Newbie, member and SR shaver, from California

Hi, folks! So...I haven't shaved my face clean in close to 20 years. In the last 9 months, I haven't had any sharp objects anywhere near my face. I have quite the robust beard, if I do say so myself, and there are no plans to shave it off anywhere in my foreseeable future.

However, back in November 2015, I shaved my head for the first time, and just loved it. The way it looks, the way it feels...I loved everything about it except actually shaving it. Using multi-blade cartridges and canned cream, I was getting horrible irritation, a ridiculous number of ingrown hairs, and a generally uncomfortable and aggravating experience.

Like many men that come back around to classic wet shaving, I was trying to find a way to eliminate those bumps and ingrown hairs. I started using a DE razor, and traditional shaving gear, and fell in love with the process. The techniques, the soaps, the scents, the sensations...it was a wonderful thing to discover.

Fast forward to this month...I picked up a couple of inexpensive shavettes and really enjoyed the techniques involved, but I hated cutting the back of my head every night when I shaved. So...having been told that true straights were more forgiving and easier to learn with, I picked up a Geneva extra hollow for $20, discovered that it had a reasonable edge, and started using it.

In the last 3 weeks, I have managed to acquire a Gold Dollar 300 and a Taylor Eye Witness as well as my Geneva. I also got a couple strops in a trade for a DE that was no longer being used, and I have managed to get very respectable edges on all 3 blades using my stones(from knife sharpening...a past time of mine for many years) and the strops.

I'm not nicking or cutting myself as much these days, though I do occasionally re-open a nick that is still healing, and while my technique is not yet able to provide me with a BBS shave, I am getting some very clean and comfortable shaves, and I am enjoying the learning process immensely.

So what better step to take next than to join this fine forum, introduce myself, and dive into this new found acquisition disorder head first.

So...Hi everyone! Looking forward to participating in any way I can while I glean as much knowledge and information from you folks as possible. Thanks for being here!

Hi and welcome aboard.

Welcome to SRP!
First piece of knowledge, get one of the razors professionally honed so you will know how sharp to hone them to.
Second piece of knowledge, if you haven't found it yet, there is a head shaving section.

Ask us any questions, and someone is bound to know the answer.

Welcome to SRP!!!
Enjoy!!!

:chapeau

Welcome get one honed by one of our resident hone guys, you won't know what your missing , I shaved off of my edges for a while too,,,was doing a disservice to my face till I got one honed, us knife guys don't really know what a razor edge is till you try, cause mostly our hones ain't the right ones and we don't know what shave ready is. Good luck. Throw the GD away , just kidding everyone needs a letter opener. Tc

Thanks for the welcome.

I have a razor with a "professional edge" on it for comparison, and my edges are getting close. I know my stones aren't "proper", but I have a set of Naniwa Super Stones en route that will be here next week. 220, 1000, 5000, 10000, and I have a 12k ceramic and a strop for finishing.

It's sharpening an edge, not rocket science. Anyone with an understanding of the metal, the abrasives, and the physics behind creating a sustainably sharp edge should be able to figure it out. There aren't any real "tricks" to it beyond the physics. I've watched as many videos and read as many books as possible on sharpening all sorts of blades over the last 30 years, and within the last couple months, I've watched every video Lynn Abrams and Anthony Esposito have on YouTube. I think I'll be OK...

Also, I happen to like my Gold Dollar. It is inexpensive, yes, but it has a wicked edge on it at the moment, shaves like a champ, and sings as it cuts through the hair. I'm not real sure what more you could ask for from a razor other than that. I've been shaving with a straight for 3 weeks. No need to run out and buy a $500 Wade & Butcher, or even spend $100 on a new Dovo, just to screw up with a rookie error like knocking the edge on the sink or dropping the thing. For $25...I think I'll be OK...

YMMV and all that...

Sounds like you are all set. Keep us posted.

Welcome to the forum.

I have a 20$ razor too, but it'll shave circles around your GD. Just saying YMMV. And I've been shaving more than 3 weeks. Tc

Well, I'm sure you have, but is it really necessary to insult me and my gear on your very first post to me? I don't really think it is...

Clearly you know more than I do on this subject. Clearly I have a lot to learn, lest I wouldn't be here. But getting insulted in the first topic I post is not really conducive to learning. Just sayin'...