Thread: First Shave/Big Problems

That seems to be a favourite slogan here in Ontario Canada right now. It's posted all over the place.

And it applies here too. Start small. Lynn mentions above to start on your dominant side, and go from sideburn to jaw. This is sound, sound, advice. Stop after that, and finish with your DE or multiblade. The next day, do the same thing again. It will take some time to become comfortable with your razor, and the angle on your skin, and how it looks to your eyes in the mirror.

My first week, I had razor burn so bad I thought I was going to cry. I looked like I had 500 mini mosquito bites on my neck. It gets much better. Perfect practice makes perfect. Take it slow, no blade pressure, and you'll be just fine......everyone on this site had a first week of straight shaving.

Have fun.

I am the "professional" honer who honed the razors. I shave tested both razors and they shaved just fine. The Engels razor had a severe frown that I had to remove and I confess that is did not shave as well as other Engels razors I have honed. For that reason, I re-honed it three times trying to get more out of it. It did shave just fine, but it did not shave as well as I had expected for an Engels razor.

I can assure you that both razors left me shave ready. That term is misused on eBay and can have different connotations even here. For that reason, all I can tell you is that both razors easily shaved me comfortably and with none of the irritation that you experienced. There is virtually no chance that the HHT would have passed in your hands however, because both razor were oiled.

Originally Posted by Utopian

I am the "professional" honer who honed the razors.

No one hear is questioning the Hone job so No Worries . There is a lot more that can be looked at before the Honing is taken into consideration. I still say look at the angle and pressure first, that is a hard thing to overcome in the beginning.

Originally Posted by TSasser

No one hear is questioning the Hone job so No Worries . There is a lot more that can be looked at before the Honing is taken into consideration. I still say look at the angle and pressure first, that is a hard thing to overcome in the beginning.

The OP is questioning the honing job and I don't blame him at all. For a couple of decades I worked in research labs and when something went wrong all possibilities had to be considered. Some took offense when their work was questioned but others appreciated that ALL possibilities had to be considered. No offense should be taken and none was taken on my part in this case. This is a common experience for people new to straight shaving. One example of that is here.

To the OP... visualize the angle of the blade against your skin when using your disposable razor and recreate that angle with your straight razor. That was the "ah ha" moment for me.

Originally Posted by Utopian

The OP is questioning the honing job and I don't blame him at all. For a couple of decades I worked in research labs and when something went wrong all possibilities had to be considered. Some took offense when their work was questioned but others appreciated that ALL possibilities had to be considered. No offense should be taken and none was taken on my part in this case. This is a common experience for people new to straight shaving. One example of that is here.

Had to re-read the OP over again to see the questioning of the honing. I am always happy to be proven wrong, as long as it is in a nice way

Thank you.

On shaving around a goatee:

. . . That's why I'm using a double-edge razor to "clean-up" my neck. And before that,
. . . a cartidge razor.

There are some places a large blade (straight razor) just wasn't designed to go.

Charles

PS -- "A tattooed Jew" ? There's got to be a story behind that . . . <g>

Thank you all for your input on the matter. Just for clarification I never said that the honing was not done properly, I am just to new at this to know if they were or weren't and needed to ask to learn.

Utopian did a fine job and helped me out tremendously, thank you for your kindness and generosity.

I am pretty certain that the combination of not properly honing and holding the razor correctly attributed to my problems.

As others have said, shaving with a straight is much more reliant on technique than other ways of shaving, and holding and using a straight razor is so foreign to most people's muscle memory that even with all one's attention focused on doing it right, you won't be.

So, just be patient. If Utopian says they are shave ready, you should trust him on that. Just keep trying to better your technique, and it won't be long before you will be singing the praises of the straight razor shave.

Your main points have been fully answered I think, so I will just address the shaving with goatee issue. For the first few weeks or so, just stay a safe distance away from the edges of your goatee and shave around that area with your usual weapon.
As you get more proficient with the Cutthroat you can lessen the size of that no mans land.
When you have got as close as you dare, my technique is to lay the blade fairly flat to the skin, and shave towards the goatee all the way around. Do this slowly and carefully to begin with, and don't put any pressure on the blade. If it stops, so do you. Forcing things will result in blood. Like the shave itself, it will take a little time and practise, but you will get there. I have a small gap in the centre of my Mo' that has only a few stray hairs. I get them with the CT too. I am also able to get the few strays the grow in both sides of the meridian strip of my goatee. So as you can see, working a CT around small areas is quite possible. Just be patiant. You'll get there.


Mick