Originally Posted by
AFDavis11
Okay, so I checked your original post and I think I'm fielding one general question. The conversion from a Shavette to a real straight.
So, is it normal to have problems? Why yes, yes it is. The cause is a lack of understanding and practice.
The most common problem, besides using bad angles and pressure is developing a proper stropping routine.
So, the DE razor is sharp, smooth, and probably coated with Teflon. The straight razor is sharp, probably smooth, and relies on good stropping to replace the Teflon.
Shavettes have a tendency to be rough shaving because that particular blade was not made for "open" use. The straight razor is designed for open use, and is typically honed by hand in such a way that the blade can glide over the face easily. Stropping, good stropping adequately supports this. In fact good stropping emphasizes this quality.
In order to learn to strop, lay the strop flat on a table, use light pressure and do lots and lots of laps. Add a touch of pressure if that fails and then return to lots of laps with light pressure. It takes practice and some more complex understanding but at some point the razor will slide through your whisker without effort and leave the skin with a new born sort of feeling. That, and only that, is the true test of effective stropping.