Straight Razors

I purchased my first straight razor in my junior year of college for almost $100, which was a tidy sum back then considering that I was poor, living in a studio apartment, and working four jobs just to pay the bills. At the time, I rationalized that spending a few bucks a month on disposable razor blades would cost me more over several years than an investment in an implement that could last me a lifetime. Whether or not the cost savings have materialized is a matter of conjecture -- I did use that blade exclusively for the next few years, but later added disposable blades back into my repertoire for pure convenience. Shaving with a straight razor is not convenient. However, there are a number of reasons to use one.

First, it's cool. In every movie about the days of yore, I was always mesmerized by scenes of men shaving with straight razors. From the tent encampments of the Revolutionary War to the trenches of WWI, the act of holding a razor-sharp blade to a lathered neck was always pictured as a supreme act of gentility amid a world in chaos. A man stands in front of a tiny mirror mounted on a wooden beam, his suspenders dangling and his shirt off, as he concentrates by the light of flickering candle ... the romance of the ritual cast a spell over me. Modern Western traditions have little use for rituals, but that image always seemed to me like a redemptive act that I could only compare to the tea ceremonies of the Orient or 19th century England. Now, I realize that the deliberation of these men owed more to fear of injury than to the natural grace of cultured men.

Growing up in the era of disposability, I have always been drawn to things that are built to last. There are so few of those things left in this world. Everything is made out of plastic these days; things are designed to break and be cast onto the heap. I defy you to name even one thing that you have used regularly for more than 20 years. Most people blame marketers. After all, what business will remain in business for long if it does not sell the same product back to you over and over again? I got an MBA a while back, so I won't argue the validity of this point, but I will also point out that consumers themselves are probably just as much to blame. In a world where newness and youth are worshiped as virtues, who wants to have anything but this year's model X?

Me, for one. I am sick and tired of buying the same garbage all the time, especially if there is a better alternative. In this case, the better alternative is the original implement itself. This rebellion against disposability was my second reason for choosing straight razors; although, it was my first reason in terms of rationalizing the cost, as I mentioned earlier. A properly maintained razor will last for more than one person's lifetime. The man I bought my first several razors from told me that some of the razors in his collection had been passed down through several generations of men.

Straight razors do require an investment in materials and care. I will speak of the materials more below. In terms of care, a straight razor is like anything else you hope to get many uses out of: you must be ginger with them and treat them with respect. I own many items that look as new today as they did when I bought them, because I treat them respectfully. Case in point, I still use the same JVC boom box that I bought 20 years ago. It still looks brand new and plays just as well now as it did then, because I don't treat it badly. The same is true for my first razor (which is still my favorite). If you do not leave your razor in a puddle of water on your bathroom counter, and if you do not drop it or nick the blade, and if you put it back in its box after each use, it will treat you well in return.

The final reason for owning and using a straight razor may be the best reason: it gives you a closer shave and doesn't irritate the skin as much as disposable blades. Contrary to the claims made by companies advertising during football games, disposable blades do not give you the closest shave you can get. I couldn't give you a scientific reason why. I mean, those graphics they flash on the tube are pretty convincing -- the ones showing how one blade lifts up the whisker and while the other ones cut it. And yet, the proof is in the pudding, as they say. A long time ago, I taught a friend of mine how to shave with a straight razor, and let me tell you, he was a furry man of Middle Eastern descent. Not only did he appreciate the cost-savings, but he swore that he got a far better shave with no irritation and no ingrown hairs. Trust me, if you had known him, you'd have taken his word for it.

So, now that I have established why you should buy a straight razor, let's examine the materials you'll need. Obviously, the first thing you'll need is the razor, itself. All good straight razors are manufactured in Solingen, Germany. In fact, most of the fine cutlery available throughout the world is manufactured in Solingen, from Henckel knives to straight razors. Don't ask me why, but those precision-obsessed Germans have been the standard in fine steel edges for over a century. I have read online that the Japanese also make good straight razors, but I have no first-hand experience with them.

A well-crafted straight razor will be referred to as a "hollow-ground" blade, which refers to the concave surface on either side of the blade itself, which creates the fine taper to the razor's edge. A good razor will have a spacer wedge at the base of the blade and rivets that are not loose, but also not so tight that the blade does not open easily. A good razor will look and feel like a quality implement. It's hard to describe, but if you ever feel a cheaply manufactured blade in your hand, you'll know it once you've held a good one. Most of the straight razors I've examined at knife shops in the mall fall to the cheap end. Avoid them. And by all means, do not buy a razor designed to use disposable blades. Modern barbers use these to cut hair, but that is about all they are good for. All the straight razors I ever purchased for actual use predated the bounty that is now available on the Web. My first and favorite straight razor is a Dovo, which is pictured below.

The blade is not coppery. That's poor indoor lighting.

The next thing you'll need is a razor strop (pictured above). A razor strop is used for fine honing the blade and should be used prior to each shave. On the backside (not pictured) is a canvass strap, which is used first, with the leather side being used last. As you can see, I have attached a carabiner to the fastening end to make it easier to mount to my towel rack. You will need to mount one end of the strop to something.

Don Walter, the man who sold me most of my razors, explained the use of the strop thusly: lightly press the blade against the canvass side and stroke it in a diagonal line from the base to the top of the strop. You should not press hard, but you should press the entire blade against the strop firmly. By diagonally, I mean you should start with the top of the blade completely inside the canvass, and as you move the blade from top to bottom (or vice versa), you should finish your stroke with the bottom of the blade at the end of each stroke. The idea is to cover the entire edge of the blade in each stroke. Then you flip the blade over and do the same thing as you draw the blade back toward yourself. You do this 10 times on the canvass side and then you do the same thing on the leather side.

The key to good stropping is this: do not rush it! If you look closely at my strop photo, you will notice little nicks carved out of the top and bottom of the strop. When you strop too quickly, you are bound to pull the blade ever so slightly back before you flip the blade. This will cut your strop to pieces. I'm sure we have all seen old movies of barbers stropping their blades like madmen, and this is probably why we are inclined to rush. Barbers used to move quickly without cutting their strops because they did this dozens or more times every day, and they got quite good at it. For novices and amateurs alike, my advice at this stage (and all others, including the shave) is to move slowly. When you are dealing with a naked razor blade, speed kills, or at least maims.

Other items you might need include brushes, shaving mugs and soaps, and honing stones. Badger bristle brushes are traditionally associated with straight razors and are superior implements unto themselves. I have been told that brushing your whiskers causes them to stand up more and the act of lathering your face with one does make the whiskers softer, which greatly aids the shaving process. Badger bristle brushes do not shed as much as the cheap variety you are likely to find at your corner drugstore. As far as shaving mugs and soaps are concerned, well, I have tried them and am not convinced they do anything more than your average can of Barbesol. Cans of shaving cream are easier to deal with than having to make your own lather from a hunk of soap in a big mug, in my opinion. Besides, soap, no matter how much of lather you have created, is still just soap. I don't use the mug or the soap anymore.

Honing stones, I will admit, are not within my area of expertise. I have never purchased any, as my facial stubble is light (thank you Asian ancestors). Honing stones become necessary after you have used your razor for a long time or if your facial hair is pretty thick and you have to shave a lot. Don told me that honest to goodness honing is something that a normal hairy man might have to do every couple years. If the edge of your blade is properly stropped before each shave, and if you have not nicked your blade, you should rarely have to grind a new edge into your razor. I Googled honing stones, and there are many informative YouTube videos about what grades of stone you should get and how to do it. Generally, you use two or three stones, much like in knife sharpening.

And now we are ready to shave. The actual technique for shaving with a straight razor is something you will have to learn through trial and error, and there are many opinions about how best to do it. Naturally, you should pull your skin with your free hand to make your shaving surface taut. Don taught me that it is more effective to pull or push the blade across your stroke in a slightly diagonal fashion. This creates a "sawing" effect, which is much easier on your face than pulling the blade in a flat, perpendicular stroke.

Most people, like in normal shaving, choose to shave first with the grain. I have never been one to waste time or energy when I could do in one stroke what other take two to do. I shave against the grain first. However, in order to avoid the blood dots commonly associated with all shaving, I have found it useful to shave in small, controlled strokes. With each diagonal stroke of my straight razor, I only try to clear maybe an eighth of an inch. This is particularly necessary on the upper lip and around the nose. If you make a big motion with a straight razor around there, you will bury that blade a quarter of an inch into the bottom of your nose. Trust me. Straight razor wounds hurt like hell and bleed like crazy; although, the nice clean cuts generally heal without much scarring.

Many people alternate hands when doing one side of the face or the other. Personally, I hold the blade in one hand and shave my whole face that way. I have grown quite adept at flipping the blade over and shaving at weird angles to avoid my weak left hand. Call it overcompensation, but it works for me.

I can't overstate this point too much: take your time. Every single accident I have had with a straight razor came because I was being cavalier or not paying attention. A straight razor may be the biggest, sharpest tool you ever hold in your hand. Treat it with respect at all times. Be calm and composed while you hold that sucker to your jugular vein. And from my own experience, my last piece of advice is this: do not drink too much coffee before you shave. You need a steady hand for this work, so go easy on the caffeine!