Beginner's guide to straight razor shaving

This entry attempts to provide you with the most basic information, video, and suggestions when you start shaving with a straight razor. It includes suggested equipment to avoid as well as a list of equipment with good reputations. For more information on what to look for when buying, including a list of questions for sellers, check the entry on Straight Razors.

Basic gear needed

• 1 or 2 shave ready razors
• leather strop (most people use hanging but paddle or loom will also work); the linen side is optional
• shaving soap or cream (optional but strongly recommended)
• shaving brush (optional but strongly recommended)
• shaving mug or scuttle (optional)
• Lynn Abrams' Video on shaving, stropping, honing, etc.

Shave ready razors

When you see "shave ready" and the razor is straight from the factory, in almost all cases it is not really shave ready. Unless the razor has been honed by somebody with experience it will likely need to be honed before you use it. Why? If you are really interested in the reason you can read the detailed explanation. Otherwise just trust me ;).

Choosing a razor

Choosing a razor is a matter of personal preference. If you must have a brand new razor the quality choices are limited to the three main major current manufacturers: Dovo, Thiers-Issard, and Böker; to the NOS Double Arrow and Wapienica; and to the custom razor makers. A brand new razor will still have to be honed.

Fortunately there are many vintage razors which would often be of equal or even better quality than the current production and they will generally cost significantly less. The best place to find one is the Classifieds section of http://www.straightrazorplace.com. Most often the razors there are honed and shave-tested by the seller, and this is noted in the ad, but when in doubt you can always ask them.

Newbies are discouraged from purchasing vintage razors on eBay because they do not have the experience to evaluate the condition of the razor - in most cases the pictures on eBay do not provide enough details, and even when they do, a newbie generally doesn't know what is important and what isn't.

Nevertheless there are some razors that should be avoided, and even though every purchase is a risk there are few popular vintage brands that are generally good.

Stropping

Before each use a razor needs to be stropped. Leather is the best, but the synthetic strops offered recently by http://www.thewellshavedgentleman.com have been reported to be almost as good. For further information refer to the entry on stropping.

Beard Preparation

Shaving dry whiskers is generally very uncomfortable because dry whiskers are extremely tough. The traditional way to soften your beard is by using lather, which is generated by mixing shaving soap or cream and water using a shaving brush. Generally you should give few minutes for the lather to soften the whiskers before starting to shave. Hot steam towels can provide further conditioning for a luxurious shave. Some people use pre-shave oil or even olive oil in addition to or instead of lather, and even the canned shaving foam or gel is better than using nothing at all.

Shaving

Shaving with a straight razor is not very hard, but it is a learned skill. The basics are to keep the blade angled at about 30 degrees with respect to the face surface, and to use extremely light pressure just so that the razor is still touching your face. The razor motion is perpendicular to the edge initially and as you develop a technique you can improve on it by using a slight angle so that the whiskers are sliced better (too much angle will cause a cut). Stretching the skin with your free hand is very important as well. The principle is not beard elimination, but beard reduction - use multiple passes starting with the grain and then possibly adding across the grain and against the grain. The recommended approach is to start by shaving just under the sideburns and to slowly expand the area with each shave as you become comfortable and confident with the razor.

Post-Shave

The top level of the skin cells is exfoliated during the shave. Some people find that a good moisturizing soap or cream provides enough skin conditioning to compensate for this. However most find that some post-shave skin care is helpful. This is an area where you have to find what works best for you. The usual products are styptic pencil/alum block, witch hazel, and a whole multitude of aftershave products.

Further Information

The best places to get more information and answers to specific questions outside of this wiki are the Straight Razor Place forum and the #srp IRC channel on freenode. An experienced local barber can also be a helpful resource.