Thread: 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.........

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!

[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?

Are you saying you honed your feather?

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.