Thread: Straight Razor Greenhorn Equipment List and Questions

I have successfully shaved with a straight razor only two times now with minor nicks here and there. I did my research and have a list of equipment that I have bought or am looking to buy and I would like constructive criticism on any necessary items.

My straight razor interest started with one simple purchase at a swap meet. I came across a knife/sword vendor that was selling straights and I was always interested. Not knowing a single thing at this point I bought my first and only blade to date (it has only been 1 week so far). The straight razors they were selling were the Kriegar #KG102. After getting home and doing a very small amount of homework, I compiled a very crude equipment list starting with the obvious...

Razor, shaving soap, brush, pre-shave facewash, post-shave face treatment, strop, honing stone, shaving mug/bowl.

At the time I searched the local shops to find that there aren't many options when it comes to purchasing these items locally. Because of this fact my initial equipment list consisted of:
Razor: Kriegar #KG102
Soap: Generic Shaving Soap Puck from Walgreens
Brush: Generic Boar Hair Brush
Preshave: Neutrogena Men Razor Defense Face Scrub
Postshave: T.N. Dickinson's Witch Hazel

Since I wasn't able to find a strop or honing stone anywhere my search went to the Internet. I did some research and found that people seem to prefer vintage strops. I found (and won) a nice lot of 3 vintage strops on ebay, but since I wasn't sure how long it would take to arrive, I also ordered a ZeePK strop for the interim. Not knowing any better, I also ordered a ZeePK honing stone as well. I figured that all honing stones did the same thing, but even though I haven't used it yet I have found that a good stone appears to be the Norton 4000/8000 Grit Honing Stone.

Today those three packages arrived. The ZeePK honing stone and strop, and the lot of the 3 vintage strops. The vintage strops are two wide strops and one narrow strop. I have also ordered Original Bay Rum Aftershave after finding that it receives great reviews.

My list of items yet to be purchased include:
Norton 4000/8000 Grit Honing Stone
Badger Hair Brush
Cella Crema Sapone Extra Extra Purissima Shaving Soap
Shaving Mug or Bowl
A Brush and Blade holder
Mineral Oil for blade treatment
High Percentage Rubbing Alcohol also for blade treatment
and The Stone Pond for the Honing Stone

Please let me know if my current equipment list is good and if there are any other items I should change out or upgrade in specific my razor itself, and if I might need any special oils or other treatments for the vintage strops I purchased.

Thank you all very much in advance for any advice/opinions shared with me.

Welcome to wet st8 razor shaving!

You have a very pleasant long way to go. Learning the art of, shaving teckniques, brands, lathering, honing, stropping, what are good razors and what are not, etc., etc..

I don't have much to say. A couple of things: Krieger is a cheap razor and will never, ever shave well. I think they are a product of China or Pakistan. They'll never take an edge! They are nice looking; I have purchased a few just for their scales, though.

The Zeepk stone will be a waste of time, but when you buy the Cella Crema Sapone shave soap, that is an outstanding product!

As I said, you have a long way to go, enjoy the experience.......

Regards,

Steve

Yeah I bought a Kreig too, waste of money. Nice scale but way too heavy on the back end. I'm on the fence on what hone to purchase, I just want one simple one kinda like what the barbers use, however I don't know if I want only a 4000 or an 8000.

Does it really make that much of a difference? Can I get by with just an 8000 (if they even make that in a standalone)


Sigh decisions, decisions.

Thanks for the tips so far guys. I guess I will be looking for another blade soon then and will be doing my research as well. My stropping seems to have a positive effect on the blade as it should but I can tell my technique isn't quite perfect on that yet either. Otherwise, for the most part with my stropping I actually got a B or B+ shave off of my razor. Not too shabby for it only being my 3rd time using a blade. I just can't quite shave the mustache area or chin yet, but with practice (and good equipment) I am sure it will improve! Umm let's see...so I guess one other question of mine is....if I haven't used the ZeePK stone yet on my blade should I just not use it at all and buy a better stone?

Welcome to SRP

I can't offer any opinion on the stuff you have gotten, but if you decide to purchase another razor it will be wise to get it honed by somebody who knows what they're doing. Read the sticky posts in this section and the others and you'll get started.

As far as things you plan to buy

Originally Posted by djgray

Norton 4000/8000 Grit Honing Stone - Excellent hone and very popular here, if you are only going to refresh your edges perhaps an overkill
Badger Hair Brush - I love my badger brushes, but many members are quite happy with boar
Cella Crema Sapone Extra Extra Purissima Shaving Soap - not familiar with that one, I like the soaps of www.thegentlemensquarter.com
Shaving Mug or Bowl - I don't use such, but many people like them
A Brush and Blade holder - Not necessary, but if you like it why not
Mineral Oil for blade treatment - Also not necessary if you use your razor on a regular basis
High Percentage Rubbing Alcohol also for blade treatment - I rarely use alcohol that way
and The Stone Pond for the Honing Stone - may be useful, I don't use one though

Again, read the stickies and various posts and you'll get oriented quickly. If you want to post pictures of your strops you may get feedback on how useful they are (if they aren't you'd probably have realized by now)

enjoy

I'm a new guy also, but here's what I compiled:

Norton 4K/8K...I haven't used it yet but I've read its something you gotta have.

Shaving mug and brush...I've been using one for years, I just used it with my M3 razor, just started using str8s.

Alcohol...I wipe my blade down with it after I wash it, after every use.

Mineral oil...I wipe my blade down with it after I use the alcohol. I use alcohol again before I use it to clean the oil off.

The alcohol and oil treatment is just for my peace of mind, I don't know if its needed...its just what I do.

I read for a long time before I bought my first str8. I realized that Kreigar and Zeepk were not the ones to buy. I've read the stickies at the top of this forum a million times. I'm starting to feel like I'm learning a little.

Strop...I'm not very good with mine, so I keep practicing on an old razor trying to get better. My shaving str8 seems to be doing okay.

Lynns DVD...priceless!!! I got mine in the mail yesterday and I haven't watched it all the way through yet. But I've watching the honing/stropping section a couple of times...and then go practice....it helps.

This is just my 2 cents worth...not sure if its worth that much.
My only advice (because I'm new)....keep reading on here!!

Originally Posted by Blackhawk

Yeah I bought a Kreig too, waste of money. Nice scale but way too heavy on the back end. I'm on the fence on what hone to purchase, I just want one simple one kinda like what the barbers use, however I don't know if I want only a 4000 or an 8000.

Does it really make that much of a difference? Can I get by with just an 8000 (if they even make that in a standalone)


Sigh decisions, decisions.

No you really can't get by with just the Norton 8000. The good news is that the 4000/8000 grit combination stone is about the same price (cheaper sometimes) than the stand alone 8000 grit. While its not what barbers used back in the day I think it is the best stone for a beginner because its fairly priced, very commonly used, cuts fast, and it will still be a great stone even when you are an advanced honer with exacting standards.

Originally Posted by AmmoHouse

<snip>
Alcohol...I wipe my blade down with it after I wash it, after every use.

Mineral oil...I wipe my blade down with it after I use the alcohol. I use alcohol again before I use it to clean the oil off.

The alcohol and oil treatment is just for my peace of mind, I don't know if its needed...its just what I do.
<snip>
Lynns DVD...priceless!!! I got mine in the mail yesterday and I haven't watched it all the way through yet. But I've watching the honing/stropping section a couple of times...and then go practice....it helps.

Thank you for the alcohol and oil info. I bought some of each and plan on making that a regiment of mine as well (even though my current blade may not be worth the extra effort. Otherwise thank you for the DVD tip as well. I will have to check that one out one of these days.

Originally Posted by gugi

<snip>
Again, read the stickies and various posts and you'll get oriented quickly. If you want to post pictures of your strops you may get feedback on how useful they are (if they aren't you'd probably have realized by now)

enjoy

Yeah I plan on doing quite a bit of reading (on the stickies in particular). I really need to buff up on my knowledge of the products and in techniques as well. If I can get my hands on a friends camera, then I'll post the pics of the strops. Hopefully the ones I got in that lot of them are still worth salvaging/using.