Thread: First stroke with Straight

Hi Guys,
I've just had my first stroke with my straight. Only on my right side (as suggested in Lynns beginner instructions) oh and a bit on my left. The Razor seemed to tug/skip a little, It removed stubble and I didn't cut myself. Is it possible that the razor wasn't sharp enough, or just my technique, or was that ok.
I git the razor from BeBerlin on the forum, he had tested it on his arm before hand and ready stopped it for me. I did have to remove the oil he put on the blade for shipping. Maybe I did something then.

I look forward to your replies and suggestions.

Depends on how you removed the oil, I suppose?

But I'm wondering if maybe your lather was a little dry? That happened to me my first time making real lather. It was on the dry side and the blade wanted to "skip" a little. I wiped it off, added more water, and re-lathered, and it was better.

Watch the angle of the blade too. It's easy to have too large a one at first. Try about two spine-widths of your face. Also, skin stretching is very important.

Thanks for the comments so far. I will add, I also used T&H pre shave oil. I thought I'd go for all the protection I could get. I normally whip my cream til the peaks hold themselves, sometimes just past that point, where they drop slightly (too much water).

I've tried the HHT on the shaver and it wont cut it. Perhaps I'm doing that wrong. I just got a hair from a brush, held it and tried to cut it. I then tried a chest hair, still attached to my chest, but held it tight, that cut but with some tugging.

Time to strop. 60 laps nice and easy and try again.

A good shave consists of good prep, good technique and good edge. It is not always automatically the blade's fault, as you said yourself, so practice your prep and technique.

Don't get stuck up on HHT. Shave test is what matters. You have to learn HHT just as everything else and you have your plate full ATM .

Good luck on your future shaves.

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. My attempt this morning was a little better. My Prep, consist of, shower, lather, rub in face, hot flannel off, skin food/oil, then proper lather.

I was not so light with the razor today, and it was much better. I think part of the problem was I was too afraid of the blade, so It barley made contact with my skin, therefore skipping across the top of my stubble.

I'm just shaved sideburn area and cheeks, plus bottom of my neck (upwards still ATG). No cuts, plus I'm quite sure I removed more on that one pass than I would with my DE on WTG/XTG passes. I'm just going to take small steps, to get familiar to using the straight. My main problem is holding the blade and trying not to block my view, or being able to see what I'm doing.

check blade angle, lather and make sure you pull that skin tight!

As has been said, check blade angle, technique and lather. Another possibility is that the razor simply does not jive with your face. I have shaved with many a razor, and find that not all go very well with my facial hair. So long as you did not do anything to the edge, the razor should be quite alright. BeBerlin is a reputed member, and a knowledable honer.

Originally Posted by BAMARACING8

check blade angle, lather and make sure you pull that skin tight!

Originally Posted by sapito318

As has been said, check blade angle, technique and lather. Another possibility is that the razor simply does not jive with your face. I have shaved with many a razor, and find that not all go very well with my facial hair. So long as you did not do anything to the edge, the razor should be quite alright. BeBerlin is a reputed member, and a knowledable honer.

Thanks Guys, I mentioned BeBerlin as it does confirm that the razor would have been fine. Therefore it does leave me. As I mentioned in my last post, it was a lot better. I had stretched my skin so much, I'd done almost half of my neck. I think I'm probably to timid with the blade as this mornings shave, with a bit more confidence was much better. I would say I'm confident with my lather as I have been lathering previously with my DE shaves, however, it's possible they may have been too dry. I'm using skin food/oil for extra protection at the moment. So I'll see how I progress. I do know that I shifted more stubble on the areas I shaved this morning, than previously with my DE on 1/2 passes.