New to SRP

I am new to SRP; not new to wet shaving. Used my first in the 50s, first SR in late 60's. Served 30+ years active Navy. Because of attempts to control SRs, ended up in cartridge and electric razors. When I was put on blood thinners, I was told to not use any blade razor. After 7 years fighting an electric, went back to DEs, Merkur Progress, Merkur blade and Feather Popular with Feather blades, while I work on getting vintage and new inexpensive SRs shave ready. I will also be making ebony scales for a Bengall Imperial SR.

OldTraf
Honemeister wannabe

Hello, and welcome to the SRP family!!

Welcome! It sounds like you're well equipped and ready to come back to the world of SR shaving. I'm sure your knowledge and experience will be an asset to the forum. Hope you find some new friends here.

Thanks for the welcome. Ordered a Dovo SR from Lynn to use and as a benchmark. When it arrives,will put it under the USB microscope and get some edge pics so I can compare mine. Hopefully will let me know when it's good enough to put on my face.

OldTraf
Wannabe honemeister

Hi and welcome. Good luck with your edges and happy shaving

Started SR journey this AM. Used:
Shampoo, finished with Razor Defense Face scrub, forgot conditioner
Shaving bowl with VDH soap and Neutrogena shave gel with Badger brush soaking in hot water
Shaved dominant side cheek with unknown SR with blade marked Krystal edge. Not shave ready. I had stropped on strop with white compound then on strop with leather only. Pulled and didn't cut well WTG, although got out with no nicks or weepers. Finished WTG, XTG and ATG with Feather Popular and new Merkur blade. As part of training for SR, used dominant side hand on right side and left hand on left side. Because I am definitely UNIdextrous, had to concentrate on blade placement and angle with the left hand. Probably had better strokes because I also pretty much locked the wrist on that side so arm muscle was used more. Will probably continue this routine.

Finished with Neutrogena Razor Defense after shave balm.

Then, went into workshop and did a few hundred laps on 4000 grit waterstone, then about the same on the 8000 grit. Bevel looked pretty good. Then about 100 laps on carborundum side of old (50 years) strop, and the same on the horsehide side. No compound on the horsehide. A couple of hundred laps on leather with white compound, 100 laps on plain leather then about 50 on white compound. Finished with 50 on plain leather.

OldTraf
Wannabe honemeister

Day 2
Used Neutrogena shave cream as pre-shave because it doesn't lather up very well and I don't like throwing things away. One WTG pass with the SR on right cheek. Still pulled a bit but better than day 1. Finished with Feather DE and Merkur blade (2 shaves). No nicks, no weepers for an almost DFS.

Stropped on horsehide 50 laps, on leather with white compound 50 laps and on plain leather75 laps.

Day 3
Shower, Neutrogena face scrub, shampoo on face, conditioner on face. VDH soap, Neutrogena shave balm and badger brush soak in hot water during shower. One pass with SR on right cheek WTG, one pass on left side with left hand WTG. No nicks or weepers, shave not very good. Finished up with Merkur 25C open comb. Took awhile to establish a good angle XTG. Lathered again and finished 2 handed ATG, near DFS, some weepers on neck. Rinsed with warm water, then cold water and finished with Neutrogena Razor Defense Balm.

20 laps on horsehide, 20 laps on leather with flexcut gold, 20 laps on plain leather, 50 laps on Flexcut leather and 75 laps on plain leather.

Received shipping notices on 2 shave ready Dovos.

Pretty sure from old posts that the flexcut is actually quite coarse and not much good for razors. Would also suggest that if your edge isnt there already with the number of laps on the strop you have done you may want to go back a few steps and work your way up again as the fault is almost always in the bevel setting being done properly. If the bevel ain't right no amount of polishing is going to improve your edge. Good luck

Tks for info. Don't want to get into p!@#ing contest as I am not a metallurgist or chemist. Iirc, my experience with knife sharpening (I know not the same as razors) tells me that Flexcut gold is coarser than CrO2 when applied but breaks down into smaller grit size as it is used.

Day 5

Prepped with Neutogena shaving cream while heating up VDH and Neutrogena shaving balm and brush. A little too much water, lather was soupy. Worked some more on it and applied usable lather. Shaved with SR WTG on both cheeks. Shaved neck with SR on both sides. Shaved both cheeks XTG. Fairly smooth but one nick on left side. Finished up with Merkur 25C and Merkur blade, 2 days. SR shave was closer but audio from DE shave indicates there was a fair amount of stubble left.

if i recall correctly (as i recall approximately), it took me 2 weeks to nick myself and 6 months to get a "good enough" shave to not need DE cleaning up. After a year, it all feels properly natural, nearing the 2 year mark now.

The scope may or may not help. It will show errors but it won't show perfection (the butter). best of luck

@eddy Cleaned strop (lighter fluid) and applied CrO2.

@Wade Hope it doesn't take 6 months to get a SAS with a SR. It's not my first bite of the apple, I have a Dovo (honed by SRD) in shipping, and have been practicing with DE with left (normally useless) hand,

Stropped 25 laps on horsehide, 50 laps on CrO2, 75 laps on plain leather. After finishing, took the opportunity to treat strops with leather cream (Murphy & Johnson). Working on a Constant Works, Herder & Sons, Solingen 400 Talisman. I was sharp when I got it, but after looking at under low magnification with straight edges, determined it had a small frown, spine was high at the edges high points and there were 3 small nicks in the edge. There are indications that some type of mechanized polishing devise was used on it. Trying to work the spine's high points and the blade high points with a Lansky sapphire hone. It is narrow enough to localize the material being removed. It will be slow, but I can take more metal off but not add more. Checking with straight edges frequently.

Got two Dovos and a new strop in the mail this afternoon. Will set the microscope up tomorrow and see differences betweend SRD Dovo, Dovo from another source which was supposed to be shave ready, and my no name straight.

Flexcut Gold is a mixture of varying size aluminum oxide with titanium dioxide to stabilize it. It's designed for hardened tool steels. I want to think that the alumina particles varied in size from 0.6 micron to 1.5 micron. It's equivalent to about a 10k stone. It's a nice fast cutting paste for wood working tools (gouges in particular), but on thin carving knives I find it a bit aggressive. I suspect that it would be aggressive on a razor as well, maybe not too bad on a wedge, but it would eat an extra hollow.
After FlexGold I follow up with CrOx and/or diamond sprays to get a cleaner edge.

The main point of my post was that a properly honed razor would need perhaps 10 crox laps every week of shaving to stay shave ready. The amount of laps you are doing is generally considered excessive and you would probably be better off trying to refine the edge more before using pastes to get a better egde and a better shave. If its working then great and ignore me im just trying to help you get the best edge possible. Good luck

@eddy Gotcha.

Day 6
Soaked lather pot and brush (mistakenly grabbed Boar). Showered, used Neutrogena Face scrub, shampooed, used hair conditioner. Good lather, shaved WTG with SRD Dovo then neck. Shaved cheeks XTG. Had a couple more nicks. Finished with Feather DE and 3rd day Merkur blade. None of the nicks required styptic pencil.

Since it was a new SR I stropped 10 laps on horsehide and 25 laps on plain leather. No microscope pictures, hardware is not compatible with updated operation. Will need to resurrect one of the junk pile Hackintoshes. The feel on my face was the same as my self honed cheapo.

Most of us on here,,are on blood thinners....I ain't a scared....but I do buy more stypic pens.

Day 7

Shaved again with Dovo 5/8. Routine non-shower day preshave. Full face shave WTG. Cheeks XTG and neck modified XTG/ATG. Was a SAS; finished with Feather Popular DE. A few more nicks, styptic not needed. Felt about the same as yesterday, so I may have stropping relatively good.

Afterward, 10 laps on linen, then 25 on Latigo.

Will probably holiday tomorrow and use other source 5/8 Dovo.

Shaves 8 and 9

Shaved with new Dovo 5/8 from a different supplier. White scales. Was a little disappointed. Was billed as shave ready. Only way to check was to shave. Full face WTG, some nicks, not sharp enough to even get a SAS. Didn't try XTG. Honed on CrOx 50 laps. Then to caborundum for 25 laps, 25 laps on linen, 20 laps on horsehide and 20 laps on latigo.

Day 9 with newly honed Dovo. Full face WTG with little or no pull when razor was properly positioned, SAS, relathered an ATG for the neck then XTG for cheeks and chin/moustache. Large parts that were DFS. Finished with Merkur 25C, large areas where there was no sound from the Merkur. If I get a chance to hone a new Dovo 6/8 from yet another supplier, will use it tomorrow. I know this one is not shave ready and the vendor did not so advertise.

Shave 10

Went back to black Dovo 5/8. Good shave, close to SAS WTG. Finished with Feather DE for a DFS.

Straight Razors