Using a straight razor...

[ActionAndy]

Anyone here shave with an old fashioned straight razor? I've been using cartridges all my life (mach 3, mach 15, whatever they've got out now). I've always wanted to try the straight razor though. Asked for one for christmas but, like Ralphie's bb gun, I was told "you'll cut your head off." Certainly I enjoy my head but I think the risk of losing it is fairly small.

The other day i realized that hey, I make my own damn money, and if I want to spend it on antiquated grooming products I will. So, anyone have experience with them? Is there a notable difference in how close the shave is? Worth it?

[leasingthisspace]

I went to this shop once in Vegas where I got a shave. They used a blade and shaved my face, neck, and my head. I usually shave my head daily cuz the wife likes it so I have no fear of myself with a mach3 but that lady with that razor was killing me. I thought it was very close and my wife liked it too.

[boonedoggle]

Originally Posted by leasingthisspace

I went to this shop once in Vegas where I got a shave. They used a blade and shaved my face, neck, and my head. I usually shave my head daily cuz the wife likes it so I have no fear of myself with a mach3 but that lady with that razor was killing me. I thought it was very close and my wife liked it too.

Were you afraid of getting sliced? I think I would always be paranoid of that to have someone else do it. What if he sneezes or something?!

[kgoings]

I have always wanted to buy a straight razor and do it myself, but just never got around to it. I visit a Barber shop once a week to get a straight razor shave, it is VERY close and extremely relaxing

[Commander Quan]

Using a straight is quite a commitment in both time and money. If you want a to use a straight it's more than just the razor you'll need a strop and a quality shaving brush and good quality shaving cream or soap. Which can be a slippery slop it's self. You'll need lots of time, both in the bathroom shaving, and weeks or months before you get a "good" shave.

This is not to discourage you if thats really what you want to do but I'd do lots of research before taking that plunge. I thought straight shaving would be cool, and a awesome skill to have but it just seamed like a lot of work. Instead i got a double edge safety razor and have never looked back at that cartridge.

A couple links to get you started
http://badgerandblade.com/
http://www.vintagebladesllc.com/index.html
http://www.classicshaving.com/Home.html
http://www.youtube.com/user/mantic59?ob=1

I am a member at Badger and Blade it's a great forum for wet shaving info, and I have purchased from Vintage Blades and would recommend them. Classic Shaving I have never purchased from but have heard good things. The youtube videos from mantic59 are great instructional videos and pretty entertaining to watch too.

Good luck If you decide this is a hobby/life style you would like to pursue.

[boonedoggle]

Originally Posted by kgoings

I have always wanted to buy a straight razor and do it myself, but just never got around to it. I visit a Barber shop once a week to get a straight razor shave, it is VERY close and extremely relaxing

I dunno...I can't ever imagine slicing hair off my face as relaxing. To me, a massage is relaxing!

[jsaund22]

Originally Posted by boonedoggle

I dunno...I can't ever imagine slicing hair off my face as relaxing. To me, a massage is relaxing!

You'd be surprised.

I use disposables for everyday shaving, but I have a straight razor for when I feel the need to take a half hour...pampering myself, for lack of a better term. It takes a lot longer with a straight razor, but it is relaxing (once you're used to holding a razor to your own throat...). The hot soap, shaving three times (if you're doing it right), and the witch hazel after-shave splash, it's very relaxing.

It just takes a half an hour. My normal, every-day shave takes three minutes.

Check out http://www.straightrazorplace.com. It's the Club Stogie of the straight razor world.

[ActionAndy]

Thanks guys

[outlawhendrix]

Originally Posted by ActionAndy

Anyone here shave with an old fashioned straight razor? I've been using cartridges all my life (mach 3, mach 15, whatever they've got out now). I've always wanted to try the straight razor though. Asked for one for christmas but, like Ralphie's bb gun, I was told "you'll cut your head off." Certainly I enjoy my head but I think the risk of losing it is fairly small.

The other day i realized that hey, I make my own damn money, and if I want to spend it on antiquated grooming products I will. So, anyone have experience with them? Is there a notable difference in how close the shave is? Worth it?

Every time i go to my barber and get a haircut i get a straight razor shave as well. It's a very good shave. The razors of today seem to shave closer, but thats really not the point. It's the ritual of the razor. The fun of keeping your blase sharp, and the quality of the blade it's self. Im soon going to buy a razor myself when i get a little extra cash.

[rizzle]

Originally Posted by Commander Quan

Using a straight is quite a commitment in both time and money. If you want a to use a straight it's more than just the razor you'll need a strop and a quality shaving brush and good quality shaving cream or soap. Which can be a slippery slop it's self. You'll need lots of time, both in the bathroom shaving, and weeks or months before you get a "good" shave.

This is not to discourage you if thats really what you want to do but I'd do lots of research before taking that plunge. I thought straight shaving would be cool, and a awesome skill to have but it just seamed like a lot of work. Instead i got a double edge safety razor and have never looked back at that cartridge.

A couple links to get you started
http://badgerandblade.com/
http://www.vintagebladesllc.com/index.html
http://www.classicshaving.com/Home.html
http://www.youtube.com/user/mantic59?ob=1

I am a member at Badger and Blade it's a great forum for wet shaving info, and I have purchased from Vintage Blades and would recommend them. Classic Shaving I have never purchased from but have heard good things. The youtube videos from mantic59 are great instructional videos and pretty entertaining to watch too.

Good luck If you decide this is a hobby/life style you would like to pursue.

I took the plunge to the shaving brush a few years ago but I still use disposable blades, albeit on a very nice razor handle that matches my brush handle. Are the safety razor blades worth the investment in them? I can certainly tell the difference in using oil, brushed on cream, and shave as opposed to what a can of edge gives me.

And to the OP, I could never use a straight razor and certainly could never let anyone else shave me with one. I have this incredibly weird phobia about people touching my neck. I'm weird like that.

[Commander Quan]

Red Pack Israeli blades from Persona can be purchased on the internet for 10.00 for 100 blades. This will easily last you a year. I use these blades and find them quite satisfactory. My favorite blades are Feather DE blades you can buy 100 of them from a seller on ebay for $70.00 and there tons of blades between these price ranges. So yes it can be cost effective. BUT, and this is a big but, wet shaving is a lot like cigars it's a very slippery slope.

[stfoley]

It's not cheap. I have the honing equipment, maintenance equipment and invested in teh different sized razors to accomplish different tasks (don't try to trim the top of the moustache with a 7/8ths, you wnat a 3/8ths for that.

The strop will cost you about $70, and will usually need pre-treated before use.

The razor can be anywhere from $35 (back when Joe Chandler still offered a wide selsection of inexpensive restorals), to a few thousand for a Maestro Levi razor (more art than anything, but still very functional).

Don't get started on honing equipment. I have at least a grand tied up in that....part of it was getting certain rare but necessary hones and paying a professional to resurface them (they were chipped)....basically the better the hone job is, the beter the shave will be....a razor is nothing without a perfect edge. A razors edge is 3/1000ths the thickness of a sheet of paper....this is why it's important to have a perfect hone, anything less can damage the edge, and you'll feel it. This is why most folks send theirs out to be honed.

Then you need a decent shaving brush and either shaving soap or shaving cream (not the canned crap, that's shaving FOAM or GEL). Shaving soap requires a stiff badger brush or a boar brush, while cream works best with softer brushes.

I myself stopped using straight razors for most shaves (only when I must look my best anymore), and use a double-edge safety razor. I buy my blades at the grocery store for $1.00 a 10-pack (The generic blades are actually American Personnas, made by American Safety Razor, ASR). A double-edge razor is WELL worth it. The blades are scary sharp, but if you let the weight of the razor do the work, and learn the grain of your face, they will do a marvelous job.

I'd reccomend going double-edge...they are fantastic razors, and have a far lower maintenance level than straights. This coming from someone that has restored a few rzors in his time....they are very high maintenance.

[Asher]

Originally Posted by stfoley

I'd reccomend going double-edge...they are fantastic razors, and have a far lower maintenance level than straights. This coming from someone that has restored a few rzors in his time....they are very high maintenance.

I agree. I use both straights and double edges, and both give an excellent shave. For a DE, I use an old Gillette Fat Boy (about $5 at an antique shop), which gives a much closer shave with less irritation than any cartridge razor I've used. Straight razors are great, but the added maintenance (learning to hone, strop, etc.) is worth it only if you really enjoy the process.

[designwise1]

I use a double edge 99% of the time. Pick up anything by Gillette from the mid 1950s through about 1970 for $3 at your local junk store. Boil it. They shave better than anything modern. HOT water and a good shaving cream will make any razor better. A good badger shaving brush is a must and will last 20 years or more. Feather blades (Japanese steel) are the sharpest but there are some decent Israeli and European blades out there, too.

[Ace$nyper]

Well I am a bit late to the thread but I did just want to say straight is the only way to go and you've got more then enough info to start and or shop for one if needed