Thread: Whipped Dog?

So I've decided for my first setup I would order blind from whippeddog.com a straight razor (whichever one the Gods find fit. As well as his poor man strop kit to include: 2" leather strop, balsa wood with abrasive, extra .3 micron CrOx and .1 micron abrasive. All this and a shot of neatfoot oil for 68 bucks. Doggie this could be my training ground with stropping and then don't feel bad for nicking the strop or jacking up the blade. Then again it might all suck terribly but he says everything is fully refundable, razors can be treated etc.

Wondering if anyone had experience with this vendor they could share.

Thanks in advance,

Max

Many of us started with Larry and Whipped Dog and I would recommend it as a great place to start.

Set the Neatsfoot oil aside for starters and just use the palm of your hand to break in the strop. Too much oil (and I have done this...) is not a good thing.
If you can attend a meet or find a local mentor the learning curve can be shortened...time well spent.

Enjoy and welcome to our world...the library & wiki is also your friend.

I have seen some of his blades and the edges, not good IMHO.

I started with his setup almost two years ago. Highly recommended. I spent $110 and got everything I needed to get started. I even bought his bargain DE razor for those times when I don't want to use the SR.

The edge on mine was absolutely shave ready. I've since bought two or three more "shave ready" razors and none of them have been any sharper than my first Sight Unseen razor.

I started with Larry and whipped dog and I'm glad I did. I think it's a good starting places as mentained above. although eventually I have replaced all of equipment I got from Larry i still use the 6/8 razor as a back up blade when sending my razor out to be Honed. One of these days as well I mean to use crox paste on the poor mans strop because the strop is still good I just upgraded to a 3 inch TM strop.

Greg

Greg

Greg.

I've also moved on to better strop, brush, etc. but I think the poor mans strop was a great investment since I did this to it while learning to strop. Would have been a real bummer if it had been $150 strop...



Had not though about pasting it.. I still use the Whipped Dog balsa one often.

Everything I've read about them was ok. I think of like this. if I had a teenage son who just got his drivers license I wouldn't get him a Ferrara (can't spell) sports car. i'd get him something to start with then latter he could up grade.

I start whit Whipped dog and i have no regret about it. Since my budget is tight is shaving gear fit right for me, i do have 2 strops the balsa strop green and brown abrasive and i have 5 straights of different sizes who are just marvelous shavers. I did start straight shaving last december and even my first straight 9/16 still had a good edge. I did refresh whit the abrsive strop and the edge is as good as new. For advices(mentor) is a real gentlemen to my opinion he know is bussiness.

Larry is a stand up guy! Getting a starter kit from him is a good way to go, later you can upgrade to better stuff when you are sure you like straight razor shaving.

The thing about Larry's products is that they fill a specific niche in the market. If you know what he is offering and that is what you're looking for, then it will probably be just fine.

Having bought razors and brush knots from him, I can only speak to those two product lines, and not to, say, strops.

Razors: Is a sight unseen razor going to be terrific quality and a thing of beauty? No. So that's rule #1 when it comes to whippeddog: know what to expect. It will not be pretty. It may be downright ugly. But you can and should expect that it will shave perfectly well. I have bought two from him and that was my experience both times. If you do buy from him and are unsatisfied for whatever reason, get in touch. He has in my experience been an absolute gentleman to deal with.

Brush knots: I have bought two silvertip knots from him and have had no cause for complaint. Are they as good as a top-end knot? I'd be willing to bet they are not. But once again, know what you're buying. They have proven to be perfectly functional, have not shed, and are a pleasure to use. And that's my rule #2 for whippeddog: it ain't top of the line, but I believe from my experience that it is just as good or better than a similarly-priced item.

IMHO if you are looking to get started on a budget, there are worse approaches to take. But it is essential that you're aware of what he is selling, and don't have unreasonable expectations (particularly with the razor) that what you will receive will be all shiny and pretty. It probably won't.

I agree 100% with Robin that the classifieds are an ideal place to start looking for a razor.