Thread: Hello from Texas

Hi all. I am from Fort Worth,TX. I work in the medical field and have a wonderful beard fore the sole reason of never being able to get a clean enough shave off all the other options and look like I got in a fight with a lawn mower. I've tossed the idea around for a few years of getting a straight razor but get very intimidated every time I see the cost and pretty much the "here it is and good luck" that I have found. I figured I try out this forum to see what I could get out of it to help with that.

My beard: I have a very thick beard that grows about 1/2 inch a week. I can kill a normal Mach3 razor in about 2 shaves. I gave up with that after a while because it got too expensive (60-100) a month. Electric razors dull to fast to replace the blades. I figured if the straight razor worked back in the day why won't it work now.

I'm glad to find a forum that seems extremely helpful and looking froward to getting to know some people here =)

Glad to have you on the Forum, you will find a lot of information here, and a lot of help. If you are ever in the Wichita Falls area come by Walker's Barber Shop, I am the owner and would be happy to help you out with whatever you need. I have a collection of mugs and razors (straights and DE's) most are sold for cost to help guys get started. Enjoy the journey.

Welcome rygy, you've come to the right place if you are considering "getting straight". Here're a few suggestions:

1) Many members with heavy beards seem to prefer a wedge or quarter-hollow ground razor although others like the full hollow grinds. It's a personal thing. You might want to take advantage of Barber56's offer and visit his shop. I'm sure he'll offer good advice and perhaps even a test shave or two.

2) Good beard preparation and proper technique are as important as having a shave ready razor. These will be especially important with a monster beard like yours. You will find plenty of helpful info here and links to videos that will help with the learning phase.

3) Many beginners jump in with all four feet, buy all the gear, and then go nuts trying to learn to strop, shave, hone, all at once and become discouraged. I'd suggest that you forego the honing part until you've mastered the shave (and decided to stick with it). Purchase a truly shave ready razor, a decent hanging strop, and a balsa strop loaded with Chromium Oxide to start with. After a certain number of shaves you will notice some pulling as the edge degrades. At that point a few laps on the crox strop will restore the edge to near original sharpness. Eventually, the crox will fail to give you the sharpness that you want and at that point you should have the razor professionally honed. This might be after 3-6 months for the average bearded guy or half that in your case. It depends upon your prep, stropping, and shaving technique.

Then, if you've decided to remain in the clan, you can join the brotherhood of the hone. Again, you'll find all the help you could ever need right here on the forum and you'll have a fresh, sharp edge to use as a reference point.

rgds,
Tack