Thread: Hart steel and tears?

I am a straight razor noob, I love the experience of straight shaving. I have 2 shaves under my belt with the Hart straight lots with the feather AC with super pro blades etc.

I have been told that the second shave should be smoother from the manufacture.

So far all I feel is hard tugging I could let the razor sit on my face WTG and even with the blades weight it wont move! Going ATG I watched the blade bounce back from the beard hairs! The pre shave and shave cream were slick as you know what so thankfully no blood just frustration. The results were a close shave that was painful to achieve.

I think there is an easy answer to solve this problem I just don't have the knowledge? Any ideas I would gladly appreciate!

First watch this vid a couple of times

then follow it step by slow step and see what happens

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93zQP7CToWQ

After that at least you can decide if it is the edge (doubtful) or you need to throttle back and take things slower (probable) I feel you are expecting too much too fast

Good Luck and ask any question that comes up

I am not experienced with the feather system. If you are certain that your blade is shave ready perhaps you may want to adjust the blade angle. I am guessing that is you have a lot of feather experience you are well aware of your beard growth directions and how to make a decent lather. If you are uncertain on the shave readiness of your blade perhaps you should calibrate a hair test using you feather blade and compare it with the sharpness of your Hart blade. It is easy to kill an edge with poor stropping technique, which has a long list of members who have done it. Did you shave straight out of the box or strop first? I'm sure that there will be some along soon that can tell you the difference in the two techniques.

Originally Posted by RezDog

I am not experienced with the feather system. If you are certain that your blade is shave ready perhaps you may want to adjust the blade angle. I am guessing that is you have a lot of feather experience you are well aware of your beard growth directions and how to make a decent lather. If you are uncertain on the shave readiness of your blade perhaps you should calibrate a hair test using you feather blade and compare it with the sharpness of your Hart blade. It is easy to kill an edge with poor stropping technique, which has a long list of members who have done it. Did you shave straight out of the box or strop first? I'm sure that there will be some along soon that can tell you the difference in the two techniques.

Thank you for your reply! I didn't shave right out of the box, I stropped the razor and for sure I wasn't doing it right! As gssixgun was saying above too much too soon.

Originally Posted by gssixgun

First watch this vid a couple of times

then follow it step by slow step and see what happens

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93zQP7CToWQ

After that at least you can decide if it is the edge (doubtful) or you need to throttle back and take things slower (probable) I feel you are expecting too much too fast

Good Luck and ask any question that come up

I really appreciate your reply thank you, I will preform this shave test tonight! I even have the same shave soap

Let us know how you did,

That will give us an idea of how to help you more if needed

So I shave with both the Feather AC/Pro and Hart 6/8 and 7/8 Square Points.

If you can shave comfortably with a Feather AC then you have the basic skill set down.
There is a transition from/to Feather to a conventional straight - like there is when you go from your 1 Ton Dually truck to your MG Midget.
But if you do it enough its comes quickly.

For me (and this is very YMMV) I get a more comfortable shave with the Conventional straight - it is more forgiving as apposed to the Feather, which mows down anything in its path with ease - but that includes some stuff I don't need to have cut...

Going the other way, Edge care with the Feather is a rinse and alcohol dunk - so it is my travel kit of choice.
Edge care with the Hart/Straight is yet another skill set that just takes practice and attention to detail.
The angle/pressure/stroke pattern that I use for the Hart is different that what I use for the Feather.

To illustrate (edge care) - I was setting up my Brother with some razors so I started with a few that I started with three years ago.
I had moved on, assumed that they were dull and needed to be touched up etc.
But before I did anything I stropped and test shaved with each of them, and was shocked at how well they shaved - as in all I did was clean/strop/oil..
I chock it up to being much better at Stropping 101 first and being a better shaver second.

And I have no doubt that if you can master the Feather AC you can make this transition - and like it...

Smooth Shaving...

Originally Posted by MJC

So I shave with both the Feather AC/Pro and Hart 6/8 and 7/8 Square Points.

If you can shave comfortably with a Feather AC then you have the basic skill set down.
There is a transition from/to Feather to a conventional straight - like there is when you go from your 1 Ton Dually truck to your MG Midget.
But if you do it enough its comes quickly.

For me (and this is very YMMV) I get a more comfortable shave with the Conventional straight - it is more forgiving as apposed to the Feather, which mows down anything in its path with ease - but that includes some stuff I don't need to have cut...

Going the other way, Edge care with the Feather is a rinse and alcohol dunk - so it is my travel kit of choice.
Edge care with the Hart/Straight is yet another skill set that just takes practice and attention to detail.
The angle/pressure/stroke pattern that I use for the Hart is different that what I use for the Feather.

To illustrate (edge care) - I was setting up my Brother with some razors so I started with a few that I started with three years ago.
I had moved on, assumed that they were dull and needed to be touched up etc.
But before I did anything I stropped and test shaved with each of them, and was shocked at how well they shaved - as in all I did was clean/strop/oil..
I chock it up to being much better at Stropping 101 first and being a better shaver second.

And I have no doubt that if you can master the Feather AC you can make this transition - and like it...

Smooth Shaving...

Thank you for your response! Great info...
I have no problems shaving with the Feather AC system it is just that the Feather folding version doesn't have much weight to it, even with a super pro blade at many different angles the blade still hangs up a bit. I don't apply pressure toward the skin but I do have to with some force gently pull the razor down in order to cut the hairs. For instance in that shave test video example I can go from ear to jaw line with the Hart steel, there will be no shave soap left but many hairs still remain. Again I will try the shave test later.

Originally Posted by dshaves

Thank you for your response! Great info...
I have no problems shaving with the Feather AC system it is just that the Feather folding version doesn't have much weight to it, even with a super pro blade at many different angles the blade still hangs up a bit. I don't apply pressure toward the skin but I do have to with some force gently pull the razor down in order to cut the hairs. For instance in that shave test video example I can go from ear to jaw line with the Hart steel, there will be no shave soap left but many hairs still remain. Again I will try the shave test later.

The Wise ones may also weigh in...
And I have to tell you I've talked through the Conventional to Feather transition many times, but this is the first time I've done it the other way.

For me the problem solving matrix is:

Edge - No brainer with the Feather, you pop a new one in. With your Hart I don't have any way of knowing the condition (this is also when we start suggesting that you avail yourself of a Mentor - you would be a very quick study I suspect)
My post strop check (if I do it) is to "tree-top" the hair on my arm. It's not a shave test, but if I can't do this the shave is generally not going to go to well..

Skin Tension A lot of time that "tugging" that the new shaver feels is too much slack in his skin. For me the Feather enforced skin tension practice with Drill Sargent directness - but I'm aware that I use a different process between the two and I'm at a loss as to how to explain it.
I do pay more attention to the direction of the stretch, trying to pull the hair upright by pulling opposite of the direction of growth. From my learning how to shave with a Kamisori days I picked up buffing in between the out-streached thumb and forefinger, one pins the other pulls.

Angle/Pressure For me lower on both with the Feather

Pass Pattern My Feather pattern is a very simple N to S and then S to N - the only creative stuff is the chin (Mo, no upper lip work to do) For the Straight I have actually adapted to part of the Feather 2 pass but I touch up the jaw and side of the Adams apple for a "1/2 pass". I also use more interesting strokes (heel forward, heel trailing, windshield wiper, buffing and chevron) and I do this on auto-pilot.

I suspect that this will "click" for you at some point in the near future and you will understand both the limits and the advantages with the Hart.

When most try to transition to the Feather they have trouble dialing down the pressure and angle (weepers) and they get cuts from either "landing errors" (first contact with the skin) or pattern errors (moving that edge parallel and slicing)
From your posts you are at the other end - having to adapt to the Harts "different kind of sharp"
Understand what you are going through, sorry but I don't have a magic hack for this one....

Smooth Shaving..

Originally Posted by dshaves

I am a straight razor noob, I love the experience of straight shaving. I have 2 shaves under my belt with the Hart straight lots with the feather AC with super pro blades etc.

I have been told that the second shave should be smoother from the manufacture.

So far all I feel is hard tugging I could let the razor sit on my face WTG and even with the blades weight it wont move! Going ATG I watched the blade bounce back from the beard hairs! The pre shave and shave cream were slick as you know what so thankfully no blood just frustration. The results were a close shave that was painful to achieve.

I think there is an easy answer to solve this problem I just don't have the knowledge? Any ideas I would gladly appreciate!

Did you buy the Hart new or used? Hart has some quality issues lately but I have never seen one that was not shave ready from the factory. That's one of their finer points