New VS Old and After Shave Razor Care

Hello All,

I've enjoyed reading may of your posts in the forums and appreciate your shared wisdom.

This paragraph is a little background so feel free to skip to the next paragraph with the actual questions. I'm new to Straight Razor shaving and purchased a kit with a new strop, brush, soap and razor a few months ago for around $70. It took a lot of stropping to get the "shave ready" razor what I believe is "usable" and then it was requiring a lot of stropping, around 100 times, between shaves to keep it "usable" but still not comfortable to use. Recently I purchased an vintage razor that had some issues, small chips I could feel with my nail, and sharpened it, removing the chips, using wet dry paper as I have sharpened 100 of woodworking tools with this method and was doing this as a comparison test. I used electric tape as others have suggested in the forums and was deliberate with all actions. I ended on 1500 paper and then to the strop. The shave was so much better than the razor that come with the kit I was amazed. I then purchased an antique strop that came in today. I tried using the strop a few times and everything felt so much better I was again amazed and the amount of stropping is now greatly decreased. With the new antique razor and strop I'm in about $55 with shipping and actually had a comfortable shave, not including brush and soap. I had considered switching back to disposable razors before I invested in the older razor, S. R. Droescher Blue Diamond and Alchimi Strop.

I have a few friends that are starting to ask questions about shaving with straight razors. I haven't made suggestions yet but based on my experience I'm leaning towards suggesting they buy vintage equipment to get started. Do others agree with this or is it more likely I got lucking with my vintage purchase. This way they can upgrade the peaces they would like to moving forward but start with a minimal investment.

On another note how should I take care of the razor after and between shaves. I've been drying and stropping it a few times and sticking it in my sock drawer. We have low humidity where I live. I read I should oil it after shaving and have mineral oil but other than after the first sharpening I haven't oiled it once. Should oiling the blade be an every time practice. I also dry with a towel everything but the very edge of the blade and let the strop dry that. Is this an OK practice.

Thanks,
Mark

Welcome to SRP Mark. Difficult to say whether your first razor was truly shave ready based on your description. Since you were able to sharpen the "new" vintage razor to a satisfactory level of performance I would suggest trying to bring the first one around to the same level. What brand is the first one ?

I have bought quite a few vintage razors and new production. The important thing with vintage, AFAIC, is condition. I have tried to buy vintage razors in real good condition. Maybe a bit of honest wear but not obvious abuse. Nothing wrong with new production from known makers and vendors either. In that case you can specify shave ready and vendors such as SRD do not charge extra for that.

I do the same as you describe in taking care of my razors. Rinse, dry and strop on leather. I keep them in a dry area of the house. Once in awhile I will wipe them down with a silicone gun cloth impregnated with R.I.G. by Birchwood Casey.

I think vintage is a great way to go. I got a vintage razor for $20 and paid another $20 to get it honed by a pro. You're taking a risk buying a vintage razor so do some research first on what to buy and what to look for in a good blade. If you're not willing to do the research on those things you're better off spending a bit more on a new shave-ready razor from SRD.

+1 to the advice above.

I just wanted to add that if you paid $70 for the entire kit including razor, brush, strop, and soap, there is a very good chance that the razor is pretty far from excellent quality. The recognized current production quality brands (Dovo, Boker, Ralf Aust for example) tend to cost somewhere around $10 to $40 more for the razor alone than you paid for the entire kit. If your razor is made from sub-standard steel as many (if not most) of the really inexpensive blades are, you will always struggle to get and keep a truly great edge on it.

I personally love vintage blades, but not because I believe them to be better than new blades. I'm an historian so I appreciate their age, patina, etc. I also dabble in restoration, and I love the process of bringing an old blade back to life. But I have no reason to believe that they shave better than a new blade. As long as the new blade is from a recognized quality maker, it will do a great job once it is given a proper edge.

Sounds like if you finished on 1500 grit sandpaper and had a good shave you'll prob drop to the floor after having it professionally honed, or doing it yourself on some finer stones.
A good honing really makes all the difference. I, like you, had previous experience in sharpening knives, etc and thought I was fairly decent, but I wasn't halfway prepared to do a razor :)
Not saying it's going to be rocket science, but needs lots of practice.

Thanks for all the information and advise. I've ordered a final finishing waterstone but plan to continue using sandpaper for the initial levels until I can get more waterstones. This is partially due to buying 2 more razors off ebay so I can practice sharpening and honing. I think I'll give them to my friends if I'm able to get them in good shape. They are both S. R. Droescher razors assuming similar quality across the line. is this reasonable to assume? I would also like to have one sent off to a professional so I know what I'm striving for when sharpening. Any recomendations on where to send a razor? Thanks again for the advise.

Mark

Not sure of actual brand of razor as no marking or stamp can be found. Probably a ban decision all the way around and should have done me research.

There are plenty of people on this forum that provide honing services but the only one I have personally dealt with is Howard Schecter from the perfect edge. He took my 'passable' blade to a whole new world of sharpness :dropjaw: I shaved with it 22 hours ago and could easily get by without shaving tonight before work :) What ever honing provider you chose will definitely change your perception of sharp!

Chris