Man’s routine updated

Last March, I wrote more than a few lines about men’s grooming and the wonderful discovery of wet shaving. I would like to propose to you, my virtual reader, what I could call an update on point IV. The shaving.

At that time I wrote about the delicacies of the double-edge razor, which is really one of the best ways to get a shave… but… for those you are not afraid of sharp blades, I have tried out one of the oldest way of shaving, and loved it: the straight razor shave. It gave me one of the better shaves I ever had. Before giving more insight on this theme, I must add a

WARNING Using a straight razor can be very addictive and you could become infected by RAD (razor acquisition disorder), SAD (strop acquisition disorder) and HAD (hone acquisition disorder)… which could affect at a high level the content of your wallet -in terms of decrease. If you decide to read further on, it is on your own responsibility.

So, for those interested in an old way of shaving, in tradition, comfort, ecology and more, this is for you! What you really -and only- need is a straight razor, a strop and a hone, and you’ll be up for the rest of your life; no waste, nothing to throw in the bin, nothing to recycle, only things to take care of; they will last your whole life, and you’ll even be able to pass them to your children -I have a razor which is more than 150 years old and still is a killer shaver. All that was written in the March post is still valid: first shave with the grain, second with or across, third against… The changes are the followings (you will find useful links at the end of the post):

Razor: you’ll need a straight razor. You can buy new factory ones made by Thiers Issard in France and Dovo in Germany; new custom ones made by Mastro Livi, Joe Chandler, Tim Zowanda, Robert Williams, Bill Ellis and others; new old stock (NOS) –i.e. ancient straight razors but never used-; or second hand razors -used. The price range goes from 40$ up (depending on the material used for the scales, quality of the etching -if any-, use of precious metal…) You’ll be able to choose the width of the blade, usually from 5/8 to 8/8, the grind of the blade, from full hollow ground to a wedge, the point (round, square, French, Spanish, barber notch,…) and sometimes even custom scales. To find the best suited razor for you will be a matter of experiment: some prefer a thicker blade, more heavy like a wedge or a 1/4 hollow, other prefer a more concave blade, less heavy like a full or 3/4 hollow… here it is almost only a matter of personal preferences.
One piece of advice nonetheless -it worked for me, why not for you?: if you are going to buy your first razor, why not try a 1/4 hollow (or a 1/2), 6/8, round point? the 1/4 hollow will be a little heavier and stiffer than a full hollow, thus giving you less feedback (it is a little more easy to handle and forgive more mistakes without cuts) but not as thick as a wedge; the 6/8 is a standard dimension; the round point will spare your ears if you are not careful enough with the point of the blade…

Strop: the strop is a piece of leather, with/without canvas or linen used to prepare the razor’s edge before every shave -remember, it will not sharpen it! I usually strop 60 strokes on linen and 50 on leather before every shave in order to give the blade its smoothness. You can find new factory ones made by Dovo for instance, custom ones made by Tony Miller for example, NOS and second hand.

Hone: you’ll need a hone in order to sharpen or refresh your blade. Concerning sharpening, it is important that you don’t forget that factory razors are NOT shave ready, they need to be sharpen. I couldn’t recommend with enough emphasis to have your first razor pre-honed to a shave ready state either by the shop where you are buying it, or by a honemeister. If your razor is shave ready, you’ll need to hone it every two months (depending on the hardness of the steel, the quality of your beard and the number of shave per week) on a finishing stone (like a Belgian coticule, a Japanese or German finishing stone) or on a pasted strop (with 0.5 diamond paste, 0.5 chromium oxide). If you want to sharpen your razor by yourself, you’ll need a 4000 grit, a 8000 grit and a finishing stone or pasted strop (a very good and inexpensive solution is the Norton combination waterston 4/8K and a pasted strop or coticule).

Advices on straight shaving: at the beginning, don’t even try an against the grain pass; stick with two with the grain passes until you are very comfortable with them; then second pass across until comfortable, and only at the end the pass against the grain. You don’t have to shave your whole face at once if you don’t feel comfortable with it; you can begin with the cheeks -these are more easy. Keep the skin tight and beware of not cutting your fingers. Use your right hand for the right side, and your left hand for the left side (left for right and right for left when going against the grain); it is not easy to learn to change hands, but when mastered it will facilitate your shave. Beware of the point of the razors when going near your ears. The most difficult parts to shave are the chin, the Adam’s apple and the part just under the nose; use extra caution. The usual blade’s angle with the skin is around 30 degrees. Do NOT make a stroke horizontally with the razor, you will cut yourself. And remember: a razor is not a toy but a very sharp and cutting instrument: always use caution, be concentrated on what you are doing and keep your hands dry and if you drop the razor by accident, do NOT try to catch it, but get out of the way… better a broken razor than a finger or a toe cut off.

A few useful links:

Where to get info: Straight Razor Place (English), Le Coupe-Chou Club (French)
Where to buy straight razors: Classic Shaving, Straight Razor Designs, The Shaving Shop, The Invisible Edge, Rasurpur, De Koordenwinkel, Bill Ellis, Heribert Wacker, Mastro Livi
Where to buy strops: Classic Shaving, Straight Razor Designs, Tony Miller
Where to buy hones: Classic Shaving, Straight Razor Designs, Les Ardennes, The perfect Edge, Shapton, Norton, DMT, Spyderco