Thread: Any suggestions?

Hi,

I've been shaving with safety razors for quite a while, and I've always wanted to try straight razor shaving. However, having recently bought a Merkur Vision I was having a hard time justifying the cost of purchasing everything, especially with the RAD that is sure to follow .....

However, last week I finally took the plunge and decided to give straight razors a try. I bought a Pre-Honed Divo "Silver Steel" 5/8 from ClassicShaving, together with a hanging strop, a 4 sided paddle strop and some 0.25/0.5/1 micron diamond pastes. After paying a very hefty customs fee (it was still cheaper that buying everything in the UK), I received my package today. The strop needed breaking in, so I placed a few heavy books on it .

So, today I had my first straight razor shave. The cheeks went very smoothly. However, I have learned that my chin has very thick hair, and therefore my chin wasn't smooth at all - the blade kept "jumping". The neck wasn't that much better. I didn't even try the upper lip area.

All in all, I have to say that the shave went as I expected - not BBS, but not a complete disaster either :-). I have confidence that it will improve with pratice.

I find shaving the left side of my face to be much harder - I've seen several different techniques, but none of them really work for me (I'm right-handed). I guess I will just switch to my left hand when going to the left side, and hope that with practice it will improve .......

I believe that the the razor was pre-honed - however, my hair is very thick and coarse, the blade passes the HHT only a third of the time. Maybe after a few shaves, I should do a touch up on a 0.5 micron pasted strop, followed by a 0.25? I'm also thinking of getting a norton 4000/8000 for general razor maintenance.

So, what do you think? Any recommendations?

As in everything else thats worth knowing,straightshaving takes time to learn.And probably years to master.
I've been straight shaving for about 4 mnd now,and just starting to get really good shaves.But I can tell you this,no matter how coarse your beard is,you can get an amazing shave with a straightrazor.I've learned that your stropping tecnique is Alpha and Omega.You shoul really purchase Lynn Abrahams DVD,it helped me a lot.
Good luck!

Ditto on Kristoff. Get the CD. It's not a 10 minute quicky. It touches most all subjects on straights, and is over 3 hours long. It was the best investment I have made to date for straight razor shaving. It provides the most important thing for straights, a starting point. Lynn freely admits in the CD that you are going to devlop your own styles and techniques in all facets. But you have to start somewhere, and that somewhere should be a good primer...

Originally Posted by saman

I believe that the the razor was pre-honed - however, my hair is very thick and coarse, the blade passes the HHT only a third of the time. Maybe after a few shaves, I should do a touch up on a 0.5 micron pasted strop, followed by a 0.25? I'm also thinking of getting a norton 4000/8000 for general razor maintenance.

I would be careful with the 0.25 paste:  

The Norton will certainly not hurt. However...

Originally Posted by saman

So, what do you think? Any recommendations?

Do not expect too much too soon. The Dovo Vision is a phantastic tool, and it will take you months, rather than weeks, to get a similar result with a straight razor. That said, I am now (9 months down the road) getting significantly better shaves with a straight razor.

Thanks everyone.

Do you know a vendor that might sell Lynn's DVD in the UK? Most web sites charge $24 for delivery, more than the cost of the DVD itself!

Would it be possible to buy one directly from Lynn?

If you are questioning the cost of the DVD, no sweat. Just keep shaving. It's mostly about muscle memory anyway. Watching other people do things gives you a good base, but the only way to figure it out is to JUST DO IT. lol

I am a newb also, about two months worth of cuts, pulling, dragging and cussing. Time, practice, a good razor and most important, a good hone makes a difference. After two months I still leave some stubble but the shaves are getting smoother, the cuts have (nearly) stopped, starting to really enjoy shaving with a str8. Still have a way to go but not as far as 2 months ago......

Saman, have you tried to PM Lynn? Ask and yee shall receive...

You can view most of the DVD on the webcast section of this site. I don't think you can skip around sections but you could watch it from start to finish!