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.
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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