A beginner's journey to straight razors

T

thorpef1

Member
Joined
Nov 27, 2022
Location
Sydney
Hi all.

I was the lucky one to pick up @rbscebu straight razor PIF so I thought why not document my journey and let some others know how it goes (thanks for the idea Richard)

PIF - Shave-ready T.R. Cadman "Bengall" Straight Razor

This PIF would best suit a beginner into the gentlemanly art of straight razor (SR) shaving. What is being offered is a shave-ready (to my standard) T.R. Cadman "Bengall" straight razor plus instructions if required. Characteristics: Manufacturer = T.R. Cadman & Sons Ltd, Sheffield...
paste-and-cut.com.au

https://imgur.com/B4cz5Us

I've been using a DE razor for around 7 years and properly wet shaving the last 1.

With a newborn at home, I may not be able to get as much time to this as liked, but I'll give it my best shot.

Gear:
* T.R. Cadman & Sons full hollow Dutch point straight razor.
* Stonego leather strop (really cheap)
* Titan leather and denim strop (cheap)
* Yaqi rocks 28mm synthetic brush
* Lots and lots of soaps

Reference instructions:

SR Shaving Instructions for Beginners (Rev. H)

So, you are interested in trying out this straight razor shaving thing. Here are the instructions that you will help guide you along the way into this gentlemanly art. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1t1TpTWL_OY_fqDvp_NkgdLVvG7gwSbtf/view?usp=sharing As more is learned, these instructions will...
paste-and-cut.com.au

Any questions or comments for improvement, feel free to comment below.
 
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SR number. 1
Date. 16/9/23
Growth. 4 days
Razor. T.R. Cadman & Sons full hollow Dutch point straight razor.
Soap. Ariane and Evans peach and cognac, bowl lathered
Shaved area. All of right cheek. Half of left cheek
Cuts. No cuts or nicks
Observations. Ok, this is my first shave with a straight razor. As you can imagine im pretty cautious and taking things slow trying to get my grip right and understanding how to hold it. I end up shaving 1 1/2 cheeks which I'm happy with, no nicks or cuts . Overall I'm quite happy with how it turned out. I felt I needed to add a little more pressure than I was hoping for. Maybe because there is a few days of growth. Next time try after 1 or 2 days growth. I finish the rest off with my trusty slim/voshkod combo.

https://imgur.com/a/8AmtQuk
 
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SR number. 2
Date. 17/9/23
Growth. 1 day
Razor. T.R. Cadman & Sons full hollow Dutch point straight razor.
Soap. Mitchell's wool fat, face lathered
Shaved area. Full face
Cuts. 2 very small weepers on neck, slight rash on right side of neck
Observations. Day 2, definitely easier to take down with only a days growth. I now figure out how to use both sides of the blade for both sides of the face, like using a backhand for the left side of the face. I'm brave enough to go down beyond the cheek today and manage to do my whole face. Trying to get the right angle under the nose was quite tricky. Moving down to the jawline and neck surprised me, not as tricky as I thought but I do find myself only using about 2cm of the blade and not making contact with the full blade, maybe something to check into next shave. Post shave I got out the alum block, something I hadn't used in quite a while. It sure stings today, especially around the neck and after a clean up I did notice a bit of a rash on my neck (similar to when I first started my DE journey with different blades).
Overall I'm really impressed with the fact that I was able to do a full face on my second shave, plenty of room for improvement still with angles and technique.

https://imgur.com/a/b6H1o0z
 
Haha, well I would feel bad if I took it off your hands and threw it into the drawer.

First time on the cheek wasn't as scary as I thought it would have been, having a good technique from DE probably have a bit of confidence.
Today's shave to the jawline and neck was just small strokes, slow and steady for the moment
 
To help improve your technique watch some YouTube videos. I’d recommend Matti Lindholm, Kai Trista and Dave Card. You are better off being shallower on your angle. Just take it slow to start and you will build the muscle memory pretty quickly. You’ll be whipping around your face in no time. Make sure to work on your stropping technique also as it is also very important to making this work and keeping things comfortable.
 
Even though I'm no longer using straights, it's gratifying to hear how people are starting out on that path. Good to hear you've had a relatively painless start, and you most probably have @rbscebu to thank for getting you started with a decent edge, which is the most important step. When I started out, there was no YouTube, I just had to work it out by myself, which is definitely not the best way.
 
CarbonEdge said:
To help improve your technique watch some YouTube videos. I’d recommend Matti Lindholm, Kai Trista and Dave Card. You are better off being shallower on your angle. Just take it slow to start and you will build the muscle memory pretty quickly. You’ll be whipping around your face in no time. Make sure to work on your stropping technique also as it is also very important to making this work and keeping things comfortable.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the references, really enjoy watching others shave and picking up tips and tricks especially Matti Lindholm driving home low angle and light pressure
 
Seems that you are doing fine, muscle memory is the key. When you do something often enough, it becomes second nature.

I often laugh at myself, when I try to change something in the way I shave. Any change feels sooooo awkward.

I can also give you a good tip for a common mistake new SR shavers make: When you are overly cautious, which is a good thing, you are likely to place the blade on your skin before starting the stroke. That displaces the lather and makes you prone to nicks, as the razor is not gliding on the lubrication the lather provides. The right way is to hover over your starting point, not touching, start your stroke and then make contact with the blade moving.

Having a stationary blade on your skin is a recipe for disaster.
 
Jaco said:
Seems that you are doing fine, muscle memory is the key. When you do something often enough, it becomes second nature.

I often laugh at myself, when I try to change something in the way I shave. Any change feels sooooo awkward.

I can also give you a good tip for a common mistake new SR shavers make: When you are overly cautious, which is a good thing, you are likely to place the blade on your skin before starting the stroke. That displaces the lather and makes you prone to nicks, as the razor is not gliding on the lubrication the lather provides. The right way is to hover over your starting point, not touching, start your stroke and then make contact with the blade moving.

Having a stationary blade on your skin is a recipe for disaster.
Click to expand...
Yeah, that is a good point for anyone to remember. I discovered that to be the case when I gave myself the first weeper. Hover, get the angle right, and make a stroke.
 
SR number. 3
Date. 19/9/23
Growth. 2 days
Razor. T.R. Cadman & Sons full hollow Dutch point straight razor.
Soap. Barrister and Mann Seville. Face lathered
Shaved area. Both cheeks and below the jaw line
Cuts. No cuts or nicks
Observations. I've now watched a few beginner guides on YouTube, thanks for the recommendations @CarbonEdge and picking up some techniques. Today I decided to give my neck a miss as my neck really doesn't like daily shaving (3+ days is fine). So I did my cheeks and the jawline. I'm starting to realise that a good lather is really important with a straight, poor lather and the blade won't budge. I'm also staring to find the right angles and stretching my skin as needed, puffing out my cheeks was another technique I found useful. I'm starting to listen to the feedback of the blade and I noticed that I'm using more of the blade on certain parts of my face. The strop also arrived yesterday so I gave to 40 laps before thismornings shave and will continue to every shave now that I have it. Overall result wasn't too bad, still touched up with the slim afterwards but no nicks or cuts which is a good sign.

Thanks to all that have added comments so far, it really makes this journey easier

https://imgur.com/a/DYqzSxl
 
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Don't worry about too much blood, it just adds to the slickness :D.

As you are learning, lather and face prep are very important in SR shaving. Not all soaps that work will with "safety" razors work well with SRs. SR shaving also requires a wetter lather than that you may be use to with other shaving systems. If you can, try Palmolive shaving cream that works well with SRs. It is cheap at under $3 for a 65g tube and should be available in your local IGA.

It sounds like you are already starting to enjoy your SR journey. Good for you.
 
rbscebu said:
As you are learning, lather and face prep are very important in SR shaving.
Click to expand...
I have quite a sensitive neck so I don't shave without a warm shower and a good lather.
But I find with a straight razor (well atleast at my stage) I'm unable to shave without and cream in place, with a DE however I'm able to go over another pass where the soap may have already been used.

I'll keep an eye out for the Palmolive
 
thorpef1 said:
I have quite a sensitive neck so I don't shave without a warm shower and a good lather.
But I find with a straight razor (well atleast at my stage) I'm unable to shave without and cream in place, with a DE however I'm able to go over another pass where the soap may have already been used.

I'll keep an eye out for the Palmolive
Click to expand...
You need a better soap. Not all soaps are right for every face and skin type. Even a top ranked soap may not be as good as a lesser level. For example, I like La Toja better than Barrister and Mann's older base and slightly less but close to the Omnibus base, but that is my face. Palmolive cream that @rbscebu mentioned is good, as it has the main ingredients found in Vi-John and is cheaply priced. I like it a lot, myself. Other inexpensive soaps are Vi-John cream, La Toja (stick or cream), and Ach. Brito Lavanda cream (nice lavender but not flowery). With these I can touch up without re-lathering as a rule. I used Vi-John Icy Mint for my shave, today.
 
thorpef1 said:
I have quite a sensitive neck so I don't shave without a warm shower and a good lather.
But I find with a straight razor (well atleast at my stage) I'm unable to shave without and cream in place, with a DE however I'm able to go over another pass where the soap may have already been used.

I'll keep an eye out for the Palmolive
Click to expand...
Don't worry too much about your SR neck shaving but keep on trying every so often. For some, myself included, successfully SR shaving the neck area was the most challenging part of the SR shave journey.

Later, when you have developed a good SR shaving technique for your face, we can work with you on improving your neck shaving technique. It can be done - without any irritation. Maybe not BBS results but at least DFS.
 
Doc Dan said:
You need a better soap
Click to expand...
I have quite a variety of soaps (MWF, B&M, declaration grooming, PAA, Extro, A&E, Stirling, Blue Devil.

In my DE journey it was finding the right blade, voshkod gives me a perfect pain free shave every time.

I think for straight shaving, it's again about getting the right angle.

Will definitely grab a Palmolive to try out

rbscebu said:
Don't worry too much about your SR neck shaving but keep on trying every so often
Click to expand...
That was my approach today, focus above the neck and occasionally give the neck a go, like anything it requires practice.
 
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Lots of good advice here about soaps, and I won't argue with any of them, but making your lather wetter is good advice for any shaving system. You often see people's lather looking like a stiff meringue, and that's too dry. If it's almost ready to leave your brush by itself, that's when it's about right. Your B&M should be just fine.

Edit: you don't need a thick layer of lather on your face. It's the fraction of a mm that's in contact with your skin that's doing the work.
 
Gargravarr said:
Lots of good advice here about soaps, and I won't argue with any of them, but making your lather wetter is good advice for any shaving system. You often see people's lather looking like a stiff meringue, and that's too dry. If it's almost ready to leave your brush by itself, that's when it's about right. Your B&M should be just fine.

Edit: you don't need a thick layer of lather on your face. It's the fraction of a mm that's in contact with your skin that's doing the work.
Click to expand...
Yep, agree wetter the better. Almost to the point it’s dripping off the blade after a stroke. Hydrate that soap!
 
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