Thread: new guy

Originally Posted by Crossfitboy

Thank you guy. Definitely want to learn. Where do you think I should get stones and straps. The stones I do have were handed down and I have no idea the grit on them. How does one post pics on for people to see?

At the bottom of this post, hit the "Reply With Quote" button. Then in your new message window just above where the quoted text is, you will see a control bar. Hover your mouse over the third button from the right. It should generate a pop-up saying "Insert Image". Click that. You should be able to figure it out from there.

Don't even think about buying stones, plates, film, etc just yet. Learn to shave first, and in the meanwhile read read read. Absorb background knowledge. Buy rocks later, or lapping film, one or the other, starting with a finisher, but not yet. A fast first purchase is usually a regrettable one. Save your enthusiasm for learning to shave. Find a sharp one and go for it. If none will pass any reasonable sharpness test, (shaving your forearm is absolutely NOT a sharpness test for proofing a shave ready razor!) then you need to pick one or two to send out for honing. I will say this though, and I have no dog in this fight because I do not take in outside honing. ONLY consider honers who are legit and respected members of the straight shaving community or you will be SOOOOOOOOOOOO sorry. Not just someone who sells cutlery or even who sells just razors. Nobody who does not shave daily with a straight razor is qualified in the least, to hone a razor. Talking the talk and walking the walk are two different things. Any forum member here or on any other straight razor forum, with at least a few hundred posts, who says he can hone your razor, will probably do an acceptable job at it. Reputations are at stake. But if you have one that is already sharp enough to shave your face comfortably, you are ahead of the game.

Do not buy a strap. Buy a STROP. STROP. STROP. I was just looking on fleabay the other day and saw several vintage strops that looked interesting. The ones you want are going to have "horse shell" or "cordovan" or "cordoban" in the item description. A vintage shell cordoban strop that is not cracked and stiff, and not sliced up too badly, is a good bet, and you are probably going to be paying $40 or so for a strop that if new would cost at least $160 or so. Normally there is no way I would turn a noob loose on a shell strop but if you are paying less than $50 for a vintage shell or paying less than $50 for a brand new basic cowhide strop, what's the difference? The difference is if the strop somehow survives your learning phase, you have a pretty sweet strop. Cowhide can be okay, and THE END RESULT IS PRETTY MUCH THE SAME, but shell is simply much more emjoyable to use, feel, see, and own. At any rate, because it is very likely that you will destroy your first strop while learning to use it, stay below $50. There is a lower limit, beyond which your are looking less at proper strops and more at strop shaped objects that just won't do the job. Probably around $20 or $30. Forget about the $4 Chinese naugahyde things with triangular bend wire "d rings". RUN from rivets trying to look like Chicago screws. Pakistani strops are hardly better and with the declining quality of theexbay's strops, I would say give them all a miss. Follow along in the strops and stropping forum here and also on other forums. You need a good basic beginner strop before you can shave. After a few months, feel free to upgrade to a nicer strop. Make your noob mistakes on the cheap one first, though.

What he said.

Another alternative though is to find in the forum here people who make strops and send them a PM and tell them that you are learning and need a beginner's strop. Most anyone who is a member of this forum is going to care enough about a fellow forum member to do you a straight deal on something like that. We've all been in this same boat of just starting out so I think it's pretty safe to say that anyone with "senior member"/"mentor" attached to their icon will take good care of you and get you something that will help.

Thanks a lot.