Thread: Bought a cheap Chinese razor off eBay as a starter, now what?

I tried to get into this as cheaply as possible, but I had the advantage of coming here first. I got my first razor from Whipped Dog. He promises that it will shave well, but he does not promise it will be pretty, or that it will be a brand you have heard of. I hit the jackpot and got a nice razor that, well, isn't very pretty. That's the background, here's my advice; First of all, if you got into this to save money, run away! Now, as fast as you can! It's a sickness! I've already bought a second razor and I'm saving for more. Don't throw that razor away! Unless I buy one like you've got, I'm going to have to learn to hone on a razor I care about. I'm already planning to restore that first razor, and the first razor I attempt to disassemble and re-pin is going to have to be that one I care about. I know right now you're not planning on doing that kind of stuff, but I'm telling you, you will powerless to not do it. Everything else I would advise has been said already. If you're posting here, it's probably already to late for you, so welcome to the club! Enjoy the ride.

Hi and welcome. Many of us get caught on the cheap ebay razor and end up here. If you are unsure if you are going to continue with straight shaving then maybe a razor from the classifieds and if you decide it isn't for you then you can sell it again for basically what you paid. It may take you a bit to find one you want but you will know what you are getting and you know it will be shave ready. Good luck

Sight unseen flawed razor from Whipped dog and you're set. Keep the cheap strop, if it has a porous side or a canvas part, then they're handy to apply chromium oxide paste to.

Thanks to everybody who responded. I usually stay away from the forum stuff- usually you find a ton of users who are either always on their soapbox or just plain trolling. Solid, helpful group of Gentlemen (and women) on here. Glad I joined up.

For the next move, I think I'll be getting a sight unseen from Larry at Whipped Dog. The strop will be kept in the arsenal for pasting, but will likely be the next item to be upgraded. What about the Chinese razor? Once I inevitably (I think your right, Java) get 'the sickness' and invest in a stone down the road, this razor will be what I practice on. I figure if I can successfully hone that thing to pass the HHT or AHT, I'll graduate myself from there to honing a razor that I might put my face to!

Thanks again everyone for the help. I received a lot of offers and advice on purchases from other members- I'll likely be taking up on those too, down the road when I inevitably add more razors.