Thread: Help with Feather folding DX

Thanks for the support guys. So I think I've had 5/6 shaves now, after the first day and 2 bad cuts I stopped cutting myslef. I've got 2 faint "scars" but they haven't reopened. I very hesitant when bringing the blade to my face and the angles around the jaw line confuse me no end xD I am still shaving both cheeks and parts of the neck for 1 pass. Long long way to go.

I would have thought the proguard or lights would be great for the beginner, while I realise the problem is with me and not the blades would this be counterproductive? From what I've read the proguards are the same sharpness and size as the pros but will prevent serious cuts, something that sounds very handy especially when attempting ATG for the first time. In anycase I've ordered the 15 pack.

I feel it's this (new)fear of getting cut that is holding me back, I never had this fear before the second of my cuts on that first day. I'm guessing this will die down in a few days.

At this point you are well on the way.
Would not bother with the Light Blades, I believe they are mostly use for cosmetology.
The Guards and nice, you can still cut yourself and they don't seem to last as long.

You can work out the pass patterns by taking out the blade - but in general it just takes time and you seem to be making great progress.
25 shaves from now you wonder what the problem was.

I DID IT 2 passes WTG, no weepers. Far from as close as I would have liked and cannot get right under the nose. After watching more videos i noticed it was mostly my grip at fault and my strokes were way too slow. I can't believe how excited I'm feeling, over a shave. Finished up ATG with my AS-D2 also with feather blades, feather all the way. Can't wait for tomorrow.

Any tips for under the nose?

What is the grip called when you can see your knuckles (oppossed to palm) in the mirror? Forehand? Backhand?

So yesterday I completed 3 passes WTG including chin and above the lip no cuts and while the shave is still not great it was slowly improving. COnfidence was getting high.

Day 8 (today) I put in a new blade cut myself fairly early and panicked a little, got frustrated and had a very poor shave. Half a pass, gave up then finished up with a DE.

There is no room for error, any mistake WILL BE PUNISHED WITH BLOOD.
Either I learn QUICKLY or my face is going to be covered in little scars in a matter of weeks.

VERY FRUSTRATED, yesterday I was feeling so great about it, today feels like a HUGE stepback.

So what do you do when you have a bad cut? I felt like the way I was going immediately after the cut, if I carried on I would cut myself a few more times, better to call it a day and try again tomorrow?

Take heart...the "three steps forward, one step backwards" process of learning how to use a Straight is normal, the Feather makes those steps forward and backward a little more profound.

Some points:

Change the Blade - Was it dragging or did you just want to try a new blade? The more experience you have with the Feather the longer the blades last, but many of us feel that they are at their best after shave 3 or so, and are in the zone for shaves 3 to 14+ when they may fade. We have members who get 30+. So don't be in a hurry to change blades...

Cuts and Blood - There seems to be three types of blood events with the Feather:

Too Much Pressure - the rest of your technique is good but you have too much pressure and you get weepers - shaving some skin to expose a capillary - and some burn thrown in. The weepers will close with cold/ice water (for me) but if you have to many you need to back off a day or two to heal.

Landing Errors - Unlike a regular straight that can be more forgiving - if you make first contact with the skin too fast and edge first you are going to get a cut, severity varies...again - avoid the area for a few days so avoid re-cutting the scab or high spot.

Basic Straight Razor Errors - You loose focus and you move the blade in the same direction as the edge and you slice yourself. These can be some of the worst cuts you can get. The Wiki will have some notes on wound care, you can use super-glue or a commercial wound care "glue" to close the "flap" and of course if it won't stop bleeding seek medical attention. Most of us have done something like this at least once to varying degree.

Again, avoid the area until it heals (I strike off the lather with my fingertip to remind we where it is) and sometimes the lather alone will start the blood to flow if it is recent and particularly bad)

If you can - keep using the DX on some part of your face each day/shave so you will keep growing your skills.

And remember that shaving with a Straight - any straight - is a fine motor skill that takes time to master.
I recently commented that this is like learning how to play the piano and also tune a piano by correspondence course (shaving and all that goes with maintaining an edge). The Feather eliminates much if not all of the edge care - the trade off being the learning curve for those fine motor skills is much steeper.

The Tribal Wisdom is that it takes "100 Shaves". For many getting to 25 shaves is the the most dramatic first step. Shaves 25-100 are when you get to all the passes and don't need any DE help and for me shaves going from 45 minutes to under 15-20 minutes and falling. (or the time is because you like to drag it out - but it takes me about 10 minutes - I strop the night before)

I had been shaving with a straight for 6 months when I tried the Feather system and the first week was very traumatic (read: Bloody)
From your posts you are doing very well to have started with the DX as your first Straight.
In this day and age its hard to explain sometimes that there are tips, but no shortcuts (hacks) to take the place of experience.

And 25 or 100 shaves is really a blip on the time scale when you think that someone in their 20's for instance might have 20,000+ shaves/days ahead...

Smooth Shaving...

Thanks so much for the detailed reply. It really shows through that you know exactly what I'm going through and I'm so greatful for the support.

I changed the blade because I had "blunted" it by taking the edge to a toilet roll for a few swipes, then I read somewhere else that a blunt egde is worst, somewhere I got confused and changed the balde last night LOL. I reasoned to myself (rightly or wrongly) that a blunter blade will give me a false sense of security and I would be better off with a new blade.

After the cut I knew exactly what I did wrong. It was a landing error, I came in at the wrong angle and felt it straight away. It was a lapse in concentration for a second. My previous cuts healed by the next morning, I shaved over the cuts and they didn't reopen. This one sadly for me appears to be worst. I'll access how bad it is in the morning. I might just take a day off as it's been maybe 2-3 weeks since I've last not shaved.

How many shaves in do you recommend before attempting the ATG pass? Almost all my hair grows downwards except a tiny part at the bottom of my neck and the sides of the throat so ATG is 95% south-north which terrifies me no end.

I think at this point I just need to remind myself to stay pateint and not get ahead of myself.

Thanks again and happy new year to everyone.

Originally Posted by RedGladiator

Thanks so much for the detailed reply. It really shows through that you know exactly what I'm going through and I'm so greatful for the support.

I changed the blade because I had "blunted" it by taking the edge to a toilet roll for a few swipes, then I read somewhere else that a blunt egde is worst, somewhere I got confused and changed the balde last night LOL. I reasoned to myself (rightly or wrongly) that a blunter blade will give me a false sense of security and I would be better off with a new blade.

After the cut I knew exactly what I did wrong. It was a landing error, I came in at the wrong angle and felt it straight away. It was a lapse in concentration for a second. My previous cuts healed by the next morning, I shaved over the cuts and they didn't reopen. This one sadly for me appears to be worst. I'll access how bad it is in the morning. I might just take a day off as it's been maybe 2-3 weeks since I've last not shaved.

How many shaves in do you recommend before attempting the ATG pass? Almost all my hair grows downwards except a tiny part at the bottom of my neck and the sides of the throat so ATG is 95% south-north which terrifies me no end.

I think at this point I just need to remind myself to stay pateint and not get ahead of myself.

Thanks again and happy new year to everyone.

And a Happy New Year to you and yours...

My Feather shave routine is basically at the most a two pass, N-S and S-N.
This ends up being a mostly WTG N-S and a mostly XTG S-N.
I don't need to do a pure ATG pass with the Feather - but I am using a heal forward "snow plow" for some of it (please don't try this any time soon)
The Feather is so sharp that with good stretching XTG handles just about everything.
And the truth is that the S-N pass on the neck, with the good visibility that this pass has, can be an effective and efficient pass.
My neck problem/extra attention is the adams apple area - if I don't focus on the tension there I cut a nice strip of skin off. (I made to "cut of the day" with that one once)

An again, you can use the no-blade "shave" to work out the hand holds, pass patterns and stretching. When you do start, treat the sides of your neck like the side of your face to get the hang of it. The center of your throat can be like shaving your chin in that it takes some extra care with stretching/angles.

Above all take your time. Most of my cuts come from trying to do too much too soon.
As Obie says - Comfort over Closeness.
If you focus on Comfort the Closeness will come before you know it.

Smooth Shaving..

Your making great progress RedGladiator. The learning curve gets easier with each shave. Watch how geofatboy does it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFseSLNae_o

Changing a Feather AC blade, you may find that the first 1-2 shaves are harsher than the following ones and that you may need to take extra care with a new blade.

B.

Originally Posted by feltspanky

Your making great progress RedGladiator. The learning curve gets easier with each shave. Watch how geofatboy does it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFseSLNae_o

Thanks, I've seen loads of his videos, don't know how I missed this one.