Sideburn 1st try not bbs?!

[AxelH]

This is how internet-borne culture takes precedence over common sense and reasonability. We can all log on and read through hours and hours (and hours) of material created by people of all age ranges, walks of life, etc. about the same damned topic. We can peruse through pictures of all manner of shaving tools, the old and rusted, the gleaming modern wonders made from space-age supersteel. We can click on the links and window-shop in all the on-line stores and make shopping lists and buy all the creams, oils, colognes, soaps, towels, etc. until our women scream at us to finally stop, knowing it will never be enough (except for that last one..).

I see this BBS nonsense way too much. It's building the mystique and allure of the most difficult to use shaving implement available. So let's try to give it a rest. How do you get baby butt smooth skin when you're a 40 year old man with the face of a.. forty year old man? I don't care how close those hairs are cut, you're not that smooth. It hurts many of us to shave that smooth. It's just too damned irritating. Yeah we can do it.. but should we? Some of us can. Good for them. Now newbies can get disappointed.

[Ryan82]

Axel, I understand what you're trying to say and you've made some valid points, but the quest for BBS is still, and will continue to be, a rite of passage for the straight razor newb. We've all been there. And once you achieve that goal most of us, save for the most OCD among our ranks, will give up on BBS (because it is overrated) and go for a DFS instead. I am also of the opinion that the term BBS is often misused and misunderstood

Sorry newbs, my post may have just given away the biggest secret of SR shaving....

[AxelH]

You've got a point. A rite of passage. Just how soon after beginning for the average skill level of a beginner would it make sense to try that? How hard to try and at what cost? Granted, I get BBS at ATG for parts of my face (very limited) on a regular basis but that's because it's just easier that way, particular to the part(s) of my face in question. But it's not a good idea, if we're holding to a true definition of the acronym, for people who are still new to let it disappoint them.

[Ryan82]

You've got a point. A rite of passage. Just how soon after beginning for the average skill level of a beginner would it make sense to try that? How hard to try and at what cost? Granted, I get BBS at ATG for parts of my face (very limited) on a regular basis but that's because it's just easier that way, particular to the part(s) of my face in question. But it's not a good idea, if we're holding to a true definition of the acronym, for people who are still new to let it disappoint them.

Wow man, I knew you had strong feelings about ATG, but I didn't know they ran this deep. What did ATG ever do to you???? Wait, don't answer that....

I think you have to give newbs a bit more credit. The vast majority do realize that they have to build up their skill and technique before attempting a BBS shave. This is made clear by every senior member here at SRP, and for the most part it seems to be respected advice. People also learn at different speeds, so to say when it's time to attempt a BBS shave is near impossible, since the comfort factor also comes into play. I would say when a new shaver feels comfortable they will begin to make the attempt. Could take weeks or it could take months. But in the end it's their face, they can do whatever they want.

[Gibbs]

I've only been shaving a few weeks. Ryan knows that. Before I was adopted by this crowd and gathered my new flock of razors before me, I was shaving with a 2-blade disposable. I could shave quite fast and not get any nicks with them. I still do on my chin just to make sure eveything is evened out (after the straight razor shave), but I was one to go 4 or even 6 days betwen shaves and didn't give my scurffy nerf herder loot much thought. Most of the guys at the winery are about that way. I noticed that even our General Manager has somewhat of a 2-3 day growth most of the time.

I did find out, and it may be just me, but if I shave every day, it's easier on my face with the straight razor. I go over it WTG and then relather and the second pass is very quick. It's almost like not having an edge, and I take off lather and a few stragglers with long strokes and no incidences. I also practice a lot with a dulled razor I keep in my pocket. That gave me form, technique and extra practice in-between the real shaves. When I'm done, and it's NOT Baby Butt Smooth, I'm way more presentable with whisker growth than any of the other folks I work with. It's a clean close shave, and it's barely there for the next day's shaving.

So, for a new hobby, and I have to say it is coming along great. I don't cut myself, nor do I have too much worries about cutting myself. Just like when I shaved with a DE and Injector back in the late 1960's, just don't move that blade sideways or you'll amost guarantee yourself a cut. Yes, I've been shaving since I was 17 and now 57, and all of it wet shaving. Just in the last month I've digressed to using a historical approach to shaving. I have a razor that I bought locally for 15.00 that appears to date back to 1854, several years before the Civil War. I've shaved with that (it has a smile) and it is a bigger heavier razor, but it's a great smooth shave and I have cut whiskers off my face that very likely shaved someone that was a soldier, or at least in that time frame.

So to BBS shaves, it can be done, but it is reall not all that it is "cut" up to be. And like mentioned above, it would take a seasoned honer/shaver with a lot of practice to do it comfortably and, too, WANT it to be that close. Me? I really don't care.

PS... look at Ryan's avatar. He has a nice shave, but he's missed a barber appointment...or three.. LOL