Thread: Another newbie !

Hello,

During all my adult life I had trouble with regular safety razors, they would cause me a lot of rashes, ingrown hairs, etc.

Recently I bought a straight edge razor with disposable blades and its already much better ! This is why I want to buy a "real" non disposable straight edge kit.

I did read all the guides but with all the available information its easy to get lost. Can someone recommend me a cheap-ish blade ? I do have a very thick and coarse beard...

Thanks !

Welcome Yannick. I'm not sure what direction to send you, but there are many good new straights as well as used / restored ones that would fit the bill.

If the blade is properly sharpened, then the type of razor then comes down to preference.

Do you want a big heavy blade, a thin light blade? Do you prefer a smiling blade for concave areas or do you want a flat blade?

You either just buy one and deal with it's quirks or, like many of us, buy many until you find your "style".

And you also will need to learn how to maintain it or continue to pay others sharpen it as needed.

It's a journey, enjoy the scenery on your way.

Welcome to SRP!

If you want a new blade, I'd go with a beginner's kit from Straight Razor Design. You can't go wrong with any of their razors.
If you want a vintage blade, I'd go with the classifieds on this site.
If you want cheap, there is whippeddog, it may be an ugly razor but it will have a shave ready blade.

I would recommend a round point to begin with - your ears and nose will thank you.

Hi and welcome. Where are you from. There are plenty of reputable vendor's to send you to but can give better advice knowing where you are from.

A round point 5./8 or 6/8 razor is best to start with. As long as it's truly shave ready you should have no issues shaving once you get your technique right.

Thanks guys I think ill go with a starters kit from SRD

Originally Posted by criswilson10

Welcome to SRP!

If you want a new blade, I'd go with a beginner's kit from Straight Razor Design. You can't go wrong with any of their razors.
If you want a vintage blade, I'd go with the classifieds on this site.
If you want cheap, there is whippeddog, it may be an ugly razor but it will have a shave ready blade.

If you want cheap, go with SRD or the classifieds. If you find that straight shaving is not for you, or that you want to upgrade to a "better" razor, then you can turn around and re-sell the razor in the classifieds. That will make the purchase cheap but still with high quality.

+1 on the SRD kit. I did that with a simple strop and then from there bought ones from the classifieds to try different sizes/grinds/points.
It ends up being a personal thing, and what you find you really like could be quite different from what others' like. It's a great idea to start with a known quantity, and then go from there.

Just be sure to immediately shave with it. Don't strop a shave-ready razor from SRD. This way you'll know exactly what a sharp razor should feel like.

Enjoy!

You can't go wrong with any of the beginners kits on SRD.