2 new Straight Razors and some questions.

mulligano · Tuesday April 2, 2013

After all, the first time shaver will still have to master using new and unfamiliar tool, skin stretching, blade angling, etc, etc, etc - all fruitful grounds for blaming the tool/honer for, so don't roll his edge first!

Thanks Neil, I was thinking the same after the previous comments.

Please get a longer and better strop. It will make for a more pleasant time of it.

I will do. I'm away for a week just now but I'll order one when I get back - any particular recommendations?

Thanks,
Micheal

lindyhop66 · Tuesday April 2, 2013

I don't know what's available in the UK, where you are.

I have Walkin' Horse Strops, Straight Razor Design, Tony Miller, vintage Illinois and others. I love my kangaroo and horsebutt strops and prefer 3 inch width strops and a linen strop. These are all made in the USA.

Neil Miller makes strops in the UK. He answered your posts. He makes excellent strops from what I've read. They are expensive though. I don't know of others in the UK. There is someone in Sweden as well, but also expensive.

UKRob · Tuesday April 2, 2013

lindyhop66 said:
There is someone in Sweden as well, but also expensive.

I suspect Lindyhop is thinking of Scrupleworks in Norway.

http://www.scrupleworks.com/strops.html

At the budget end there is an Ebay trader - something like 'Leather & Things' and of course there is Steve at Invisible Edge who deals in Dovo and TI as well as own brand strops.

Lose the beard · Tuesday April 2, 2013

If you want a decent strop you can't go wrong with one from Neil Miller.

You can either PM him, or contact him through his website.

Neil should be able to make you something suitable to get you started, he may even have something in stock already that would be suitable.

www.strop-shop.co.uk

brummell · Tuesday April 2, 2013

I would also recommend Neil's strops, I have two and they really are excellent quality.

mulligano · Sunday April 7, 2013

Thanks all for the recommendations, I'll wait for the razor to arrive and I'll see about ordering a new strop then.

mulligano · Tuesday April 9, 2013

Well I had my first shave with this razor today and have to say it was great!

I only focused on my cheeks and lower neck to get the hang of using it and of using my weak hand for the other side of my face. I got no irritation or cuts and had a damn smooth shave as a result. There's something that I can't quite put my finger on that makes this kind of shaving even more satisfying than DE/SE shaving.

While I have nothing to compare it to, I have to say that Neil's honing work was top notch - I had very little tugging and the tiny amount I did get (around my chin when I got ahead of myself) was due to my somewhat-to-be-desired technique!

I can't wait to give it another go and I'll be looking into getting a new strop ASAP.

Thanks everyone for the advice and thanks to Neil for his great work at a very reasonable price.

lindyhop66 · Tuesday April 9, 2013

Great results! There is nothing like straight razor shaving. It's hard to go back to DE or SE after, but I do touchup some troublesome areas with a DE or SE, preferably an SE.

mulligano · Friday May 3, 2013

I had my first full shave with the straight tonight that hasn't required a touch up with the DE. It feels great! It might not be totally smooth on my neck on my "bad side", but I couldn't be happier. I feel like I've just learned some great new skill!

I've put my SOTD post here. As I mention there, my skin even seems less raw afterwards too.

Thanks for all your advice and help, and a special thanks to Neil for honing the razor for me.

UKRob · Saturday May 4, 2013

Congratulations Micheal. If you think it feels good now then you have some great experiences to come. I found that shaving with a straight involves quantum leaps in terms of the outcome. It's not possible to explain why or how it occurs, but one day - doing exactly what you've done for the last month or so, you put the razor down with a smile on your face and realize that this is the best shave of your life - so far.

The good news is that it keeps getting better - sure there are those days when it's not as good as the day before but that happens in any walk of life - but you never stop learning with a straight. And, more importantly, you never stop improving.

By the way, if you ever want to try a different kind of straight razor, let me know and we can discuss a few options. Like a personal pif if you like.

mulligano · Saturday May 4, 2013

UKRob said:
Congratulations Micheal. If you think it feels good now then you have some great experiences to come. I found that shaving with a straight involves quantum leaps in terms of the outcome. It's not possible to explain why or how it occurs, but one day - doing exactly what you've done for the last month or so, you put the razor down with a smile on your face and realize that this is the best shave of your life - so far.

The good news is that it keeps getting better - sure there are those days when it's not as good as the day before but that happens in any walk of life - but you never stop learning with a straight. And, more importantly, you never stop improving.

By the way, if you ever want to try a different kind of straight razor, let me know and we can discuss a few options. Like a personal pif if you like.

That's incredibly generous of you Rob, I will definitely keep that in mind. Right now I'm so chuffed with my little Joseph Elliot that I can't wait to use it again!

The "quantum leaps" could definitely be applied to tonight's shave. I've been struggling each time to get the right angle of my hand on my upper neck and basically on anything with my bad hand. But tonight, without any conscious effort on my part, it just sort of clicked! I think it's something that would be hard to teach to someone else.