I wanted to start a thred and say hello
I just joined this forum as I was on the internet looking for a strop with my son,
I was amazed surprised and delighted to see how many straight razor pages information and web sites there are. When I wanted a new strop in 1980 I had to wait until I saw one in Rome later in the year as I just could not find one in my home town of York , England .
I thought as everybody here is enthusiastic my story and my understanding of razors, firstly I will share my history a little and then all the information I was taught by my father that was passed from my grandfather less it should disappear from collective knowledge.
I also am not here to tell you what is right or wrong only what I was taught, this might be wrong but my grandfather had a lot to do with barbers and knew how to make and grind a razor.
My family has a somewhat vested interest in Razors as my grandfather was firstly a razor grinder in Sheffield, and later he owned a shop that had a side business selling barber supplies to shops all up and down the UK, then later exporting quality British steel (when we had a steel industry). He knew a lot about razors, and so did my father.
I have been shaving with a straight razor for a long time now, in fact I have exclusively used one except for when I was unfortunate enough to break my collarbone when I used a few Bic Razors. I have two Twin works razors from 1920s, in a case, matching strop Brush, new Kent Brush and I always use quality cream, the best shaving cream in my opinion is made by our own London Shops of whom I imagine most people can look up, I have alum block, face cream, and Witch Hazel mixed 10% lime cologne from Penhaligon's (not exact mix might I add). My razors were given to me when I went off to school for my final two years before I went to university. I remember my grandfather who was quite old giving me some lessons on how to use one, and my father guiding me through numerous shaves (I recall feeling a little stressed through as he repeated over and over to be careful and go slowly) and repeated all the advice his father had him and me! I do remember one nasty cut on my chin when I was still only 17 and I remember it curling my toes, I went ice cold and closed the razor and stood in shock for a few moments pressing a towel to the cut, this was I am glad to say the only bad nick I have suffered to this day, and it was not so bad really.
These are the things I was taught and would like to pass on here.
Razors: I have very heavy black course hair as my mother was/is American and descended from some people with serious follicular powers. I digress.
The razor for someone like me should not be fully ground, or if it is should have a large depth mine are ¾ ground and one is 4/8 the second 5/8 width. This I was told was because with very, very thick dense hair the fully ground blade would flex of the edge deflect causing a cut. Also I was told that a square or point were for barbers only to get all the nose and ear bits done and that for home use the point of a square blade should be rounded a little using the side of a hone in a sink of cold water. Or with plenty of ice cold water to stop damaging the temper in the edge, my grandfather a believe would round off points for private customers. You have to take great care doing this.
A side note: My razors came in a special box, I have not seen these since damaging mine while working out of the UK once.. The box was of heavy wood with a little key lock, the razors had two spaces diagonally, each side, in the triangular space was a stainless mesh exactly fitting the space but flush with the space, under the mesh on one side was a cotton cloth with a lump of raw iron and the other side was a small metal container with silica gel in, this could be heated in your oven to dry out periodically, the iron was meant to be sacrificial any moisture rusting the un treated block of iron first. Again I digress but I broke the box and threw it out regrettably never to find a replacement, I have leather box now.
Honing notes:
I was told to hone always with the blade tip 1 and ½ inches behind the tail obviously blade leading edge, as this was the correct way to hone, my grandfather was taught this when a grinder and he attested that most barbers did the same as this was the correct angle. He said never hone edge square down the hone this does not get the angle set nicely. They hones all the ground razors this way I understand.
I use a Belgian stone, but my father had a swappy and co I think.
I always use lather to hone, when I was a young chap in oxford I once commented to a barber in Oxford "did the soap not damage the stone", I remember he said something like "Sir this hone has been around longer than you or I, I think it will be fine"
Stropping :was to be done the opposite way with the tail leading the tip slightly. So you are exactly the same to the honing and sharpening the teeth at the same direction as they were "set" while honing.
I also have had my first strop for a long time and I was told that when there is little draw, and the blade does not seem to stick or pull (I am sure people know what I mean) you basically rub lather into the leather and using the heel of your hand strop on a hard surface and rub the lather into the leather, repeat and repeat until it can take no more, then using grease proof paper, put in between cotton and leather sides and give the cotton side a good soaking in lather and rinse carefully under a tap trying to get little water onto the leather, a little soap left in is no worry, just a bit more friction!. Then let the strop dry. I sometime use some of the lard type dressing after in the glass jar with the yellow label.
The Shave.
I was taught that one only needs to use the dominate hand. Most people I have met who used a open razor did this.
My dad always said that the reason people gave up was, a dull blade due to lack of knowledge of what was really sharp, rushing and therefore cutting and incorrect grip, fear of honing, that my grandfather used to say "anybody can do it even you!" ha!, using the wrong type of razor for beard type, and he levelled some blame at the feet of the armature using a square or point blade.
Shave, I have done this now for a long time. And I used to do this most mornings or evenings before work.
1. Hot Bath or Shower
2. Lather using a top quality soap or cream, the resulting cream should be nice and thick like Cornish cream. Too much water and don't even risk using it, its no good at all and you risk cuts. You should always in my opinion use a mug with the soap in the bottom add very very hot water, and leave for a few mins so the mug is hot and pore out (if you use cream you add that after, ha!)..My mug is real old and is really thick, to retain the heat a few I have seen in London barbers foe sale, seem too thin to me.
3.Using a quality badger brush ( I have a travel one that is a good size I think some of them I have seen are just silly, far too big) work into a lather.
You hold the brush in a special way, "Blessing the face" holding the base of the brush in the palm of your hand you use your first two fingers straight out like a bishop blessing a crowd! Your 3 and 4th fingers wrapped around the base of the brush in your palm. You do this so that you can control the brush and not get bristles in the nose, and also so use a bit more of a scrubbing action across the mustache area, throat and Adams apple. You then but your brush down and using the soft part of your finger tips massage the lather into your bearded face firmly pushing against the grain working the soap in. Rinse fingers and strop the razor with this lather penetrating. Then the next vital and neglected bit of equipment, a flannel or face cloth, into the hot water wring and slap it onto your face nose protruding (so you can breath) and press it o you can feel the heat going through. Wipe all the soap off that should now contain all the dirt, emulsified oil and grease, Re-lather working it in well in a circular motion and start shaving. I have no idea how to upload photographs to my computer but if I did I suggest left hand over the top of the head shave right side of cheek moving fingers behind the razor, as far as you can stretch, left side of face you simply use your left hand to pull up the skin and rotate the wrist so that the razor is guard facing behind you and you are shaving the check with the same side of the razor you did the left side with, moving all the way down to the middle of the jaw. Under the nose I just stretch the lip down and cut in the direction of the growth in small delicate strokes
I do the chin down and sometimes across the tip, very carefully do it. This is a key cutting area.
If you want to get closer shave twice in same direction,
If you want a even closer shave then use the reveres stroke in a revered grip, against the grain or side on to the grain. This has to be done very slowly and carefully and you might want to re strop on the leather side again.
The fold the razor put it to one side and splash face with hot water, and then dry face a little. Rub in some not too oily face cream into hands and smooth over face, apply hot flannel in same manner to steam cream into the face this is wonderfull and it really pushed the cream into the skin.
Next, loads of ice cold water from the tap until your face is ice cold.
I sometimes then rub an alum block just once over or let my face dry and then apply some witch hazel with lime cologne added to act as the astringent.
I don't always tend to use alum block and normally just let my face dry after shaving before the splash of witch hazel and lime. If you use Alum block not too much! You don't want to feel the alums presents or your face will go like leather for a few hrs.
After aftershave let dry don't judge the shave in the first few mins, look a little after to see how good it is!
I always clean the face cloth wipe the razor with the wet cloth and then dry on a little white cotton cloth that hangs looped over the bottom metal loop of my strop secured with a ribbon or elastic band. I wash brush out and leave the razor some place really safe to dry and well away form children's' inquisitive minds.
That's it I have been shaving like this for a long time and although it sounds lengthy once you are apt with the blade there is little to worry about from cuts and I can get this done in 15min 20 if I am in no rush longer if I don't care!
I hope I am not teaching grandma to suck eggs I just thought I would post this.
Added point..
One thing my son said he did was that he could always see a little stubble and wanted to get rid of it, I would point out that when your face has had maybe 15 to 30 mins some most of these hairs retract leaving a just below the skin level meaning you are very smooth with no stubble showing, my dad said that constantly chasing these apparent stay hairs is a contributor to cuts.
