First post, first kamisori, first straight!

Hey all
I just bought a kamisori. It hasnt arrived yet but Im excited. Been DE shaving for a bit and really loving it though Ive been really wanting to learn a straight. So here I am!

Welcome ! If you want to learn to use a straight , this is the place to be . IMHO a kamisori is not the razor you want to learn on . I would buy a shave ready , conventional straight to learn my technique , and save the kamisori for when you are confident with your shaving technique . The kamisori is designed to be used with the same side of the blade for both sides of your face . You can use both sides , but because of the asymetrical blade you need to know how to adjust your shaving angle . It's not something too difficult for an experienced shaver , but it will add another degree of difficulty for a beginner . I had a kamisori in my small , razor rotation for almost 4 years , so I'm speaking from experience .

I agree with dave5225, look in the SRP Classified ads for a good quality vintage straight razor, professionally honed, to learn with and save the Kamasori for later. Be sure to use a plain leather hanging strop just before each and every shave for 30-50 round trip laps. Your face will thank you.

Welcome to SRP ! :)

gigglemonk,
i did the same thing as you and i am still trying to figure out the Kamisori. They are a bit challenging to shave with, so be very careful and get a simple, honed western straight to practice your technique. Nevertheless, if you are determined to try it, then proceed very slowly.
Good luck.

I sometimes wonder if the difficulty thing with kamisori's we all hear about is because we all learn on a western straight and using a Kamisori is so different it's like learning to use a straight all over again or worse because we have to unlearn some of things we have been doing by rote so long. If you decide to use two sides I think that is definitely the case. If you use just one maybe not. You'll have to let us know how it goes.