What I am about to say might be considered blasphemy on this site but here it is anyway. My straights are put away and oiled in anticipation of leaving on holiday overseas in a couple of days. This morning the shave was with what I will use on the trip, Arko, old nondescript boar brush and a 2 bladed disposable razor bought at the Dollar Store for you guessed it, 1 dollar complete with spare blade heads. The razor is made by Personna BTW.

No prep other than to wet my face with hot water, lathered up, shaved and finished with my usual splash of Thayers Original. I did my normal 3 pass shave and was rewarded with shave that was no better or worse than I get with a straight. It was smooth ,comfortable, close and irritation free. That just reaffirmed why I can't understand why a lot of people say they simply can't get a decent shave from a disposable multi blade razor. My guess is that if you have good technique with whatever type of shave tool you use, all else being equal, you should get a decent shave.

So why do I bother with a straight razor at all if there is no real difference in the end result? The reasons are many and varied. I enjoy learning a new skill that is not the easiest to get a handle on, notice I did not say master as I have not got that far yet. Straights are far more appealing aesthetically than a hunk of plastic, art versus bare bones practicality. The pleasure of finding old discarded tools, repairing them if necessary and putting them back to work. I enjoy learning the history behind them. So for those reasons and likely more I use a straight but certainly not for the end result and that's what might be considered blasphemous around these parts.

Anyway, just a ramble for your consideration. Why do you use a straight?

Bob