repeatclicks
Practically Family
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Shangas said:Call me crazy but I bought a straight razor.
I tossed it into the ultrasonic cleaner, gave it a clean and a disinfect with some hot water and other stuff, then I spent about half an hour sharpening it on a stone and gave it a simple stropping on an old belt (the only suitable piece of leather I had) and took it for a whirl.
Well...
...I'm still alive.
Whoa whoa whoa... before you go any further with your sharpening stones and leather belts, STOP. You will certainly get a close shave by cutting your face off this way.
Straight razors need to be honed by a professional on professional hones to be able to shave a human face. They start with a rougher stone (around 800) and work down to at least 1500 grit or more. Should run you no more than 15 bucks and will last you years.
You also need to buy a PROPER horsehide strop to sharpen it on. By the time a pro is done with that blade, they will be able to literally just touch a human hair to the blade and it will cut in half (called the hanging hair test).
Join a straight razor forum (start here), introduce yourself and get on the right track. Whatever shave you had with your method won't even come close to the one you will have if you have it properly honed and daily sharpened on a strop.
Chances are you may have trashed a perfectly good blade already though...