All About Pocket Knives

Took this J R Torrey to my face this morning.
Picked it up in an antique shop some years back.
As with all my straights (7 of 'em), they got their initial sharpening from Glen of GemStar Customs.
I touch them up with a small barber's hone, then 25 stokes on the linen and 50 strokes on the leather of my strop.
The soap, Brut scented, is from The Shave Den Shoppe, unfortunately no longer in business.

I only use my straights on Saturday mornings when I have the leisure of time. I take it slow for obvious reasons. It's also my ME TIME. A great scented soap, a warm lather from the brush and mug, tunes in the background, the house is quiet... A chance to think, pray, think some more.

Do you straight shave? Fill us in!

I admire those, who can accomplish this lost art. They would probably find me, bled out, with fifty holes in my face!

I shave when I can. My friend made me a 7/8 in 52100 that is a real beauty, with a badger brush and bridle leather strop.

Steve I lived in Central and South America for a while after getting married. A lot of the barber shops there still offered straight razor shaves. That was always a treat for me. Didn't do it often but when I did it was like my day at the spa. Hot towels on my face and shaved so close my cheeks felt smooth as a baby's bottom. Wouldn't try it by myself.

Man I wouldn't even attempt to shave that way. That takes nerves of steel. I do like the sign over your faucet though. Reminds me of old "Clint Eastwood" cowboy movies.

I shave with a straight razor exclusively. Electric razors or multi blade wet razors give me horrible razor burn. Straight razors do not. If I’m in a real hurry I’ll use an old Gillette fat boy DE. It’s not as smooth as a straight, but better than those multi blade torture tools.

I use prorasso and a badger brush. I soak the brush in hot water in my great uncle’s shaving bowl while I shower, then dump the water and use the prorasso to make a good lather. As far as shaving I use cold water though. It makes for a smoother shave. Before lathering up I splash witch hazel on my face, then lather. First round is wth the hair, the second against the growth, then east and west. Last I touch up any stubborn spots.

I touch mine up on a barber’s hone when needed and use a strop I had made at a local harness shop.

....I wish I could do that!!!....last time I tried I looked like I'd been in a hatchet fight without a hatchet!!!........ ..........

I had what was probably the best shave of my life last night. I touched up an old English 5/8 full wedge and it was the smoothest, closest shave I’ve ever had.

Those of you who do straight razor shave, do you have a preference on grind? My normal razor is a half hollow and I really prefer it over a full hollow. But this wedge my become numero uno. It sure is a different feel with that heavy blade. But it do shave nice.

No preference on grind, but then again, I've never tried a full wedge.

Steve Warden wrote:No preference on grind, but then again, I've never tried a full wedge.

Owd Wullie got me into the straight razors, and sharpened my first one for me. He kept talking about how he liked the full wedge, and I went and found one. Different feel all together, and much quieter too.

A Robeson ShurEdge 1560 with "New Science Concave" etched on the blade took care of the whisker whacking this morning.

Glen is good people, a friend, and a Hell of a hand at putting an edge on a razor.

I'll preface what I'm about to say with this, it's your razor, and you do it any way you want.

I've been shaving with straights for a few years now. I hone my own and one or two every now and then for a friend. I rarely do over ten or twelve strokes on a linen and about the same on horsehide ( shell) barber's strop. Reason being, I haven't found that it improves the edge to do any more. I check the edge to see if it will cut arm hair above the skin and if so, I go shave. If not, I usually grab another razor and put that one in the pile to get honed. Seems to me that the straight razor forum crowds go overboard on making things complicated.

I do have a "barber's hone" (several in fact) and while they may be handy for a quick tune up if you're lucky. Been my experience that if the edge is far enough gone to warrant their use, then I'd think about sending it back to Glen.

Straight shaving is fun. Learning curve is somewhat steep and can be painful. However, when you think, back in the day it was the norm. Nothing magical. It's fun to gather all the neat doo dads and stuff, but I think of my great grandfather who was a trail boss on the cattle drives after his stint in the civil war and all pictures of him are clean shaven. I figure he shaved whenever he could and without a lot of fancy stuff other than a brush, soap, maybe a cup, a razor, and probably a saddle cinch for a strop.

Nowadays, I can do a two pass shave in 10 minutes if I'm in a hurry. Usually take about 15 just to cut down on pink lather possibilities.

Have fun above all else.
Willie

Steve Warden wrote:A Robeson ShurEdge 1560 with "New Science Concave" etched on the blade took care of the whisker whacking this morning.
20190413_092428.jpg

Those are nice shavers. I've got a 5/8 square point like yours and a 5/8 round point. I prefer heavier blades myself.
This is an 8/8 half hollow made by Wade and Butcher for King in NY.

Owd Wullie wrote:

Steve Warden wrote:A Robeson ShurEdge 1560 with "New Science Concave" etched on the blade took care of the whisker whacking this morning.
20190413_092428.jpg

Those are nice shavers. I've got a 5/8 square point like yours and a 5/8 round point. I prefer heavier blades myself.
This is an 8/8 half hollow made by Wade and Butcher for King in NY.
KING 002s.jpg

That’s a fine lookin’ whisker chopper!

Colonel26 wrote:

Owd Wullie wrote:

Steve Warden wrote:A Robeson ShurEdge 1560 with "New Science Concave" etched on the blade took care of the whisker whacking this morning.
20190413_092428.jpg

Those are nice shavers. I've got a 5/8 square point like yours and a 5/8 round point. I prefer heavier blades myself.
This is an 8/8 half hollow made by Wade and Butcher for King in NY.
KING 002s.jpg

That’s a fine lookin’ whisker chopper!

Sure is!

Cleaned up after mowing this afternoon. Decided the whiskers needed chopping off. I used this old Joseph Allen & Sons original non XLL with a full wedge grind. Best I can sus out it’s feom between 1883 and 1900ish. The horn scales have some bug bites, but they’re still OK for now. Excuse the bad pics the lighting is terrible and it’s dark outside. I tried to get the etch to show.

I like that one, Colonel!

Thanks Steve.

Wade you captured the etch just perfect.

Saturday. My day for a straight shave.
A Premier Life Time Professional X98.
Some Robert Johnson and Delta Blues in the background.

I had a barber shave in New Orleans some years back and was so impressed two days later with the lack of regrowth that I went back and bought some supplies to try and duplicate it.

I did try straight razor shaving under Willie's guidance a while back, but could not get comfortable with it, nor abstain from nicking myself. I agree with Willie that it's ridiculous we cannot seem to get back into what was an almost daily activity for men just a generation or two ago.

From that visit to Aiden Gill For Men barber shop in New Orleans, I did get into using products from Truefitt & Hill, a London barber shop that's been in business since the 18th century. I cannot afford to use their products daily, but I do on Sunday mornings and on special occasions.

I like their Grafton Shave Cream and After Shave Lotion. Subtle scent, manly, not overpowering. They offer several others.

I pre-treat my face with witch hazel oil or lemon oil.

I agree with Willie re' a cold water blade rinse. It has to do with contraction vs expansion of metal.

BTW; I shave with a three blade razor from Dollar A Day Shave Club and I've got dozens of good Robeson razors from which to choose.

Charlie

Broke out the Boker S.S. St. Louis this A.M.

This morning's shave with a Dovo Astrale my wife got me for Christmas several years back.

when I was in Taipei Taiwan I had my hair cut by a Chinese girl with a straight razor and a comb in a barbershop. She told me the sit veeey veeey still. I said yes mam! ftd

Colonel26 wrote: ↑Wed Apr 17, 2019 3:12 am Cleaned up after mowing this afternoon. Decided the whiskers needed chopping off. I used this old Joseph Allen & Sons original non XLL with a full wedge grind. Best I can sus out it’s feom between 1883 and 1900ish. The horn scales have some bug bites, but they’re still OK for now. Excuse the bad pics the lighting is terrible and it’s dark outside. I tried to get the etch to show.

Post 1892 due to the fact that ENGLAND is included in the stamp. Very nice razor.