Newbie Mislead

I recently started listing some razors I have collected and gathered through the years and described them as "shave ready". Having said this I thought a good shave meant it actually worked despited tugging pulling and and over sanding of the face. I was way wrong. The razors I listed as a consequence were not even close to shave ready. How did I know this you might ask? I asked an experienced member. I recently bought a new Dovo and had it made "shave ready" from Classic Shaving. TO my surprise when a razor is properly honed and stropped it will get every hair in one smooth stroke. After making a jerk out of myself int he classifieds I discovered this. After realizing what I had done, I bought the Dovo, a Norton 4K/8K stone, and a Russian leather strop. Now, a person can sand a blade to a nice mirror finish if enough hours are taken and they can spend about 12 hours in the process starting with 80 grit sandpaper going o 2000 grit. THey can even spend an our or four honing and then say it is shave ready. To the newbies like me who doesnt know how it is supposed to work properly, a dull razor might seem normal. Time means nothing, technique is everything. But I recently discovered that if the razor is truely honed properly, it will shave as smooth and irritation free as the Mach3 and you can actually enjoy the process of shaving. And please do not buy anything labeld Zepk, this is terrible stuff and cheap for a good reason. But the new strop I bought was about $45 and I bought the paste for it too. It is totally different. If you are serious about getting started paln to spend about $150-$200 to get god equipment. And the good news is, I am told that a razor well taken care of can last 15 years or longer so ulitmately its cheaper.
I also looked at the help files and the Forge Forum. I recently made an old Wade and Butcher shave ready with the help of my new norton hone and a good strop with paste. Now, any newbie on the hunt, please dont try this one as your first it is square point and will cut you if you are not experienced (this is my opinion). I am only keeping it listed because I was brought down to earth by a senior moderator who knew what I was selling was bad. As such it was tested and some negative but very constructive comments were posted. I want everyone who is looking at my ads to read them. They helped me a lot! So if you are getting into this artform, I would encourage you to read the forums, and then message a senior member about how the razor should work. Now, I have many cuts on my face and I thoroughly reccomend staying away from square point razors as a beginner, but this is unavoidable. I also learned an interesting way to practice from a barber down the road from my home. He told me to practice the stroke on a balloon filled with water until you can do it quickly, smoothly and without cutting the ballon. I ended up going into a hallmark store to get balloons but he was right. But, I have may more hours topractice this before I am god at it. So, if you are like me and have done this a few weeks with discouraging results or are thinking about getting into this, then read the forums and purchase a new razor that comes ready, or buy it on the classifieds from an experienced member. I promise when you experience what these razors should be your attitude will change.
So if any senior member reads this, please fill in the gaps that I have left out. Also I am looking to buy some scales preferably of unfinished wood. I need about a dozen sets and would like them to be similar. But, this is an aside.
Newbies like me, Good Luck and remember if you find the reslts are not satisactory, make sure you are using a good razor and taking care of it properly before you give up. If there are any questions you have please let contact me any time.
Best Wishes
Trey

Very nice! Way to step up.

Now, are you looking to sell that square point? ;)

We all live and learn, but very few share the bad and fewer share to help others. THa k you for sharing.:)

Trey, that was an awesome post. You can be assured that in the future I will not hesitate to buy an item you have listed for sale.

We are here to provide as much information, resources, and support as we can to people interested in this hobby.
We are all adults, and are responsible for our actions, both buyers and sellers. Good judgment should be exercised on both ends of a transaction, but mistakes will always happen, though they are not the end of the world.
If a person is motivated, they have more than enough resources to succeed in this endeavor.

I'd like to point out that What Every Beginner Should Know - Straight Razor Place Wiki is a great place to start.

Let's keep our focus on the reason we're on this forum and we'll work out everything else.

Trey,

Thanks for that!

Have fun honing your new skills! It's encouraging to see you're willing to learn and correct mistakes, and I think that character quality will help you go a long way toward sharpening your skills :)

Great post!
Thanks for sharing.
Look forward to hearing much more from you in the future.

THanks to al for the comments. Any gaps I left I hope others will fill in to make the information more helpful to starters. I recently had 9 razors reach the maser of scales Old School. I intend to post pics of the finished razors and the process I go through to restore them. I figure if I do this a senior moderator can comment and give advice on what I am doing proerly and improperly. I am sorry not to have been posting pics or other posts these pst weeks, but my life a a medical stdent is time consuming. I try to read sthreads form the forge and see pics int he gallery because these take less time for me than writing. I am also going to start my own website to sell some razors so that the only ones I put on this site are the very best. I am ging to list the Wade and Butcher when it gets finished and after some senior moderators have reviewed its quality and think its in great condition.
I also have another idea that I want some moderators to consider. I am thinking about writing a letter to someone at the Mew York Times or even a a smaller newspaper. I am a biologist by trade and its my opinion that these razors are actually very environmentally friendly compared to these throw away blades. But, this is the researcher side of me coming out, so I will get some input form moderators before I do this.
Best wishes to all new comers and feel free to contact me any time if I can help!

Trey

First of all, many thanks for your original post. As you know, I was one of those who gave you some flak for the razors you posted in the Classifieds. Very generous of you to admit that mistake - much appreciated.

Now then. I am not a moderator. Yet I really do like the idea of propagating straight razor shaving on the grounds of their positive impact on our environment. Rather than send a letter to the editors (Moo York Times or other) first, you might consider writing something up about the subject in the Wiki. There appear to be some good starting points to be found on the web, indeed. In time, it will be commented, and amended, giving it the credibility of a whole group of people rather than an individual's opinion. Therefore, it can be used to back your theory (which, admittedly, is actually a no brainer to prove, as we all know), and you will be more likely to get read by a journalist. Incidentally, the Wikipedia entry for straight razors has a reference to that effect already:

"Others are concerned with the wastage of throw-away cartridges for their razors, or indeed, with throw-away razors. A concern for the environment might lead one to feel uneasy about choking landfills with excess plastic."

Truth be told, I should think that most members are in it for the stun factor, though:

"Men like tools, by and large, and it is hard to have a sense of pride in a plastic razor that must be discarded after a few uses. It is true that modern razors are quick to use, and require a minimum of skill. There’s no pride to be had in that; ..."

Well posted Trey.
I bet before long you won't even associate the word 'smooth' with a Mach3 :)

We are glad to have you as a meaningful contributor to our community Trey.

Have Fun!

-Rob

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Originally Posted by treydampier

. And the good news is, I am told that a razor well taken care of can last 15 years or longer so ulitmately its cheaper.

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Trey, a razor, well taken care of, will last not only your lifetime, but probably your son's and grandson's as well!

Good post though - glad to see you made the breakthrough.

Mark

HMMM...I don't like the idea of writing the letter to any mainstream newspaper, I already get way too much competition on ebay as it is!!! :D

Red

I appreciate all the input about my idea on writing a letter. I am thinking that BeBerlin's idea is a way to go. As such I will begin to put together an article style document on the site somewhere where it can be reiewed and edited by all. However, I intend to use the most reliable sources for facts adn any addtitions to it I would hope would be based on fact. I am off today and tomorrow and I will get started on it this evening sometime. Hopefully tomorrow I will have a first draft up for comments. After this I hope that for one month people will make comments on content and accuracy of the article. After this Iwill make a final draft and post it as well and figure out a way to give credit to the largest contributors and the site. I am not trying to make a statement, but in my short lifetime, classical music is dying and hip-hop has taken over which is sad. Artforms like this will die too if it is not preserved properly (ie. nothing pakistani being allowed to be called a razor). At any rate, thanks for the responses and I will get to work. Floppy Shoes has informed me that my new scales should be complete in a few weeks and then we'll see if I have what it takes to be a good restorer. I am also posting some pics later this evening of a new semi-restoration.
Best Wishes Everyone!
Trey Dampier

Trey, I see things a bit differently. Seems to me Str8 shaving has a growing interest and the amount of info available on this new fangled internet makes the learning curve way easy compared to my experience many moons ago. I don't see it dying out rather the opposite. The eco angle is a great idea tho.

I think Classical music is pretty safe from dying out - I like hip hop... but not while I'm shaving :eek:

Just my 2 cents &playing devil's advocate. ;) :D