Thread: Beginner's luck?...

... Were the stars in alignment?... Clean living (probably not)... l dunno!

But whatever the reason, I just completed my first straight razor shave! Did my entire neck (I have a full beard), without so much as a weeper (we doan need no stinkin' styptic pencil!), and no razor burn! I woudn't call it a BBS shave, but it's at least a DFS. And certainly better than my typical shaves with my Gillette® Fusion® ProGlide™ Power Razor!

Seriously, it went incredibly well. Most likely because of all my preparatory reading and practicing. Here are the details:

• Soaked my cheapo Van Der Hagen brush in hot water
• Washed up
• Applied a hot towel for five minutes
• Bowl lathered, using Art of Shaving Sandalwood Cream
• Took a deep breath, and laid the 5/8ths Griffon XX #60 Carbo Magnetic spike point razor...yeah, the one that I won here last month!... to the side of my neck
• With the blade flat against my skin, I raised the spine slightly, and began the first S-N stroke...while keeping a wary eye on that spike point!

I was a little surprised by how loud the razor was. There was no pulling, but there sure were lots of whiskers in the lather on the blade! To make a long story short, I shaved the left side using my right hand, and switched hands to do the right side. After re-lathering, I shaved both sides S-N, which I found to be more difficult. The most difficult areas were around my Adam's Apple, and the two surgical scars below it. I was tempted to try some more, but figured that I was pushing my luck; we all know how the gods feel about hubris. So I cleaned up and applied some Neutrogena aftershave.

I sure hope this wasn't a fluke!

I know...I know, "without pictures, it didn't happen". I didn't think to take any "before" shots, but here are the results (the apparent redness is from slapping on aftershave; it's NOT razor burn):







Some of you may be wondering why I didn't use the brush and soap that were parts of my winnings. It's just that I'd already been practicing making lather with my other stuff, and I didn't want too many unknowns in the mix for my first shave. That was probably a good call, because that was the best lather I've made to date.

Here's a special shout out to str8razor​ for the wonderful honing he did: Thanks, Bill, now I know how it feels to shave with a properly honed razor!

Congrats! I also believe I had beginners luck I did my full face no rash bumps burn or cuts. But I did finish my neck with a regular multi blade razor and I already need to shave that area while my straight razor area is still smooth. Made me a believer!

Congrats, and beware the over-confidence, padawan!

As 10Pups told me way back(lol), you never seem to cut yourself if the styptic is there in front of you for use... That said I have one sitting in the soapdish, has decayed and is gnarled from lack of use.

Also, +1 on the delightful realization of what a properly honed razor is supposed to be. I started out with something rather toothy. Was sold to me a shave ready and was far from it... Difficult days. I had such a difficult time narrowing down the culprit.

Well done! I love the sense of satisfaction and accomplishment that comes with a smooth straight razor shave. Here's to many more of those!

Originally Posted by Siguy

Congrats, and beware the over-confidence, padawan!

As 10Pups told me way back(lol), you never seem to cut yourself if the styptic is there in front of you for use... That said I have one sitting in the soapdish, has decayed and is gnarled from lack of use.

Also, +1 on the delightful realization of what a properly honed razor is supposed to be. I started out with something rather toothy. Was sold to me a shave ready and was far from it... Difficult days. I had such a difficult time narrowing down the culprit.

I'm known for being over-cautious, but the advice about over-confidence is still good! I'll keep it in mind, and will reinforce it with frequent visits to the "Cut of the Day" pages!

Here's to hoping that my styptic becomes as decayed and gnarled as yours from lack of use!

Indeed...str8razor may have spoiled me; my razor shaves so effortlessly! I just hope that my stropping doesn't screw things up.

Wow - great luck, good job.

Now here'a video of an old member here, Willi, give this a try next time, and no, he's not going to shave with the big knife hanging on the wall. This is the video that inspired me to get into straight shaving:

I've watched that video in amazement and awe on several occasions!

Perhaps one of these days...but most definitely not next time!

Originally Posted by Dzanda

I've watched that video in amazement and awe on several occasions!

Perhaps one of these days...but most definitely not next time!

Really, still to this day, what he does in two passes amazes me...also give a true meaning to the question, "what is a singing blade"!

Remember searching the forum, and many thought it was sped up, or time lapsed, just goes to show you, it doesn't get any simpler than the way Willi does it, a true example of less is more and keeping it simple.

Having said that, I'm positive he's a Jedi Shaving Master.....

Congrats and good luck with your future shaves

I too just started about 3 days ago. Shaved my whole face the first time and said, "What was so bad about that"? I normally get at least 1 cut shaving with a disposable or cartridge. I've shaved 3 times with my straight and have yet to nick myself. Even accomplished a 95% BBS today =). Maybe it's just inherited from our great-grandpappy's blood.