Thread: one handed str8 shaving? (with story)

So heres my short story..I had an injury at birth..IV Infiltration (IV missed my vain and bad stuff happened)...basically..I cant with my left hand skin stretch if I were to use a str8..but darn they are temping..right now I use DE/SE handles and am almost done with various blades..yes I can buy more of my favorite DE ones..BUT..why spend more money on blades when I can just strop my way to a sharper blade!..send the blade to hone I think 2x a year..thats it! (as I was told)..I only get 2x uses out of every blade..4 passes x2 uses..thats it..to the blade container they go..coarse hair n sensitive skin made me who I am..;-)
..It was my knowledgeable and caring wife who made me wanna make this post
..BTW..I rarely nick myself with either DE/SE handle I have ;-)

Eric

I am forced to shave with my left (non dominant) hand for a little while. I was just gonna let it grow, but couldn't I find I'm not getting great under my chin. Puffing out my cheeks ever so slightly has helped a little there.

Originally Posted by pcdad

So heres my short story..I had an injury at birth..IV Infiltration (IV missed my vain and bad stuff happened)...basically..I cant with my left hand skin stretch if I were to use a str8..but darn they are temping..right now I use DE/SE handles and am almost done with various blades..yes I can buy more of my favorite DE ones..BUT..why spend more money on blades when I can just strop my way to a sharper blade!..send the blade to hone I think 2x a year..thats it! (as I was told)..I only get 2x uses out of every blade..4 passes x2 uses..thats it..to the blade container they go..coarse hair n sensitive skin made me who I am..;-)
..It was my knowledgeable and caring wife who made me wanna make this post
..BTW..I rarely nick myself with either DE/SE handle I have ;-)

Eric

Hi Eric (we have the same name btw)

I dunno if it's possible to use straight only one hand without being able to stretch the skin, as I'm not experienced enough (just start shaving with str8 for a month) I tend to believe that if you don't stretch you won't get BBS. Normally the straight simply just need to touch the skin (most people say it's zero pressure) but stretching is important (imagine in nowadays term in electric shaver "life and cut"...)

maybe the mentors could guide you better, but as reference about the cost, yes straight shaving equipments, almost all of them last for a life time, I use a blade made in ancient time (some people might use older or later, but you get the idea), hone, etc...but, at the first time it requires quite an investment there's information in wiki about the cost to start and the comparison with cartridge razor (Frequently Asked Questions - Straight Razor Place Wiki)...

all in all, good luck!

Erick

ps. please apologize me for my bad English

Shaving with a straight razor without stretching the skin with your other hand should work just like shaving with a DE razor without stretching the skin with your other hand - both are single blade tools (no second blade to stretch the hair before the next blade cuts it). Facial contortions, and looking up and away to tighten the neck skin will allow comfortable, nick free shaves - they just won't be quite as close as if you had stretched the skin with your other hand.

I bet you will get a slightly closer shave with the straight razor, since it allows you to fine tune the angle the blade meets your face more. It will probably also nick you slightly less easily since the DE blade has square corners that don't slide over loosely stretched skin as well as a rounded toe and heel of many straight razors.

ps: Expect a learning curve to learn the correct angle and how to strop effectively. Check out the Wiki, and consider how you will strop the razor. Maybe you can add a loop that fits over the wrist of your other hand if you want to use a "standard" hanging strop, or use a paddel strop.

Good luck !

In three words; Go for it!

Back in the day, when straight razors were all that was used, loads of people must have had similar problems due to injury, and other things, and they would have shaved one handed.

I tried shaving with one hand and no stretching once, and you can do it. You have to puff out your cheeks sometimes, and stretch the skin on your neck by moving your head around, but it can be done!

Good luck and keep us posted!

Sorry to hear about your hand

If you really want to try it out, go for it, especially if you can use those disposable straight razors (ones that use halves of DE blades)

However, one thing to remember is that a hanging strop does require some pulling to get it taunt, so depending on your mobility you might consider a loom- or paddle strop to go with the razor.

Good luck and congrats for so amazing wife.

Hello, pcdad:

Nothing in life is impossible — well, almost — including shaving one-handed with the straight razor. You can do it if you really want to.

As the other gentlemen have pointed out, stretching the skin by puffing the cheeks and making facial distortions should provide for a smooth path for your razor.

Piece o' cake.

Regards,
Obie