Thread: Greetings from the great white north

Hi Ya'all,

I've been playing with the idea with straight shaving for a while, as much nowadays we got so much used of the fast food wet shaving, the 50+ blades on the cartridge that shaves the best and so on but regardless I always liked the traditional way.
Especially back home (Istanbul) were most barbers were able to do it (even if it's the shavette)
So, long story short, now with x-mas approaching, it's time for some real man's stuff.
As a newbie, you try to soak in any info you can get and sort the good from the bad.(That's how I ended up here) I'm close to make a decision on which straight I would like to have.
I don't like the idea of buying one razor for beginners and upgrading later on(allthough there is deal for a complete set with a Dovo C-mon for 179$ CAD). Instead I laid an eye on 2 razors (Boker-King Cutter 6/8 and TI Special C. 6/8). There is absolutely no particular reason why I have chosen the 6/8 over 5/8. Both razors are priced the same, which is a bit expensive up here in Canada but what to do, eh?

Any suggestions, thoughts and directions are greatly appreciated.

Thanks for taking the time and reading.

Cheers,

Welcome to the forum! I've only be SR shaving for a couple of months but from my limited experience you my want to consider getting one razor to start just to make sure you are going to like it and determine what you like/don't like about your first purchase. If you are like me you will use this forum to get answers to questions that come up while you are learning the trade. In the process of doing that you may find that you want to target a particular brand of razor/different size/different grind and within a month you are buying your 2nd or 3rd razor (may more). My first razor was a round point (Boker Edelweiss 5/8) (absolutely love it).....my next two razors had Spanish Points which, after a few "mishaps" I have put them away until my technique gets better....those points are really sharp and find a way of digging into any loose flesh! Now I'm looking into buying another round point and I'm thinking about a 7/8...just to try something different than my 5/8. I would also like to try some different grinds....maybe my next/next purchase!! Anyway good luck and good shaves.

Greetings from the Great Wet North. So far it is sounding fairly reasonable. There are quite a few Calgary members here. I agree about the fast food of shaving. We all choose our style of grooming for various reasons. There are a few good shops in Canada that I have been happy to deal with, Classic Edge and Fendrihan. There are a couple of others that have soaps and brushes etc.. Those two shops sell their razors shave ready. Some shops don't hone their razors prior to shipping, these are not good shopping spots for new guys. Welcome and enjoy the journey.

Welcome Brother!
Interesting story you have here, My family is from Turkey as well, My mother from Istanbul and my father from Çanakkale, they moved to Mexico 35 years ago where I was born and now I'm in Vancouver he he he

I started with a shavette just to get the hang of it, see how it feels in my hand and try to get the angles and movements right. Now I have a Dovo Stainless Steel EnVouge and a TI Carbon Steel.

I hear that the Boker is an amazing razor but I can not speak for that. Both my Dovo and TI are 5/8 and absolutely love them, although I would have to give my vote to the TI. For some reason I feel it's more forgiving than the Dovo, may be is the carbon vs. stainless blade I don't know, but I do love the looks of the TI.

My next buy - if I'm able to save enough - would be a 6/8 TI Damascus Steel. (I absolutely love the looks of it)

As Gehring mentions, this is a great forum to get answers and learn a lot about this topic as I've learned a lot lately! and also, as a side note, I do love the Edelweiss as well, hopefully some day I'll be able to get one of those as well he he he.

Hoşgeldiniz!

Cheers.

E.

A 6/8 is a great middle-of-the-road size to try. I don't think you will be disappointed at all. Happy shaves when you get that new blade!

Welcome from a fellow Albertan You should do just fine with any of the blades you've mentioned…the main thing as been already said is to ensure that it is shave ready. Enjoy the journey.

It's not so much the name of the razor (although some you need to avoid) it's the configuration that will help you be successful. I'd suggest either a 5/8 or 6/8 round point. Get used to this one first. Then move on to something else.

Originally Posted by RezDog

Greetings from the Great Wet North. So far it is sounding fairly reasonable. There are quite a few Calgary members here. I agree about the fast food of shaving. We all choose our style of grooming for various reasons. There are a few good shops in Canada that I have been happy to deal with, Classic Edge and Fendrihan. There are a couple of others that have soaps and brushes etc.. Those two shops sell their razors shave ready. Some shops don't hone their razors prior to shipping, these are not good shopping spots for new guys. Welcome and enjoy the journey.

Thanks for the warm welcome and great input.
I've be checking/comparing both shops. But it seems that Fendrihan isn't doing the honing while Classic Edge does incl. a free re-hone. As a newbie I'd probably order from there.

Originally Posted by Speedster

A 6/8 is a great middle-of-the-road size to try. I don't think you will be disappointed at all. Happy shaves when you get that new blade!

That's what I thought. A mid size razor to start and use for an x amount of years without getting the urge to purchase another one.
Cheers

Well the urge to purchase a second one will come right away; it is the second hundred razors that is the problem.

having at least 2 razors is a good idea so that if you have to send one out to be honed you still have a razor to shave with. Even if you do your own honing a second razor is good because accidents can happen to the razor when stropping or rinsing it and having a second razor allows you to finish up without having to hone right away.

Bokers are great even the new production ones.