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8 weeks in

Well I'm in 8 weeks on using straights, (week ends only), and loving it. Still just going WTG and doing two passes, getting some great shaves. I do a little follow up with the DE and have just a little prob with the blade sticking at the base of my neck. Other than that it's great! The stropping was the hardest thing to learn but I'm getting the hang of it. I did screw up the poor mans strop from Larry but still use it to practice on with the yard sale razor I was given.

I did get some stones and will try my hand this weekend on them. Got them lapped yesterday but will wait until this weekend to try my hand.

Any advice on the sticking of the blade at the base of the neck? I do stretch the skin, just get a little jump.

I do want to thank all of you guys for the post's and the lessons on the Wiki, could not / would not have even started without all the help.

I do plan on getting a little quicker so I can str8 shave in the morning before work, just got to give it some time.
 
You can try lathering up a bit further down your neck, and start the blade on bare skin to get some momentum going (instead of trying to start at the hair line). Are you sure your razor is sharp? It makes a huge difference having a sharp razor vs. having a "sharp" razor. I would guess that if you have the Poor Man's Strop Kit you are finishing on CrOx or IronOx and then stropping. If you can't get your razor to pass the HHT up and down the blade, it may not be sharp enough.
 
Tried the lathering down the neck, still did a little jump. The blade is sharp, was done by Lynn Abrams at / with Vintage Blades. I'll have to try getting the blade moving a little before getting to the trouble spot. Now that I think about it, I think I do a short stroke there.

I've only had around 16 shaves with a str8, just a weekend warrior right now as I shave in the morning and I get at work around 6:30 to 7. And I leave at 5 to 5:15. As my total speed picks up I will start useing the str8 more and more. I really prefer the str8 to the DE, just a better shave :thumbup1:. That and the cool factor.

Thanks for the in put.
 
Be careful "getting the blade moving" on your neck. It's harder to cut yourself with a straight that one should reasonable expect but it is still damn easy. And when it happens, it happens fast.

The blade really shouldn't stick or jump anywhere. Well honed and with a good lather, it should move through stubble like it isn't there. Especially in the WTG and XTG passes.
 
O, don't worry about that, I'll take it real slow. It happens right at the fold at the base of the neck. Maybe not enough stretching of the skin.

This new razor doe's cut the stubble, really a pleasure to use.
 
Try raising the spine somewhat away from your face, it might be that you are holding it to close to your face.
 
Thanks Gustav, I'll look at that too. Got a little experimenting to do this weekend.

Thanks everyone.
 

Kentos

B&B's Dr. Doolittle.
Staff member
Congrats on sticking out the bad shaves and lopped off facial features!! It only gets better and better.

Just as a devil's advocate, my razor, when honed well and finished on CBN, doesn't catch anywhere. It could be my improved technique, but don't rule out a less than sharp enough blade.
 
Gave it a go this morning, much better. A little more tightening of the skin and a little more water in the lather. Still I think I'll run the razors on the treated strop's and then the leather strop. Give it another go in the AM. Thanks everyone for the tips.:thumbup1:
 
One other tip that works for me on my neck is to add a stretching facial expression. When I shave my neck, I tilt my head up and out of the way, and move my lips and chin in a way that stretches the skin even more.
 
+1 on what drewmac said. That's helped me in combo of stretching skin with the other hand. Also as said before, blade angle is super important especially I find with ATG on the neck.
 
Everyone above me has great advice. When I started I hadn't really noticed that my blade was "skipping" til my Wife pointed it out. I believe keeping my blade wet has reduced that.

I also believe that properly-applied pre-shave oil before and WH after have drastically improved my shave results.

All in all I think you have a good philosophy - "Slow and steady wins the race". When you start pushing you will start getting irritation or nicks.
 
What pre-shave oil do you use? I face lather most of the time, doe's oil mess with that?

Yeah drewmac, I look like the monkey in Brent's avatar when I shave :wink2:.
 
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