First shave not too bad, considering...

Well, I just wanted to thank all of you for getting me started on what looks like a fun journey. I broke almost all of your rules, and somehow still got a decent start.:nono:

First off, I purchased a pretty beat up Genco, Geneva on Ebay. I know, I know I was warned. :cry: However I only payed $11.45 shipped, so I figured if I messed it up I wasn't out much. Next I sanded down the blade by hand, and dressed up the edge with 1500 grit sandpaper and finished it off on a home made leather strop with an extra fine abrasive on it. I was too impatient to wait until I could get a new plain leather strop made or bought, so I tried her out without any further work.

To my suprise I got my cheeks almost as smooth as when I use my gillette fusion, and this was with the crappy gillette foaming shave gel. I am still looking for a strop, hone, brush and soap that are not outrageously priced so I can improve my results.

Thanks again to all of you who have provided so much valuable information on this forum, and I look forward to continuing on the journey.

Hal

Congratulations!
Enthusiasm can conquer a lot when you're new to it. You'll probably realise that that shave was rough as hell as you progress, but it's great that you've got started!
I honed my first & was very pleased with the results at the time. My expectations are probably a little higher now i think.

Congrat Hal, This can be a pricey hobby, that's for sure. Don't try and get everything at once. But when you do, try to get stuff that will last you, for instance, A strop from Tony Miller you'll be passing to your grandkids....Don and Lynn have nice strops too. As far as brushes go, Jim over at Vintage Blades is a great guy and he sells "Rooney" That's my favorite brush.
Once you've used one, you can't believe you ever used anything else. Scuttles and Mugs, You can find stuff at wal mart or Target. Little desert bowls, these little white jobs with plastic lids are great for shave soaps. You'd be surprised what you can find when your at those stores. You'll see something and say, Hmmmm, That would be great for a puck of soap....
When your ready to start honing, Let us know, We'll be here to help you.....Good Luck, Rich

It takes a lot of digging but you can get some good stuff for a cheap price. Vulfix brushes are good a cheap Classic has those and as far as soap they have cheap soap to. The Illinois strops are good and not to expensive. If you are patient you can find a shave ready blade for around $40 from the classifieds sometimes a little less. Getting a shave ready blade will let you know how good a job you did on your blade (if you have spent any time on SRP you already know that though).
Well at least you are off to a start, so good luck with your journey and happy hunting! Welcome to SRP :gl:

Welcome and I am excited for you. I still remember my first time shaving with a straight, it was a horrible shave but I was too excited to realize that. Lol! I agree, the Tony Miller strop is about the best quality you can get, not to mention unbelievable customer service. Search antique stores if you want to find an old badger brush. I picked one up a few wks ago for under 20 bucks and it's a great brush. As for the razor, do yourself a favor and send it off to be honed properly so you get off on the right foot and save your face the grief. Enjoy!

I plan to either send this one off to get honed, or possibly find someone locally who can get it where it needs to be. I might even just buy a new shave ready DOVO, or one of the shave ready units in the classifieds.

Thanks again for all of the information on strops. My wife is trying to convince my Father in-law togive up his old straight and accessories, which might be another valid alternative. Either way I guess I'm in for a long ride.

As far as the shave. I know it was not anywhere near what it could be. However, other than a little more tugging than I expected I was suprised how close it shaved with what little work I put into it. I can only imagine what it is like shaving with a properly prepared straight, but hope to find out before too long.

Unfortunately I'll be back to the electric and the Gillette fusions until I can convince my wife to let me spend some more $$$ on gear.