The Best Beginners Set?!

Hi all! I'm a total noob, so if i posted this in the wrong area, I apologize. Anyhoo, I got a shave at the barber shop the other week and i was completely turned on to straight razor shaving, i've been back twice. I'm hooked, and want to do it at home. So, I've done some reading and have been trying to come up with the best beginner set i can find! I think i've narrowed my choices down to 2 that i have found:

Classic Shaving

Pros: Badger brush, more aesthetically pleaseing to myself, DVD
cons: comparative price. not honed. no stone.

The well shaved gentleman

Pros: Less expensive comparatively, comes pre-honed (so it says), everything one would need such as honing paddle and styptic pencil, etc
Cons: Boar hair brush. Not as pretty.

So, which one should I go for? Or is there a better alternative that I haven't found?

Thanks for the help, I'm sure you have much better expertise than I!

Get Tony Miller's kit. echoed loudly Get Tony Miller's kit...Get Tony Miller's kit!
Can't go wrong. A good starter kit ---use it and learn and add later if needed.


Justin

P.S. Listen to X and Steve --they know more than I ---but I have been happy with Tony Miller's kit.

I may not be qualified to give advice here since I haven't been shaving with straights for very long but I have a little personal experience with the Well Shaved Gentlemen's products.

I have his hanging strop, 4 sided combo paddle and a razor from him. The razor did indeed come shave-ready. The strops are excellent as well.

Here is a compromise if you like Classicshavings set better:

When you purchase the CS set, purchase the honing service (add'l $20 I think) It will go to Mr. Lynn Abrams (SRP founder) for honing.

I can't comment on the strop from CS as I only have the WSG strop so I'll leave others to offer their opinions.

Wow that's a tough choice. Here are my thoughts:

Lynn's
-Yes the badger brush is a decent one, but you might still want an upgrade at some point. I did.
-I don't like the weight of the scales on that Dovo. They're too heavy and throw the balance off, but it's a real nice blade. Lynn can hone it up for an additional $20 if it doesn't come ready.
-The DVD is GREAT, but you can buy it seperately for about $20.
-That's a good strop.

Tony's
-Not only do you get a hand crafted strop, but the paddle for pastes too which should help you keep the razor shaving great for several months.
-That's a good razor and you'll likely want a few more anyhow. Take time to think about what size and shape you prefer before spending more on a blade.
-Soap, mug and bristle brush (which you likely will want to upgrade soon) are all there for you.

Much as it's a sin to buck against Lynn, I'd still recommend Ton'y set, mostly for the strops.

X

I'd opt for Tony's set too because of the paddle and outstanding quality of his hangers, and get the DVD from Classic or directly from Lynn. The stuff in there that are lower quality are the brush and soap, and even those work ok and don't add much to the cost of the kit.

I'd go ahead and spring for pastes, probably only three sides at first. 3 micron diamond, 1 micron diamond, and 0.5 diamond or chrome oxide on the third side. I wouldn't bother with the 0.25 micron paste, it makes a very sharp but very fragile edge. Maybe get two sides pasted with one of the 0.5 micron pastes, since that's what you'll mostly use for refreshing your blade.

Don't worry about hurting Classic's feelings, you can't spend very much time perusing their stuff without feeling the irrestible urge to open the wallet... God I really need a Bergischer Lowe...

Hey X....How did I get involved in this??? Let me know what the Doctor says.........hahahahahahaha

Lynn

HA! I saw the last heading above the image on the CS websit which describes your CD and assumed you had a bigger hand in it.
Sorry. :o

X

Thanks guys. I do actually sell Lynn's DVD too, just have not put it up on the website yet. Same $20 as everyone else.

Yep, the soap and brush are very basic but the idea was to keep the cost down. A nicer brush and soap could quickly add $20-35 to the set. The items all sell separately too is you wanted to leave things out and source them elsewhere as you could do with Classic too.

MParker is right on with the pastes. My new favorite is 3.0, 1.0 diamond and then 0.5 in both diamond and chromium. Be sure not to over do the 0.5 strokes though. Imagine them as one side if using both on the same razor, do half on the diamond first then half on the chromium for the final polish. More preferable is use the diamond for hard blades (Thiers Issard), chromium for average (most Dovos).

Tony

Oh man, I didn't realize that representatives (owners?) of both CS and WSG were going to reply! It's nice that everyone is so amicable!!

Thanks so much everyone for all of your help, it has provided me with plenty of information on both sets. It seems the consensus is start basic, and go with Tony's set for the high qauality strops, because I will inevitably want to add to my collection ASAP!

Thanks again,
eric

Eric,
I think you will find us all a friendly bunch, vendors included. Lynn is not the owner of Classic, the late Ray Dupont's family is but Lynn is a central figure in thier honing services as well as the owner of this group and maker (and star) of that great DVD.
While several of us compete a bit for business I am a long time friend and still current customer of Classic Shaving and send many a customer there for fancier razors than I sell. Jim Ayars of Vintage Blades LLC is a personal (and local) friend as well as another fine retailer of shaving supplies.
You will find us to be one big family for the most part.

Tony

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Tony Miller

... Lynn is a central figure in thier honing services as well as the owner of this group and maker (and star) of that great DVD.

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Star? I'd call him a pimp with the level of razor porn in that thing. :D

X

Quote:

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Originally Posted by xman

Star? I'd call him a pimp with the level of razor porn in that thing. :D

X

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:roflmao :roflmao :roflmao

Got the DVD on Friday and watched it Friday night. Not all of it, mind you - it's pretty long. Great info too! Definitely HIGHLY recommended.

Once I figured out my little stropping oops, I've been happy with Tony's kit, "cheap soap" and all.

It's working just fine. I still have a little tiny bit of trouble around the crack of the lip and such, and the adams apple area still isn't where I'd like it, but that's my issue, nothing with the kit.

If'n it were me, I'd purchase a cheap strop as well, and save TOny's really nice one for after your first few strops where you nick, whack, scratch, gouge, and mangle the leather...

I'm going to hang on to mine for a nother week or two, then order a new strop.