Learning Curve – How Long?

So I have been going at it with a straight for oh I don’t know – three weeks now maybe? Still not getting those baby but smooth shaves I was getting with my safety. I look to it now and again (my safety razor) and wonder if … well, I really miss those bbs shaves.

How long did it take you guys to get baby but smooth with your str8’s?

I have no problems going with the grain twice – my face is up for it. Today I even got an against stroke south of the jaw line :dropjaw:. It’s as good a shave as my str8’s given me but it’s still not as good as the safety yet!! ARG.

str8fan,

For me, things did not go in a linear pattern of improvement :)

One day, after ca 4 weeks of mixed success, everything just seemed to drop into place - the stropping, the shave, everything !

Most odd :)

Have fun !

Best regards

Russ

My own experience was that it took a few months of trial and error to get all the way there, but I may just be one of the slower str8 razor learners. Anyway, this is something you have to commit to, you can't just pick it up for a short while to see if you like it.

P.S. I'll second PhatMan, it's not a linear learning curve, it's stepped.

I agree with Russ, it's not a linear thing and it takes as long as it takes really.

I guess I was probably about the same, it took about a month for things to really start to gel and come together.

Even now I still get the odd less than perfect shave, when I'm tired and not concentrating properly or rushed my prep.

That's how this hobby goes: you get a good shave and then spend months (and probably shed loads of cash) trying to get a better one! :)

Just relax and enjoy what you are doing...it will come faster that way. You are trying too hard. Quit chasing the BBS shave and just work on a DFS.

The normal average is somewhere around 30 shaves to directly answer your question. Secondly, for a BBS you will need to do more than a WTG pass. It normally requires the addition of XTG & ATG. For me I use all three to get there, but normally just go for a DFS that requires me to go WTG & ATG.

I've been doing it for 6 months and I'm happy with my routine. I shave each day and only do two passes WTG.
XTG on the opposite side of the face; never ATG. It may not be BBS, but I don't care. For once in my life, I look forward to shaving.

Str8fan: I wish the blasted term BBS had not been invented, because it creates false expectations for many newcomers to the world of straight razor shaving. Rather than BBS, think about getting a good and comfortable shave. How long it will take you to reach that perceived perfect state in straight razor shaving depends on your capabilities. We all hone our skill with the blade at a different pace. The best pace is the natural one, a pace that does not take kindly to pushing.

Time is an important element of straight razor shaving — long time rather than short. Keep that in mind as you continue to sharpen your skill. If you are not willing to give the straight razor its due time, perhaps straight razor shaving is not for you. Think football and the quarterback throwing short passes and chewing up the yards as he moves his team toward the goal line for a score. As many of these experienced gentlemen have noted, one day you'll realize you're there, that it's happened for you.

Even if you have mastered the straight razor shave, forget BBS and think a good and comfortable shave. Stay with; you'll get there little by little.

You will know you are in sight of the end of the curve when you stop worrying about it and just happen to notice one day, "DANG that's as smooth as a ... ". After that you'll probably have a nasty shave since you'll be over thinking it all over again but you'll get back there soon enoough.

I think it varies greatly from individual to individual. I do know there is no substitute for experience. One day in the future, it will all click in.

My Journey With a Straight Razor (I was a slow learner.)

• I started out with 52 years of experience as a wet shaver with a double edge razor and thought it would be a walk in the park. NOT!
• Shaves 1-14: Felt very unnatural, lots of nicks and cuts to my face and my strop, and very little hair cut.
• Shaves 15-28: Razor seemed more natural in my hand. WTG actually started cutting some hair.
• Shaves 29- 56: Gradual improvement with fewer nicks or cuts. XTG started feeling natural but ATG was a misery.
• Shaves 57-100: At the end of my 100th shave, I began to feel like I was controlling the outcome of the shave. Consistently DFS using WTG & XTG. Careful use of ATG started to be effective.
• Shaves 101-200: Shaving with a straight became second nature. Pre-shave preparation became standardized and effective, stropping finally became effective, and, if I concentrated, I controlled the shave, getting BBS or at least DFS every time.
• AND I ENJOYED EVERY MOMENT OF THE JOURNEY!

It is akin to learning to ride a bicycle. First training wheels, then the wobbling and crashes as the learning wheels come off, lots of riding, and suddenly one day it is all second nature. And now, as an experienced master of the straight razor? It's just like riding a bicycle in traffic, "It will all seem second nature to you but you can never let down your guard."

Don't be discouraged. It will get easier before you know it and remember, "I was a very, slow learner!", you can probably do it in a quarter or half the time I did. And I think you will find that the rewards of straight shaving are worth every moment of the journey.

Happy Shaving!

I have been straight shaving for 4 weeks now and I too thought the BBS with a straight is more myth than reality but as of this morning after my shave I came to realize that BBS comes with BBS techniques that can be mastered with time, a lot of time.

My shaves are just finally coming together and I thought I would be beyond this stage on my First or second straight shave 4 weeks ago, how very wrong I was. My shaves are not that BBS close but at least they are uniform and relatively even, now.

I want to straight razor shave as my main method of shaving so I am never going to give up and time is on my side as I have only but the rest of my life to perfect my shaves and I am looking forward to sculpturing that razor around my face with surgical accuracy.

I have come too realize (for me anyway) it is the honing. I used to be a old school, reecently i bought a sharpton 16000 and a uriochigomori jbat and i am get aas good or better than de shaves... Thats just my humble opinion though.. I am noy a shave miester..just a guy who shaves.

You know, being an engineer, I tend to like to quantify everything - a number is a number until you put engineering units behind it and then it means something.:p

So I have been trying to get this answer to put some realistic expectations to learning - which by the way is as elusive as the variety of people who try anything.

As I am writing this, I can tell you that yesterday I had one of the very finest shaves I've ever had. Today - not so much. Why?

1. Water softener was regenning while I was taking my shower and mixing my lather this morning
2. I used a different cream
3. I used a different razor
4. I may have eaten some greasy food and my skin was a little more oily yesterday than today
5. Blah, blah, blah

So I don't have as good of a shave, but on both days, the experience was great. I took my time, was alone in my thoughts, the shaves were comfortable, no weepers and both days were everything I started doing this for.

And, I have to agree with my colleagues on this. It's the journey - not the destination, but so much the better when the destination is great as well.

Also, I agree on the learning being stepped and not linear.

It took me one month to get good shaves over most of my face. After a month, the shaves looked good. But, for the next few months, I frequently cut myself superficially - a nick here or there, or didn't quite get close enough somewhere else, or had a small spot of razor burn. Nothing big. But, not perfect.

To be honest, it took six months before I approached consistency.

Take your time and focus on the journey, not the destination. There are days when I can achieve an almost perfect shave and then there are others when I resort to my DE to finish the area around my chin and those misdirected hairs on my neck. Stick with it. No doubt you will appreciate and learn how to properly shave.;)

I've been shaving straights for a few months, and consistently get BBS. My problem is prep. I still cannot for the life of me begin to soak the brush BEFORE I shower.

THANKS for all the well thought out replies all!

I have calmed down and thanks to you – reminded myself it is about the journey.

Today I decided to curtail my pursuit of the BBS shave and just did a WTG pass and quit. The shave went quickly and well, and I found the result perfectly acceptable. BBS is a goal but there are others, and one of them is enjoyment. It's your shave, do with it what you want.

I've gone through what I consider several plateaus of accomplishment. I'd say my shaves were passable within the first 6 months easily, then came speed, less blood, and just recently I've hit a point where the BBS is a far more common achievement. I've been at this 2 years now, but I consider this a lifetime learning curve.

Me, I am a bit over a month in and I am nowhere near there. But I like it :) . I am getting more and more good shaves and fewer days with irritation. For me it is more about shaving in a way that is enjoyable. As long as I look presentable I am not worried about it... nobody but my wife should be touching my face anyway. Will I enjoy it even more when I am getting a great shave every day? Yep. But if I just wanted a fantastic shave I would have stayed with DE...they do a pretty good job!