Thread: A Bad Beginner

The hardest concept for some folks it the blade angle. It is really important that the razor almost be vertical when shaving. That means 30 degrees or less. What happens is that for most of us, when you hold a straight razor, your hand tends to bend back at the wrist which opens up the angle of the blade to 45 degrees or more. This cause pulling usually or scraping with not a lot of hair being shaved. Give the razor a good stropping (50-60 strokes) and try again using little short strokes with not much pressure. You can clean up the spot you are shaving with longer strokes after this.

Have fun,

Lynn

Stropping -- No, that is absolutely not correct. The blade never stops on the strop, ever! Keep the blade moving and begin moving the blade in the opposing direction before the edge contacts the strop.

Blade edge contact with the strop must always be done with spine leading motion.

Originally Posted by AFDavis11

The blade never stops on the strop, ever!

This is worth repeating.

Hesitation cuts come from a stopped blade.

Ideally you should have the skills & muscle memory down pat before putting a sharp blade to a strop. A strip of newspaper & a butterknife are great tools for initial practice.

Originally Posted by AFDavis11

Stropping -- No, that is absolutely not correct. The blade never stops on the strop, ever! Keep the blade moving and begin moving the blade in the opposing direction before the edge contacts the strop.

Blade edge contact with the strop must always be done with spine leading motion.

I used to nick my strop all the time, but what I did was start a stroke, then stop, turn the blade, move the razor, stop, turn, and so on.

So I do disagree with you here. Eventually, he can get the proper stroke down, but I found that stopping the razor really helped me.

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Also OP, my razors don't cut arm hair easily, nor do they ever pass the HHT. Feel free to make use of the free honing for life deal, but I'm just letting you know that your razor still could be good to shave.

Originally Posted by gull

I used to nick my strop all the time, but what I did was start a stroke, then stop, turn the blade, move the razor, stop, turn, and so on.

So I do disagree with you here. Eventually, he can get the proper stroke down, but I found that stopping the razor really helped me.

I can't understand how stopping the razor teaches you the "proper stroke" ie rolling the razor on the spine or are you referring to something else like proper contact.?

Originally Posted by onimaru55

I can't understand how stopping the razor teaches you the "proper stroke" ie rolling the razor on the spine or are you referring to something else like proper contact.?

I was just referring not nicking anything. I can understand how most people, when they stop the razor, end up nicking their strop. But for me that just wasn't the case. I actually nicked my strop a lot before I started stopping the razor.

My problem was I would roll the razor while still moving the razor forward, and then once the edge hit the strop, the razor would still be pushed forward. Thus I nicked my strop. I hope I'm making sense

Now that I have built up some confidence, I can imitate what I see on videos, i.e., not stopping, not nicking anything, and also having proper contact.

Originally Posted by gull

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My problem was I would roll the razor while still moving the razor forward, and then once the edge hit the strop, the razor would still be pushed forward. Thus I nicked my strop. I hope I'm making sense

..

Yes, that does make sense. Perhaps beginners will appreciate the idea that the razor direction should change before they drop the edge down.

Originally Posted by gull

My problem was I would roll the razor while still moving the razor forward, and then once the edge hit the strop, the razor would still be pushed forward. Thus I nicked my strop. I hope I'm making sense

Yup. It's a tricky timing at first which is why I recommend practice with something dull at first

Originally Posted by onimaru55

Yup. It's a tricky timing at first which is why I recommend practice with something dull at first

You sayin' I shoulda practiced with ma brain Oz...


Mick

Another bit is shave prep. I was having really bad shaves until i got lathering down. Dry lather is really white when applied, wet lather will run, try to find the middle. Mantic's vids on youtube are great for this as he shows different methods. Also if you can afford it, try a dovo shavette with disposeable blades. Sharp every time. They're a little harder to use than a real straight, at least for me, so get it down with that and youre good.