BassPlayerBoz's Straight Razor Shaving Journal

[BassPlayerBoz]

First time out - I Call it a "Success"! .... so far...

I got brave enough to try out this method of shaving our grand- & great-grandfather's used to do without thinking much about it. Grandkids were still running around & I could hear the ruckus from the bathroom, but they were corralled in the front room and were not under-foot. And I never heard a piercing, high-pitched scream that might startle me into a trip to the emergency room, a nice scar to remember the occasion, and possibly ruining my motivation to continue my straight razor adventure. So... here we go....

WD SR of unknown origin, Mike's Natural Barbershop soap, WD 24mm Silvertip brush

First off - I only did the first pass on both cheeks with the SR. (I took the advice of GeoFatBoy of ShaveNation that he gave in one of his "How to shave with a straight razor" or "Tips on SR shaving" videos & stopped after finishing both cheeks the first time out.)

I used this razor that I got from Larry @ Whipped Dog a week or 2 ago. It's one of his flawed, sight-un-seen, but shave-ready SRs.



Results were pretty good (IMHO) for the first time out - no blood/irritation & pretty decent first pass. Felt a little awkward using the left hand to shave the left side of my face, but I think that'll get better with practice. I did feel a little tugging at first, but that resided when I had a good angle. (I think I was a little too steep at first & what I perceived as "tugging" might actually have been the "scraping" of the stubble.) I also felt like holding the razor was getting a bit awkward the closer I got to the curves near my mouth, chin, lips, & nose. It seemed like I was going to give myself a nice cut with the heel of the blade while concentrating on shaving small areas on the curves with the toe. As this was the first time out, I opted to stop before I actually did something like that. I'll watch a few more videos to learn some techniques for shaving those areas while avoiding the problems I was starting to have. I finished up w/ my Maggard's V3OC & a Sharp Durablade (my 4th shave on that combo).

I also think my lather might have been too thick. In some of the reading I've done on the SR forums, I think I should have added more water to increase the slickness .. to the point of making it just shy of "runny". I've tried this a couple of times with the Mike's soap & the safety razor over the past few weeks with decent success. Will maybe concentrate on that over the next week. Am hoping to be able to get to work with the SR at least twice/ week - that's assuming I can manage the schedule w/ the grand-kids AND ... IF... I can keep it properly stropped ... that's a big "we'll see"...

So that's how the adventure begins this time. (The first time in the 90s was - in retrospect - an experiment in futility as I had no references, no concept of good prep/ soap/ lather/ angle or even what was "sharp/ shave-ready".) I'm hoping that - with the advice, references, & support that's available through B&B & YouTube - my little taste of SR success continues to grow & improve.

 

[paintflinger]

Sounds like a good start and welcome to the diaries sub forum.

 

[Guestabc]

Good Deal Boz, another Southern AZ Zonie in Straights!! Welcome to the Journals

 

[BassPlayerBoz]

Thanks! I've actually been here a while (around a year or so) documenting my experiences w/ various pieces of wet-shaving gear (blades, soaps, creams, at al) and various safety razors. (That thread is "BassPlayerBoz's Shave Journal".) I started this thread to focus on my straight razor experiences. (I'd read on several posts/ threads that it was very common to do so.)

 

[BassPlayerBoz]

2nd effort... well... not as good...

Felt brave enough to try another SR shave tonight. Stropped the SR with my Poor Man's strop. Took my time. Light/no pressure. Only enough to ensure the spine & edge were in contact w/ the leather & level. Very deliberate - up the strop, rotate on spine, back down the strop (w/ X-pattern to get the whole edge), around 30 laps or so....

Got the Mike Natural Barbershop to a fairly wet lather (in comparison to yesterday) in an attempt to increase slickness as I've done on occasion with the safety razor over the past few weeks. It actually turned out pretty good.... until....

DAMMIT! I dropped my brush in the warm water in the sink! Well... couldn't squeeze out too much water from the brush or I'd lose a lot of lather as well. Squeezed as much out as I thought I could get away with & hoped for the best. It still turned out OK, but not as good as I had it before the incident.

While not as slick as I'd hoped, I was still able to decently shave my cheeks. Not as good as yesterday, but OK. Then I got ambitious & did my above my upper lip, below my lower lip, & my neck - all with the grain. My neck was rough. Re-lathered a few times, but still felt like I was scraping/ the razor was tugging & pulling most of the time. Every now & then I'd get the right angle, but not often. And it was slow going. Had to re-lather my neck twice (partly me being slow & partly the runny lather dissipating.) Tried my chin for a bit, but every tiny movement felt like scraping/tugging - just couldn't find the angle(s). But I eventually got through a first pass - decent in places, but terrible overall (IMHO). I thought the results were bad enough that I re-did the whole WTG pass with the Maggard V3OC/ Sharp Durablade (5th shave on the blade). Then finished the XTG & ATG/Clean-up with the safety razor.

Still - no blood & made through a whole 1st pass with the SR. It took a long time, lather was not so great (but it's a good soap), and the results weren't too terribly good... but I made it through. So.... progress... I guess....

 

[Guestabc]

Boz, A straight shave this early on with no blood is a win. Making progress, it takes awhile you're doing good!

 

[BassPlayerBoz]

3rd time out last night... Am I getting worse?... Or am I just impatient?

OK - what the heck? Worked up the thinner lather with the Mike's soap that seemed slicker with the safety razor, but I'm thinking perhaps it's because I'm actually a bit faster with the safety razor ==> so it just seems slicker. As it turns out, with the SR, the thinner consistency I was going for was... well... thinner... and runnier... and as a result, dissipated more rapidly - not a good thing when I'm very slow/ deliberate when trying to learn to use a straight. And it wasn't any slicker than usual - especially when the lather dissipated. Again - not good when trying to learn SR shaving.

Angles felt wrong no matter what I did. When I was cutting & not scraping, it was still tough going (the dissipated lather actually leaving my skin dry - or even feeling sticky, maybe?)

I soldiered forth through one pass over my whole face. When I was done - no blood/gaping wounds, but I felt like I hadn't shaved off anything in most places. Even my cheeks weren't even close to a CCS.

Arrgghhh! - Frustrating! I felt like my skill at this was regressing from my first effort.

Finished w/ normal safety razor routine - WTG, XTG, & ATG/Clean-up pass (Maggard V3OC & Sharp Durablade Hi Platinum blade[6th shave on the blade])

4th time - tonight... Better than last night... Thankfully!

Much better than last night. Lather was still thin & had the same effect, but I made plenty & re-lathered any time I even remotely thought I might need some more. I actually had too much in some places & it caused me to have to stop to clean the blade off when I thought I was in a groove a couple of times. Concentrated on angles a bit more & this one seemed to go smoother than the previous effort. Neck still awkward - especially when trying to hold the razor in my left hand (I'm right-handed.) ==> Still trying to work out best techniques for me to use for upstrokes (WTG) on my neck. (Using my right hand for the left-side of my neck works OK. The other way - not so much.) Even one pass still takes me a while ==> this is going to be an exercise in patience/ diligence to learn to use a straight. But I have a strategy in mind. My plan is to try to get a reasonably consistent first pass WTG before I start trying to learn the grip, razor positions, motions to go XTG, and eventually, ATG. Then once I can acceptably do all that, then I'll count 100 SR shaves to see if I can get proficient. (This might actually extend my learning time, but if I can manage my expectations I might not get frustrated & throw in the towel on SR shaving.)

Anyway - Overall, it was a pretty decent 1st pass. Nowhere near good enough for a one pass shave, but certainly WAAAAYYYY better than the previous 2 efforts. I finished w/ normal safety razor routine - WTG, XTG, & ATG/Clean-up pass (Maggard V3OC & Sharp Durablade Hi Platinum blade[7th shave on the blade]). I ended up with a VERY close shave - BBS in quite a few places & DFS in the few area left. (Could it be that I got such a good shave because I essentially did a 4-pass shave? 1 w/ the SR & 3 w/ the DE? Hmmm.... And even had a bit less irritation that I normally get.... Hmmmm....)

Also - on both of these nights, I did 60 laps on the strop being careful to use the X-pattern, very deliberate strokes, rotating on the spine, and moving it up & down the strop while keeping it level (spine/edge both in contact with the leather with only the weight of the razor for pressure - no extra downward pressure from me.) It seemed to work OK - maybe better than when I only did 30 strokes. But quite honestly - at my skill level - in both shaving AND stopping an SR, I'm not certain I could tell the difference if there was one.

I think I'm taking the next few days off from the SR. Maybe pick back up on Saturday. (That'll also be the day I change to a fresh blade & try the Maggard Slant for the first time.)

 

[Guestabc]

Jeff it will take some time, be patient and just keep at it. It is a pretty steep learning curve, but everything will fall into place, a few bumps in the road, a bit of blood, but once you hit on all cylinders you will be glad you did. Nice reads

 

[BassPlayerBoz]

5th "1st pass" last night .... mehhhh....

Made the lather w/ Mike's Barbershop soap a little less runny/ thicker this time. It works a little better in that the lather doesn't dissipate... until it starts to dry out & become sticky. I re-lathered as needed, but that was tricky w/ trying not to up-end my mug in the sink (put it in there to try to keep the lather warm.)

Cheek areas seemed to go OK (but not great.) Chin is a huge challenge - especially w/ lather drying out. Also having some trouble figuring out the best way to shave WTG (up) on my neck. Holding the SR in my right hand to do the left side of my neck is fine, but holding it in my left hand to shave the right side of my neck results in lots of pulling/ tugging (dry lather? Poor technique? Both?) So I tried holding the razor in my right hand a little differently to shave "up" on the right side of my neck. ( I think I watched Anthony Esposito do this on YouTube ==> it's possible.) Fine movements were easier, but the awkward-ness of the grip counter-acted that & it still felt like an exercise in frustration.

It seems to me that I had these same kinds of lather issues when I first started using a DE safety razor a round a year ago. I was taking my time & going slowly while working on technique. But in doing so, my lather - even if I managed to generate it well - would dry out by the time I was finishing a pass. So... I'm thinking that as I get more proficient/ comfortable with the SR, that my dissipating/sticky lather issues might become less & less of a factor. How long that will take, who can tell?

BL: Still slow going, but I managed a "reasonable" first pass".

I watched a few stropping videos & am wondering if I'm doing that correctly (& if my poor technique there could also be contributing to my issues during the shave.) I think for tonight's shave, I might lay the strop on a table so I can use both hand to ensure the blade is level & see how that goes. (I saw this tip/trick in a YouTube video from Joe Borrelli & thought there might be something to it.)

I finished up with a new Sharp Durablade Hi-Chromium in the Maggard's Slant head (pretty decent combo, I thought.)

 

[SoullessSingularity]

Nice read and welcome to the journal section. I don't have much to suggest (I am not a straight razor shaver) but best of luck and I encourage you to keep going!

 

[Smattayu]

Welcome to the journals Jeff. You're avoiding bloodshed in your first attempts at a straight razor, and that is a feat in itself lol. When you're taking your time and the lather starts drying out on you, maybe try having a small spray bottle of water on hand and give your face a quick spritz. Once you get the technique down and can move a little faster it won't be an issue.

When stropping, one of the most important things is to make sure the spine of the razor never loses contact with the strop. Keeping the edge on the leather and lifting the spine can cause you to roll the edge, and then it usually has to go in for honing.

You're doing fine so far and once you start internalizing some of the technique it will feel a lot more natural. Looking forward to reading more of your thoughts and experiences here.

 

[Guestabc]

Good Read Jeff

 

[BassPlayerBoz]

6th "1st pass" last night... not too bad...

This one wasn't too bad. Some irritation, but no blood. (I didn't mention it, but last time I gave myself a little nick under my nose; not a gusher, but more than a little weeper; I was able to close it with the alum block post-shave.)

Tried stropping on the table top, very deliberate laps, concentrating on blade orientation, w/ a little pressure. Not a lot, but more than just the weight of the blade - maybe 6-8 ounces or so. I wanted to apply enough to keep the edge in firm contact w/ the leather as I moved the razor up/ down the strop. I felt if I tried to just use the weight of the blade, variations in my large arm motions would cause the blade to come off the leather at some points during the laps. Just a little positive pressure seemed to help me overcome that.

Some irritation on my lower neck, but that's consistent w/ the DE (not bad, but noticeable.) But I think the Maggard Slant is fairly mild when it comes to inducing irritation. So I don't think I can blame it totally on the SR (though I'm still new to SR shaving & it's an awkward area to learn anyway ==> the SR likely had something to do with it. But I got through - even the chin area (though not very good there, I must admit.) Odd thing - the worst place for irritation on my neck is on the left side. When I shave there w/ the SR, I use my right hand & can control the razor well. For the same area on the right side of my neck, I used my left hand ==> much less fine motor control with that one. Managed to get it done with less irritation than on my left neck, but it wasn't all that close ("acceptable" 1st pass considering I'm learning, but not a really good 1st pass.)

Tried face-lathering as well to see if I could keep the lather thick/rich so I could put it on relatively thin & still have it look like white paint as I see the experts demo on YouTube (GeoFatboy, Anthony Esposito, et al.) Didn't like my results. Lather was OK - Thick & covered well. But it was sticky at first & I kept having to add water, but had to be careful not to add too much as it would run down the brush if I did with all my soap going into the sink/ on to the counter & me needing to load again. And the brush sitting on the sink instead of in a ceramic mug made for very cold lather. Perhaps I need to work on a different routine and/or just practice face-lathering, but my first impression was that I prefer mug/bowl lathering (& still want to try a scuttle to keep the lather warm.)

Finished up w/ the Maggard Slant & Sharp Durablade Hi-Chromium (2nd shave on the blade.)

 

[Guestabc]

Keep at it Jeff, it will all come together it takes time, some blood, but well worth it in the end, Very nice read

 

[dangerousdon]

Sounds like you are right where I am at wit the SR. Bowl lather or face lather, just go with what you comfortable with. You can try other things when you get the shave down.

 

[BassPlayerBoz]

7th "1st pass" .... Not great, but not so bad either...

Did this one a few hours ago. Lapped on the strop while pulled into tension this time instead of on the table like last time. But I took care to hold the strop tight while keeping the blade oriented like it was yesterday when I was at the table. I felt like things went OK... well... except for that moment when I lost concentration & put just a little nick in the strop. Nothing crazy. Unless you knew it was there, you might not even notice it. But that one - and a few more in these early stages - are likely inevitable.

Went back to the mug instead of trying to face-lather again. (I think DangerousDon is right. Better to stick to something I'm comfortable with while I learn this new way of shaving.) So I had much better lathering results tonight.

The SR pass was OK. No blood. And that damned right side of my neck gives me hell with both my left AND right hand. Still no blood, though. Even my chin area was better than the past few times (But it was still nowhere near what I can get 1st pass w/ a DE.) One thing I did have was quite a bit more irritation than the last few shaves. It doesn't really show, but the alum block highlighted it pretty clearly. And not just on my normal sensitive places on my neck. I had a noticeable amount on my cheeks & upper lip as well. (Too aggressive w/ the SR? Not enough lather? Poor stropping? Too many passes after the SR w/ the DE? Who the heck knows?)

Overall, I got through another 1st pass w/ no blood. It wasn't really all that good a pass, though. In some places, it felt not much different from when I started. Still... I might try a few more passes & then maybe over the weekend - when I can take my time more & I don't really need all that good a shave for the next day - maybe I'll try a 2-pass SR shave without the DE & see how things go. We'll see...

As before, finished up w/ Maggard Slant & Sharp Durablade Hi-Chromium (3rd shave on this blade) for mostly DFS w/ BBS in quite a few places.

 

[Guestabc]

Good Read Jeff, check the angle of the blade you should only be about a spine width away from your face, otherwise you are scraping which is the primary cause for irritation, the other items may be issues but attack one at a time, and your lather should be wetter and a little bit thinner that a DE. Keep it up you are getting there

 

[BassPlayerBoz]

8th "1st pass" last night ... Decent results...

Stropped 40 laps & used the Mike's Barbershop scent. Overall, decent pass. Still not as good as the 1st pass w/ a safety razor, but I have a feeling I'll get better as I practice. Lather was OK; maybe a little thicker than I should make for SR shaving, but it seemed to work all right. Concentrated on getting the correct angle. It looks a little different than in the SR videos I've watched in an attempt to learn. Most of the time, those guys (GeoFatboy, Anthony Esposito, DrMatt, Shavebusta, et al.) are using SRs that are 5/8 or bigger. I haven't actually measured it, but I don't think the flawed S.U.S. SR I got from Larry @ WD is any bigger than 4/8 or so (it just looks like it's much narrower; I'll measure it later tonight when I get home from work.) So when I judge the angle via sight compared to the larger razors used in the videos, at the proper angle, my razor spine seems to be closer my skin. It gives the impression that my angle is more shallow. But given the size difference of the razors, I think I'm actually getting closer to what "the professionals" are doing. Anyway... that's my impression.

I was thinking that the last few SR shaves were giving me the irritation I felt post-shave (not really showing much more redness, but it was highlighted by the alum block.) However, for my shaves on Tues/Wed evenings I only used the safety razor & still had that stinging from the alum block. ==> perhaps the Maggard's Slant is more aggressive than I'd originally thought. Not saying the SR didn't cause me some irritation; only that I don't think I can blame it all on the SR.

Still having trouble with the right side of my neck. Going with the grain means shaving up on my neck. And I figured that WTG is the way to go while I'm first trying to learn. But shaving that direction on my right neck while holding the razor in my right hand is awkward. I can shave up on the left side of my neck with my right hand without too much issue. But using my left hand (for me, the wrong hand) to shave up on the right side of my neck is also awkward. I almost think that shaving down will be easier on both sides of my neck, but I've been hesitant to do that because it's mostly ATG. I think I will try that pass on Saturday when I attempt my first complete SR shave - at least 2 passes - maybe 3 depending on how I'm doing. I've seen GeoFatBoy & Anthony Esposito shave their neck while holding the SRs in their non-dominant hands ==> I know it's possible to learn the skill. I've watched GeoFatBoy profess such a view on his channel and I will continue to practice/ experiment with the techniques to see if I can find/ learn which one works best for me. But I think this will prove to be the most frustrating thing to overcome.

I also think for Saturday's shave I'm going to use the Haslinger Schafmilk I got from Maggard's in the same order I got the Mike's Barbershop. My container of Mike's is nearly gone with a narrow ring of soap around the lower half of the container. and I want to ensure I have plenty of soap/ lather for the first time I try a full SR shave (I think I'm going to combine what's left with the few chunks of TOBS Sandalwood I have left, & the little bit of WSP Formula T Matterhorn into one container. When I get enough of these remnants/ leftovers together, I might use them to create some sort of Franken-lather & see how that turns out.)

I finished up the shave with the Maggard's slant & Sharp Durablade Hi-Chromium (6th shave on the blade.)

 

[Guestabc]

Good Read Jeff, just a though regarding the irritation, do you shave with Hot water? if so try a cold water shave just a thought.

 

[BassPlayerBoz]

... just a thought regarding the irritation, do you shave with Hot water? if so try a cold water shave just a thought.

Never shaved w/ cold water (i.e. ice water.) But numerous times throughout the years I have shaved when the water was not hot for various reasons (lots of people taking showers at same time ==> no hot water when I shave, deployed in the military in some locations, etc.) In those occasions the water has been anywhere from cool tap water to luke warm. My experience was that the colder the water, the worse the shave, & the worse the irritation. So I'm inclidned to believe shaving in truly cold water would be worse.

Now, I'll concede that these "cool water shaves" were with the Sensor XL/ Edge Aloe Gel combo that was my staple for decades and not with a safety razor, brush, & quality soap like I got converted to a year ago. Would that make a difference in my outcome? I wouldn't think so. but I haven't tried it.