Well, after about 20 years of shaving with disposable razors, I decided to give straight razors a go again. I had learned when I was 12 how to shave with them, but I barely had anything to shave at that point. So even though I basically knew what to do, I still feel like I was a first timer.

I'm actually really surprised (and happy) to say that it went really well. I shaved all except my goatee and I basically had no problems at all. Holding the razor at certain angles was a bit awkward feeling, but I stuck to what I was taught and it worked pretty well. I didn't get any cuts and I don't have razor burn which was a very pleasant surprise. I feel like I am either especially susceptible to razor burn, or I was just getting cut to pieces by low quality disposable razors. Whatever the case, I seem to have avoided razor burn which is a very welcomed change.

I do have a few questions for anyone out there that wants to weigh in with an opinion though. First off, does anyone know approximately how often I should take my razor to the stones for honing? The razor I'm using is a Dovo that my old man used and he gave it to me after having it honed. since I plan to hone myself, I'm curious to get a feel for about how often I will be doing that. My old man didn't seem to remember how often he got his honed, so that was a dead end.

Secondly, I'm looking for some opinions on where to go next with my straight razor shaving. I'm kind of a hobby junkie, and this seems to be my current hobby of interest. I have a straight razor already, as well as sharpening stones and strops. I feel reasonably confident in my sharpening/honing ability, so that isn't something that I feel like I'm looking to pick up. But perhaps it would be fun to learn about some of the soaps, or shaving creams that people use. I also see a forum dedicated to, "brushes, mugs, scuttles, soap containers, hot pots, etc." Or maybe it would be interesting to learn how to shave with different styles of straight razors like a half hollow grind or something like that. I would not be surprised if I at least checked out all of these things and maybe some other stuff at some point. But I was wondering if anyone out there had any suggestions for a direction that they found to be interesting, or worth investment. There is no wrong answer to this question, so fire away with any ideas you have. Do you think it's fun to check out soaps? Brushes? Mugs? Other razors? Something that I'm not thinking of? I thank you all in advance...

P.S. I'm going to be out of town until the new year; so if I don't respond, that is why.

-Hog