Thread: Newbie Intro and Questions

Hi,

I've got a Dovo Solingen razor that my wife bought me and I've slowly started to use it. I've been using a DE safety razor for about 3 years prior to this so I already had soaps, creams, and brushes.

I've already been getting a super close shave and only one or two nicks.

The new smoother shave is coming at a cost: I'm getting razorburn. My face gets all red after a shave. I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong here. It passes the hair test, so I doubt I can blame it on a dull razor (90% sure it's operator error) What do you think?

Any tips on shaving sideburns? I have a hard time seeing and lining up with where I want the sideburn to stop (about even with my eye)

Other than that, I'm still reading, watching videos and hopefully retaining useful information. Thanks for the great resource!

Dave

Welcome to SRP Dave. My guess is too much pressure. Here is a little thing on gradual stubble removal and the multiple pass shave. I too have the tendency to try and get too much too soon. There are stretching techniques that are developed over time that make for a better shave too as well as correct blade angle and of course adequate preperation. The whole is the sum of it's parts IOW.

Hi Dave,

Sounds like you're off to a good start. The face is usually a little red for a couple days and then normally that goes away once you adjust to the straight razor. Try turning your head a little to the side for the side burn and see if that doesn't give you a better view. Take a look at the beginner section of the Wiki too.

Welcome and all the best. This is a great crowd here so keep the questions coming.

Lynn

Thanks for the quick response!

I'll make sure and try not to apply too much pressure when I'm shaving.

I was already using the multipass approach and it's working well. I'll give it some time to see if my skin gets used to the new shave technique. The redness settles down a few minutes, after I apply a little balm so I'm not too concerned -- Just afraid I'm doing something wrong.



I was seriously considering moving directly to a straight razor 3 years ago, but I chickened out and went with a safety razor. I really enjoyed that shave, but I always wanted to move up to the next level.

Thanks to my new gifts I've done that. Moving to the straight razor from the safety razor is tougher because I'm having to learn how to get the right angle all over again -- but I have the razor so differently. Also, I have been making an extra effort on my lathering. I'm much more intimidated by the blade than I was when I switched to the safety razor. I'm building up my confidence on shave at a time, but this is definitely tougher than I thought it would be. I've got a lot of respect for all of you pros that aren't even concerned at the prospect of holding such a sharp instrument against their skin.

Welcome!

I got red face too for the first few shaves, but I used less and less pressure and eventually I found I could still get a close shave using a minimum of pressure and avoid looking like I'd been repeatedly slapped across the face.

Was your razor honed by someone who knows how to hone a razor , or did you start shaving with it "right out of the box" ? The reason I ask is , I learned to shave with razors I was honing myself , and the first shaves were irritating my skin because my razors were not quite sharp enough to give me a good shave .

All you need is:

Good sharp razor
Good Lather
Good Angles
Good pressure
Good times


Good Luck!


/to echo the statement above. Do you know from whom your wife purchased the razor?

Originally Posted by razordave

I switched to the safety razor. I'm building up my confidence on shave at a time, but this is definitely tougher than I thought it would be. I've got a lot of respect for all of you pros that aren't even concerned at the prospect of holding such a sharp instrument against their skin.

I felt exactly the same when I switched from the DE to the straight. I approached it with trepidation. My first two or three weeks all of my shaves were completed with the DE. Just keep on with it and you may find, as I did, that you won't want to shave with anything but a straight razor.

Originally Posted by dave5225

Was your razor honed by someone who knows how to hone a razor , or did you start shaving with it "right out of the box" ? The reason I ask is , I learned to shave with razors I was honing myself , and the first shaves were irritating my skin because my razors were not quite sharp enough to give me a good shave .

I got it lightly used. To the best of my knowledge it was -- the gentleman she purchased it from had quite a collection and was letting go of a few of them because of financial and practical reasons. It was supposed to be freshly honed.

I'll wait and see how things go for the next few weeks and then I may start to ask advice on whetstones of choice.

Regarding the sideburns, try peeking through the gap between the arched first and second fingers holding the razor and the thumb. With the right angle, I find this is the only way I can see where the blade is starting from on the sideburns when shaving downward (WTG). This probably only works if you use only the first two fingers and the thumb to hold the razor; I do this to help me keep the pressure light. Hope this helps.