Hello!
I received my first straight razor recently, along with the accompanying equipment. I ordered through Classic Shaving website. It's a Dovo "Classic" 6/8 and I had it sharpened with CS sharpening service.
I have no objections to the razor. Every stroke feels smooth and there are no tugs or pulls. The problem is probably my technique.
I'm following the "First straight razor shave" article to learn the basics, and I'm trying Grip 1
here. I'm still only doing WTG strokes.
Here are my problems:
1. In the mirror, I can't see what I'm doing. My hand hides the razor and I can't see where I'm placing it. The mirror is mounted to the wall, so I was considering buying additional mirrors. Is that necessary, or is there a particular way to tilt my head, or hold the razor, to avoid hiding? Or am I just doing something wrong?
2. After some guesswork and trial and error, when I do manage the first stroke, the result is not very encouraging. This goes for other parts of my face where I can clearly see what I'm doing. The beard is shaved, but not very clean (I can feel substantial stubble under my finger). When I do everything I can with my straight razor, I go back to what I've been using since I started shaving and basically shave the same areas again. What could I be doing wrong?
And a couple of questions:
1. Should I strop the razor after I shave, before I shave, or both?
2. How do I make proper lather? What I get out of my soap is very thin and dries up quickly, compared to what I see on various SR shaving videos. I bought this soap at CS as well after seeing it praised on this forum, so I'm more inclined to believe that I'm doing something wrong.
Hopefully someone out there is willing to help an utterly confused beginner. :)
Thanks!