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innerlogic's straight shaving journal

Been looking forward to this day for a while. I picked up a straight from Larry at Whippeddog a while ago (along with a poor man's strop kit and barber hone), but just haven't had the time to try it out. Luckily I have this whole weekend off, so I had a leisurely saturday to try.

Obviously the razor came shave ready, so no stropping to start. Whipped up some Nancy Boy shave cream with a Wee Scot and worked up a nice lather (having a great time trying different brush/soap/cream combinations, and my prep is getting much better).

I followed the "interactive guide" and got a good grip. Felt pretty natural actually. Stretched the skin and went to work.

Wow, much better than I expected. Everyone talks about the awkward positioning of your hands/arms at first, but this felt fine after a minute. Actually had a nice close shave with one WTG pass against my cheeks. I'm ambidextrous, so each side went well for me. I was so impressed, I broke the rule of "only do your cheeks the first time" and started on the lip and chin.

Again, success! Really shocked at how smooth I got my upper lip, which is forest-dense after a few days on call and not shaving. Did a little work on my neck, but didn't push my luck too far.

Did a second pass with a fatboy+ red IP on 2 setting, but there wasn't very much to clean up. I never strive for BBS, but this was DFS for sure. One TINY weeper on the corner of my mouth, but that was all.

Finished up with some Thayers and Skin Food. Then I broke out the strop for a try. This was...well, a learning experience. Couple of nicks on the ends of the strop, but hey, that's what it's for!

Overall, it was even better than expected. Loved the feeling of the razor in my hand, and really enjoyed the amount of control over the blade. I believe this razor is a 6/8 half hollow, but I have a few others I'm going to try out once I get my technique and stropping down pat.

Anticipate another update next Saturday! And, as always, lots of praise for LarryAndro at Whippeddog.
 
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Well done. It sounds like you had a great experience from your first straight shave. It is fun and as you get more experienced, you'll be surprised at how much control you actually have over the blade of a straight.
 
Congrats on your first! Plus a journal is definitely the way to go to get constant feedback from more experienced members.

Sorry about the nicks on the strop...but you are correct, thats what a starter is for!
 
Well, I hadn't intended on trying again for another little while. I rarely shave two consecutive days, but I had some time this morning, so I thought "what the hell"

Stropping is still pretty poor, but it's coming along. Shave was nice again, but still a bit tricky around the contours of the neck. I was really surprised at how little irritation/razor burn I had afterwards, especially since I shaved yesterday as well. Few small weepers that closed right up with the post-shave.

Coming along nicely if I do say so myself. :thumbup1:
 
Wow Shave #2 good as well...congrats again! I suggest you consider having that str8 sent off for a touch up in a month or so...Newbs often have difficulty (I know I did) with their first edges due to stropping/poor shave technique etc. They tend to destroy the edge a little faster than with a few months experience under their belts.

Best of luck!
 

Luc

"To Wiki or Not To Wiki, That's The Question".
Staff member
Excellent!! :thumbup1:

Stropping will get better, you just need to do it for a while. You could use a butter knife if you want to practice without nicking the strop...

Please, post a picture of your setup!
 
#3

I only got a few hours of sleep last night, but thought I'd give it a go anyway

Went well again. I'm much more comfortable navigating around the neck/throat.

Today was the first time I got a VERY clean shave on the first pass. Cleaner than my usual DE shaves. I also got a few tiny nicks from the square point. Nothing too drastic, but taught me a lesson about shaving while marginally delirious.

Stropping is improving. I'm starting to get the rhythm of it, which presents those hesitations (and subsequent strop nicks)

Will post a picture of my setup tomorrow. Still loving the straight razor experiment.
 
That is simply amazing, my first pass removes a lot of stubble but there is no way that I feel even close to well shaven after it. Keep it up, it sounds like you are doing exceptionally well.
 
Maybe I just have low standards - for years I would mostly just trim my facial hair and avoided fully shaving like the plague.

But yeah, after the first WTG pass last night, it was pretty smooth (with a few rough spots of course). Let's chalk it up to a stellar honing job by LarryAndro.

I think my technique is progressing much more quickly than I'd anticipated. This might have something to do with the massive amount of reading I did on B&B while I waited for the slow Canadian postal service to deliver my first straight.

Quick question - would one of these stones be useful as a "freshening" stone? I.e. to bring the blade back to shave ready once stropping becomes less effective? I'm not interested in setting bevels or restoring razors, just keeping my own razor in tip-top shape.

edit: maybe i should clarify which stone
http://www.fendrihan.com/diasharp-bench-stone-115x25-coarse-d11c-p-632.html?cPath=116_76_85
 
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Luc

"To Wiki or Not To Wiki, That's The Question".
Staff member
Maybe I just have low standards - for years I would mostly just trim my facial hair and avoided fully shaving like the plague.

But yeah, after the first WTG pass last night, it was pretty smooth (with a few rough spots of course). Let's chalk it up to a stellar honing job by LarryAndro.

I think my technique is progressing much more quickly than I'd anticipated. This might have something to do with the massive amount of reading I did on B&B while I waited for the slow Canadian postal service to deliver my first straight.

Quick question - would one of these stones be useful as a "freshening" stone? I.e. to bring the blade back to shave ready once stropping becomes less effective? I'm not interested in setting bevels or restoring razors, just keeping my own razor in tip-top shape.

edit: maybe i should clarify which stone
http://www.fendrihan.com/diasharp-bench-stone-115x25-coarse-d11c-p-632.html?cPath=116_76_85

I can be mistaken and I'm no honer. That stone is plate that always stays flat. The coarse pattern makes me thing that you would probably accomplish a rough edge. You would need someting finer than that...

A barber hone could do. I'm difficult and find them rough too but some love their edges...
 
Colin,

Did you send the right link? The stone in your link is described as "not being good for straight razor use" :huh:
 
I'll let someone with more time on the stones chip in...but I would think that if that is only 8000 grit, it will provide you a shaveable edge...not the smoothest but shaveable.

Somebody with more experience will chime in here shortly.
 
Great to hear such success. I have done business with LarryAndro and I have been very impressed with him. He is willing to bend over backwards to help newbies like us :thumbup:!

Have you considered pastes instead of a stone? Joel noted in the "interactive guide" that pastes are a cost efficient method to keep an edge in shape without buying a bunch of stones. (stones can get really expensive, and need lapping). I just ordered some 1 micron diamond paste yesterday for about $15 (think it is comparable to something like 8000 grit stone). Just a thought.....

----Check out the micron to grit comparison I found on SRP. It was posted by Smokintbird and was helpful to me...
 
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Another great shave today. Few small nicks, but nothing serious. Two passes and just as close as I want. Still touching up the upper lip with the DE, but that's fine by me.

I was thinking about pasted strops for touchups, but it just seems like too many extra steps in a process that already has so many pieces. I was hoping to find some type of hone that doesn't need slurry/flattening etc. Which is, I guess, a barber's hone!

Thanks for all the great feedback. Here's a crappy iphone photo of today's setup (the wife has the camera out with her)
 
Colin,

Alot of guys used pasted strops exclusively for awhile prior to going to hones as its easier to touch up the blade. The downside is that most agree that edges created off strops dont quite last as long as those off hones...YMMV.

I bought a barbers hone and then I pasted an old strop much later. Now I use both regularly.

I agree with you on too many steps etc (when you're trying to just get a good shave with a str8...all the details required to get there can seem very daunting).

Go with what you feel comfortable with!
 
I intend to get myself a barber's hone but for the time being I have been using Thiers Issard paste on an old paddle strop and it works a treat.

Nice pic by the way, it reminds me that I must also get myself a scuttle.

Happy shaving!
 
If I were to use just one paste (again, for "freshening" the blade maybe every few months when stropping wont bring it back to shave-readiness), which type of paste would be best?

And another (probably inane) question. For multi-sided paddle strops, is one side for regular stropping, and the other side for pasting? If so, how do you determine which side if for which?
 
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