Newbie after first shave from Red Deer, Alberta, Canada

Hello everyone, First I want to say thank you for all the great information on this site. I am overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information but I am learning a lot.

OK - I bought myself a DOVO pre-sharpened stainless steel straight from Fendrihan's and shaved with it for the first time today. I made the mistake of attempting my complete face and of course paid the price with scrapes, abrasions and a very sore chin.

I have read some outstanding articles and will give it a try again in a few days but will follow Lynn's instructions on day one, day two and so on.

Here is my question, My blade was pre-honed and sharpened by a hone master in Montreal, Canada and the claim is it is shave ready out of the box. Lynn, recommends stropping it regardless of the claims.

So after realizing the mistakes I made today, blade angle, more than anything else, I figure I should strop my razor as per the fine instructions and video I have read and viewed from this site.

Is this correct or am I possibly misunderstanding something here. The scraping I experienced is no doubt due to improper blade angle, but I would like to clarify that my straight, pre-sharpened blade is indeed shave ready and just needs to be stropped on a regular basis.

Any help, comments would be greatly appreciated.

On to shave two!

I pre-soak my face with towels and hot water
use Col Conk Bay Rum soap
A medium quality Badger brush
and Virgin Island Bay Rum aftershave
Strop is: Illinois Razor Strop #127

In Red Deer, Alberta, Canada

Welcome to SRP from a fellow Albertan :) In answer to your question..yes, you should strop before every shave, it realigns the edge and gives the blade a slight polish and cleanup. For some of us such as myself we even strop after the shave to help cleanup the edge. I hope this helps.

Welcome to SRP,

Your blade is indeed shave ready. Dan Gauthier does Fendrihan's sharpening, and as you mentioned he is stationed in Montreal. I have used his services a couple of times, and each time I have had beautiful edges.

Your "scraping" may be due to your blade angles, as you are just beginning to understand your face in a brand new way.

+1 on Catrents' comments. Stropping before your shave is key. And yes, a couple passes after as well to remove the "micro-gunk". Remember to strop lightly. Perfect practice makes perfect, and AFDavis11 has an awesome strop video!

This hobby is awesome! Keep us posted.

Maxi

Hello from yet another fellow Albertan, and welcome to SRP.

I would suspect that, other than improper angle, excessive pressure may be to blame for for cuts and abrasions. It does take time to adjust to the whole "no pressure" thing. As well, it takes time to build up stropping skills, and as a newb it can be difficult to gauge whether or not a razor has been finely stropped.

There is another member from Red Deer who may be willing to lend some local help; unfortunately I can't remember his user name off hand. I'll post it when I remember.

In the meantime have fun and good luck.

Thank you for all your comments and information. I have been practicing grip and position with both my dominant hand and secondary. I watched some of the recommended stropping videos and have been practicing that as well.

I think I was most certainly using way too much pressure; it's hard to wrap my head around the idea that there is no pressure needed and to let the razor's edge do it's job. But I will keep on practicing. I won't try again tomorrow because my face is too raw and sore but I will keep practicing. I live in Red Deer and work in Calgary so I'm back to Calgary tomorrow afternoon.

Thanks again for the help.

Chris

Quote:

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I pre-soak my face with towels and hot water
use Col Conk Bay Rum soap
A medium quality Badger brush
and Virgin Island Bay Rum aftershave
Strop is: Illinois Razor Strop #127

---

I suggest using a _non-alcoholic_ after-shave, until your face gets tougher, or your touch gets lighter. The Bay Rum won't do you any favors.

Try a body or facial moisturizing lotion (not necessarily an "after-shave" product) to calm down your skin.

Charles

Great advice. I use only creams now, although some of them may contain small amounts of alcohol. I'll apply more during the day to enhance healing.

Greetings from another Albertan. Everything that has been relayed to you is true. Stropping is key as long as it's done properly. Don't be discouraged by less than perfect first shaves, the technique will come in time. It sound like you have a good sense about you in researching and doing all the appropriate education before hand. Good luck.

I realize this is an old thread but I am trying to get information from others in Red Deer regarding professional honing services. I recently bought my first straight razor and want to get it honed, preferably by someone in my home town. Is anyone aware of someone who can do this?