Thread: I'm Confused

First off, I wish I discovered this website before I tried shaving for the first time. I just bought a new Dovo Blackstar razor, A Dovo strop, a badger brush etc. the whole nine. I was extremely excited when it finally arrived so when I got it I stropped and shaved and I just ended up with a hairy, cut up, burning face. I do admit I didn't shower before hand so I'm sure the hairs were tougher but I automatically jumped to the conclusion that it was the blades fault. Then I was enlightened by all the glorious info here and decided that it had to be my technique. So I gave it another shot but this time after I showered and only my sideburns and jawline. This went much better, still not completely smooth but much better. However I continually try the sharpness test with a piece of my girls hair and it never works. All though a new blade do you think it still needs to be honed? If so I would appreciate some reputable names that can help me out.

Every razor must be honed to a shaving edge - not all new razors are sold that way and I do not know if yours was or not.

You can find some expert sharpeners who will sharpen your razor properly here: Member Services - Straight Razor Place Classifieds

+1. If you didn't pay extra to have it made shave ready, it won't be. Several companies sell them believing they're ready, but from the factory, they're not. If you get it done you'll get a more realistic straight shave & are more likely to enjoy the experience.

The hanging hair test is also a bit of a parlor trick and dosn't necessarily relate to shave readiness.

jordan

Besides the great advice already given, I would like to share one of my previous posts with you. This post comes straight from here:

http://straightrazorpalace.com/newbi...tml#post334367

I hope that you find it useful. The wiki is a great resource, you may want to give it a try.

Al raz.

First of all, I think that you should focus on getting comfortable shaves and not on the closeness of the shave. As your technique improves, so would the closeness. There is more to shaving than a sharp razor. You could be experiencing a variety of problems besides the sharpness of the blade. Was it ever close when you started shaving? Remember that even if the blade is ultra sharp, you still have to strop it properly, use the right angle and pressure, prep your beard and make a decent lather. These are all the areas that need to be looked into. In therms of stropping, are you flipping the razor correctly? You may find these useful:

Flipping the Razor

Razor stropping - Straight Razor Place Wiki

Theory of stropping - Straight Razor Place Wiki

In addition to the links that I included in my post in that thread, I will suggest checking out the stropping videos in the general section or watching Lynn's dvd. The wiki also has a section on stropping, here is one:

Third Shave Frustration

Try not set your expectations too high initially and pay attention to the angle and pressure you are using, it is very hard to change it a bit and change the entire shaving dynamics. Perhaps these links from the wiki would help:

Basic Shaving Passes - Straight Razor Place Wiki

The Multiple Pass Shaving Technique - Straight Razor Place Wiki

Advanced shaving techniques for the straight razor - Straight Razor Place Wiki

Shaving videos - Straight Razor Place Wiki

Good luck and definitely let us know how it goes.

Al raz.