Thread: When and Why did you start using a Straight Razor..?

Originally Posted by stonebraker

...and an army manual of how to shave properly. I read it and was amazed to how much work goes into grooming yourself with a straight.

You still have it around?

I do still have it around. Lemme guess you want to see it right

I saw it as a challenge. I ended up enjoying the process and became a bit obsessed.

To be totally honest, Skyfall is what got me to try a straight. For about 3 years prior I had been into wet shaving using a DE. I just remember my grandpa using a DE and I figured since he was one of the most important male figures in my life as a kid, I would shave like he did. Then seeing Bond using a straight seemed manly as all hell, so I figured I'd give it a try too. 4 months later Im hooked and thats all there is to it.

Originally Posted by stonebraker

I do still have it around. Lemme guess you want to see it right

I think more good people than me would like to see it, can you scan and post it?
That would be a good deed for the sake of shaving history!

I am in the process of doing so. It will be a huge PDF and I have never posted something this big, but I will see what I can do

I hated paying for cartridges all the time so I started looking at straight razors. I bought my first one and it seemed so decadent using it. I now have five razors, five different honing stones and four strops and I am waiting for three more razors to be delivered. It was easy to get addicted to the sport of straight razor shaving, slows down the world and relaxes me.

Russell

I first became interested in the early 80's and I found a straight razor and shaving mug...but couldn't locate strop, brush etc. That razor is still buried somewhere in the garage which I hope to find and restore this spring.

A couple of months ago I went to buy cartrides for my Fusion and lo and behold $45 before tax for 8 cartridges. I don't get even 2 weeks out of a cartridge. I made up my mind right there and then to switch to straights. DE weren't good enough as I'd still have to buy blades. I found this site and from it found a local vendor and ordered everything I needed to get started in straight shaving.

I did not find learning to shave with a straight any harder that learning to shave with a single blade cartridge in the '70s. I got nicks then and I got a few nicks the first 2 times straight shaving. I analyzed what I was doing wrong, read some great pointers for fixing that on SRP and the rest is history. I will never buy another cartridge again.

I have however developed serious SRAD and HAD!

I bought my first SR at a flea market in 1973 while browsing for hand wood working tools (wooden planes, chisels, hewing axes, Stanley Planes, etc.). I went to a barber supply shop for a strop and went at the straight razor as I had seen in movies and at the barber shop. The shaving was very dissapointing, lots of remaining stubble, razor burn, and weepers from my dull far from shave ready blade. I had no knowlege of shave readiness at that time. There was no internet to guide me so I dropped the SR and returned to my DE.

A few years ago, I discovered SR and DE razor sites on the web while browsing kitchen knives. I had been shaving for years using plastic disposible bag razors. After acquiring DEs and resuming DE shaving, I also acquired shave ready SRs. I already had water stones and pasted bench strops from sharpening and stropping knives. I acquired a TM Latigo hanging strop and reexplored SR shaving.

At first, everything felt akward and my result was no where near as close as a DE shave. There were spots that I could not shave very well with the SR that were easy to shave with the DE. I sliced my face good three or four times, but the slices healed quickly and left no permenent scars. I quickly learned how to stretch my skin and moves not to attempt with my SR. I decided to shave 1st with my SRs taking no daring risks on my face and cleaned up what I missed with my DE.

At first, I had problems retaining SR shave readiness. As my shaving improved, I became better able to evaluate and improve my stropping. As my stropping improved, I became better able to evaluate and improve my shaving.

After a year of using the SR, I now get a closer more irritation and nick free shave from the SR than the DE alone and the SR no longer feels akward in my hand. I still use my DE for cleanup to get at all spots and to get the closest possible shave everywhere on my face. I avoid using the DE alone unless I am rushed because my skin comes out much smoother and irritation free when I use my SR 1st to do as much as possible before using my DE for final cleanup. My DE blades also last longer because they are doing a lot less work when following up a SR shave.

I now have more than a dozen SRs, mostly Torreys and Henckel Friodurs, but have so far avoided HAD and a "need" to acquire $$$ jnats with zen mojo, or coticules/Thuringians with EU gnome mojo. I did not save $$$ by returning to DE and starting SR shaving, but the $$$ spent are still cheap as far as hobbies go and the kit does not take up a lot of space at home.

HTH

Nostalgia (having my neck shave w str8 as a kid), my fascination for knives through my boys scout years to today, the challenge of it and the hope for a better shave than with my electric. After reading through here how people enjoy shaving, I wanted to enjoy it also, so I took the plunge head first. Never looked back! I pray to God I would be able to shave and enjoy it until my old age! Double O