Thread: Moving forward, a few questions: razors & technique?

Originally Posted by brothers

Is it best to find the one (two) razor(s) that seem to work best, and use the same razor all the time, as opposed to my DE practice of randomly selecting one from about 6 favorites on a frequent basis?

I have only ever had one DE, but quickly had a few straights. I could do with only one, but made the conscious decision not to. What I have learnt on the way is that I like bigger (6/8+) and stiff blades. That is about it, though. No problem sticking with two. The only potential drawback is that they will lose their shave readiness at some point in the not too distant future, and you will either have to learn to touch them up, or have them professionally honed. Being a beginner, wrong stropping technique might bring an end to a razor's shave readiness quicker than you would expect.

Originally Posted by brothers

I shave every day. As much as I love my DEs, would it be better for me to abandon them for a period of time while I focus all of my shaving energy into perfecting my straight razor technique?

The techniques are subtly different, and in certain areas mutually exclusive. Incidentally, I was never able to get entirely rid of razor burn in the neck area with a DE.

Originally Posted by brothers

Along the same lines, am I correct in thinking that a part-time on again, off again shave with a straight razor is not really moving me measurably forward towards the goal of becoming adept at straight razor shaving?

Well, if you are a natural talent, this may well not be the case. Personally, I only used my DE for travelling after I started shaving with a straight, and it has worked reasonably well so far.

Originally Posted by brothers

Moving off the razor questions to the question of technique in the hardest areas to shave, shaving the upper lip is coming along better than the chin. My chin is "craggy" for want of a better term, and the whiskers there seem to be very tough and wiry. I get my fair share of cuts, and it seems that about 90% of those happen when I try to shave my chin WTG. ATG on the chin is virtually impossible, as is XTG. Any words of encouragement in this regard?

You may find this article highly useful: Advanced shaving techniques for the straight razor - Straight Razor Place Wiki. Blade angle, and skin stretching are extremely important. Likewise, learning to shave with zero pressure is a key element, but it requires a truly shave ready razor.