Well, this changes everything.

I believe this is the first forum I have ever posted to.

A few weeks ago, I was looking through a magazine and saw an ad for the Art of Shaving. Always wanting to look my best, I checked it out. Through looking into some other options, I discovered this extremely unique world. To top things off, I was looking for a new hobby. Brewing your own beer is wonderful, but you cannot do it everyday when you are in law school.

So, I started purchasing everything I felt I needed. Merkur HD DE, lots of creams and soaps, C+E Best Badger brush. Lots of washcloths. Well, for the first time in my life, I actually look forward to shaving. Law school is a real bear, and to have those few minutes where I only think about one thing, other than the law, is a real blessing.

Fast forward. When I finally told my wife about my new hobby (we do not live together during the week) she was extremely surprised I did not go the straight razor route. I had to admit my absolute fear.

Well, she encouraged me to try it anyway. So that is what I have decided to do. I have been reading posts for a while and now I have a few questions. Some of these have been answered elsewhere, but there are so many contradictions, it is hard for me to narrow things down.

First off, I have taken the abundance of advice that suggested Lynn Abrams' DVD. That should be arriving any day now. (Wish I could have downloaded, paid for it and watched it the same day, but I digress.)

Second, the one thing I have seen repeatedly recommended, without fail, is a strop from Tony Miller. I emailed him, and he seems to recommend the strap as opposed to the paddle, especially when starting. Question here though, what level should I begin with? More on this later.

Third, honing has never been something I was any good at. I look forward to learning some things from the DVD, but the Norton 4k/8k seems pretty universally recommended. I will probably wait a little bit on this, simply because I am on a student's budget.

Fourth, I have plenty of creams, soaps and a brush (as stated above). I am very happy with the C+E best badger as I found recommended on Badgerandblade.com.

So, I think that brings me to the last thing, and the one that I really am spinning my wheels over. I have no good idea about where to begin with in choosing a blade. Unlike the Merkur HD I learned about on badgerandblade, I just cannot find a good consensus on what I should choose when it comes to my first straight razor.

Here are my criteria. I have no problem spending extra money when the value (defined quality:price) is high. I do not want to spend a tremendous amount of money on something that I am not going to enjoy, but at the same time, I do not necessarily want to go as low as I can if quality suffers. I understand that I cannot get the best razor for the lowest price, but I am really looking for that best value out there. Remember, student's budget, but I can find some money if I need it, just not too much.

I understand that DOVO seems to be a good brand, as well as TI, but should I really consider one over the other as my first razor. In other words, am I going to be so disappointed in a few months with one, that it would have been a much better idea to spend the extra money at the beginning for the better razor, even if marginally better at the beginning. The same thing goes for the strop. I will definitely go to Tony Miller. But is the lowest quality (I know it is still great) going to be good for a year, or is it something I am going to have to replace with another hanging strop in a few months. I know the paddle will come sooner than later, but that is not so much a problem now.

Finally, when it comes to the blade, what size is recommended for getting started. It seems that 5/8 blades are quite common , almost standard, but should I consider something else in the beginning? I am a pretty large guy, so my face is nice and big and round. I have a goatee that I plan on keeping for some time, it makes the double chin look better. I am not sure if that will help with the advice but I thought I would put it out there.

If it does not come shave ready (either from Tony or through Classic Shaving), I will have it done professionally before starting.

I think that is about it. If there are other things I should be thinking about, please let me know.

Alright, I've got the bug. I love this stuff already. Thanks in advance for any information. I greatly appreciate it.

Best regards,
Jonathan

You have come into a unique world and I have to say I have met the most interesting people on the SRP site. Who else would go retro and take extremely sharp naked steel to their face and throat? You HAVE to be looking at life differently.

Anyway, let me encourage you to take up honing your blades. It's just another skill, which when you learn to do it, will benefit your life in numerous ways. For instance, the same hones you use for a straight razor can also keep your kitchen knives and pocket knives sharp.

Honing is a progressive process of moving the edge of the steel along coarser then finer then even finer stones and then stropping. Razors have the angle geometry built in as you lay the razor down on the stone with the spine touching and the edge touching. It's not like a knife where you can easily round the edge and make it duller instead of making it sharper.

The Norton stones are very good and I sell a lot of them world wide. Eventually though, people want to wring out that last 10% of performance from their expensive blades and ask about a coticule. They use that and then the emails get exclamatory! You can, on a student's budget, get a "bout" which is a squarish coticule for $55 which is less than a Norton 4k8k. If you have the Norton and the bout and a good strop, you'll be shave ready right quick. Call me if you need coaching on honing. 508-842-7132. That's east coast U.S. time between 9am and 5pm M - F please. My wife gets really jealous of me spending a half hour on the phone with someone during our precious 1 hour of evening time together (we collapse early . . .).

Welcome Jonathan, Howard has certainly given you some good advice on honing and you won't go wrong working with him.

With respect to a razor, you can go one of several ways. First, as you've probably seen here, you can get a new razor (Dovo or TI) or you can get a restored or new old stock (NOS) vintage razor. In terms of "quality" its very hard to say "this razor is better then that razor". You'll see many posts with people saying how their cheap $15 ebay razor is one of their best shavers. Of course the pricier razors shave well too and have some looks to them. The most important thing is the condition of the razor and how well its honed.

If you want to go vintage, check the buy sell trade forum here and or post a "want to buy" note. I'm sure several members will contact you with good razors at reasonable price points. You won't go wrong with a new Dovo or TI. Just make sure its honed by a pro before shaving with it. Tony's come shave ready and Jim at Vintagebladesllc.com has a sharpening service as does Classic.

I'm sure others with wider experience than me will chime in with more detail on the differences between the new razors. Hope this helps.

On size, I'd try a 5/8 or 6/8 if you want to go a little larger. Those sizes are more maneuverable than the 7/8+ razors.


Jordan

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Big Justice

I understand that DOVO seems to be a good brand, as well as TI, but should I really consider one over the other as my first razor.

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by jnich67

You won't go wrong with a new Dovo or TI. Just make sure its honed by a pro before shaving with it.

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Jordan raises the most important point i've learnt as a noob so far. I, like yourself have heard that the two major quality brands are Dovo and TI. When I started I ended up chosing a Dovo because I read that the TI needed some extra effort and work while honing. Thats the only reason. And it is honing that I would say is the most important tip in this post.

Whichever razor you buy, regardless of make, size, carbon content or ground or ANYTHING else: GET IT HONED BY ONE OF THIS FORUMS EXPERT HONERS. This was my mistake. I did not discover this forum until long after i'd started shaving and long after it needed honing. Makers will say 'comes shave ready'. It doesnt. It simply doesnt. Get one of the honemeisters on SRP to hone it before your first shave. That way you have a benchmark for sharpness and know how sharp it should be.

Mine should be going away to be honed by a UK honemeister in a few days as I still cant hone so that it passes the HHT :(

Any questions, keep posting,

Sandy