First two shaves.

Well I have completed my first two shave with a safety razor, and I think I am going to like it!

It seems to be a little more work, but the results seem to be great! I still have a lot to learn, but I am sure with time I will get the hang of it.

It seems, like most my problem area is the neck, and blade angle. At first I was not at a steep enough angle, and I am/was trying to avoid a larger angle. I was going stickily visual, but found it better to go by feel. Is it me, or can you "feel" the proper angle when the blade hits the skin? That is what I have been doing, and it seems to be working. Am I on the right track with that? The neck... well I think with more practice and a consistent angle I will get the hang of it! By the way I am using a Muhle R106.

The brush I am using (came with a AOS kit) seems real soft and tends to fan out quick. I am face lathering, and getting a good lather, but was wondering if a stiffer brush would provide a better experience? I only ask because I feel like the brush is just flopping around on my face. Or should I consider whipping up a lather in a cup instead? Opinions?

Overall, I feel like I am on the right path. I use the razor like a fountain pen for my face.. With a lite touch and let the instrument do the work.

My second shave only took about a half hour, which I was real proud of since the first shave was well over an hour!

Finally.. I have been reading all over and want to thank everyone for all the great advice I have found on this board!

Welcome to B&B! We are here to help you!

Sounds like you're off to a great start!

Congratulations and welcome to the brotherhood! I shave without any noise other than the vent fan (if it comes on). I shave using all my senses except taste (although if I am really exuberant in lathering, I may end up tasting the lather!). I use both feel and the sound while shaving, so I get what you are saying. I am really too new myself to wet shaving to give you advice, but you are right, there is plenty here at B&B! The only brush I have is one I got at that large online retailer, a best badger that was around $35 USD, so that is all I have to go by. Acquisition syndrome is progressing fine, although it may be bordering on disorder soon. I hope to add a couple more inexpensive "starter" brushes, a synthetic and a boar, soon so that I can see/feel what those are like. It is so easy to try so many different things, and then I wonder why something may not be going just right! I need to stick to one soap or cream and one blade for a week and see what I can learn. Best to you on this journey!
Eric

Welcome to B&B. Good to have you here

Welcome! Ive found this community to be very supportive and hope will also. Sounds like you are off to a good start. With experience it will get quicker and be more fulfilling. Angle can be heard as much as anything else. Listen to how the blade shears your beard. The sound will let you know if the angles is right. I do both face and bowl lather with badger brush. Try both and you'll find the one that swirls best for you. I tend to bowl when not in hurry and face when time is of the essence.

Good choice on the R106 BTW. I picked that same one out of a lineup at AoS when I started 10 months ago. I've since picked up other ones for travel, and experimented with the aggressive R41 and the effective Merkur 39C slant, but I keep going back to the R106.
Maybe you have already done something like this. While you lather, fill the sink with shave-water - hot, warm, cool, or cold per your preference - and turn off the faucet so the room is quiet. Hold the round head of the blade against your skin, 90 degree angle. Rock the handle down, making gentle short strokes, until you hear the blade cutting the whiskers. That is the sharpest angle at which you can cut. You have another 30 degrees or so to play with at that point, but the sharpest angle is the best one. You know the blade is cutting from the sound. Any way you handle it, if you grow fond of BBS every shave then it will likely require at least 3 passes and a lot of buffing in the tough spots. Still, as I recall, the results with that R106 (and every razor since then) were far superior to anything I got from cartridges in the preceding 35 years.
The R106 is good for "letting the weight of the razor do the work". You can grasp it lightly by the tip of the handle and just guide it gently. A light hand will allow multiple passes with the least risk of irritation.
I've tried some stiff brushes - synthetic and horse - for face lathering. I got burn-like irritation. If your current brush is working then I'd suggest you keep it for now so as to minimize the variables of change while you are learning. I eventually invested in a Turkish copper lather bowl (currently $8 to $12 on eBay), and also a vintage mug for the Arko puck. Both were money well-spent, but you can improvise with a cup, or just continue face lathering, for the time being.
Welcome aboard.

If you face lather you might want to try a boar brush.

I've been at this a long time and never had a badger brush. I may get one at some point
but a good boar brush is hard to beat.

Welcome and congrats on your recent success! I go a lot by feel myself -- get it right and the blade sings a song to you.

Try a bowl lather and paint it on, see if that helps with your brush.

MrMatt said:

Well I have completed my first two shave with a safety razor, and I think I am going to like it!

It seems to be a little more work, but the results seem to be great! I still have a lot to learn, but I am sure with time I will get the hang of it.

It seems, like most my problem area is the neck, and blade angle. At first I was not at a steep enough angle, and I am/was trying to avoid a larger angle. I was going stickily visual, but found it better to go by feel. Is it me, or can you "feel" the proper angle when the blade hits the skin? That is what I have been doing, and it seems to be working. Am I on the right track with that? The neck... well I think with more practice and a consistent angle I will get the hang of it! By the way I am using a Muhle R106.

The brush I am using (came with a AOS kit) seems real soft and tends to fan out quick. I am face lathering, and getting a good lather, but was wondering if a stiffer brush would provide a better experience? I only ask because I feel like the brush is just flopping around on my face. Or should I consider whipping up a lather in a cup instead? Opinions?

Overall, I feel like I am on the right path. I use the razor like a fountain pen for my face.. With a lite touch and let the instrument do the work.

My second shave only took about a half hour, which I was real proud of since the first shave was well over an hour!

Finally.. I have been reading all over and want to thank everyone for all the great advice I have found on this board!

Click to expand...

That's a bit long...Congrats anyway

Welcome to the club. Glad to have you aboard.

Welcome. 30 min is reasonable with all the things you are having to try right now. I'm 4 months in and it still takes me 20 min. Enjoy it.

Thank YOU for joining our community and congrats on the good shaves!

Hello and welcome, MrMatt. Great to have you here on B&B. Wander on over to the Hall of Fame and introduce yourself.

Welcome to the forum !!

Congrats and welcome aboard.

Glad your here and congrats!

Thank You everyone for the kind words,advice, and welcome greetings!

I really appreciate it!

Glad to hear its going well for you. There are a lot of nice people here. I am still learning too. One thing I have been doing which helps is I only change one variable at a time. Ie, different brush technique. Then you can till if you liked it better or worse. If I totally change everything then I dont know what helped and what didn't.

Greetings, welcome to the forum and congrats on the good shaves! Unless you are pressed for time, I wouldn't worry about how long it takes to shave. I have been DE shaving for one year now and I take 5-10 minutes to whip up my lather in a bowl and another 20-30 minutes to shave, depending on how many passes I happen to feel like doing that day, and another 5 minutes or so to tidy up the bathroom and put my gear away. I like to take my time and savour the whole experience.