Thread: How long?

I guess some people pick this art of shaving up with a straight Razor, quicker than others.
But how long did it take you before you could say you are doing it ok now. Do you think its a better shave than ,lets say a Gillette sensor with the 4 blades or is the Gillette better? When i say better I mean it leave your face feeling really smooooooooottthhhhhhh.

well the last disposable razor i used was back when gillette atras (twin blades) were the new thing i think i used one for a couple of weeks so i cannot judge the newer cartridges. with daily or every other day practice you should be getting very good shaves in less than a month near perfect a month after that. the more shaves you do the easier and smoother they become until one day you are not concerned with it.

Probably about a few months, but we are always learning all the time with these straight razors. If we didn't, this site wouldn't exist.
Is it a better shave than a Gillette Sensor with 4 blades? Of course, and no need for the extra 3 blades. I wouldn't go through all the time and effort of the learning curve required to shave with a straight if the plastic gizmo & canned goo was better! Plus, it's much more manly to use a straight razor.

when i shaved with cartridges, they would be clogged and hard to clean on very first stroke, always annoyed me. not getting bbs yet, but i actually enjoy shaving for the first time ever. Each shave seems better than the last, (usually) if i don't get the perfect shave, i don't worry too much either.

2 mos. for your face to become acclimated.Another two mos. for you to learn your beard growth patterns and develope some sort of facial muscle memorys and eye hand co-ordenation,another two mos. to get it all working together.
So IMO, 6 mos.Is it a better shave than a cart???????. with a perfectally honed razor,would say yes.

It takes a lifetime, Dragon. Because it's a lifestyle, not a college course.

You're doing "O.K.", from the moment you first put that straight to your face.
It's a road that gets more scenic the farther you go. At least for me it does.
If your "first" straight shave is more efficient than that fancy looking Gillette disposable, then you are 1 in a million.

Sit back and enjoy the ride.

The first time I shaved with a straight I could not wait to do it again. I would guess by the third time I was pretty confident, but it took me about 20 shaves before I could claim to get *AS* smooth as my previous multi-bladed razor *every time*.

I have worked with very sharp blades for quite a few years (carving, honing, and competitive cutting). I feel that my confidence with a sharp blade may have played into my quick learning. I am not sure how fast I picked it up compared to other shavers, but I felt like I picked it up faster than I expected

That said...I feel like I learn something new every time I shave, hone, or strop.

Took about two months to get to where I could go against the grain on my chin without nicking myself a bit here and there, but it will happen no matter how long you use straights. Like driving a car; if you drive enough you will eventually have an accident. I quit shaving with disposables right before the mach 5 or fusion or whatever it is came out (used a mach 3). I could only do 1 pass WTG with the cartridge or I would get horrible razor burn and ingrown hairs...heck I would only shave once or twice a week, and go with a shadow the rest of the time it sucked so much!

After one week I was baffled. After one month I was less so. After 6 months I became an expert. After 1 year I was less sure. After 2 years I realised I had a lot to learn. After 5 years I knew I had only scratched the surface. Nowadays I just do the best I can

James.

I think of it more as my new Hobby. It just makes shaving a LOT more fun and the 'manliness' comments are absolute... I just feel more like what I consider my Grandfather and Great Grandfather were as men. The funny thing is I've spoken with many men in their 80's and 90's and none so far have said they used a straight razor... All Safety Razors. So, that part ia just really the coolest hook of all... You are doing something not many men in the last 90 years have done commonly!

Timeline wise... I think it varies a lot. Before I started I saw videos and posts that said 50 shaves to get anywhere close to comfortable. Regarding quality of the shave... I use a Mach 3 to shave my head and tight around my goatee. Obviously, having a goatee makes things easier as it cuts out the majority of the difficult spots. I feel I get as good or slightly better quality with a straight razor shave in one pass as I do with a Mach 3. As I get more comfortable with multiple passes I'm sure that will improve a lot!

I have been at it around 3 months and can shave well with a straight, can easily strop for maintenance and have been successfully honing to shaving sharp for a few weeks getting small improvements each time I do it!

I started this whole thing buying a $15 brush and soap combo about 18 months ago in order to decrease the trash I was creating and it took me a year to go through two pucks of soap. The razors I am shaving with are 90+ years old and I'm learning to rpeair/restore now.

Just a total blast in my opinion!