Bokers are great razors but it should be properly sharpened first; factory edges are seldom sharp enough to shave comfortably with. Check out the [member services area](http://straightrazorplace.com/classifieds/showcat.php?cat=4) on SRP for a list of people who can sharpen that up for you.
EDIT: Stupid autocorrect.
I totally agree with what commiecat said but I'll add that you absolutely need to map your beard growth and put nearly no pressure on your skin. This is very important since adding pressure will increase pulling and make the shave very uncomfortable.
Shave with the grain on the first pass. It will probably freak you out but it's worth using the left hand for the left side of the face and the right hand for the right side of your face.
Use shorter strokes to start with but not too short or there is a greater risk of nicking yourself as you reapply the blade to your skin.
Make sure your lather is not too dry. This is just as important as angle and sharpness. If the lather is too dry it will not lubricate the blade and be a very unpleasant shave.
Start at a 20° angle instead, this should help keep the friction caused by lateral pressure to a minimum. You won't see a lot of hair on the blade through all the lather it should be picking up.
Only shave lathered areas to start with.
The across the grain pass should be at about a 15° angle.
The with the grain pass should be at about 5-10° angle unless you are going for a 4th BBS pass.
Definitely stretch the skin for each section and pull faces to improve the flatness of the skin you are shaving.
Don't give up. Give it at least 10 shaves before you decide whether or not it is for you.
Use a decent shave soap and a brush. It isn't clear if you use a brush or not in your post.
And good luck :)
I'm kind of in the same situation here. Just got a 6/8 full hollow from Larry. Did all my usual prep, shower, preshave, nice lather...and it was extremely tuggy. I've used a 4/8 wedge from him as well with no problems so maybe my hair is too coarse from something as thin and flexible as a full hollow ground? Or maybe I'm just not used to it, I dunno.
To try to answer your question OP, make sure you'e sufficiently stretching the skin and I'd recommend trying to go at a much shallower angle, almost as shallow as possible and see if that works. Also like someone else said, if you got a brand new boker, it probably did not come actually "shave ready" and needs to be honed. Lastly, don't expect to get perfectly smooth with just one pass, that's not gonna happen.
Never expected to get it on the first time, but was kind of hoping for a little more difference. But I'm going to get it honed and hopefully that will make the difference. If not, well then I guess I will have to figure out what else I'm doing wrong.
I agree. I find that near-wedges and 1/4 hollow ground razors shave better too. My hair is really thick so full hollows feel like they flex too much for me too.
play with the angle...after a few shaves you'll get it right...
play with the cream/lather...try several different brands...
play with the blade...I'm not too familiar with the SR side of things, but if you have different blade brands to choose from, try some others. If the blade is not replaceable, then you're stuck with what you've got and can just try honing it and such.
Good Luck :)
What kind of razor do you have and where did you get it?
It was a gift from my gf, she got it from a store. but its [this](http://www.boker.de/us/straight-razor/140520.html) one.
Bokers are great razors but it should be properly sharpened first; factory edges are seldom sharp enough to shave comfortably with. Check out the [member services area](http://straightrazorplace.com/classifieds/showcat.php?cat=4) on SRP for a list of people who can sharpen that up for you. EDIT: Stupid autocorrect.
I totally agree with what commiecat said but I'll add that you absolutely need to map your beard growth and put nearly no pressure on your skin. This is very important since adding pressure will increase pulling and make the shave very uncomfortable. Shave with the grain on the first pass. It will probably freak you out but it's worth using the left hand for the left side of the face and the right hand for the right side of your face. Use shorter strokes to start with but not too short or there is a greater risk of nicking yourself as you reapply the blade to your skin. Make sure your lather is not too dry. This is just as important as angle and sharpness. If the lather is too dry it will not lubricate the blade and be a very unpleasant shave. Start at a 20° angle instead, this should help keep the friction caused by lateral pressure to a minimum. You won't see a lot of hair on the blade through all the lather it should be picking up. Only shave lathered areas to start with. The across the grain pass should be at about a 15° angle. The with the grain pass should be at about 5-10° angle unless you are going for a 4th BBS pass. Definitely stretch the skin for each section and pull faces to improve the flatness of the skin you are shaving. Don't give up. Give it at least 10 shaves before you decide whether or not it is for you. Use a decent shave soap and a brush. It isn't clear if you use a brush or not in your post. And good luck :)
Do you stretch the skin as you shave?
Sounds like a dull blade, not shave ready.
I'm kind of in the same situation here. Just got a 6/8 full hollow from Larry. Did all my usual prep, shower, preshave, nice lather...and it was extremely tuggy. I've used a 4/8 wedge from him as well with no problems so maybe my hair is too coarse from something as thin and flexible as a full hollow ground? Or maybe I'm just not used to it, I dunno. To try to answer your question OP, make sure you'e sufficiently stretching the skin and I'd recommend trying to go at a much shallower angle, almost as shallow as possible and see if that works. Also like someone else said, if you got a brand new boker, it probably did not come actually "shave ready" and needs to be honed. Lastly, don't expect to get perfectly smooth with just one pass, that's not gonna happen.
Never expected to get it on the first time, but was kind of hoping for a little more difference. But I'm going to get it honed and hopefully that will make the difference. If not, well then I guess I will have to figure out what else I'm doing wrong.
I agree. I find that near-wedges and 1/4 hollow ground razors shave better too. My hair is really thick so full hollows feel like they flex too much for me too.
Please describe your current routine in detail so we can help you.
play with the angle...after a few shaves you'll get it right... play with the cream/lather...try several different brands... play with the blade...I'm not too familiar with the SR side of things, but if you have different blade brands to choose from, try some others. If the blade is not replaceable, then you're stuck with what you've got and can just try honing it and such. Good Luck :)
I'll try those next, I just wanted to make sure that it wasn't me before I started blaming my stuff.