Back when I was a 13 year old kid my grandparents took me over to see my great uncle. He was to my young eyes very ancient. He lived in a very small house and he was preparing to shave. He pulled out an old straight razor and a shaving kit. He lathered up his face, hit the razor on an old strop and then just attacked his face. I was terrified. I expected to see gushing blood everywhere. His hand was just moving at a rapid pace like he was trying to finish in record time. In no time he was done and he wiped of his face and did not have one nick.

I was amazed. He had obviously done that countless times and was a master.

I shave my cheeks and under my beard once a week with a 20 year old triple bladed razor. I change blades about once per year. I don't even remember what brand it is. I can't help you with a straight razor question. Anytime I think of a straight razor I think of old Uncle Vic.

Sorry for the late reply, been traveling, bought a car, summer is in full swing.

Jim, this is probably the best advice I can get, thank you. I'm an asset buyer: I save until I get something that will last vs an expense buyer: get something just to have it.

But in this case, getting a low cost razor to start makes sense. HH posted a good link for starter razors, will go in that direction.

On soaps, I'm using Synergy now, like it. Have used Mitchell's wool fat as well, liked it too but didn't lather up as much. Any recommendations?

My hair is all over the place. I have hard, course hair mixed with fine hair and it grows in every direction under the sun. Combine that with bike accident scar and a chain saw accident scar on my left cheek, shaving sucks. Now add in shaven hairs, .5 to 1mm, no matter what I do/use, get stuck back into pores and get infected. Also have a lot of ingrown hair. 10 years of this, I've tried everything. Hoping a straight razor will be the answer.

Appreciate your, and everyone's help on this!

Hey Donovan, the depth and breadth of knowledge and helpfulness of members of this forum never ceases to amaze me.

I like my E&J a lot. Fitted with Merkur blades, it's comfortable and just feels good to shave with it. Wish it had solved my problem.

If you get a safety or a straight, definitely let us know your experience.

I shaved with my granddads old Gillette safety razor the whole time I was in the Navy. That has been retired and I now shave with this.

Picture taken just now, especially for Sammy:

The toughest thing for me has been finding a good lather. As has been said, most any strop will get the job done.SmileWavy

Had to rotate the pic...

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1433732322.jpg

Check these folks out first. I like there products.

The Art of Shaving: Your Online Source for Quality Shaving Products

I like the idea of a razor like that, but I don't completely trust the GF so I would need to keep it in the gun safe. And that gets a bit impractical for daily shaving.

I just use a bic disposable single bladed razor. It lasts about a week or two and is so cheap it's almost free.

What shoes do you wear while using it?

Ok, soapbox mode - at the Art of Shavng you are paying way more than you need to. There are tons of others out there that have been doing it longer and better. That said, again I refer to Badgerandblade.com for education (the shave wiki is Very thorough) also, there are vendors on the site that will give you deals and percentage off just for being a member. They have boards on Straights, DE's soaps, creams, techniques, etc. it is the Pelican Parts boards but for your face (they also have body stuff too). When you get into straights or DE's the world opens up on options. The only problem I have found it that sometimes I spend more time in the bathroom than the SWMBO. And don't get me started on honing! That is another whole world.

Shaun PM me if you want any help, suggestions, ideas. I have Been shaving with straights and SE (I love the single edge more than DE's) for a bit over 5 years. I haven't needed to buy a razor since then and my face is the better for it. If you have scars my suggestion is to get comfortable with the blade before you take any more skin off. Yes I have horror stories about trying to catch a dropped blade and some facial evidence of a straight, but patience, correct angle and preparation (lubrication and hydration) will make those 'experiences' minimal. Oh, and wait for your first coffee of the day until after you have shaved! Yea, makes sense now.

Again, PM me , happy to help, BTW: my favorite aftershave is Captain's Choice Bay Rum.
Cheers and Happy Shaving...
Jim

somehow this thread came to mind....

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/off-topic-discussions/274943-just-cut-my-sack.html

Great info but I have to ask.

You can get such a close and relatively safe shave with modern disposables. Why go to straight razor?

Is it that much better?

I use an English made beaver brush and Italian soap. I like the process and using a modern multi blade razor is just easier.
My dad used to use a safety razor but he went to disposable as soon as they were introduced.

For me, it is a matter of finding a smoother approach. As Shaun mentioned his hair grows in different directions and in various thickness, same as mine. I find that a well honed single blade with the right edge will cut more thorough, faster and with less drag than a 3, 4 or 5 blade razor. I actually find the 2 blades better than multi-blade which creates breaks in the hairs and can cause ingrown hairs. With lubricating cream and using a brush to lift the hairs you are about 50% of the way there. Now it is just a matter f making clean single blade cuts.
Again my hairs are very thick - I can grow a ful beard in 5 days (my 5 O'clock shadow shows up at 2:30)! So a wedge whacks those hairs clean and gone in one move. Same principal with the DE's and Se's. You can pick up an older DE at the flea markets for $10 or less, and blades are a few bucks, well within the Porsche lifestyle budget and well worth it!
Cheers, and happy shaves!
Jim

I've always used disposables since my teens. Two years ago I started using the old double edge safety razor and never looked back. The price of disposables has gotten out of control. I get way more shaves out of a safety razor than I did with a Mach 3. I tried a straight razor a few times. Just couldn't get good enough with it. Besides the fact that my face ended up looking like I got mauled by a grizzly...

I got everything yesterday: Dovo Best Quality 5/8 full hollow and a reasonable strop. To better cope with my ingrown hairs, I also got a set of tweezers. See pics.

So after watching tons of videos last night, i decided to just do my upper sideburn area fading a little down into my cheeks this morning. It was f'ing scary. But not as hard as I thought it would be and I survived unscathed with an amazing shave on my cheeks. Seriously, I know this will take time, but first time, I have a great shave.

Vintage Blades says their razors come shave ready, professionally honed. Out of the box, I was surprised at either how tough my hairs were or how dull the blade was. You could hear the blade going through my beard. And it was loud. I'm looking forward to stopping it tomorrow night when I try again on Thursday.

Net net, I can see how this will be a great way to shave once I am comfortable with it, which will take probably a month. What was funny was how effortless shaving with my safety was in comparison. Finished up with that.

Tweezers. More expensive than the razor. Made out of cobalt. Made in Switzerland. Perfect for what I need. I almost think these alone would save my face, the combination should. Some graphic pics of why I need them. The black tweezer is my Tweezerman "ingrown hair" model with "near surgical accuracy." Silver is the new Excelta. The Swiss are serious folks!

Thanks to Jim and HH for your help! Really appreciate it.


One reason I am trying a straight razor.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1434506934.jpg



New Excelta tweezer. Tip size is .05mm x .01mm.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1434507128.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1434507152.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1434507175.jpg



Comparing the two.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1434507212.jpg

The noise is pretty typical, as is the resistance.
The only times I've ever cut myself was right under the nose and corners or the mouth, but never anything that a styptic pencil couldn't handle.
Enjoy! Once you get a handle on things, it becomes almost therapeutic.