No. Buying a "shave set" is like eating a TV dinner... unless that's the way you eat. My advice?

  • Buy a shave-ready half- or quarter-hollow grind (or near-wedge) razor from the SRP Classifieds. Lots to choose from! Hell, buy two, and switch between 'em.
  • Buy a 22mm-knot shaving brush from Vintage Blades (their "house" brand). $35 Get the faux ebony handle -- you know it's cooler than the faux ivory.
  • Buy a Premium I Leather Pad from SRD (for their Modular Paddle Strop). $20 It's 3"x12", and you can put it on top of a piece of two-by-four, or whatever's handy, on the table or kitchen counter.

Don't waste your money on hones or other expensive toys... not now, anyway. First, learn how to shave -- it's about you, not some fancy razor. The table-top strop (we call it a "bench strop") keeps you from screwing-up the edge of the blade; stropping with a hanging strop is an art, and takes time to develop that skill... same with honing.

Just my 2-cents.