Thread: JUST HOW DANGEROUS IS A STRAIGHT!?

have a good grip on the blade and mahe sure you dont move the blade from side to side and you should have no cuts my very first shave i went slow and did not get a single cut srt8 shaving is very enjoyable and a art that you can pass down to your kids and grand kids i wouldnt giv e it up for anything

I think the term "cut throat razor" gives it a sense of danger straight away. When I got my razor first, I collected it from the post office on the way to work and everyone wanted to see this dangerous cut throat blade.They stared at it in awe and admiration I prefer to call it an open razor.I started out with very shaky hands although they are not so bad now.I just hold the razor with two hands sometimes if I feel the shakes coming on when I do my chin.I have had more cuts with a disposable razor than with an open/straight razor.

Originally Posted by RayG

It would do you well to watch Lynn's youtube video, to see the pace at which someone who has been doing this for 30 years shaves.

Good point, RayG.Lynn's dvd is a valuable source of info.

Chances are anything that would leave a mark won't happen while you're shaving as long as you keep track of where your spike point is. The odd nick is possible, of course, but what's a nick among friends? Certainly nothing to cause alarm.

Most straight "horror" stories come from cleaning or restoring straights, when caution is key- particularly if you're using power tools in the process. Abandon your fears. Embrace the straight.

I have straight razors on their rack in my "shave den", on my dresser, on my desk, in my tool bag and in the shop. They are all behaving perfectly civilly. I watch them surreptitiously in the event that their overt behavior might be an act but they remain docile. I have been in possession of at least one straight razor continually since I was sixteen years old, 34 years ago. Not once have I observed any aspect of a razor that left to its own might be considered dangerous.

In the same house with my razors lives a polydactyl orange tabby named Mr. Toes. http://straightrazorpalace.com/finer...t-mr-toes.html This cat has on many occassions, without provocation attacked me, biting and scratching without mercy. I have tried to avoid him but he lies secretly in wait and runs at me from all sides clearly intending to do me bodily harm.

My conclusion is that Mr. Toes is infinitely more dangerous than a houseful of straight razors.

first time i cut myself like 5 times but not bad enough to quit... straight razors are rather benign compared to a loaded gun.. but it all depends on who has it and what they do with it and how much clothes they have on when they're doing whatever they are doing. i wouldn't consider shaving with one warrants a family powwow.

I too am relatively new to the straight razor game, but as everyone else has said, it's only as dangerous as you make it. Following advice from Lynn's DVD and other things I have read online makes it much much easier, and I also work with very sharp knives every day (professional Chef), so I got over my fear of blades long ago. Use short strokes and only do your sideburns/cheeks at first, and once you're more comfortable, you can move onto the more contoured and complex parts of your face.
My parents, aunts, uncles, etc were also apprehensive about me starting to shave this way, telling me I would cut my throat etc...when I pointed out that my grandfather (their father) shaved with a straight every day of his life and lived to 98 years old, they stopped arguing with me.
As a few people stated, one of the things I see in kitchens with people inexperienced with blades is that they often cut themselves AFTER they are done using the knife/razor, etc for its intended purpose. You're all finished up, you go to clean the edge of the blade, blade slices through a towel...oops, 1/4 inch gash in your hand. As long as it's in your hand, you just need to be aware of it, not scared, but aware.
Someone else said never catch the thing if you drop it; that is probably the best advice I've seen on here. Let it fall, fixing a razor costs a lot less than stitching together the tendons in your wrist.
Cheers, and good luck

It would be interesting to try disecting an artery from a cow just to see how hard or easy it would be to have a fatal slip. I personally think it would take quite a bit of effort to slice through an artery and have a fatal mistake.

Sorry if this has already been stated, as I didn't take the time to read the whole thread, but IMO...

A straight razor is like a gun. Both are perfectly harmless unless used in a dangerous way.

Originally Posted by xgenra

I just had a quick conversation with my ma and older brother about straights.
They are both totally against it because of the danger factor.
has anyone here ever cut themselves with a straight? and if so, how bad?

They are only as dangerous as the hand that is guiding them! There is no danger factor unless having the greatest shave you've ever had is to be considered a danger!

Never ever cut myself ever. If I have ever cut myself shaving its always been with a double edge or a cartridge razor in hand. A straight has never done this to me.