How does it feel

So an absolute noob question.

I'm a DE shaver who has been playing with a shavette, and a couple of freshly honed straights. The problem I have is whilst all pass the HHT and knock down arm hair with ease, the second I use them against my beard, the razors just feel like they are getting stuck, and not cutting. A bit of force, and they make it, but it is nowhere near as smooth as with a DE.

Using a razor that I've honed up, I was able to get though a shave tonight (practicing at night), with increasing comfort towards the end. But I still switched over to a DE for the final pass to catch the missed spots. I do have a very coarse, and dense beard, but I'm guessing I'm not the only one.

I'm confident in my prep, and in my equipment (can't get much sharper than a Feather DE blade in a Shavette). Is it possible I'm taking too shallow a angle, and need to be a little more aggressive? I normally load my DEs with Feathers, or Russian SharpEdges, so have developed a tendency toward an ultra-light touch.

Just looking for a few ideas, as there is too many things to like about this pursuit to throw in the towel just yet.

It feels like winning.........:D

Seriously though, this sounds very typical for the first few gos. Straights are one of those things that takes seemingly forever to pick up. Blade angle is very important, and if it is not just so it doesn't seem to work. I remember my first few shaves I could have sworn that my razor was as dull as an economics lecture.

Keep at it, and you will start getting "the touch." There are some basic pointers that will get you in the right direction, but the #1 thing is simply practice. Things will just start falling into place and get easier and easier. There is a good reason why this is always referred to as an art - and why safety razors replaced straights so fast! There really is something unique about straight razors though, and they will bring you closer to shaving Nirvana than anything!

Good luck, keep us posted!:beer1:

[QUOTE=knorm;755916]So an absolute noob question.

Using a razor that I've honed up, I was able to get though a shave tonight (practicing at night), with increasing comfort towards the end.

Are you saying you honed your feather?

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Are you saying you honed your feather?

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Please re-read, the OP said "a shavette and a couple of freshly honed razors.

As for the tugging, I am currently experiencing the same thing most of the time. I am certain that it is angle or just technique with the straight razor. Hang in there and I will do the same. There are a bunch of people on here that I know are taking the journey together.

Thanks for the encouragement guys. Sounds like I'm going though a well traveled learning curve, and just need to find the feel for it.

I'll stick with it, but may continue to cheat along the way with the DE in order to remain presentable during the learning curve ;) I'm not sure why, but I was kind of expecting the razor to just slice though the stubble like butter....if I rationalize it though, angle is important with a DE, otherwise it too will not cut. I guess with a straight, it's just easier to get the angle wrong :)

Did you do the honing yourself, or was it done by an experienced honemeister?

I've read quite a bit on the forums here recently about the relative merits or demerits of the AHT and the HHT. The consensus seems to be that the only test that really matters is the shave. You might consider sending one of your razors to a honemeister for comparison purposes.

Feather DE blades are brutally sharp. I assume the same is true for their "Artist" pseudo-straight-razor blades.

You'll have to have very good honing skills, and very good stropping skills, to match them with a straight razor.

My suspicion (just a suspicion) is that your straight-razor blades just aren't quite as sharp as you think they are. If they were, they'd cut with as little pressure as the Feather.

Or, you might be trying to shave with a bad angle (which is really easy to do).

Charles

If you are having difficulty shaving whiskers with a Dovo Shavette armed with a Feather blade, then certainly blade sharpness is not an issue. I would guess the issue may be technique and primarily angle of attack. There is a relatively small "window" of proper angle. Too shallow an angle and blades just slide smoothly along, cutting no whiskers, and even sucking to the face. Too high an angle, especially with the Shavette, and you can become a surgeon instead of a shaver pretty quickly. Experiment until you find that window. Then you'll start cutting whiskers (and not face).

I know the sensation of which you write. It gave me some concern when I started with straights. Check out the thread on "pulling explained." It might be of help - it was to me.

http://straightrazorpalace.com/begin...explained.html

I had the exact same problem nearly a month ago when I was just beginning to use straights. I found that it just took the right combination of angle and pressure (or lack of pressure). I also made adjustments to stretching my skin, just a bit tighter.

I still have problems around my chin but it will come with time I suppose.

When I started shaving with DEs years ago I was very slow and hesitated any time I came across tougher parts of my beard. That hesitation didn't help the quality of the shave and I thought that the DE was the problem. Now I fly the DE across my face without even thinking about it. It's all in the technique.

I'm having the same hesitation now with straights, but I'm pretty sure with some experience under my belt I'll end up working that straight as effortlessly as I did my DE. Well, maybe not that effortlessly, but it will improve. We just have to make a pact with ourselves that we won't throw in the towel. I refuse to believe that I can't do something that was the norm for centuries.

I know the learning curve my self and yes the touch does take much time for some of us, finger pointing at me right now. the one thing that helped me flaten out my curve was the adage some here on this site use at the end of their post's, about a barber's advice to hold the razor very lightly that if you encounter a bump or difficult area you can feel it and not cut through it, averting a deep cut. I found that more than "Angle" for me it was my changing to holding the razor very lightly between my fingers so that it I touch the razor with the other hand it will move somewhat but tightly enough to keep control[averting Chaos!] Hard to describe, as if your holding by be outer skin of your finger and not tightly to the muscle and bone of the fingers. Letting the wieght of the razor do the work and yes for upward strokes you do have to have muscle memory to apply that amount of pressure to cut without maiming.
Hope this helps, other will say it better than I have here, but keeping at it will do a world towards getting the skills you need for the art and science of "Well Shaving".

Most Sincerely, tinkersd

Hi my Dovo straight is out of action after getting a couple of small dinks in the blade yesterday morning so needs a hone.

This morning I shaved with my Miraki Shavette and it was like using a safety razor compared to the dovo and I was finished in under two minutes, the Dovo takes me 10 ;)

I must admit the Dovo feels nicer to shave with and I was missing it, just getting used to it as well so its a shame I have to use the Miraki for a little while still at least I am using some kind of straight even if it is a DE.

Don't forget the stropping. I've shaved with a razor that I know was sharp enough for a good, smooth shave and all it takes is one sub-par stropping session to make the upcoming shave inadequate (depending on skin and hair types).

Shorter strokes might also help.

Many thanks for the advice and encouragement.

About another week in, and as many have predicted things are getting better.

I think it was a combination of razor sharpness, and technique. I now find I'm not fiddling to find the correct angle (it's become somewhat intuitive now). Also, after revisiting the hones, and spending much more time with the C12 and the leather, the razor is no longer grabbing and tugging. I feel I'm progressing when I've gone from barely removing stubble, to putting a few weepers on my neck, and having to break out my moldy old styptic pencil.

I'm still finishing my chin and the more sensitive areas of my neck with my very mild Ikon DE, but feel that with some more honing and shaving experience, I will be able to ride without the training wheels within the next month or so.

Yeah - I could have paid someone to hone my razor for me, and somewhat curtailed the learning curve. But there has been a certain satisfaction from my patchy, painful, and blood-spattered shaves over the last week. Being able to address a daily grooming necessity with a handful of tools (the most complex being a rock, and a bit of forged steel), knowing from here on out I'm (mostly) self-sufficient in supplying myself a lifetime of shaves, and knowing that each time I shave this activity contributes nothing to landfill have all been factors in making this a very worthwhile endeavor. What I once dismissed with little rumination as an archaic, and collosal waste of time undertaken only by technophobes, has turned out to be a satisfying and rewarding experience, that I will likely continue for many years to come for all of the reasons above and more. I now view shaving with a straight razor as akin to growing one's own vegetables, a lot of work, but worthwhile.

I am still having the same problem, Razor work great on my cheek but when I get to my chin it sometimes feels like the razor gets "stuck." I am sure that it is angle, pressure and experience. I will get there.

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I think it was a combination of razor sharpness, and technique. I now find I'm not fiddling to find the correct angle (it's become somewhat intuitive now). Also, after revisiting the hones, and spending much more time with the C12 and the leather, the razor is no longer grabbing and tugging. I feel I'm progressing when I've gone from barely removing stubble, to putting a few weepers on my neck, and having to break out my moldy old styptic pencil.

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Don't shortchange the improvement in the edge, as well as crediting your improved technique.

In order to get a painless shave -- no razor burn, no weepers -- you need to use very, very light pressure (some would say "no pressure").

In order to shave with very light pressure, the razor has to be _really_ sharp.

So you need both honing/stropping skills, and shaving skills. It sounds like you're developing both of them.

Charles

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Originally Posted by thebully

Hi my Dovo straight is out of action after getting a couple of small dinks in the blade yesterday morning so needs a hone.

This morning I shaved with my Miraki Shavette and it was like using a safety razor compared to the dovo and I was finished in under two minutes, the Dovo takes me 10 ;)

I must admit the Dovo feels nicer to shave with and I was missing it, just getting used to it as well so its a shame I have to use the Miraki for a little while still at least I am using some kind of straight even if it is a DE.

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Hey, I also just purchased a Miraki razor because someone recommended it to me as the most solid shavette razor on the market. My only concern is what blades are compatible with it as the Miraki blades are not widely available. What model of the Merkur, Derby etc can I use, if any?

Hi,
Thought I might add a time reference to my OP to see how long its taking me to progress. I've made some learnings and discoveries along the way, but tonight was my first effortless shave, when taking those initial downward passes down the cheeks, I barely felt any resistance. Better yet the skin exposed by those strokes was not red or irritated in any way. I'm still doing the pointiest part of my chin with a safety razor, as well as the underside of my jawline, but the other 80% is done exclusively with a straight. To be honest I'm actually surprised by how well it works. There is still some awkwardness when shaving the left side of my face, where I find myself taking a few seconds to think about how to orient the razor in the mirror, but slowly I'm finding a routine that gets good results.

...and tonight was the first time my razor tasted blood in a big way. I accidentally went in too steep when starting on the jawline and felt the razor imedately sink into my skin. Hopefully it's a clean cut that doesn't scar....

My other observation so far is the difference in comfort between a vintage razor, and one of my cheap gold dollars. Despite the fact that I like the heft and appearance of the gold dollars, I find I'm not using them as my vintage razors are much more comfortable to shave with, and offer far less cutting resistance. I'm applying the same honing and stropping techniques to both types of razor. Both razors take down leg hair in the same manner. The gold dollars will shave, but I'm finding that the vintage razors just offer up a significantly more comfortable shave.

So I also know now which type of razor to put my money towards on the next purchase :)

Glad to hear that you're making progress. Stick with it--you're on the right track.

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Originally Posted by knorm

Hopefully it's a clean cut that doesn't scar....

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Keep some antibiotic ointment on it--keeping the cut moist and free of infection will lessen the likelihood of scarring.

OP:
Amongst all the enthusiasm here, I may be bucking the trend somewhat, when after dabbling in straight razors for a few months, I find myself falling back to, and much preferring my Double Edged razors, paired up with my favorite brands of blades.

Nothing feels softer (or more consistent) than my iKon or Feather razors coupled with a fresh feather blade. The luxury comes from the scents of the soaps and balms I choose. I don't know, I just feel that for me, going to a straight from a DE didn't add all that much to the experience, and for me didn't really justify the amount of additional time required... I'd rather spend that time reading, playing guitar, working out, playing with the g/f, playing golf, or any number of things I already struggle to find the time for.

I found that going to a straight is less about the shaving, and more about the preparation. For me, I learned that I'm very happy with a comfortable, consistent, economical, and quality shave already provided by the DE, with no additional time requirement required away from the sink.

In short, I understand your passion, but am afraid it's not for me...