Disappointed With Results
Hello again:
I registered with SRP, and acquired my first straight razor, just about three months ago. One question I had at first was how much better shaving I was going to get, compared with my trusty Merkur Classic double-edge. Some here said the straight would be better, some said it was the experience that drew them in, and the actual shave was merely comparable at best to a good DE shave.
I plunged in anyway. It was rough going at first. It took two weeks for my hands to stop shaking, and more than a month to work out a reasonable technique. It was only recently that I realized I wasn't stropping properly, and finally worked out an overall approach that seemed to give me pretty good shaves from a keen edge. But even so, I felt that my shaves were not as good as I had been accustomed to getting with my old DE.
Today, I sent my razor off to be re-honed because I couldn't get it really keen (won't perform an HHT), in part I think because I hadn't been stropping it right. But that gave me a chance to go back to DE shaving for a bit and compare results.
Today, I think I got the greatest shave I have ever had in my life, with my old Merkur DE and a new Merkur blade, using the same soap I had been using with the straight razor. I think the combination of equipment I was skilled in using and a bit more attention to grain and stroking technique that I had acquired using the straight razor turned out to be the best thing ever. The shave was so slick I wondered if the blade was actually touching my face. It was beyond BBS - it was like my skin was glassy smooth. In fact, it was so smooth I think I terrified my beard - over 14 hours later I still don't even have any 5 o'clock shadow!
Which is great, but also kind of disappointing. I don't get anything like this result with the straight razor. My technique has gotten to be OK, though still not great, and I think I can improve, but the bottom line is that I get shaves with the straight razor that would have been good-but-not-exceptional with the DE, and not as good as my best DE shaves. "BBS" is out of the question, most days. And I seem to get unusually quick 5 o'clock shadow. Getting a great shave after going back to the DE merely points up how mediocre I had been doing with the straight.
Is this going to get better? I've read the Wiki many times, and try to follow its advice, but I still don't have a really reliable technique that leads to good shaves. How long did it take others to reliably produce a comfortable, BBS shave executed with skill? Is there some more advanced program I can follow to fine-tune my technique? Can I expect to really do better than my DE shaves, or is the straight razor just inherently not that much better in terms of closeness?
Thanks for any suggestions.
Disappointed with Rusults
Hello, KtKeith,
These learned gentlemen have imparted good advice, with which I concur.
I use a straight razor, although I switch to double blade when time is extremely short. They both give me good shaves. What also comes with the straight razor is craft. It will take time to master the craft.
Have patience, and good luck.
Regards,
Obie