Thread: Confidence

I have been following your journey here Unit and it's been great to see another dude who went hard out of the gate. I did as well lol.

That said - you are very comfortable with sharp things in your hands. As was I. That's not always the case for some brothers in this sport.

Confidence is key - in many things. But comfort in handling the sharpest thing 99% of us has to come first! Glad you are moving forward with so much pleasure and success!! That's awesome.

Originally Posted by unit

I agree with both of you.

I ALWAYS (now) use two hand towels for a shave. One I soak in hot water and lay on my face for a few minutes prior to shaving, then I use it to wipe my blade on during my shave...I also use it to remove soap/cream from areas I would like to get a grip on. The other towel I keep dry for clean up of my blade and face after my shave. It then gets rotated to the hot towel for the next shave

I started out trying to do this with wash cloths, but they were too small and the larger hand towel can be "tucked" behind my ears to keep the hot moist towel in place. If you do not do this, TRY IT! It makes a difference, and it is relaxing

I'm also a 2 towel guy. One hot/wet for the face & the other at my left hand for wiping off suds/water. I use wash rags in a pinch for the hot water but they need both hands & standing there holding a rag over my face is boring. Hand towels allow me to hold it with one hand and prep my soap & brush with the other. I like to steep them in hot water during the first towel. That makes it easier to load up the brush & makes sure my lather is wet enough.

I don't wipe my razor though, I always rinse it under hot water. I don't want to take the chance of unconsciously hitting the towel on an angle or with too much pressure and roll part of the edge, plus a warm razor on your skin just feels better. I'm a one-hand shaver (refuse to learn with both) and the dry towel stays under my left hand so I can't help but touch it with at least the fingertips of my steadying hand when I'm rinsing the blade.

When you walk down a road...
Left side ... Safe
Right side ... Safe
You walk down middle,
*Squish* just like grape

When you do straight razor...
Straight shave yes ... Safe
Straight shave no ... Safe
You do straight shave guess so ...
*Squish* just like grape

*bow*
JackofDiamonds

Originally Posted by JackofDiamonds

When you walk down a road...
Left side ... Safe
Right side ... Safe
You walk down middle,
*Squish* just like grape

When you do straight razor...
Straight shave yes ... Safe
Straight shave no ... Safe
You do straight shave guess so ...
*Squish* just like grape

*bow*
JackofDiamonds

"Wax on...wax off." = "Soap on...soap off."
-Miyagi-san

It seems time for a yoda "there is no try" quote. I'll let someone else finish it!

Originally Posted by earcutter

I have been following your journey here Unit and it's been great to see another dude who went hard out of the gate. I did as well lol.

That said - you are very comfortable with sharp things in your hands. As was I. That's not always the case for some brothers in this sport.

Confidence is key - in many things. But comfort in handling the sharpest thing 99% of us has to come first! Glad you are moving forward with so much pleasure and success!! That's awesome.

Very true, a person needs to have comfort and respect for sharp things. With these comes the understanding that sharp is safe and dull is dangerous. If you are not shaking your head in agreement, you are not there yet.

There probably can be a "too sharp" but I think "not sharp enough" is the more common cause of injury.

Originally Posted by KenWeir

I'm also a 2 towel guy. One hot/wet for the face & the other at my left hand for wiping off suds/water. I use wash rags in a pinch for the hot water but they need both hands & standing there holding a rag over my face is boring. Hand towels allow me to hold it with one hand and prep my soap & brush with the other. I like to steep them in hot water during the first towel. That makes it easier to load up the brush & makes sure my lather is wet enough.

I don't wipe my razor though, I always rinse it under hot water. I don't want to take the chance of unconsciously hitting the towel on an angle or with too much pressure and roll part of the edge, plus a warm razor on your skin just feels better. I'm a one-hand shaver (refuse to learn with both) and the dry towel stays under my left hand so I can't help but touch it with at least the fingertips of my steadying hand when I'm rinsing the blade.

I'm right there with you, but I do use the left for about 10-15 % of the strokes. I just cannot do it all one handed. I hope to some day learn to shave one handed...with both left and right hands

As for razor clearing. I'm not sure the greater concern blade damage from sink/faucet or from rolling the edge of the towel. I think this is an area for preference

Sometimes I wipe on my bare wrist. That teaches me to be careful with my wipes

Congrats! if you are sporting a goatee then you are following the advice to start out slow. Well done! A gentle but confident stroke is a winning approach.

Wow, I had a great shave today. I am up to 3 passes and getting great results.

I tried shaving 2 days ago with a razor I honed myself on diamonds and I got a little burn on my neck...today demonstrated to me, that it was in fact that razor and not my shaving that resulted in the burn. I should have known better than to even try it.

Time to order up some proper razor hones...

Any suggestions from the wise? I will get the Norton 4/8 for sure (I have a full set of DMTs for bevel repair and setting), and I want a finish stone. So what say you, a Nani 12k or a Thuringian?

I am not made out of money, but I learned a long time ago that it always costs less to do it RIGHT the first time

Hey Unit,

The Norton 4/8 and Nani12k are the core of my honing collection. A Thuri is a nice thing but not a sure thing, unless you shell out for a vintage, labeled Escher. To earn that label, those hones passed levels of quality control that don't exist any more. You can buy modern Thuris, but they're just mined, trimmed, boxed, and shipped. I don't think they're tested for grit. Could be equivalent to 4k, 6k, 8k... but there's no guarantee that they're good finishers unless you shell out the hundreds for a known quantity. Or you can drop ~$80 on the Nani and know you'll be happy. The Nani is also surprisingly fast, which is nice. Mine is also my reference hone for natural finishers. Is it nicer than the nani, or less nice than the nani? Gotta compare to something, and there it is for me.

Best wishes and happy honing.