Straight shaving is something that is an ongoing process, and something that requires constant attention. I've been at it for almost 5 years and I'll still manage to give myself a nick or cut, but I learn something from each one. Keep in mind that shaving with a straight is not for everyone, and there is nothing at all wrong with shaving with a DE. Its all about whatever you enjoy the most, and whatever gives you the most satisfaction in your shave. I enjoy using my straights, but if I had to give them up I could be just as happy shaving with my DE's. Give it some thought, and decide for yourself which type of shaving suits you best.
A Year In; Many Hundreds of $ Invested; and Still No Better At This!
- Thread starter dickt
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I also wear glasses. I just tried to shave with them on for the first time. A recipe for disaster for me. They came off immediately.
You might also consider keeping a journal in the straight shaving clinic. There's a bunch of know-it-alls in there too trying to figure this stuff out just like you. Join us?
You might also consider keeping a journal in the straight shaving clinic. There's a bunch of know-it-alls in there too trying to figure this stuff out just like you. Join us?
Perhaps you could send one of us a razor you have been shaving with that cut you so we can assess the edge and go from there.
Coincidentally, the razor I used, after I took my glasses off, was honed by Scott. Take him up on his offer, OP.
Scott, fyi, your ex-Puma is still purring!
Scott, fyi, your ex-Puma is still purring!
I can definitely relate to the frustration of getting a cut after you've been doing this for a while. Like it was mentioned, it just takes a little carelessness of your part and there goes another one. The most frustrating part is getting a scar afterwards to remind you of it!!
But you must remember to be careful each time. If you don't feel like shaving with a straight or taking the time one evening, just use the DE instead of trying to rush with the straight.
With regards to irritation, smoothness of the shave etc... Like everyone says, stick with one razor, and really spend the time required on it. Make sure all your stones are dead flat. Also, I personally couldn't get an edge as sharp from the ZG as from lapping film. So maybe the razors could be sharper, but its impossible to tell from here. Take the offer from Scott and see how the edge rates to yours.
Also make sure you dull the point of your square tip razors, they can definitely be quicker to bite if you're careless even for a second.
Good luck!
But you must remember to be careful each time. If you don't feel like shaving with a straight or taking the time one evening, just use the DE instead of trying to rush with the straight.
With regards to irritation, smoothness of the shave etc... Like everyone says, stick with one razor, and really spend the time required on it. Make sure all your stones are dead flat. Also, I personally couldn't get an edge as sharp from the ZG as from lapping film. So maybe the razors could be sharper, but its impossible to tell from here. Take the offer from Scott and see how the edge rates to yours.
Also make sure you dull the point of your square tip razors, they can definitely be quicker to bite if you're careless even for a second.
Good luck!
Antique Hoosier
“Aircooled”
Just my opinion but I would never change the spike on a razor..... YMMV
SO.......what is the 30 day "FIDELITY" SETUP?
SO.......what is the 30 day "FIDELITY" SETUP?
Excellent advice here. The only thing I might add is work on those shaving faces. Loose skin is the devil and just begging to be cut. I don't use my fingers to stretch the skin often, but I am always making faces to pull the skin snug before the razor touches my face. In those places where making faces isn't enough then I get my fingers involved.
What jumped out to me in this post was the areas where you are getting cuts. They are very specific areas and tend to make me think it is technique around your glasses and chin (leaving the corners of your mouth for the moment) that is causing your difficulty.
First, under the glasses: this is normally the easiest area to shave because it is straight and flat, and the skin is much tougher on the cheeks than on, say, the neck. I believe your problem here is strictly due to working around your glasses. Perhaps you are starting with the razor at too high an angle to clear your glasses? I have shaved with reading glasses on and found it difficult and can see how glasses could cause a fair amount of difficulty. Just as a suggestion, you might try not wearing your glasses but instead using a magnifying mirror, at least on your cheeks.
The chin area is just difficult to shave with an unprotected razor because it is curved in two directions. And as you say you are retired, the skin on your chin is probably not as tight as it used to be and it is tough to pull the skin tight in that area. The chin and just under my jaw is where I get almost all of my little weepers again because they are very curved areas. As you mention too much pressure, I suspect that you will just have to practice at it and really try to keep the pressure down. Also, it just takes a long time to shave that area well, or at least it does for me and trying to move along faster results in blood and a lousy shave to boot. Unfortunately, the chin / jawline are two places where safety razors (any type, even cartridges) have a fantastic advantage over a straight. A straight razor will work fine on those areas but it is extremely unforgiving and as I already said, very slow- going in my experience.
As to the corners of your mouth: the 'trick' that worked for me was to totally ignore that spot. Just shave right past it as though it is not even there. If the mouth skin is taught, and the face maneuvered around to present a fairly straight patch of skin, just shave right past the mouth corners, going both directions and it is just not a problem, at least on my face. Stopping and starting at the mouth corners ARE problems and will usually result in some nasty razor burn for me. So even if I am after just a small patch of skin near the corner of the mount, or immediately near there on the upper / lower lip, I make at least a one- inch or longer pass over and past the area just to keep the razor flat and moving.
As to the rest, I think it is good advice to pick one razor that you find best fits your hand and shaving style- and that razor is probably not your favorite nor the 'best' razor in your collection but the one that just works best for you as a shaving tool. I found my favorite in spite of the fact that I was busy trying to prefer other razors but there is one that just 'feels' right for me and I think it is best to get used to the shaving part of shaving, where the edge rides over the skin, without adding variable such as blade weight, thickness, etc., etc. Once you get a good feel for shaving your own face, you can use almost anything with success but you will know what you are looking for regarding blade angle, razor speed, and a host of other variables.
As to soap, I find any good soap works fine for me but the range of bad shaving soaps and creams is almost endless. In fact, some of the very popular brands / types perform either fair at best for me or outright just do not work. I won't mention any brand names other than two that I find consistently excellent: Mike's and Tabac. It took a long time for me to appreciate Tabac, and to be honest, I only kept going back because of the high ratings it has been given by a couple of folks here I respect a lot but in the end, it is probably the slickest, most protective soap available. Once I added enough water to stop it drying out on my face, things got a lot better
Straight shaving is a skill that must be learned and practiced. If you keep at it, you will almost certainly have great success. It does sound like you are very close and overcoming just a couple of relatively small problem situations and have you in great shape. I noticed that you have no complaints about shaving your throat, neck or jawline, all of which are usually problem areas, so it sounds like you have the overall technique down.
The very best of luck with this.
Brian
First, under the glasses: this is normally the easiest area to shave because it is straight and flat, and the skin is much tougher on the cheeks than on, say, the neck. I believe your problem here is strictly due to working around your glasses. Perhaps you are starting with the razor at too high an angle to clear your glasses? I have shaved with reading glasses on and found it difficult and can see how glasses could cause a fair amount of difficulty. Just as a suggestion, you might try not wearing your glasses but instead using a magnifying mirror, at least on your cheeks.
The chin area is just difficult to shave with an unprotected razor because it is curved in two directions. And as you say you are retired, the skin on your chin is probably not as tight as it used to be and it is tough to pull the skin tight in that area. The chin and just under my jaw is where I get almost all of my little weepers again because they are very curved areas. As you mention too much pressure, I suspect that you will just have to practice at it and really try to keep the pressure down. Also, it just takes a long time to shave that area well, or at least it does for me and trying to move along faster results in blood and a lousy shave to boot. Unfortunately, the chin / jawline are two places where safety razors (any type, even cartridges) have a fantastic advantage over a straight. A straight razor will work fine on those areas but it is extremely unforgiving and as I already said, very slow- going in my experience.
As to the corners of your mouth: the 'trick' that worked for me was to totally ignore that spot. Just shave right past it as though it is not even there. If the mouth skin is taught, and the face maneuvered around to present a fairly straight patch of skin, just shave right past the mouth corners, going both directions and it is just not a problem, at least on my face. Stopping and starting at the mouth corners ARE problems and will usually result in some nasty razor burn for me. So even if I am after just a small patch of skin near the corner of the mount, or immediately near there on the upper / lower lip, I make at least a one- inch or longer pass over and past the area just to keep the razor flat and moving.
As to the rest, I think it is good advice to pick one razor that you find best fits your hand and shaving style- and that razor is probably not your favorite nor the 'best' razor in your collection but the one that just works best for you as a shaving tool. I found my favorite in spite of the fact that I was busy trying to prefer other razors but there is one that just 'feels' right for me and I think it is best to get used to the shaving part of shaving, where the edge rides over the skin, without adding variable such as blade weight, thickness, etc., etc. Once you get a good feel for shaving your own face, you can use almost anything with success but you will know what you are looking for regarding blade angle, razor speed, and a host of other variables.
As to soap, I find any good soap works fine for me but the range of bad shaving soaps and creams is almost endless. In fact, some of the very popular brands / types perform either fair at best for me or outright just do not work. I won't mention any brand names other than two that I find consistently excellent: Mike's and Tabac. It took a long time for me to appreciate Tabac, and to be honest, I only kept going back because of the high ratings it has been given by a couple of folks here I respect a lot but in the end, it is probably the slickest, most protective soap available. Once I added enough water to stop it drying out on my face, things got a lot better
Straight shaving is a skill that must be learned and practiced. If you keep at it, you will almost certainly have great success. It does sound like you are very close and overcoming just a couple of relatively small problem situations and have you in great shape. I noticed that you have no complaints about shaving your throat, neck or jawline, all of which are usually problem areas, so it sounds like you have the overall technique down.
The very best of luck with this.
Brian
They can even be very gentle. My Weck Medical has an optional guard that makes it almost foolproof; I can hack and slash and press and hurry and not get more than the smallest weeper. Although the guard could be used like training wheels, it doesn't feel like training wheels or cheating, and it helps enforce correct angle/technique.
Them's fightin' words!
Well said, I am new and have only been straight razor shaving for a month or so. I hone my own with the spyderco system and I only have one dovo razor. I occasionally will get a little blood on one spot that wipes away with cold water, nothing more. When thinking about angle remember that the with of the blade is already at 15 degrees, so you only need to hold it 15 more degrees off your face. If you put it at 30 degrees plus the with of the blade you are at 45 degrees which = cuts. As was said it should glide on your face not scrape.
My 2 cents, I hope this helps
Honestly, I've been using one straight for a year now, and I am just feeling like I am getting a consistently close shave with no irritation or cuts. Stick with it and keep practicing and I am sure you will find that one day you'll have that great shave with no bloodshed.
I tend to use a Merkur DE for my XTG and ATG passes on the chin. For whatever reason, its always been difficult to really get a good ATG on my chin. The blade feels like it hangs up on me.
I tend to use a Merkur DE for my XTG and ATG passes on the chin. For whatever reason, its always been difficult to really get a good ATG on my chin. The blade feels like it hangs up on me.
I noticed that i cut myself often at the sane spot, which i took as a sign that i need to debug something specific.
I did a ''simulated shave'' with a Feather artist club without the blade and it helped me find the ill-formed strokes that caused the problem.
I did a ''simulated shave'' with a Feather artist club without the blade and it helped me find the ill-formed strokes that caused the problem.
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