Thread: Musing from a newbie

Musing from a newbie
I am pretty new to SRP but I wanted to make a few comments, and ask for some advice. One thing that I have to say is that the razor must be sharp, I have owned a Dovo since about 2000 maybe earlier and I tried shaving with it and it was absolutely terrible and uncomfortable shave I ever had, as I mentioned before It took me a decade for taylors1000 to point out to me: was it sharp? That might seem really crazy, but I was a busy medical student, I just wanted to take a shave each morning/evening. So I spent 10 years more on Gillette and loads of cash and carbon foot print, and uncomfortable shaves.

So my father sharpened the Dovo, and told me to buy a Belgian water stone.
Why did I not ask him about the ST8 before? Well I don’t know really I was away from home, maybe had more to talk about than shaving when I was home in the holidays.

He has a hybrid Wilkinson razor he has used all of his life, its basically a ST8 with a handle and several spare blades, it has a holder and you strop it like normal, hone it like normal then pop it into a holder, he does not use a ST8 as he has a shaky hand, and retired due to this illness. But he did in the RAF when he said the air commander (I don’t know the correct title) would take of his glove and run his hand against the grain up your cheek, and feeling of ANY hair and I understand, and you were in trouble.

What I do know is that I now have the most comfortable shaves I ever got, I think I told people before, I found a book, I think it’s in the WIKI here and I just followed the advice, plus a good read of all of the advice here and a second barbers book (I can post it, I don’t think its here) that I took the prep advice from (see below for MY prep)…

I must admit that I had a few rough shaves at first, I just had a Bic to hand, but I decided to go cold turkey very quickly following some advice some place here, I now finish off any rough spots with just hot water and close attention with my ST8, within maybe one month I am more pleased than I could ever be, I have very heavy, dense and dark beard. I also still cannot believe how comfortable the shave is, and the prep is REALLY important. I might have said in my first post that I lather in the soap, brushing well fingers controlling the bristles to rub firmly, rub with warmed up fingers, leave it while I strop, hot face cloth on my face for maybe one min (approx) wipe all the soap off with said face cloth (dirt and grease suspended in lather) then re lather really working the soap into the bearded, I spend a good deal of time working in the lather, holding the hair on the brush at first to make it stiffer so that you can really work it in, i.e. butt of the brush in the palm of your hand and fingers around over the bristles to keep them in control (as an aside: I worked in a hospital in Dubai fro maybe five months secondment, the barbers were fantastic on every street corner, one thing that struck me then was the amount of time they spent lathering, wiping and re lathering, I admit I understand this now, I also remember how the barber repeatedly went back to the chin to build the lather in the brush the face again). I shave with the grain once, then at a slight across the grain, third time for me is just very hot water splash over face, and feel for any little rough bits and I go in with the razor just shaving it very gently to smooth. I wipe face again, moisturiser and hot face cloth to melt the moisturiser into pores, which hazel and pat dry, some time with a ice splash last. I only use after shave on behind the ears little on the neck.

I cant tell you the trouble I have had shaving all my life and this is wonderful I tired a Double blade razor and I nearly killed myself with it 5 days on the trot, I needed iron tablets to cope with the blood loss (joke) I have only got a few little superficial nicks while learning.

I really feel genuine sadness when I read of people giving up or razors on Ebay that say “it was not for me” I see myself ten years back and want to scream “no, you don’t understand, its not like modern things that you can just do! Its like riding a bike! You need to practice but once you get it your fine!”. We must educate the world gentlemen. I have been banging the drum a little around work, if not a muted drum.

Thanks everybody!

Questions::::::
Finally one thing I mentioned to my father was the pyramid honing technique, and tape at the back of the razor. Now he lectured engineering and was building nuclear power stations designing the precision parts, he said pyramid honing makes no sense to him? (Please don’t ban me) as why would you not just hone like barbers for the last 200 years did? With no apparent problems? and he recommended me to just go Belgian, and also when I mentioned taping the back he said why would you want to do that? The razor is meant to be used, “hone to death” and he said you would see little wear in your life time, if only honing when required, he also said that tape is bad because you alter the angles why would you want to do that? It would blunt quicker, and it’s designed to be functional tape = just more time, and a waste of it, so what is the deal with tape? I must admit I can’t see the point I sometimes honed the microtome blades in the pathology labs and these blade date back to the 50s they run day and night cutting samples plastic, they are cut throats basically and hone up fine, there is no noticeable wear or degradation to the blades the wear is maybe 5mm, to be dead and buried the lab technician told me its 10mm++when the angle is too steep.

Is tape recommended MORE for restoration work like chips? I just don’t get it. I dared to say to him “its not an exact science” he looked with a decerning look and said “of course it is” hay ho.


And why pyramid hone? Really why? (PLEASE NOTE I HAVE A DAY OFF AND JUST HONED A NEW DOVO INOX I PICKED UP I USED THE PYRAMID HONE TEC AND WELL IT IS REALLY SHARP! SO I DONT UNDERSTAND IT FULLY BUT IT DID WORK VERY WELL:EDIT BY HOOPEI 3.49GMT) Why not just time honoured lower grit to finer to ultra fine? Much less, wear and tear? I have done one touch up using a old flat barber hone, 10 light strokes with some lather and the blade was….well razor sharp………my father did also say the words that I understand are forbidden here……. “you don’t want it too sharp!” he told me that you want the edge razor super sharp sharper than a double edge, but only to the point fractionally before you get burr, he said this point is hard to discern, but the edge is too sharp, too thin, what ever you want to call it, it collapses, has flex and folds too easily. I mentioned that I have read you “cannot” have too sharp and he said, you can, and an engineer would tell you that? I am not an engineer and my dads getting on a bit these days, but he insists too sharp is out there, too sharp blunts too quickly and does not hold the edge for long. What are your thoughts? Admittedly I know that when I was talking to a surgeon about a particular blade they use, I remember that he also said “we don’t use them they are too sharp for the job! sorry i must add he did say its hard to get to too sharp as you normally just over hone first.................

Gentlemen I must go but I love the web site.