATG, so I am thinking the razor isn't the problem, just my lack of technique. Only had one cut so far on my chin trying to get BBS too early on. The chin is very hard.

I have nicked the hell out of my strop though. Stropping is harder than it looks. I go in the right direction, spine first, but I guess I don't stop before flipping the razor and thus nicks have happened. Will a nicked strop damage my blade? Will stropping over it ruin the edge? There is still a smooth area on the strop, so I ten to stay in there when I strop now. I am affraid I'll ruin the razor going over nicks. I'll need a pumise stone.

I take a shower and use the usual prep. Hot water shower, hot water rinse, oil and then a lather with Tabac. I have never had problems with my lather, it is rich and full, also wet. I work it into my face for about 3 minutes before I shave. I just can't get a close shave when I rub my face against the gain. It still feels rough. The razor literally gets stuck in my hair on my chin and neck when I got ATG.:gaah: IT has been like since even before I have stropped the first time I used the blade.

I also just purchased this razor from OLDSCHOOL yesterday (RAD):

Gotta 120 Hamburg ring. - Straight Razor Place Classifieds

I am thinking maybe the wapi isn't what my face needs as far as a razor is concerned.

Welcome to the forum. Don't worry about thelearning curve. It needs only time and patience.
Keep on going and have fun with your straights.

Check out the wiki section, there are a great bunch of information too.

Thanks! I think it really is a technique issue. Or maybe the soap.....

Tabac works great with my DE but maybe it's just not for me when it comes to a straight shave. I may need more lubricating lather like a glycerin soap.

I don't have one but most of the folks here who do report the wapi is a great shaver so I don't think thats's your problem as long as your confident it was properly honed.

As far a the strop goes miner nicks should not affect the stropping. If you can feel the nick through the razor as you strop then the razor can too and that's a different story.

Usually we recommend when you begin straight shaving you don't try and do it all at once. Its kind of like when you start higher math you begin with algebra and then go to geometry and on. One builds on the other and shaving with a straight is the same. You begin with basic straight with the grain strokes on your face and when you have mastered that then go on to the neck and chin and then try some across the grain. As you get one skill you do more complicated stuff.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Disburden

Thanks! I think it really is a technique issue. Or maybe the soap.....

Tabac works great with my DE but maybe it's just not for me when it comes to a straight shave. I may need more lubricating lather like a glycerin soap.

---

Welcome to SRP,

Tabac is one of my favorite soaps. It has plenty of lubrication. There are times when shaving ATG and my blade bounces off the whiskers. That's my reminder to stretch the skin. Second try, with a proper skin stretch, and the razor slices through the whiskers like warm butter.

Very good advice, guys! Maybe I am not stretching properly, I don't know. I have an angular thin face, so sometimes I try to stretch but the skin doesn't move all that much when I pull it.

I love Tabac too. I have been using it for months with an old DE, just a hunch.


I know I need a few months of practice (at least). It's just a daunting thought! The Wapi came from Ken at Ruprazor so I am sure the honing was fine.

Hi,

That makes two of us, recently got a Wapi and a simple Dovo strop from the invisibleguy, shaved only once so far (want to my skin as relaxed as possible before the 2nd).
+ im a B&B member for some quite time now.

Had lots of issues holding the razor, and some inconsistency between the left side of my face and my right.
hope today's shave will be better.

Best of Luck to you and Me :)

Welcome to SRP Disburden. Sounds like you got a good start with the shave ready razor. With your experience with DE you should have prep down by now. You might want to look into getting a paddle strop with CrO which will smooth your edges. I am sure you are looking into what it will take for razor maintainance so that will come eventually. It will take a month or two to start getting consistent shaves so keep going and good luck.

bj

Welcome to the world of str8s! It is great to have you here! You'll only find the best people here with a willingness to help you with whatever you need! I'm very new at this also, but with what I've learned, watch the angle of your blade. The angle is different for everyone, and the way your hair grows on your face can dictate it also. Just take your time, relax and enjoy the shave! WELCOME!:tu

Today was the best shave thus far. Very smooth all over my cheeks, moustache and goatee area. Neck feels OKAY but a little rough under the chin. Very tough to get the hang of that. I wish there were more videos on have to get smooth on sharp jawlines. I am not sure if it was the Taylor of old bond street cream I used instead of the Tabac or what. I usually like soaps more, but I got a better shave with the cream today.


Maybe my stropping has gotten better and I just can't see it until I shave.

So many things to consider.

Have you seen Jockeys' vids? His honing and stropping vids are here:

http://straightrazorpalace.com/video...strations.html

His shaving vids are here:

http://straightrazorpalace.com/video...ion-video.html

He has some good stretches and notice how he contorts his face to stretch the skin. I really like his Asian grip / diagonal strokes for getting my trouble spot just under the jaw line.
:gl:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Tonsor

Have you seen Jockeys' vids? His honing and stropping vids are here:

http://straightrazorpalace.com/video...strations.html

His shaving vids are here:

http://straightrazorpalace.com/video...ion-video.html

He has some good stretches and notice how he contorts his face to stretch the skin. I really like his Asian grip / diagonal strokes for getting my trouble spot just under the jaw line.
:gl:

---

Yep! I have watched them about 5 times each. I will be watching them again though. I watch most shaving videos until I have them memorized :rofl2:

Todays shave was awesome. I feel smooth on my whole face still and that was twelve hours ago. Neck just needs the practice. Gotta try that asian grip thing.

Small nicks in your strop shouldn't matter.

As for the ATG pass it's probably the hardest thing to master when using a straight. What I find happening is as I start to move the razor it catches hair, digs in, and because I'm holding the razor loosly the angle of the blade increases slightly. If I continue to stroke it only gets worse from there.

Until you master keeping the exact angle necessary for one of those long sweeping ATG strokes like you see on some of the shaving videos what will work is to use short strokes and decrease the angle as you go. The way I do it is to make a scooping motion with the razor. I put the razor to skin and as I stroke I rotate my wrist to decrease the angle as I go. By making short (quarter to half inch) strokes I can comfortably get a BBS ATG pass on those hard parts of my face.

Don't give up...it will get better with practice!

Besides all the advice that you have already received, the key to a smooth, nick free shave is beard preparation. Some like to take a shower before they shave or at least use a hot towel. Others use some pre shave oils with good success. Finally, making good lather also enhances the experience in a number of ways: lather of the right consistency prevents cuts as the blade glides free of opposition. The warm lather is not only pleasant but also continues the process started during bear preparation. A lather produced with a good quality soap conditions the skin and restores its natural look after the shave. I see that you are using good quality soaps. With the proper technique, you should see your shaves improve day to day. In case that you have not already done so, here a few links from the wiki that deal with these:

Illustrated Guide to Making Basic Soap Lather - Straight Razor Place Wiki

Illustrated Guide to making Überlather - Straight Razor Place Wiki

Illustrated quide to making basic cream lather in three different ways - Straight Razor Place Wiki

How do you know if you have hard water

Opinions Please: Col. Conk vs. Other Brands

You can even improve the lather by combining it with glycerin and soap to form uberlather. I imagine that you have a dilution problem going on if it is not working right. When you build the lather, the key is to keep rubbing the brush against the bowl (see my post in the second to last link ) until you start getting large bubbles as you rub. At that point, you know you are done lathering for that amount ot soap. I usually only apply the lather to the section of the face that I am going to shave. I do this not only to prevent the lather from drying but because I want to minimize exposure to the soap as my skin is VERY sensitive.

Al raz.

There are a few things I do to keep the razor from catching on ATG passes on my jaw and chin. I use very small strokes, maybe 1/4" to 1/2". That way, instead of shaving the curves of my chin, I am shaving a flat portion of a curve on my chin.

I decrease the blade angle to 10 to 20 degrees for ATG, instead of 20 to 30 degrees for WTG.

I stretch the skin, either by contorting my face and / or using my fingers. As I understand it, stretching forces the whiskers to stand up, making them easier to shave. It's amazing how easily the whiskers cut with a good stretch.

Another angular-face guy here. I've been trying something lately that is helping with my chin and with the part of my neck below my chin and jawline.

After a north-south WTG pass covering pretty much everything, I normally begin an XTG pass going from ear to mouth on each side. I reach the off hand around the back of my head and pull back on my ear to get this started. As I move toward the mouth along my cheek and jawline, I pull back on the cheek near the ear. Pulling upward and back helps me get a lot of what's under the jawline.

So lately, on this pass, I'm getting as much of the jawline, the neck below the jawline, and the chin as I can get. With practice, I'm getting darned near the center of my chin and jawline. By holding my mouth open and doing some facial yoga along with the stretch, I get nice, flat planes of skin. This doesn't get all of that area, but it minimizes the additional work I have to do on these problem areas.

The pics look awkward, but that's mostly from trying to get a camera angle. In front of the mirror I just look at myself straight on.

Awesome. thank you so much for the pics. I will try this tomorrow morning. So far my biggest problem spot is right under the center of my chin about an inch and a half long.

I am starting to see what stretching is all about, it's extremely important.