Thread: Greetings From Long island, NY ~ New Member

Just wanted to be proper and introduce myself. I just signed on last night. I have been shaving with a shavette for some 25years with edge gel out of a can. All along I thought I was using a straight razor. I must say every shave was an adventure. I used to shave my head with it as well, glad I grew out of that habit! Just recently I acquired a new job that requires me to shave daily which is something I kind of got away from due to sensitive skin and rashes I would get after a shave. I have been using clippers and a Wahl 4000 for my shaves and doing touch ups with the shavette but not shaving daily. Once a month I would treat myself to the barber's chair for a nice shave and always wondered why I didn't get razor burn when I went there. Hmmm... aftershave? Never used it, ever! Amazing stuff!!! I learned a lot from reading these forums. A shave at the barber's shop now runs aprox $30 plus a tip! I finally reached out to Larry at whipped dog razors and purchased a site unseen razor for almost the same cost. Well I'm happy to say I am enjoying my Union Razor Cutlery Company straight razor. It is a very pleasant shave. I am venturing into different soaps and brushes and have been browsing for a nice scuttle. I am enjoying my new found pleasure of wet shaving and am thankful for all of the posts you guys have put on these sites to help me along.
I had read a few conflicting stories about Union Razor Cutlery Company and am definitely interested in the history behind the company but there is not much on line to find. That is how I found this site actually.
Well that's about all my rambling for now. I have plenty of questions but so far I have been able to answer most of them on this forum. Im sure I will be back ask questions tho but if anyone has any info on Union Razor Cutlery Co. that they would like to share, I will be happy to read it.
I was also thinking of purchasing "Baume BE" soap and "Smolder" from Grim Blades to try out. Any opinions on either of these. I am using Van Der Hagen soap now not to crazy about it.
Thanks for reading my intro and for having me on this site!
The Big Guy

Hi and welcome aboard. The Buame.be soap is great. Big tub and a nice scent which produces a top notch lather. Maybe check out Obie's top tier soaps and creams thread. Plenty of good information. Good luck with your shaves and any questions feel free to ask

Welcome to SRP, sounds like your having fun with the straight.
Baum Be is a very nice soap from what I've been told, very slick. VDH is a great performer, for the money.
The list could go forever, it'll ultimately depend on your own personal wants from a soap or cream.

Welcome to SRP. Glad you are finally enjoying shaving. Keep looking around and asking questions. Good luck.

Hello and welcome, you will find that getting rid of the gunk in a can will help and a straight razor is more forgiving than a shavette.

As your skill improves so will your shaves.

Good luck with your journey and enjoy.

Welcome to SRP!
A lot of great folks and info here, enjoy and have fun

Good Morning Gentleman
Thank you all for responding. I did get rid of can gel and already feel the difference. I will be giving the Baume BE a shot with all of the rave reviews I've heard.
Learned something new this morning... I will be removing my razor from the bathroom to a dryer storage area. Never even crossed my mind. I do dry it well and coat the blade after use but never thought of the humidity. That will be today's project being we are getting snowed in right now!

Just a tip, be careful oiling your blade too soon, if there's any moisture it traps it under the oil and does it's evil magic. After drying your blade leave it out in he open position for a few hours, this ensures it's now dry. I don't even oil mine. Only when going up for extended periods of time. Try that before your oiling and good idea to keep out of the bathroom. Tc

yes, thank you. I have been doing just that.

Hello and welcome to SRP!
Choosing your soap is a very personal thing. What works for you performance and scent wise may not be the next guy's cup of tea. You just have to experiment and find what works for you.
I was at the meet up at Straight Razor Designs in November. They have BaumBe in stock and speak very highly of it. Do check out Obie's top tier list. Remember that some soaps will seem very expensive but as a rule you get what you pay for. For example, I use Martin de Candre soap. Pretty expensive at around fifty dollars a jar. However it is one of the best soaps out there and a jar will last about a year.
Good luck on your shaving journey!
Ask questions and have fun!

Pete <:-}