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almost all questions are answered in the library but yes it will be shave ready , and yes it does state that o the sight and any strop you get from them will be all you need for now ,,, its best to stay with lower cost equipment In the beginning as for looks that's all personal any shave ready razor will do the job,, and yes you can shave the rest is up to you and after you've dulled it stropping and you will or your shave technique will ,, they will rehone it for you ,, and after a hundred or so shaves youll be good. remember that your prep and learning to stretch your skin plus building a good lather all go into this. but time and experience and actually reading the library and taking good advise will get you there quicker not to mention put your location in your profile so maybe a mentor can help you out tc
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100% trust SRD
The latigo is the leather type, the 2nd material can be poly webbing, premium fabric or hard pressed felt, check your options I personally have felt (not SRD but)
The 2" will work fine I personally only use a 3" stop I find it easier to use, as a starter as the x strokes don't need to be as extreme to ensure stropping the full edge.
Not certain but I think the Ralf are about 1/2 hollow
For a starter set up I think you will very happy with the choices from SRD
A definate shave out the box package
And I think SRD offer a free rehone but don't quote me in this.
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I forgot to mention I've read the library... Hence my questions. Looking for more conversational knowledge and specific info
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+1 on what has been said so far but I would go for a 2.5 or 3 inch strop width. You can then avoid X stroking, if you wish. One of the challenges in learning to SR shave is learning how to keep a shave ready edge shave ready while learning how to shave well. Is the beginners less than Stella shaves the edge condition, shaving technique, or both? Not having to X stroke is one less thing to worry about. Starting with a shave ready edge gives the 1st time user a shot at knowing what the razor should feel like and what it can do before needing to be stropped. There is no getting around learning to strop well since the SR must be stropped after each shave and poor stropping will not bring the edge back to its shave ready state. Restropping correctly will often overcome an inadequate stropping.
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I started with a Dovo Astral 5/8 round point and 3" black Latigo strop. It was quite a bit more than this is priced at and I still love and use both. You can't go wrong with SRD. Great thing about the strop is you can replace the leather or felt later if you damage it or want to try something else.
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Can't go wrong with anything from srd. As said it will come shave ready amd don't strop before you use it. Personally I believe no matter what strop width you should still use a x stroke and find 2.5 inch is better for me. I have the same razor and it is a good shaver and will serve you well. Good luck
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Not got one but from reading the RA is full hollow. May be touch more difficult to learn at first but will teach you better technique. So up to you. The Dovo razors come in half hollow which SRD also do if you want the standard recommendation of grind for beginners.
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ratchet,
Plenty of good info above. I also have the Ralf Aust 5/8 and its a quality razor.
On the strops, heres a video by Lynn on the SRD strops. I think you'll find it informative on type and use. I prefer, and its always preference by individual, the 3" strop. Covered above for ease of use and learning.
The latigo has more draw than i like and thats something you'll have to decide on as you try different leathers. Draw is the resistance of moving the razor over the leather. I prefer a light, little resistance, draw. I started with the premium buffalo (heavy draw) and it made for a more difficult learning curve, for me. You'll see a description of draw on the SRD descriptions.
:gl:
Best Regards,
Howard :
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=
