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Pinoy Knife

Pinoy Knife

Joined
Aug 9, 2002
Messages
1,335
Guy's i Could use some Advice!!
im very seriously considering making myself a Straight ..
i am a Beard wearing guy have had several great Shaves twice a week all by a straight while on "Vacation"
my question is simple are there any serious trick's to using one versus a DE
or other type of blade ?? im not to proud to ask before i go carving myself up .. every straight cut ive ever had were a hot towel on the face for about 5 min brushed lather and blade cut .. super scary sharp i know how to do Technique for the shave i do not .. Help Please!!
 
Been trying shaving with a straight for a few months now, and it's still a learning process. Sometimes I'll get a pretty good shave, other times it's hardly better than a single pass with a DE. I think the factors that account for some of the inconsistency are the total sharpness of each razor (I have four old straights in various degrees of wear and tear) and technique. Regardless, the process is a bit more time consuming than using a DE. Still it can be fun to do, if only as a sort of "domestic challenge".
 
A couple of tips. Remember, it's a scraping instrument, not a cutting instrument. :)
Stretch the skin you are shaving. Pull it tight with your off hand or when shaving the cheeks, press your tongue against the inside of your cheek to tighten the skin.

If using a straight, be sure to strop right before you shave.

Hang out on Straightrazorplace.com and learn from the experts.
 
Pinoy,
I did the straight shaving thing for about 4 months but ended up going back to DE for a few reasons but mostly that DE's do a decent job a bit quicker. With the straight I was able to obtain a great shave after a few weeks, and if your careful the learning curve isn't that steep, just remember to never pull across grain and it's all about angle. The downside is having to strop, and having to eventually have razor re-honed and the shave takes a bit more time. Though you can stall re-honing for quite a bit by getting a barber hone for touch ups. In addition to straight razor place , badger and blade has a good amount of info , and youtube has some great instructional vids.
 
I have often thought that the man who takes on straight-razor shaving is taking on something he was never intended to do himself.

The straight-razor harkens back to a day and age when a wealthy gentleman didn't shave himself but was shaven by his valet who also took care of the razors. A work-a-day bloke was shaved by his wife -- or, perhaps, one of his daughters as part of her domestic training to be married off herself eventually -- who also took care of the razor. And a middle-class man spared his womanfolk this task by dropping a penny at the local barber every few days where the barber, of course, took care of the razors.

So, if you decide to take this on today, just be aware that it is a lot more time and effort than a DE would be.
 
Cool im thinking this is totally within my reach ill build myself a Straight soon and hope like hell i don't carve myself up too badly ..the stropping /keeping the blade sharp is real easy for me remember im a "Maker".. im thinking something about 3/4 wide 2 inch long in the "Blade" area i don't wan't a long blade as im only trimming around my beard.. maybe a "Bali" version or a nice gentelman's razor with nice titanium fitting's maybe some ivory insert's..
if im going to make a razor i should make a nice one yea ??
 
pinoy, you might want to look up the grind profile of Japanese style straights, since they are basicaly a "fixed blade" razor, it might fit right into what you are thinking, plus might be easier than doing a hollow grind. or if your setup is more for a wedge style, most of those are in the 1/2 inch range to keep the weight down. cool project!
 
ok thinkgs i saw fast in this popst

JP. ground razors are meant more to have some one shave you (the single bevel can be tricky)
2nd Tim Z is a great man and has helped me get to the point that i am on razors
 
Guy's
im 100% sure grinding a super thin hollow ground blade won't be the problem or keeping it scary sharp my only real concern's were how you use the razor against your face and not end up missing part's of it (LOL)
id rather ask dumb question's than make dumb mistakes and end up going to the E.R when i have been shaved with a straight you could easily feel the blade gliding on the surface of the skin about 2 passes in each area and it was the cleanest /best shave ive ever had im thinking i should really learn how to do this with my own blade .. ive had the hot towel on the face before the soap and shave ,some oil (i think) .. what work's the best ??
ive made several knives that will shave ya clean in 1-2 passes on the arm
but i think Facial hair is different ya ?? im thinking of a narrow blade just for ease of trimming around the mouth /cheek's
ill be very proud to post up pic's if you guy's want only ??
 
Pinoy Knife said:
Guy's
im 100% sure grinding a super thin hollow ground blade won't be the problem or keeping it scary sharp my only real concern's were how you use the razor against your face and not end up missing part's of it (LOL)
Click to expand...
I'm 100% sure that you will screw up royally and make dumb mistakes if you don't ask Tim Zowada a bunch of questions....because making razors and making knives is not the same thing.

Good luck, I'm out of this.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
Gollnick said:
I have often thought that the man who takes on straight-razor shaving is taking on something he was never intended to do himself.

The straight-razor harkens back to a day and age when a wealthy gentleman didn't shave himself but was shaven by his valet who also took care of the razors. A work-a-day bloke was shaved by his wife -- or, perhaps, one of his daughters as part of her domestic training to be married off herself eventually -- who also took care of the razor. And a middle-class man spared his womanfolk this task by dropping a penny at the local barber every few days where the barber, of course, took care of the razors.

So, if you decide to take this on today, just be aware that it is a lot more time and effort than a DE would be.
Click to expand...

I totally disagree with you. The wealthy gentleman got shaved, the poor man was probably shaving himself, keeping a small touch up hone to maintain the edge, and once in a while he brought him to a barber for a real honing.

I'd be curious to know how it really was.
 
Kohai999 said:
I'm 100% sure that you will screw up royally and make dumb mistakes if you don't ask Tim Zowada a bunch of questions....because making razors and making knives is not the same thing.
Click to expand...

Any imperfection is going to be scraping up against one's face repeatedly... I think you're right, a razor is a finer implement that must have tighter tolerances for safety and comfort's sake.
 
to answer your shaving specific questions, Lots of guy shower then shave, and omit the hot towels, but some guys like the towels as well, as long as you do something to get some moisture into the hair to soften it (the action of the canned goo shave gunk) then you are all good.
As for oil, some guys use it, some if not most don't, again personal preference.
Soap, most straight shavers seem to use either a block soap or a tube creme (not canned) and whip up the lather with a brush, lots of good youtube vids on how, I recommend manic59's vids
Finally, arm hair vs. face hair, they are almost totally different. an edge that cuts arm hair at skin level generally won't be good on the face, an edge that cuts arm hair well away from the skin is a good start, but the only way to really know is to shave.

Good luck to you, either way, you'll learn a heck of a lot!
 
cybrok said:
I totally disagree with you. The wealthy gentleman got shaved, the poor man was probably shaving himself, keeping a small touch up hone to maintain the edge, and once in a while he brought him to a barber for a real honing.

I'd be curious to know how it really was.
Click to expand...

I think we will never really know, we do know that many mountain men carried straights, and some records show that they wore little or no beard, but it could be that they felt the razor was useful as a scalpel? as far as I know, Japaneses style straights were used on one's self, but again, who's to say? straights were issued to soldiers in ww1 which suggests to me that they were expected to use them. I can also understand why they were so eager to switch to DEs when the chance came along.

As far as the difficulty level goes, the shaving is not that hard, (comparing straight to cartridge for difficulty is like comparing hiking boots to velcro shoes and saying that laces make your life difficult) the honing is challenging, but 200 years ago there would have been many people able to take care of that detail.

Keeping the blade sharp is difficult, but there are SRP members who hone their one or two straights annually, and stropping takes care of them for the rest.

Personally I feel that anyone who wants to try their hand at straight shaving should be given every encouragement and assisted as much as possible.

I would also like to know what the cultural norms were for a man and his stubble? while if I show up to work with two days growth I may be seen as less than professional, I work in a corporate world that finds appearance very important. If shaving was considered a chore, perhaps I could be excused then with a few days stubble?
 
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