Sharpness or Technique

Hello All

My wife recently purchased a Dovo 5/8" straight razor for me as a gift with all of the accessories included. The razor was purchased through classicshaving.com and claimed to be professionally honed which to me means sharp enough to comfortably shave with. As I proceeded to shave with the razor, there was a lot of pulling and tugging on my facial hairs (very uncomfortable). The angle I was using for the razor seemed to be right (30 degreeish) but I could be wrong (about two spines away from my face). The one thing that I did was to pluck a hair from my head and press the razor against it. Nothing happened. The amount of force I had to use to cut that piece of hair seemed to be more than necessary. I feel like the razor is not sharp enough to shave with and would like to send it back to be re-sharpened but before I do that, I would like to get some opinions about this situation first. Thanks! :rant:

First, welcome to the SRP. Second, more than likely the blade is fine and it is your technique. It takes some time to acquire the proper shaving technique. I would highly recommend you read the WIKI in order to learn more.
Don't be discouraged. The path to a close shave is well worth the effort.

Happy Holidays.

Straight Razor Place Wiki

Merry Christmas,
You are not giving us quite enough info to answer..
Prep, lather, technique and area you shaved on the face are all very important...
Most likely any of these are at fault before the sharpness of the blade comes into play..

That being said, I have no clue who is honing for Classic any longer, nobody here or at any of the other forums I visit, is stepping up taking credit for it...

Mvcrash is probably right. I have only been at this for two years but each new razor takes some time getting used to. Pre-shave beard preparation is essential in my opinion - soak well with hot towel. Experiment with the angle. I have found that different razors require a different angle. Once you figure it out the shave is exceptional.

Tell me how it shaves arm hair. Should slide thru them like warm butter. If not, it may have slipped thru the cracks on the honing, the edge may have been rolled while stroping (most of us have done that at the early stages), or it could be form.

The angle is important & I may use more than others...I keep the spine about one spine thickness off the skin & at times during a shave in tight spots I feel the spine touch the skin.

Send it to me & cover the return shipping and I will ensure it's shave ready and if not, make it so. Then when I ship it back all I would want you to do is wipe the oil off it, wipe with alcohol to disinfect, and shave with it.

Consider it my Christmas present to you,
Scott

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Originally Posted by gssixgun

Merry Christmas,
You are not giving us quite enough info to answer..
Prep, lather, technique and area you shaved on the face are all very important...
Most likely any of these are at fault before the sharpness of the blade comes into play..

That being said, I have no clue who is honing for Classic any longer, nobody here or at any of the other forums I visit, is stepping up taking credit for it...

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Originally Posted by bbtech

Mvcrash is probably right. I have only been at this for two years but each new razor takes some time getting used to. Pre-shave beard preparation is essential in my opinion - soak well with hot towel. Experiment with the angle. I have found that different razors require a different angle. Once you figure it out the shave is exceptional.

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I agree. I had been wet shaving and doing good prep long before I used a St8 so with me, the technique was the culprit. I had to learn technique with the razor and technique with the strop. I knew the razors were honed properly since they came from SRD.

Enjoy

It is hard to say if it is you or the razor. People tend to think that a straight razor will wipe the whiskers off like a squeegee whisking water off of glass. Not quite like that. There is an art to shaving with a straight razor that involves various strokes, blade angles and skin stretching. Then there is the preparation, lathering and stropping.

Notice I said blade angles plural. Thirty degrees is probably right for one place but not right for another. Beginners shear whiskers off while advanced shavers slice them. It takes time to learn all of the variables and eventually work them into a seamless operation. Reminiscent of learning to drive with a standard (stick) transmission. Coordinating gas, clutch, steering and brakes took awhile to become a smooth transition.

If you haven't seen it already take a gander at Lynn's suggestions for the first straight razor shaves here in the SRP Wiki beginner's guide. Took me two or three weeks before I was able to put the DE in the closet instead of using it to finish my shaves. More weeks or maybe it was months to really begin to get it down.

I would like to chime in by saying that as mentioned by the other Gentlemen, technique, prep and all the other variables that make up a great shave come to mind first when a shave comes up short, but I myself ordered and received from ClassicShaving.com a razor that was sold to me as "shave ready" was in fact not. I did not send it back, or contact anyone there, but just gave it some attention on my hones and was then satisfied.

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Originally Posted by JMatthias

Hello All

My wife recently purchased a Dovo 5/8" straight razor for me as a gift with all of the accessories included. The razor was purchased through classicshaving.com and claimed to be professionally honed which to me means sharp enough to comfortably shave with. As I proceeded to shave with the razor, there was a lot of pulling and tugging on my facial hairs (very uncomfortable). The angle I was using for the razor seemed to be right (30 degreeish) but I could be wrong (about two spines away from my face). The one thing that I did was to pluck a hair from my head and press the razor against it. Nothing happened. The amount of force I had to use to cut that piece of hair seemed to be more than necessary. I feel like the razor is not sharp enough to shave with and would like to send it back to be re-sharpened but before I do that, I would like to get some opinions about this situation first. Thanks! :rant:

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I'll not only give you my opinion, I'll give you my personal experience.

For me, it was the razor. My first straight was also a Dovo 5/8.

Just like some people have better luck with a Gillette than with a Schick (or vice-versa), I could never get the same performance out of a Dovo as I could out of, say, a Boker or a Henckels. I can't explain why.

At first I blamed my lack of experience, but over time I got better with other makes of razors but not with the Dovo.

I eliminated honing as the problem by having it honed twice by different people with no improvement.

My conclusion after 9 months of experience: use a razor other than Dovo. Why can't any piece of steel be molded into a good shaver for me? Maybe it can. However it doesn't matter because I have since found razors that I can both hone and use with much better success.

Different strokes for different folks. I've gotten razors from Classic that were shave ready as claimed. That was when Lynn used to hone for them though.

As for Dovos, I've got a number of them and they give me a fine shave. OTOH, maybe it is just like with DE blades. What works for me may not work for another guy.

I tested the razor on my arm and it did in fact slide across like butter and take the hairs off. I guess my angle was not where it needed to be.

As for facial prep, I didn't give that too much thought. Next time I shave, I will definitely pay more attention to this as well.

Thanks for all the advice!!!!

I think beard prep is one of the areas that is easily overlooked by beginners. When I started, I really went overboard on beard prep because I knew it was both important and often under done by beginners. I think going overboard softens up the hairs a bit more as well, which helps a little with a beginner who is lacking technique.

As others have said, its likely your technique. Classic shaving is a reputable straight dealer, so I'm sure the razor is shave ready. Getting a good shave with a straight is very reliant on technique however, so the beginner will alway get sub par shaves. For an experienced straight user, a nice sharp razor can cut through hairs like a hot knife through butter. In the hands of a beginner, it can be an uncomfortable shave indeed.

Here is my 2cents on what to do.
1) Go overboard on beard prep.
2) Don't do any ATG passes for a few weeks. Your techniqe needs to develop, and you face needs to adjust. Without those, you will get bad razor burn.
3) Focus on 3 things: Keeping your skin tight, the angle of the razor low, and keeping the touch of the razor as light as possible.

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Originally Posted by JMatthias

I tested the razor on my arm and it did in fact slide across like butter and take the hairs off. I guess my angle was not where it needed to be.

As for facial prep, I didn't give that too much thought. Next time I shave, I will definitely pay more attention to this as well.

Thanks for all the advice!!!!

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My advice for beard prep would be to shave after a hot shower. While in the shower if you condition your hair, rub it into your beard as well. It will soften the whiskers.
I wash my face, rub the whiskers with the shampoo I use on my hair which has conditioner and last but not least rub either Stephan's Shave Cream or Neutrogena shave cream into the beard , rinse it off and then shave.
My whiskers are always very soft when shave which makes for a pleasant experience.
I use the Stay Smooth on this page. Not expensive at all and the tub lasts over a year.

Williamsport Barber Supply - Stephan's Products

Enjoy