Thread: May I have your advice?

That razor has been worked, it is not original, it is very very small my guess is 3/8 they are harder to hone, and harder to strop, they are also easy for a newb to cut themselves with ;(

If you want advice then I would say Pass, and wait for a better beginner razor

You'll need a strop and a razor. Spend the $ and get a brand spanky new entry level Dovo razor and strop set. If you're on a budget get the 5/8 which is few bucks less than a 6/8 and a good size to shave with. One of our vendors offers a second honing free when it becomes necessary. That is a $20 or more value right there. This way there is no guessing and you know what your are getting. Some guys are looking to do it on a shoestring and if that is all that can be afforded I can understand it. OTOH, make sure you see what you are getting in advance.

Larry @ whippeddog.com is another good guy to work with. You can email him with questions, and he will get you what you and he thinks will benefit you best. Granted it won't be a real looker, but he will put a darn good shaving edge on it, and won't cost you much at all. Either way you go, make sure it is truly shave ready when you get it, otherwise you are going to flub your way to honing and shaving, and most likely get discouraged before you ever get a truly great shave.

Originally Posted by tiddle

Larry @ whippeddog.com is another good guy to work with. You can email him with questions, and he will get you what you and he thinks will benefit you best. Granted it won't be a real looker, but he will put a darn good shaving edge on it, and won't cost you much at all. Either way you go, make sure it is truly shave ready when you get it, otherwise you are going to flub your way to honing and shaving, and most likely get discouraged before you ever get a truly great shave.

Be sure to read threads by people who have received their razor and examine the pics closely.
To say it might not be a looker is still too generous, considering pieces may be missing and the blade can have actual rust.

+1 on all the experts, but I went a little too far in the Photobucket and that cloisonne vase looked pretty nice. It would not give you a good shave either, but when you realized what you had done, you would feel a lot better than you would if you bought that skinny ersatz straight.

I ordered a sight-unseen, poorman's strop with balsa, silvertip badger brush and soap kit, and a 12K barbers hone from WhippedDog.com. For right at $100, I felt like it was a good deal, and gave me everything I needed to get started.

Now here's what happened...

I got the stuff in the mail. The razor (a J.A. Henckels Twinworks 85) looked good, besides some major black stuff (I was told it was patina, and later on rust here on the forum) on the blade. Truthfully, I was wondering to myself if Larry had accidentally sent me a flawed sight-unseen instead of a "flawless" one. I worked on it a bit with some Mothers polish and a rag, and removed a lot of it. It now looks like this:



So then I went for the first shave with it. I was disappointed. Granted it was my first shave with a straight, I felt like I was doing everything right, because I had done literally weeks of research. I was told by the guys on here I was just being a noob, and that I would get better. Well, my brother ended up giving me his Dovo Black Star that he was no longer using. I gave it a simple 10 x-strokes on the 12k barbers hone, and it shaved beautifully. So I contacted Larry and told him what was going on, and he said he couldn't argue with my evidence and to send it back for a free re-honing. Also, I could get a future re-honing as well. So I sent the razor back. I also had purchased a Wade and Butcher off of eBay right before emailing him about the Henckels not shaving well, so that one was on its way back from being honed, along with two vintage razor cases I had purchased from him. I got the Wade and Butcher back, and it shaved great, just as good maybe even better than the Dovo. The two vintage cases look great and match the Henckels and W&B. I got the Henckels back and this time around it shaves great, too. So the first time was a fluke. No problem, I'm sure it happens time to time, as with all things in life.

So that is my experience with WhippedDog.com. The customer service was excellent, definitely among the best of places I've ordered from online (not just shaving stuff, but everything). Now, would I purchase another sight unseen razor? I dunno. Now that I own a few razors and know a little bit about them, I think I much prefer knowing what I will be getting, so eBay or the Classifieds on here look look like better options for me. For newbies just starting out, Larry does know how to put an edge on a razor, and the sight unseens he sends out will be shave-ready (a little different in my case, but still). Also, you may get lucky and get something really cool (I saw a guy on here get a Puma not long ago as a sight unseen, in excellent shape, and to me that is a very interesting razor). Don't get me wrong, I like my Henckels, I just wish it hadn't come with rust on the blade. I guess I was expecting something more along the lines of what is pictured on the website (a vintage straight with no rust).

For what it's worth, I did order a flawed poorman's strop, and this is what Larry sent (looks like a brand new one instead):



I haven't used it yet, though, as my brother also gave me this Chicago strop, which I felt would be easier to use (for obvious reasons):



Also, here is the silvertip badger brush I obtained from Larry (absolutely LOVE this thing!):



Oh, and the barbers hone (pictured with my Dovo with taped spine to protect the black, and the Henckels which I was trying to sharpen up before I sent it to get re-honed):



So, as you can see, Larry does sell good products at good prices, and has excellent customer service. I just would fully understand that the sight unseens may have rust on the blade, even if you get the more expensive one that is supposed to be without flaws. I guess rust is not considered a flaw? I dunno. I just don't think I will personally order another sight unseen again, as much as I do love my Henckels, but I will probably order other products from WhippedDog.com (soaps, badger brushes, razors that are pictured, etc), and likely use his honing services again.

Hope this post helps you in making your first beginner's purchase.

As for the Henckels you pictured in your original post, compare it to the picture of mine and you will see what Glen means by it was worked on. When searching for razors, always avoid the ones that look that thin.

Thank you very much for the replies.

Actually, I was already considering the Dovo+Strop set (from the very same place, ofc ) So, it's great that JimmyHAD confirmed that choice.

Still, an old razor is way cheaper than a new one and I read on this forum that J.A.Henckels razors are generally good.
But I will listen to the advice of the more-experienced, skip this one and look for a bigger blade.

Now I'm wondering:
How did you figure out that the razor is not original?

Edit:
Thanks to tiddle, too. That looks like a much better option than ebay.

De nada amigo

Originally Posted by aymaliev

Now I'm wondering:
How did you figure out that the razor is not original?

I am really really good, hehehehe

Actually restorations is what I do, and that one wasn't even a challenge to spot

http://straightrazorpalace.com/begin...tml#post736914

That is a tuff one to spot

I would like to reiterate something Jimmy has said, " make sure you SEE WHAT YOU ARE GETTING", there are vendors who like to offer easy and cheap deals and then will send something less than generally acceptable. For a good deal buy new or check the classifieds here at SRP.