Grooming and Hygiene
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Daniel AFC
I owned and used an Iwasaki Kamisori razor for a short while. I sold it after a few months. Out the box ( it had been stropped and honed by the seller at point of purchase ) it gave a great shave. However my lack of experience in keeping a blade sharp, combined with my coarse beard meant that I found the edge very difficult to keep shave worthy.
I would suggest buying a cheaper straight or Kamisori style razor and practicing your stropping and honing before making a major purchase like the Iwasaki.
I am currently using the Feather Artist SS which for me is the ideal solution. A straight razor with the convenience of being able to change the blade after a few shaves. I would highly recommend the Feather replaceable blade straights to anyone. I simply did not have the time and patience to gain the stropping and honing experience required to do a traditional straight edge justice.
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Thanks for your feedback on the iwasaki dd! I was thinking about it for down the road, but was hoping to hear an opinion or two on it, as this board is full of people who enjoy the finer things in life
I'm going to go with this guy for now:
after I get it honed professionally and replace the scales. I think I'll get the hang of the shave with the weight of it, then move on to learning how to hone myself. Then consider moving on to the iwasaki if that is still my desire a few years after that.
Thanks again for the feedback
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i like a quick wash with imperial leather soap and a rub down with a towel thats not had softener put on it so its harsh .
on fridays i shave with a disposable razor ive tried them all and the best shave ive ever had is with the cheapest razor ive had .
sometimes cocoa butter lotion on my old scabby rough hands . -
Daniel
sounds like a sensible plan. If you pick up the use of a straight razor ok you should be able to easily adapt to the Kamisori style razor. The grip is a bit different but blade angles and strokes are similar.
I hate to keep banging on about the Feather Artist series kit, however they also make a Kamisori style razor with replaceable blade. I also used this for a while and got on really well with it.
My Love affair with the Feather Artist series is mainly down to the blades. They are incredibly sharp and even on a tough beard offer a very smooth drag free shave.
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Fanya
Moving to a straight from a DE can be quite easily achieved. Try not to let the fear factor put you off trying them out.
One good way of making the transition to a straight is to start out by simply shaving the easy parts of your face ( cheeks ) with the straight before going back to your DE to finish off trickier areas ( chin and neck ).
This way you can build confidence and learn what techniques work for you before moving on to completing a full shave.One thing that you will find different with a straight is the problem of shaving the different sides of your face with the same predominant hand. It is easier if you learn to use both hands to handle the razor and makes strokes across each side of the face.
First pass you can get away with a using your predominant hand, however when it comes to a second across grain pass you really benefit from using both hands, right hand to access the left side of the face and vice versa.If I swop back to using a DE razor my muscle memory is set to use both hands. I find myself swopping the DE razor between left and right hands which is not necessary. Amazing how your body learns a routine and sticks with it.
I never attempt an "against the grain" pass, the whole reason I went to DE and straight razor shaving was to avoid ingrown hairs. Personally if I try an against the grain "final pass" I become prone to ingrown hairs.
As in my previous post, I hate to bang on about Feather Artist kit ( Honest I don't work for them! ) but they make a replaceable blade for their Artist razors which comes with some tiny wires mounted around the edge of the blade to give you a bit of "stand off" between the skin and blade. These "Pro Guard" blades can be really useful to use when learning straight razor shaving techniques. They give you a bit more margin for error.
http://connaughtshaving.com/feapg15.html
Some more general advice on learning how to shave with any straight razor is as follows:
Good preparation is key, softening the beard with hot water and a decent brush and shave cream is a good general practice for shaving.
If possible shave after showering, remarkable what 5 minutes in the shower will do to soften up the beard.
Stay focused, take your time and try to eliminate distractions in the house before commencing. Try not to have the kids screaming around the place while attempting to learn how to shave with a straight.
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I've worn a goatee for 10+ years because my face has sharp features and is especially hard to get to a few places, mainly under the nose, I can never get all the hairs there because of the deep valley that exists there. Will this be easier to deal with a straight razor?
If one was inclined to try the feather option, what's the difference between the three handle options, besides the obvious that two fold and one is a straight handle.
Also what is the difference between the four blades they offer.
If it matters I've been using feather blades since shave two with the DE, I use them for two shaves and throw them. Do the straight edge blades last longer or are they are two shave thing and gone?
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Interesting question regarding the ease of use and ability to get to typically difficult areas of the face to shave.
Thinking about it, the area under the nose is probably easier to get to with a straight as you can see the blade edge and can direct it accurately in to where it needs to start to cut. With a DE or regular Mach 3 style razor you can not see the blade itself. When you offer the razor up to the face you are making a guess as to where it will start to cut.The three styles of Artist razor that Feather make are the DX, RG and SS
The DX and RG share the same geometry and scallop profile along the length of the blade holder. Where these two styles of razors differ is in the material, the more expensive DX is made from stainless steel. The RG is made from a brass Alloy. The DX is slightly lighter weight which some people prefer as it can be easier to handle and manoeuvre.
The latest SS model in my opinion is better than both the DX and RG and is also the cheapest version available and is made from stainless steel. The SS has a different scallop profile along the length of the blade holder, this gives a more rounded shaving head profile when compared to the DX and RG.
The more rounded profile of the blade holder stretches the skin in front of the blade and makes for a much better "nick" free shave. I have used both DX and SS models and the DX got sold. For me the SS is a superior product and a far better design.
The Feather Artist blades are basically different thicknesses, making them suitable for different beard coarseness. The Pro guard has the wire wraparound protective cage to get you started.
The light blades are the thinnest, the professional are the medium width blade and the professional super is the thickest and burliest blade. Buy a pack of each and see which one works best for you.I can normally get around 3-4 good shaves from the thickest Pro super blades which are my personal favourite.
Hope this helps.
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For a straight blade please check out Hart Steel IMO the nicest stuff there is.
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DFC….nice one on finding that Henckels ....like others said , go at it,slow
and if it helps watch more ytube vids on shaving ( helped me ) . I found stropping
is the main key after getting the right angle . My first 100 times stropping probably
killed my edge , resulting in shite shaves. Stick with it and ask questions .Cheers
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Thanks jock. I think I'll go with ddtrash's advice of starting with my cheeks and to use the safety razor for neck and chin till I get a good feel for it. Ill definitely be here with any stropping or technique questions as needed.
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Doitashimashite , your welcome .
Some razor porn :
http://www.revisor-solingen.de/html/raritaten_vorschau.html
http://www.razoremporium.com/straight-razors/
This is good too :
http://straightrazorplace.com/srpwiki/index.php/Beginner's_guide_to_straight_razor_shaving
Great forum and very friendly people , more than happy to offer advice , help .
The classifieds is good as well for razors .Happy shaving and good luck …
Cheers
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DDTrash
Here is a bloke that uses one hand :
I tried and found it tricky , so taught my left hand to not kill me . Took time but
eventually got it . Feels great when you finally achieve that nice smooth shave , one guy said it takes
one hundred shaves to be relatively skilled on the straight .Cheers
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TMG terrific razor there mate .
This is two of mine from the SRP forum ….not with me here .
http://straightrazorplace.com/beginners/72319-here-my-two-razors.html
Cheers
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Thank you kind sir . Be wary on those Ebay hunts….the classifieds of SRP
is worth a look too . -
So, after seeing a post from @Graeme (in the wallets thread) about Baldwin leather, I checked out their site, liked what I saw, and decided to see what they could do for my growing straight razor collection. After several emails and sketches from Jimmy (owner/creator of Baldwin Leather), I went with a 6 slot roll, which arrived this morning. Super pleased with it so thought if share on here
Still one slot left though…...
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Beautiful!
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