Thread: Critique Mantic's Straight Razor Shaving Vid?

Hi Mantic,

I think for a beginner wishing to take up this fantastic hobby that its a great video!!!

Well done sir :thumbup:

Very well done Mark. I could only suggest that you mention using alum on your fingers to help pull your skin tight through the lather. I know it was valuable for me to discover that trick.

Will N.

Good video IMO (I enjoy every video you make, you have a talent for it!). Judging from how the handle of the razor moves and shakes this was not a really well honed razor, there was (difficult to judge from a movie) a bit to much pressure on the razor during shaving also (you wouldn't be able to use this kind of pressure with a well honed razor without cutting yourself IMHO). Very common, after a while people will use less pressure and find it shaves a lot better (if the razor is really sharp).

The part where you strop the razor, it made me cringe because it looked like the razor was very close to the faucet. It could just be the camera angle, but it made me cringe!

Originally Posted by SixNipples

The part where you strop the razor, it made me cringe because it looked like the razor was very close to the faucet. It could just be the camera angle, but it made me cringe!

And cringing is not a good thing, as those of us who use straight razors know well!

Mantic,

Your video looks to me to be a very complete yet concise (and best of all, humerously encouraging) introduction to shaving with a straight razor. Well done!

Jeff

I liked it!

I noticed you didn't get a very close shave on the chin. That is a difficult area. Maybe you could mention stretching areas like that by manipulating the way you hold your face, as well as the hand stretching. Some people use alum on the fingers to help stretch. Barbers mention using towels to stretch or using the thumb and forefinger separated and pulling an area tight.

I think you should mention angles for shaving WTG(~20 plus), ATG(~5) and XTG(~15) or at least say, you shave at a more shallow angle in one direction than the other.

Also, I disagree on two general points you made about types of straight razor blades. 1) Modern straights have the same variety in points as vintage, though you are right, they are mainly the square and round point.
2) Wedges do give less feedback but seem to be less likely to nick, not more likely. I love full and extra hollows, but they do tend to nick more. With wedges, I can't seem to nick myself. Full hollows are easier for us beginners to hone. I give you that.

Other than that, a fine video. I really like the light-hearted yet informational way you present topics.

Here's what I'd tweak a bit:
- razor parts - 'width of the blade', not 'blade edge', may be ad arrows to point exactly to the part you're describing
- stropping - its main purpose is to maintain the razor sharp by removing the oxidation of the steel that develops over time (I'd also reference the article from the 1930s - a copy of the magazine would add some really nice imagery)
- shaving - in addition to 'find the most comfortable angle' it's probably a good idea to mention that it should be around 30 degrees or the spine should be about 1-1.5 widths away from the face (as it is when you're doing it), then when you go around the chin you can also note how the curvature means you need to maintain the angle of the razor with the skin. For extra points you can also say that when shaving ATG you generally want lower angle than WTG.

Thank you for all the replies. I re-shot the stropping part last night using the comments here as a guide. I'll probably make a couple more minor tweaks over the weekend then post the final product on Monday, Dec. 3.

--Mark

Great video! Want to show it to some co- workers interested in straight razor shaving. I'll wait till the final production. You hit all the basic and some advance points very well, even learned something myself. Thanks for putting the time to do this things. Double O