Thread: I have no experience with straight razors. Need help.

Originally Posted by jackknifeh

Ok Bob. I took a pause and am waiting for the brush. I'm also going to write down the date and time to document me taking good advice. This is not one of my strong suites.

Jack

I don't believe it. Tell us how the lathering with a wash cloth went.

Bob

Originally Posted by BobH

I don't believe it. Tell us how the lathering with a wash cloth went.

Bob

I didn't do that I SWEAR! I was going to but it got late before I knew it so I decided to wait until this morning. This morning is when I actually made the decision to wait for the brush.

You probably thought I did use the wash cloth, cut my face all up and didn't want to admit it. On most days this probably would have been what happened. Maybe I'm maturing and developing more patience in my old age.

Jack

I just found a 1 1/2" paint brush. Guess what I'm thinking? I'm thinking I sure hope the mailman brings a brush SOON!

Jack

Reminds me of the patience of my 7 yo grandson, love it...out of a grown man none the less!

I now have 2 shaves under my belt using good soap and getting a good foam (sort of). I've only shaved my cheeks except for one time. I read it's a good idea to only shave the cheeks until you get the ability to handle the razor with some competancy. I can see where it takes a little practice to get a good foam. But that's not a REAL big deal and the skill will come without much danger. On the other hand the ability to control the razor around my face is proving to be a true challenge. I'm looking in the mirror which makes every move backwards. On top of that my hand is in the way so I'm having a hard time seeing and watching how the razor contacts my face. I can't always see where the razor is going to touch my face. Every movement needing to be opposite of what I'm seeing in the mirror and not being able to get a good angle so I can see what I'm doing is my most current problem. Do people hold the razor only with one hand to shave both sides of the face? Do people hold the razor in the right hand to shave one side and in the left to shave the other? Or is this something that each person works out for himself?

I've been practicing honing my razor and am seeing (feeling) significant improvement. Last night when I shaved I could hear the razor cutting the hair. It was the first time I remember the sound being this loud. It wasn't as loud as it was on a video I watched of a guy shaving. I believe he mentioned hearing the sound was something that does indicate how sharp the edge is. I still haven't held a KNOWN shave ready razor in my hand yet. Just mine. My honing is seeing significant improvement quickly and I feel confident that if I don't have a shave ready razor now it will be very soon. This opinion is based on my understanding of sharpening steel already. My search for the ultimate edge on knives has given me the knowledge to understand everything that I've read so far about honing a razor. The only thing that is new to me is the sharpness level needed for a razor compared to a knife. Even the REALLY SHARP knives. I will say using the spine as an angle control makes learning to sharpen or hone a razor easier than learning to sharpen a knife with no edge angle control. Still getting the great edge only comes after developing a "touch".

One thing I haven't gotten is a styptic pencil. I need one of these. In addition to not being able to handle the razor very well yet I'm also having a problem shaving "around" the nick that happened on the previous shave. I haven't cut myself yet but I have caused myself to bleed enought to need to apply pressure to stop it. These are "nicks" that I haven't felt when they happen. I look down to rinse the razor off then when I look in the mirror again I have a red spot on my face. Just using my finger and applying pressure for 5-10 seconds has stopped the bleeding so far. No serious injuries yet but I have a feeling in the back of my mind it's a matter of time.

Thanks guys for the help so far. Wife still thinks I'm nuts?

Jack

Shaving is going pretty good now. I'm getting a little more comfortable with it. Still have a long way to go though. The last two shaves I didn't nick myself at all. I have to force myself to slow down though. I catch myself wanting to speed up and I know that will end badly.

I'm getting my razor sharper every day. I got the poor man strop kit on whippeddog.com and using the hanging strop helps. I have been thinking that by using flat strops on harder material (balsa for example) would keep the bevels flat right up to the edge longer. Then someone told me he thinks when the edge is becoming rounded between touchups on stones it makes for a more comfortable shave. A perfect V edge can be too sharp for lack of a better term and leave the skin feeling irritated. Sounds logical but I don't know if it's true in actual practice.

Thanks everyone for your help. I'm sure I'll get more comfortable with it. I'll just go very slow during a shave. Even when I'm not shaving. I was rinsing the razor once and wasn't paying close attention and put a nice little chip in the edge that I had to get out. Oh well, I need practice honing the razor anyway.

Jack