New Member introduction and first Shave

So last night I finally took the leap...I am still breathing and I believe I still have all my blood stores...I made a little to supplement the loss during the shave. Anyway....I was too excited to wait for my strop and had just had the guy leave my house who honed my razors...(he didn't use any of the methods seen in the videos by the way, but had a very nice set up for honing)...That being said I am still alive and kickin. I have a stop on the way, but am still curious about the honing. The HHT didn't seem to pass for the razors, but I might be doing it wrong too. The blades will shave the hair off your arm though...I am thinking about sending them all out to be honed by one of the memebers because I am still unsure about how sharp he got them...The shave didn't hurt when I shaved, but wasn't like everyone posts either. Anyway hello to all and thanks for all the good advice and threads. I especially enjoyed the hilarious comments in the Coochie Shave thread. Nice work Gents...I am going to have to get a whole lot better before my Wife allows that one.

Welcome, Bubba, and congrats on a successful first shave.

One thing about the HHT - it is only useful it you know what you are looking for; if not, it's just a nice little trick. You'll see lots of guys here who will say that their razors give great shaves but do not pass the HHT - I am one of them.

Should you decide to send your razors out, you'll find lots of guys who offer their honing services in the "member services" section of the classifieds.

Good luck, and happy shaving.

Welcome aboard!!

Welcome to SRP Bubba. Forget the hanging hair test and work on your technique and prep. Straight shaving has a steep learning curve and it takes a while to master and get the results you are reading about. Read through the WIKI on beard prep. Straight shaving does not require a lot of pressure and it only impedes the quality of shave. Stropping is also important and can ruin the edge if done incorrectly. You can use newspaper until your strop arrives. Read up on how to prevent 'rolling the edge' or there will be no doubt that it will need to be re honed. You can practice with a butter knife. Also be aware of your angle. The wrong angle will effect the quality of shave. It may help you to have someone watch you and point out when your razor exceeds the proper range. It's hard to gauge the pro[er angle with peripheral vision.

Good luck