Thread: horrible first straight razor shave experience

I can wonder, though, why would you, in the past, spend tens of $$ on stones, and not on a razor...

I bought the stones not for the razor, but for regular knives. At the time i had no idea i was going to eventually take interest in straight razor shaving.

I don't mean to be discouraging, and I'll be interested to see what you do with the fine Major's gear once you get and try it. However, there is a lot of combined experience on here (SRP), and I believe I can with some certainty tell you that SR shaving may just not be for you. Decent double edge safety razors and a years supply of blades can be had for closer to $20 than anything you will ever get in the SR world AND give you a closer and more comfortable shave than you'll get with any disposable. Think about going that direction and read the posts in the "shaving with a DE razor" section of the forum. This is supposed to be enjoyable and comfortable for you, not dangerous and aggravating. Buying a decent 8K stone and getting your current stones to a usable (lapped flat) condition to handle rehab work on the Gold Dollar you have will cost more (and continue to be more aggravating) than the path I am suggesting UNLESS you fall in love with the shavette that the Major sends you and stick with it.

For instance, if you decide to go this route, look here: http://www.maggardrazors.com/product...safety-razors/

One major thing. You keep quoting $100 as the price for a good razor. This is not so. You can get a dovo best quality for 8 if you want brand spanking new. Or you can go the vintage route. I have 12 razors. 4 of them free and 7 were anywhere from 10-30 dollars and one (my first) was a dovo pearlex (170). I sometimes regret buying that razor because if I was smart then that money could have turned into at least 5 other razors. I know a lot of us suggest people to stay away from vintage ebay razors as they don't know what to look out for but I have some good experience with finding good razors for cheap and I can keep an eye for something that would suit your budget. Or I can suggest some good razors to keep an eye out. Genco's are what I suggest a lot of newer people buy if going the vintage route. They are great blades and can be had for quite cheaply while still being in great condition. Heck I got a Genco for 20 and it was never used. A friend of mine was also able to get a similar deal. I believe his was NOS too.

If I had to start all over again... I'd start with a Feather Straight(or a clone) with the ProGuard blade. You can consent rate on method without the worry of Honing or Stropping. And more important.. With the ProGuard-less chance of cutting yourself up.

Also look into Whipped Dog Sight Unseen or even his Sight Unseen Flawed. You get a properly sharp SR for a very good price. Al is a great seller, ships fast and fills exactly the niche market for customers like you. I have two of his razors and shave with them daily!

If a Gold Dollar is honed right, it can give you a "decent" shave with no problems. I stress decent since it isn't a spectacular shave. Really if you aren't willing to spend more then 20 dollars on a straight. Shaving with one may not be for you. You could always try a shavette since they are always sharp and ready to go. They also cost about 20 dollars plus a few bucks more for blades and you don't have to mess around with stropping or honing.

Originally Posted by S0LITARYS0LDIER

If a Gold Dollar is honed right, it can give you a "decent" shave with no problems. I stress decent since it isn't a spectacular shave.

I'll second that motion, don't count it out just yet. You can use it to practice your honing, and once you get the edge down right the Gold Dollar might just surprise you. I know I wasn't expecting it to clean up as well as it did. I thought I was just getting a cheap razor to practice honing on, but it's actually turned into a decent shaver IMO. Of course as you discovered, out of the box they are iffy and it takes some work to make them acceptable. But it can be done.