First Straight Razor Shave went surprisingly well.

[Taproot]

I wasn't going to use it yet- but there was my newly arrived Whipped dog razor (a Wolstenholm and sons IXL), strop, oils/hooks, and balsa wood with abrasives- all laid out and each attached with a different set of instructions. I had played around with a shavette before- and received quite a few cuts on those experimental outings- I was going to wait until I had a few more days growth, a better lighting setup (visiting my parents for the weekend) ect. But I needed to load up my new horsehair brush with arko (to get the new brush smell out and soften it) and I could use some of the lather to oil the strop to boot! As I went about my task a powerful lather was built up and the Razor beckoned. Somehow I had gotten a hot towel to my face and two minutes later my arm moved with the dutiful and mechanical motions of something not entirely of my own control towards the straight- it was at this point I realized that I would be shaving today.

I ended up doing a 3 pass with the straight, and drew no blood to boot. A real straight is everything I hoped it would be- significantly more forgiving than the shavette- and this hollow ground in particular made it clear when I was doing it right- it sang. Too shallow of an angle and tugging would occur- each hair achingly cut one by one, increase the angle slightly and suddenly it was effortless, the noise of it was so distinct when done right- although I can't yet make it sing every stroke.

The results are passable- nowhere near my practiced hand with a DE razor, and definitely inconsistent, some areas were easy for me to hit right- and they're as close as a perfect DE session would get them- others were missed to a large degree. My face was a bit irritated- but that may have been moved along by the face lathering I ended up doing with the HH brush (those things are REALLY stiff when brand new.)

In the back of my mind I had been worried that I had made a mistake deciding to buy a straight razor- the Shavette hadn't helped that too much. This first session, while not perfect, has convinced me that if I can maintain the blade properly and get my technique down that I've found the end of the line for my acquisitions in shaving- and it turned out to be right near the beginning.

One question to end, what oil should I use on the blade to keep it from rusting?

[london]

Larry sent mine covered in vasaline, if is good enough for him it's good enough for me.

[AdrianR]

Sounds like you're off to a good start!
I generally smear a drop or two of regular 3-in-1 oil on my straights when I'm done.

[Gissy]

Sounds like a great first shave! Congrats!

[Toxic515]

Mineral oil or vaseline both will do fine. If you're using it daily, you really shouldn't need that, just dry it well and put it up away from water droplets or super high humidity. Welcome welcome!

[Slash McCoy]

I don't normally oil my razors. There is no need, if you dry it thoroughly immediately after use, and keep it dry. Try to keep water from getting into the pivot area and don't close the razor if there might be any moisture between the scales.

For long term storage, a thin application of vaseline works great.

[Grips]

Congrats on the great first shave. I keep my razor in the cotton/silcone sleeves that Jarrod at TSS sells. No muss, no fuss, no rust.

[Raithskar]

I use Mineral oil personally. It seems to do fine.

Sounds like a great first shave congrats!

Oh and about your Aquisition thing......It has just begun. Soon SRAD will set in and in the future HAD (Hone AD). Welcome to the Brotherhood, great shaves, wonderful equipment and figuring out how to cloak your latest purchase from SWMBO!

[kelebekcc]

I use Ballistol after honing.