I was sure this wouldn't be me
I've been shaving daily with a shavette for about a month and a half now. I've gotten to the point finally where I get pretty damn good shaves every day and knick myself rarely. I know my shavette is a sub-par instrument though compared to real straights, so I've really been looking forward to when it was in the budget to get my first real straight. About a week ago it finally was and I ordered a Dovo Best Quality from SRD and an Illinois strop from amazon.com.
Yesterday my razor arrived and it was like Christmas morning. I nearly couldn't wait to shave with it the the next day. Just for kicks when I unwrapped it I gave it the HHT, which to my surprise it didn't pass. No matter though, I know the real test is shaving with it. So this morning I had at it. I know SRD's razors come shave-ready so I simply wiped off the thin coat of oil and started. I fully expected it to be the best shave I've had to date.
I can't tell you how sad and totally surprised I am to say it was awful. It yanked the whiskers horribly and irritated the skin along the way. I made sure to not use much if any pressure, adjust my angle, all to no avail. It was so rough and uncomfortable I actually pulled out the shavette and finished my shave with that.
Now, I know and I've read many, many times on this forum (I read a lot and post very little), that 9.9 times out of 10 it's user error when someone gets a shave-ready razor from a reputable source and has problems with it. I also know Lynn's stellar reputation which is of course why I bought from him. So I'm willing to concede that I'm most likely doing something wrong here. I just can't figure what it is.
I like to think my technique is getting pretty good from using the shavette for the last 45 or so shaves. I understand there may be slight differences but could they be that different as far as having to change technique drastically? I've been told by other members here that when they had their first shave with a real straight after using a shavette that it was like a wonderful dream.
I haven't received my strop yet, so that rules out poor stropping technique as the culprit. All I did to the razor before I shaved with it was gently wipe off the oil, per instructions on SRD's website.
Other than that the routine was the same as I've been using to get great shaves every morning: Preshave is just a hot shower, good lather with a badger brush and puck of Williams.
What did I do wrong? Should I wait until I receive my strop, give it a good stropping and then see how it goes? Any help is appreciated.
Lawrence