Thread: Newbie from Missouri

Hey guys, my names Robert, and I'm 22. Ive been very interested in the higher quality shave you receive from a straight razor as opposed to a electric or even the new multiple blade shicks. Ive been doing research for awhile now and am glad I stumbled upon this place just today. I decided to register and am having a blast looking through all the resources you provide. Something you should also know is i also plan to shave my head. I'm not sure if its a good idea to shave my head with a straight razor, however bloodshed is better than this stubble that drives me mad. I am in college and have shaved my head since i was 16 with regular disposable razors, however my hair seems to be getting thicker, and growing quicker now, and disposable razors do not provide the close shave i need to keep from going insane.

Let me know if any of you guys have experience with this, Im currently looking for a good first razor to buy to begin my journey.

Hello, MemberFDIC, and welcome to Straight Razor Place. I have no experience in head-shaving, since I am short of supply in the hair department. What I do advise, however, is to hone your skill with the straight razor shaving your face first before moving on to your head.

Watch as many videos as you on shaving with the straight razor. Stay off eBay until you know your way around the straight razor world. Look in the Classifieds here or buy your razor from any of the vendors listed at SRP.

Make sure your razor is shave-ready ("pre-sharpened"). Buy yourself a strop, some good soap or cream, a quality boar or pure badger brush — and you're ready to rock n' roll.

Finally, take your time, because the moment you rush the straight razor, she'll bite you. Good luck.

I hope Obie doesn't mind if i expand on shave ready?

What he means is professionally sharpened by an experienced honer after it has come from the factory. factory sharp isn't the same as shave ready. Many vendors on here sell shave ready razors (SRD, the superior shave etc etc) and you will also find many shave ready razors in the classifieds. Vendors online selling straight razors as well as other non related products such as knives etc can be merely factory sharp.

You're actually in luck! being from Missouri, Don and Lynn (founder of this site, and Straight Razor Designs) is also in Missouri, now i dont know how far you are from them, but i'm sure you could get in touch with him, and he has a plethora of info and tips to help you along the way. I'm sure as many other mentors on this site, Lynn may even personally show you a thing or too. Right place, right time i guess. Any other questons or concerns, youve definitely picked a great place to start. Welcome!

P.S. the thickness and speed of your hair is a problem that has plagued me for quite some time. If you dont get your pre-shave down and have a super sharp razor, it can become quite uncomfortable. As blasphemous as this may be, i suggest shaving with a disposable or electric to get it to a "relatively" smooth surface and learn the basics, before you try hacking through a rain-forest. We all start off cleaning up whats left behind with a disposable, or electric...it takes time, best of luck!

Thanks for the information! I will probably spend alot of time on here, and ill be looking at the classifieds too. Apparently, Don and Lynn are in cape, which is only about an hour away, Perhaps I am in luck. Don't worry Obie I will be taking it slow...Nothing deserves your full attention more than a blade on your face!

I don't know if anyone's mentioned it, but there appears to be a group devoted to head shaving here.

Head Shavers Anonymous - Straight Razor Place Forum

You can go to community>groups and you should see it there.

Alright cool I'll check into it. I also have a question, how should the preshave routine go? Do I need any pre-shave creams or just a warm shower. There's far to many different variations of creams and soap lol.

Every regular vendor seems to be outta stock -_-

Originally Posted by MemberFDIC

Alright cool I'll check into it. I also have a question, how should the preshave routine go? Do I need any pre-shave creams or just a warm shower. There's far to many different variations of creams and soap lol.

Hi,

I'm very, very new myself, so any suggestion I give I'd take with a grain of salt.

However, I think that a warm to hot shower is invaluable to prepping your beard for a shave. Unfortunately, for me, I don't have time in the morning because it takes me so long. I've only completed four shaves so far so it takes me a while. My morning routine includes exercises and stuff and I get up really early. I am hoping that as I get more proficient at shaving I'll be able to work it back into my morning routine. It's one of the short term sacrifices I am making taking up straight shaving.

If you can manage it, shower right before you shave. Try to keep your beard warm and wet before you prep for your shave.

Personally I'm experimenting with the prep because, number one, this is all new to me, and number two, since it's new and I'm not able to shave quickly, I lose the advantage of a warm shower before I shave. So what I'm currently doing is using a moisturizing hair conditioner; I apply that to my face and warm up my face with a hot towel. Once my whiskers appear to be less wirey, I apply just a little shaving oil that I made to my face to help slicken up the skin. I'm still experimenting with how much to use; I've a feeling it's a fine line between having an affect and fouling my brush.

Then I apply my shaving cream, having already mixed and frothed it up nicely with a nice warm brush. I try to keep the bowl with my shaving cream in warm water to keep it warm, because invariably I have to add more lather to my face; not because I'm doing XTG and ATG shaves, it just takes me so long at this stage for my first WTG pass.

Once I've shaved, I use a Nivea skin cream. I only purchased a little because I really want to try out this Skin Food that everyone seems to be talking about here:

Type in the google search bar: "skin food" site:straightrazorplace.com

I will tell you this, I'm not sure about the shaving oil I used, but the conditioner seemed to help. Also, my skin used to feel dry and cracked after a shave. Using the Nivea sure has helped. I'm hoping for even better results with the skin food.

Here's a thread you may be interested in, too.

http://straightrazorpalace.com/shavi...hot-cloth.html

thanks for the link, I don't want to necro the thread so I'll ask my question here. they all say that they strop right before they shave, after the shower.. wouldn't it be easier to keep the benefit of the shower if you stopped right before you get into the shower, then shave right after so your face is still warm? not one person suggested stropping before the shower so i figured I'd ask. I always figured id strop first, get the shower, get out, and start my shaving routine then without having to waste valuable benefit by stropping. Hopefully my suggestion wouldn't cause the blade to sudden burst into flames.