Thread: I seem to be losing ground, advice appreciated

Wow, thank you all for your valuable replies! Very helpful forum to new guys like me.

Originally Posted by Jimbo

Well, it's not unusual to take quite some time to settle down and get good shaves. For me, somewhere between 3-6 months, maybe longer...

That's comforting, thanks. It took me about two months to get my first BBS when DE shaving, and about 6 months to be able to do it fairly consistently without irritation. I expect my learning curve for straight shaving may be longer, I don't have the best hand-eye coordination. I was hoping that DE shaving technique would provide me more reference points that would carry over, but straight shaving seems really different to me so far.

Originally Posted by Jimbo

Quick question - did you strop before your first shave? Can you think of anything that is different between that first shave and the subsequent ones?

Nope, I didn't strop before the first shave. I wanted to feel what a properly honed razor felt like out of the box. But I've have been stopping before each shave since, about 10 strokes on the linen and 20 on the leather. Last night I skipped the linen and just did 40 strokes on the leather. No difference.

Two things stuck out to me about the first shave. First, I was really nervous, and very careful. Lathered and shaved only a portion of my face at a time, took a while. The second thing was that I couldn't believe how good the first pass was. Even with a slant bar DE, I'd never gotten that good a first pass with a DE, I was really impressed with the straight.

So, maybe it's my stropping, or I've gotten more impatient in my shaving since that first great shave, and I'm forcing it.

Originally Posted by sidneykidney

First of all welcome to straight razor shaving!

Thanks!

Originally Posted by sidneykidney

...It has been my experience that the comfort of my shave has been down to two things. Preparation and care. I suspect your first shave was that much better because you took better of each. If you have razor burn and are making 2 or three passes, stick to two passes WTG or if thats still too much keep it to 1 pass. Remember shaving involves taking care of your skin as much as removing the hair.
...
Dont lose heart.

Thanks, I'm hanging with it. You have a point, I think it will be easier to isolate my problem if I go back to square one, and start with one careful WTG pass, until I can get that solid, then build on it from there.

Originally Posted by Lt.Arclight

When I returned to straight razor shaving from an extended hiatus, I realized that with skill comes confidence and you absolutely NEED to be confident when you place that edge against your skin.
...
Frustration is normal,fear is normal-practice makes perfect. Don't lose the faith!

Thanks. One thing I have learned in the past few weeks is that straight shaving seems to have a "tempo." The good strokes I've had have been longer, smoother, and "faster" than DE shaving, where I tend to use short, repetitive strokes. I still have fear of that big blade, and maybe that lack of smooth, light, confident stoke is contributing to the pulling, and multiple re-tries is causing irritation.

Originally Posted by JMS

Check that your stropping is adequate and correct!

Beyond my inexperienced straight technique, this is really sticking out to me. I'm being careful and using light strokes on the strop, but I'm not getting a feel for it yet. And it seems to me my razor isn't as sharp as it was two weeks ago. I'm keeping the blade flat and the strop taut, but I don't seem to get any "feel " from the stroke of the razor that's telling me when I'm doing it right. No real draw, all the strokes feel the same, from the first to the 40th.

Hey Tim, welcome to SRP! You'll get lots of great advice here, and if you stick around
and keep us up-to-date on your progress, you'll undoubtedly be getting great shaves
in no time.

Short, very light stokes are a good way to start. You have more control over the razor
over a shorter distance.

Good luck!

- Scott

I've been using a straight for about 1 1/2 years. I've had several ups and downs, as have others, so rough spots in learning are to be expected. I'm one of those people that is never completely satisfied with my performance, always striving to become better. I also seem to be very dense. Not a good combination. Keep working on technique and over the long run it will come together.