A Directive Easy Approach

I would like to start a thread that goes beyond the suggestion . . . and dives into a directive approach. I invite you to do the same or comment on mine as you wish.

The idea behind this thread is that you are telling someone the definitive way to start using a straight razor, no if, ands, or buts allowed. Beginners are recommended to simply read and consider.

So, I'll begin. . .

1) Start with a razor honed by someone else

Do not buy a "shave ready" razor (unless you buy it here). That would be like buying a house at Home Depot or artwork from an art supply store. You rarely buy the pieces and parts from someone that actually uses them. Very few people selling razors know how to use or hone them. Buy a razor and then send that razor specifically to someone that

a) You know can hone
b) Whose name you know, with an address for return
c) Someone who will re-hone the razor for free, if you're unhappy

Using a website with a professional honer on staff is a good idea, be willing though to move the next step or proceed with step 1 (sending the razor out anyway).

The objective is to get the razor sharp and shaving.

2) Buy a high grit hone

Learn the proper stroke for honing. Be ready, within a month to use that hone, but only use that hone. I recommend a barber hone or a Chinese "12K" hone. By the time you need to touch up your razor you will not be proficient at using any lower grit, so don't even bother trying.

3) Learn to lather.

If you can't build up a good lather don't start shaving. Find a tutorial. I suggest, if required, to start with a completely dry brush and add water slowly. It might take you all day, two to three drips at a time, but at least you'll figure it out. A decent brush is usually a good idea. A high quality brush is an unnecessary luxury, but this is a luxury event. So do what you want with the price point, it's not my money.

4) Strop with Confidence

Hold the strop lightly and use a little pressure. Throw out all other considerations and thoughts as needless conservativism. Strop with enough deflection to get a full hollow razor shaving smoothly and cleanly without pull. You can use a taut strop and a light touch on the kitchen silverware if you want, but break out your bad barber style confidence for the strop. The strop should deflect a few millimeters downward when stropping. As you pull on the strop you should feel a deeper drawing sensation, then relax your grip again and listen to the change in pitch as you ensure the strop is hitting the edge. Then go back to the bevel, ride the bevel a bit, and return to the edge. All with the slightest changes in tension of your off hand. It's a piece of leather afterall, you shouldn't be capable of doing too much damage. Then again, if you think this all means allowing for sag, instead of just deflection, be prepared to start honing right now. Buy a good strop, it's money well spent. Sell it here if you don't like it. You might, if allowing for deflection, hone a little more often, but the smoothness of the shave is well worth it. An incredible shave today is worth the price of honing a week earlier than typically required.

5) Deal with you dull razor

Use a high grit hone and an x-pattern and stroke the razor carefully on the hone. Roll the edge over on the spine. Check in the Wiki; lots of incredible information there. Read some threads. I suggest you start with a light amount of pressure, focused on a very slight torque into the edge, and then finish with the lightest possible touch. Get your pinky under the scales to keep the blade flat on the hone. Hold the shank between thumb and forefinger until it balances between the razor end and the scales end evenly. If you can't hold it level with the ground with just two fingers you'll never be able to with a hone in the way. When completing a stroke keep your hand above the hone and your finger pads even with the top of the hone. Start with 6 laps, up and down passes, and then strop and test. Consider 6 more if needed. Do another 6 more passes before you start re-evaluating the problem. After 18 laps check the Wiki and start diagnosing the problem.

6) Shave like a Pro

Pretend you're a barber and use a very light touch and a delicate artistic motion around your face. Think about the right grip, angle, and stroke. Don't think of yourself as a hack that needs pressure or more practice. If a light touch and a 30 degree angle doesn't shave pretty easily; stop. Go to the Wiki and watch a video or two. Consider re-evaluating from Step 1; miss a step? Learn to deal with a little bit of resistance in the stroke. Look, its okay, you're not the master honer and stropper that you might think, yet. Its okay. Look at the bright side, think of the damage you could do with a straight razor on your face that didn't have a little resistance to it. It's not a teflon coated DE, but, go try a Mach 3. If your not getting less resistance than a Mach 3 your doing one of the steps above poorly.

Okay, I'm done. Comments welcome. Again to remind you though. These thoughts are focused toward the beginner, so keep that in mind.

Ill add that once you have a shave ready razor, dont look back just go for it. For other men this was the ONLY way. They learned it and survived and so did I.Thats the best advice I have.

Great advice! :)

The only thing I would say is stay away from eBay until you know what you're looking for.

And read the wiki and listen to the advice you get...!

Great post! :bow:

Great post, Alan.

I thought I would add a few things:

1. Quality Lather - most folks find it easier to start with creams rather than soaps. Whatever you decide, buy one of good quality, instead of having a drawerful of so-so products. I know you are eager to experiment, but the quality of your lather makes a huge difference. You can have the sharpest edge, but if your lather is not slick, your shave will be so-so, if not so... panful.

2. DON"T SKIMP - So now you have a good cream or soap, use it. Many people try to use the least bit of soap and stretch it to three or four passes. Remember, your first pass is usually WTG, the easiest pass, yet that is when you have the best lather. By the time you are going WTG, your skin is already starting to get irritated and your pass is the toughest. That is not the time to use the last bit of lather squeezed from your brush knot. A puck of triple milled soap will last a long, long time. Don't be stingy.

3. Pre-shave prep - Spend the extra few minutes to pamper yourself with hot towels. There are also pre-shave creams and soap. Especially when you are starting out, you want to make everything just perfect, so the only variable is your stropping and shaving.

4. Post-shave - buy a good aftershave. Again, that is better than having a drawerful of cheap stuff. When you are starting out, there is greater tendency for you to irritate your skin. When you are no longer doing that, then experiment with the less soothing, alcohol based stuff. But for now, you want that face to "heal" for your next shave. If it is still sore, then yeah, your shave will not be great.

5. Alum stick - just buy one. If you are irritating large patches of your face and neck, get a $5 block of alum deodorant (obviously, do not use it for anything else). For nicks, a small clubman alum stick like Lynn uses on his video is handy to keep in your drawer.

6. Paste - Alan talked about the touchup hone. A lot of people find it easier to touch up with a pasted strop, since you will be using the same stropping motion you have already learned, instead of a new (honing) skill. If you decide to go this route, get a good flat paddle strop. Pasted hanging strops are good, but do that later. A slight error in your angle or strop tension will ruin your edge very quickly. About paddles, you only need one, at most two, sides for touchups. Diamond 0.5 or 0.25, or CrO are good choices. You don't really need one of those many-sided paddles. If you need to go lower than 0.5, you are better off going to a hone.

Being rookie about six weeks in let me respond to your excellent advice.

1) Start with a razor honed by someone else

Done. bought and honed at SRD

2) Buy a high grit hone

Done. my Chinese 12k arrived early this week. It's a lot more difficult to keep the blade flat on the hone while keeping a very light touch than one might imagine. I tend to either lift the toe slightly or the heel as I move from one end of the stone to the other. it's not much, but enough for me to notice. Practice, practice, practice.

3) Learn to lather.

A work in progress. A little too wet is better than a little to dry, IMO.

4) Strop with Confidence

A rookie's downfall. Here's where most rookies probably drop the ball, I did at least. My first strops had too much pressure, lifted the spine, bad transition, even after I had read Wiki and watched videos and read a couple dozen threads. It just isn't a easy as it as it sounds or looks. It's not good advice wasted it's just tough to get right at the very beginning. I've got the hang of it now, but my razor suffered from my inexperience.

5) Deal with you dull razor

My razor is back to shave ready but to took about 120 passes on the C12k to even out my stroke on the stone. It's still not as sharp as when I first received it but, the razor now glides across my face without dragging or pulling.

6) Shave like a Pro

Great advice and encouragement, but you still have to do it yourself. It's like learning how bowl or golf. You'll probably be lousy at it in the beginning but patient practice will render constantly improving results. And you definitely need to keep your razor shaving sharp. A razor that has trouble cutting down whiskers will have absolutely no trouble at all in nicking and scrapping and cutting skin. ;) Other than working around my chin my last few shaves have gone very well. In fact, I'd say my last one was a Damn Fine Shave! :tu

Rob.

Well I thought I could find something in your post to criticize, but I couldn't. Great post and excellent advice.

Where were you when I was a rookie?

If ever a post deserved to be a 'sticky' this one is it. :bow

Quote:

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Originally Posted by thebigspendur

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Where were you when I was a rookie?

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I think I was a rookie too!