Well, at first it was 'cause I couldn't acquire a straight but I still wanted to know the arts of Wet-Shaving. As soon as I started to look at the DE I fell in love and I then become happy that things didn't work with the SR I still intend to get a SR in the future but I'm happy with and proud of my Merkur HD n_n and my next razor will be for sure another DE (Look what you have done, you released the OCD beast :mad::happy102)
Hope no one will object if I disagree with Chris. I have eight safeties and two straights at home and I have shaved with them all at one time or another and let me tell you in my opinion there is nothing safe about a safety. I nearly cut my neck off a few months back with a 40s Super Speed safety. Although I have given myself minor nicks with the straight nothing anywhere as bad as what the safety did to me. I was without skin on part of my neck for a month after the safety got done with me. Hope no one minds some disagreement here.
DE is a far easier transition over a cartridge razor and I bet few people went straight to the straight.
Actually, a safety is safer than a straight. They can both hurt you, of course. But you can only hurt yourself so much with a safety. A straight razor can certainly cut deeper as there is nothing to stop the advancement of the blade. Whereas there is with a safety razor. So, consider the straight razor came first. No protection from the depth of a cut. The safety razor is named such because it is safer, by blocking the depth of the cut.
Time and investment, mostly time. I barely had enough time to learn to use a DE blade. I don't have the extra time to learn to properly use a straight right now. Maybe at some point in the future, and at that point I might pick up a straight. This is mostly evening free time. I also have limited cash. While a straight isn't expensive over time, most of the cost is up front and a few months in when you start learning to hone. It's not that I couldn't afford a straight if it was a priority, but a priority it's not.
I have managed to get fairly competent with a straight and have never had a really bad cut. Due to timing issues and overall lifestyle, I still chose a DE on most days. There are also days where I chose SE and days where I chose straight. I like variety and I can get a lot more variety with DE/SE than I can with straights. The start up cost is high, there is more maintenance involved, there is constant self-doubt, and yes there is quite a bit more risk. Sure, you can take off a large chunk of skin with any razor. However, without the safety bar/comb, a straight can cut much deeper. That doesn't make a DE/SE truly safe - just a lot safer (like JoAnna said). Sometimes this breeds too much over confidence and we do things with a DE/SE without worrying about it and then we get injured due to negligent errors. One must be much more aware with a straight, as a result neither of us have been seriously injured with one - but the threat is always there.
I prefer the DE right now because it seemed easier to get used to as oppose to the SR but im also going to use the SR shortly for the variety and rotation
I gave the straight razor an honest shot and still have a few straights ready to go. Thing is, past the first week of "I'm shaving with a straight!" interest, the thrill of it wore off. There's no real enjoyment in using a straight, for me at least. I have a nice collection of DE and injector razors that I get a true sense of pleasure from when using that the straight just doesn't provide. I'm keeping the ones I have should the mood strike again, but if I never get the inkling to use the straight again, I've lost nothing.
I would like ask why you would choose a straight over a safety razor? Is it the sense of rebellion, the "risk", the nostalgia, the coolness,or a personal vendetta against the disposable blade makers? Those are all reason why I wanted to start using a straight razor. I then realized that I get a BBS shave everytime with a DE razor with very little chance of any damage( I am still uninsured). Why spend an extended amount of time learning how to use something that really isnt.....necessary? Str8 users, I am in no way bashing the ritual and do agree a BBS is obtainable and it is a truely rewarding moment in shaving nirvana. Just questioning the OP
I think if I were forced into using a straight, i.e. no de/se's available, I would probably grow a beard. I just don't like the thought of a straight coming at my face/neck. Gives me chills.
I used carts for over 30 years, so the safety was a natural progression. Just can't stand electrics - no where near close enough shave for me. The thought of using the straight unsettles me. To those who use 'em, more power to ya! Oh, I thought about it, to be sure. But then I realized all the extra work that goes into keeping a blade in top shaving form. I don't have the time nor the inclination for that. I have enough trouble keeping a decent edge on my pocket knives!
My reasons for using a DE have all been listed in the previous posts. However, I have to ask, was the description of the cut you got using a DE just so much hyperbole or was it so bad that it really took your neck a month to heal? How did a cut like that happen? I ask because your description of that DE cut is a big reason why I haven't considered a straight.
I recently purchased a straight. Why? I'm not sure, I'm in no hurry to shave with it and am quite satisfied with my beloved predominantly SE rotation. The old Gems just give me great shaves. I've used them long enough for it to become second nature and quite frankly I don't have any compelling reasons to pick up a straight. Why would I stop getting consistent BBS shaves from my SE razors so I can spend a few months getting fair at best shaves until I figure out a straight? Can you really do better than BBS? If you're there using a certain kind of razor, why not leave it at that and call it good? If you find DE razors a bit meek, pick up a Gem or an Ever Ready and you'll suddenly have a shave that is every bit as close as a straight without the learning curve, additional gear or weeks of bleeding and patchy shaves. If you're a straight razor guy, I mean you know offense, if it's your thing good on ya. Have a great time. I'm not saying curiousity will not beckon at some time and my one and only straight will be sent off to get honed, I'll by a strop and give it a go just to say I can do it. Even then, I doubt I would use a straight more than perhaps on the weekends. At this rate it would take me ages to master. It may happen in the future but at the moment, I'm more than satisfied with my current razor selection. My Mom often told a story about her grandfather who hailed the advent of safety razors as the death of manliness forever. I believe the direct quote was "I just don't know what the world is coming to when a man doesn't even need to sharpen his own razor." Apparently his wife and daughters tried for years to warm him up to a safety razor they all seemed to end up rat holed in the medicine cabinet. He shaved his whole life with a straight.
If you really try hard enough you can cut yourself pretty good. But its really got to me some intentional suicide mission I believe. Maybe a Fatboy on 9 and digging into the skin while dragging the blade sideways might do the trick. Or not tighten a tech all the way and the the same sideways motion. Some call the technique the "suicide slide".
Yup, I agree with you. I would just like to hear from the original poster as to what exactly happened.
faster, more easier, no stropping, honing. i do use a str8 on ocassions, but my 1st choice is safety razors
My experience with DEs and Straights must be pretty atypical. I have found that, APART FROM THE OCCASIONAL REAL CUT, that Straights have been much much gentler on my skin--especially on my neck--than DEs were. With the straight, after the first week I had zero irritation (except when I switch from a small blade to a big one and forget to use negative pressure for that first pass) and only the occasional nick or cut. My peaks are only as good as the DEs, no better indeed, but my valleys are not anywhere near as bad and my typical shaves are averaging better. It sounds complicated, doesn't it? It basically comes down to: for me the Straight is reliably DFS, with occasional BBS, with no irritation. The DE was reliably DFS with more frequent BBS, but more irritation. Of course, I enjoy all the other bits--the stropping and the honing and the restoration. That adds a lot to my experience, and I understand that a lot of people don't have the time or the inclination. I also find the style more appealing. Many of the blade designs are much more interesting to me than almost any safety razor...I say almost because I LOVE The look of the big old lather catcher and wedge SEs. LOVE them. I really ought to get one sometime...
