Why a Straight Razor

[Lynn]

Hi New Guys and to all,

I put a post in the General section wondering about some great stories from our members converting people to using a straight razor. That got me wondering about why we switched to a straight razor. Was it going green? Was it the promise of the ultimate shave? How about the time to relax vs. running in an out of the bathroom conducting our chores.......?

I thought there had to be some great stories here too.

So.......what got you started???????

Thanks,

Lynn

[nobby]

Well I shave my head so go through a hell of a lot of cartriges. I figured I would get a straight and learn to use that. Save a boat load of cash!.
Well now I have spent a small fortune on around a dozen sweet straights that I use on my face. Still need to use cartiges on my noggin as anything else is too damn sharp and i cant see the back of my head. Still at least now i have a hobby, some may say addiction and a cartrige will never touch my face again at least

[Otto]

I’m on a quest for the ultimate shave.
- I started shaving with a DE in 1979
- I also had a "mini-lawnmower", but I gave it up. It was too painfull. I haven't tried one since about 1990.
- About 1988 I got a straight razor shave from a barber north of Seattle. It was just amazing.

A few years ago I bought a straight razor just to try if it was even better than the DE.

Then I found this great site. Got RAD and will never turn back to any other method of shaving.

Thanks Lynn, for starting all of this.

[Lynn]

Wouldn't be fair if I didn't tell a story........

My Grandpa took me for a barber shave when I got out of the army in 1973. I didn't have to shave for 2 days only being 21 years old.....

I was hooked and shaved with a straight razor on and off for all these years. All the way on for the last dozen or so. The biggest problem was getting one honed and back in shaving condition. Some times the barbers and cutlery shops worked and some times not. That is what lead my quest to learn how to hone which led me to start the first straight razor forum on the web because there just wasn't any information available 10 years ago.

NOW.......I enjoys baby a butt smooth and sticky smooth every single day

And better yet, now I get to learn from all the great people we have here

Life is good!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lynn

[AZrider]

I bought my first straight from a shopping mall knife shop, as a teen, probably more as an affectation than anything else. I sure didn't have much beard to shave. That razor was shelved when I joined the Air Force, but the straight shaving seed was planted.

When I was stationed in Texas for tech school, the barbers there used straights for cleaning up on the neck and around the ears. At first I was concerned but I trusted they knew what they were doing. They really did know what they were doing; I was amazed at how close and comfortable the straight razors were and that's always stayed with me.

Still, I stayed with regular ol' disposable cartridge shaving until some twenty years later when my wife bought me a shaving brush and soap for my birthday. I enjoyed using them so much more than the canned soap that I ended up online researching and, well, one thing leads to another and in short order I'm back to straight razors.

[crankymoose]

I found my grandfathers razor, a Shumate in very good condition it is the only thing other then some pictures to my knowledge that anyone has in remembrance of him, he has been dead now for over 40 years. I looked around and found info on how to use it and part of your video on line. I sent it out to you via Classic Shaving for sharpening figured I would try it once or twice then be done with it, heck at the time I had a few brand new electrics and enough disposables, cartridges and DE blades to last a life time and I constantly rotated between them. I got it back and at same time got your DVD and that's it I was hooked. I now got about 60 or so straights and many are prettier and even sharper and smoother then that old Shumate but I still enjoy using it every now and then.-----Thanx.

[Vashaver]

Well when my wifes step-grandfather who was a 83 year old Barber passed I obtained several barber hones, barbering text book the 3 razors a Peter.J.Micheals strop a Henckels 451 Friodur,Antalope 94 and a Spanish Point Boker all of he still used. Being a Taxidermist I have a passion for extreamly sharp objects anyway and was intersted.

So I had been using wore out mach 3 blades and got rather flusterd when my wife stole my last new one. So I figured what the hell and the Friodur felt sharp....I did not strop and used way to much angle but it worked and I didnt cut myself. I then found this site and never looked back! I only wish I had been into straight shaving sooner I would have loved to have talked with him about it.

Now my wife dont use my razor anymore.....yet!

[BeBerlin]

Oh dear - this could become a nice Wiki page one day. Guys, when you reply, can you possibly put your reason in code tags? It would make life for the Wiki crew a lot easier. In the editor window here, it's the 3rd button from the right in the lower column. Thanks!

I use a straight razor because it is efficient, rewarding, and fun.

[Slartibartfast]

I was actually talking about straight razors in movies and how they freak me out because of that.  The person i was talking to used a DE. This started me down the path of DE which led me shavemyface and badgerandblade. 

Before my transition to DE I only shaved when absolutely necessary because i would get ingrowns and all that fun, even with an electric.

I became pretty proficient with DE, but could not get certain areas of my neck smooth without irritation.  After reading through the Straight Razor forums on B&B i saw a post by seraphim for a setup that included a Joseph Allen NON-XLL 5/8, TM practice strop, 1um pasted balsa and jumped on this.

I have had my ups and downs, but have only used a de twice since that first straight arrived.  As long as the blade is honed/stropped and i dont go crazy, i get a very smooth irritation free shave in less passes than a DE.

I now have multiple razors, hones, and am finishing up my first 2 restorations.

/That was long... i may have to go back and edit this down to something more reasonable

[hoglahoo]

For me it was too much of a hassle to find and buy the Trac IIs I had always used (they have apparently been discontinued.) Mark gave me a straight razor years ago so I decided to get it out and make it work for me. It's so nice using a razor that I won't ever have to replace!