Thread: Confirm/refute my assessment and please give suggestion

Originally Posted by fyrfyter43

Personally, I would go with the 5/8 half-hollow. I find the grind more important than the blade width. And for me, a heavier grind is much better. My full and extra hollows might give a marginally closer shave, but they definitely leave me with a bit of razor burn that the heavier grinds don't.

Anymore I find myself only interested in wedges to maybe 1/4 hollows. In fact, once I have a few more posts under my belt, I will probably be listing my full and extra hollows on the classifieds here to finance a 7/8 Hart.

Have you tried really easing up on the pressure and just allow the razor's natural pressure to do the work? I have read folks here describe straight razor shaving as "only removing the lather and the beard hair comes off with it." Also I found slow and short strokes to be helpful too.

Wow, you've gotten a lot of feedback since 10:30 this morning. I didn't read all the responses, so forgive me if this is redundant. I think your choice is exactly the right one for a beginning shaver. You can get half-hollow Dovo Best Quality razors in 5/8 and 6/8 sizes from The Superior Shave. I've done lots of business with him and he's a good guy. Yes, the blades will be shave ready.

Best wishes to you.

Originally Posted by pmburk

Have you tried really easing up on the pressure and just allow the razor's natural pressure to do the work? I have read folks here describe straight razor shaving as "only removing the lather and the beard hair comes off with it." Also I found slow and short strokes to be helpful too.

Yup, I've tried lightening up on pressure, changing angle, etc. I've been shaving with straights for about a year now. Full and extra hollows have always given me some burn. I didn't think much of it until I got my first wedge a couple months ago. I've used that razor exclusively for about a month and a half, and the only time I've had any burn at all is if I tried too hard for a BBS shave.

I went back to a full hollow this weekend to see if maybe I could get a better shave with it. The razor only has about 5 shaves since I bought it from SRD, so I know it's sharp. The shave wasn't bad, but I had a lot more burn than usual.

It may very well be technique, and maybe a wedge is a bit more forgiving of whatever I'm doing wrong. But I'm the type of guy that would rather have 2 or 3 razors that give me a good shave every time with minimal fuss.

In my experience, I really didn't feel much diference in the sizes and grinds of my razors until I had been shaving with them for around a year. Any differences I did notice were negligable at best. So my opinion is to get whatever razor you want to and avoid picking by what others say is the right width or grind for you.

Originally Posted by fyrfyter43

Yup, I've tried lightening up on pressure, changing angle, etc. I've been shaving with straights for about a year now. Full and extra hollows have always given me some burn. I didn't think much of it until I got my first wedge a couple months ago. I've used that razor exclusively for about a month and a half, and the only time I've had any burn at all is if I tried too hard for a BBS shave.

I went back to a full hollow this weekend to see if maybe I could get a better shave with it. The razor only has about 5 shaves since I bought it from SRD, so I know it's sharp. The shave wasn't bad, but I had a lot more burn than usual.

It may very well be technique, and maybe a wedge is a bit more forgiving of whatever I'm doing wrong. But I'm the type of guy that would rather have 2 or 3 razors that give me a good shave every time with minimal fuss.

I'm not an expert like many of our fine mentors, could it be that the razor is not suited for your face, skin, or beard? I'm just trying to help and uncover some possible variables that might give you some idea. Is there such thing as a compatibility issue with a particular razor??

Originally Posted by Theseus

In my experience, I really didn't feel much diference in the sizes and grinds of my razors until I had been shaving with them for around a year. Any differences I did notice were negligable at best. So my opinion is to get whatever razor you want to and avoid picking by what others say is the right width or grind for you.

When I got my first razor, I went by what was considered a good starter, that was the 6/8 Dovo BQ which has worked out very well for me. Some other folks feel a 4/8 or a 5/8 are also good starters. I now shave with a 6/8 and a 5/8 with great successes.

I have a feeling this thread isn't going to help you make a decision.

Originally Posted by AFDavis11

I have a feeling this thread isn't going to help you make a decision.

True, we can beat this dead horse into dog food and end up back where it all started. So the best course of action is to purchase a razor that is affordable and give it a go.

I purchased my first straight approximately 7 weeks ago after doing quite a bit of research to what would be best for a first shaver and at the time the conclusion that I had drawn was that a 5/8 half hollow round point would be the best option.

On saying this and personally thinking this to be correct I purchased a 5/8 full hollow Spanish point. The reason for this was I thought if I was only going to purchased 1 razor (yeah right) I might as well go and get a full hollow as I read it gave more feedback but more skill to master and the Spanish point just looked better to me.

Anyway I have shaved with no other size so I do not know if it is the best for me, but gives me an excuse to start buying other sizes and grinds to find out.

Oh and all this scary talk about slicing your face off, cutting a notch in your ear and accidently cutting through your Jugular vein was all just scary talk as the full hollow does give feedback and I know when it’s about to cut into the skin. I have hardly made a dent in my skin with a straight but have cut up my face much worse with my DE as it does lack the feedback and just slices over any skin imperfections.

My first razor was a 5/8 full hollow spike. I love it. Then I got a 7/8 W&B, did a few strokes and swapped it for a 4/8 W&B which I like MUCH more. Then I got another 5/8, maybe a 1/2 hollow, it's also nice, but that's when I really started to tell the differences with grinds, etc. Now I've got an 11/16 Frameback. They all bring their own character to the shave. I like the flexibility of a smaller razor; I may get a 4/8 next. But I also like the incredibly flexible blade of a 5/8 full hollow, it's like when you find a surfboard that is JUST the right combination of length, width, fins. Granted a 5/8 full hollow spike was daunting (in hindsight) to learn with, but back then (three months ago) I thought they were ALL like that. I'm glad I learnt on this purportedly hard to use style. For me, it's hard to go past a vintage razor (like everything else I buy), as I like the history. I don't DISLIKE new things (my current fountain pen is new) but I'd rather an old item with history and without me contributing to 'waste'...
Good luck with all your purchases...