Thread: newbies and ebay

If you are a newbies like me, stay away from ebay. All the equipment, supplies, accessories and advise you need you can find them at SRP vendors and classified. The sellers at ebay are not interested in razors they just want to sell the razors. The SRP vendors and members are razor shavers and have the knowledge and interest to deal with good quality razors, supplies and accessories. If you have money to waste go to ebay and waste it. Thanks, Juan.

I agree, dont go to ebay if you are looking for a razor ready to go when you get it. Most of the razors that i have seen need at least a little work before theyre even ready to get honed (unless your tetanus shots are up to date). you can get a good fixer upper and put a good bit of work and turn some E-Trash into a useable piece of art. I would definatly go with the classifieds here on the forum for your first razor (thats what i did).

I wouldn't start out at Ebay, but once you get into it ebay can be a source for honing experience and restores. IMO

There are a few members here that sell through the bay, & a few more on there who sell decent stuff, but it's a big unknown when you're new to straights. There are a lot of opportunities to get burned! It is probably best avoided 'till you're ready to work on your purchases a little.

Originally Posted by juannaredo

The SRP vendors and members are razor shavers and have the knowledge and interest to deal with good quality razors, supplies and accessories.

Originally Posted by RollTideMach

I would definatly go with the classifieds here on the forum for your first razor (thats what i did).

+1

If you buy 'shave-ready' on the classifieds, and find it's not working for you, at least the seller is likely work with you to resolve it. I haven't yet bought so-called shave-ready off ebay, but I'm sure you won't get the same level of attention if you're not happy with it.

I bought of the SRP classifieds, and when I posted wondering if I needed to work on my technique or if it was the razor, I was contacted by the seller asking what I was having trouble with and if I wanted to send the razor back for evaluation/re-honing. Even though it's not in my budget to buy more from the classifieds, I would definitely recommend that the first one come from either a reputable retailer or from SRP.

I agree you have to be willing to put in a lot of work on the ebay blades, and even then they might not be worth the money. After I bought my razor off the classifieds and started getting used it, I started buying on ebay. This lead to buying a set of Nortons to make them usable, since these were cheap enough to practice on. Out of 4 <$20 'specials', one took an edge quite easily, one is finally starting to show promise after ~8-10 hrs, and the other two refuse to get sharp at all.

I pretty much agree. Unless you know exactly what you are looking at/bidding on, Ebay can be a trap for all kinds of things. On a positive point, I wanted a couple of cheap things (razor and strop) to practice with, something I had no intentions on shaving with, and wouldn't care if I ruined them. I found them both, shipped, really cheap on the bay.

For a newbie ebay is a gamble. You don't know if it a good price or a good quality razor, you take a gamble. I have purchased all of my swords, fountain pens and gun parts(no longer allowed) in ebay for years, but I knew the product. I do not know the razors, so I look for members with the knowledge to make my decision in purchasing razors. Juan.

Hello everyone, (sorry if this is not in the appropriate thread)

I am a noob to straight razors, I have been reading through the forums lately to learn more. Now I'm on the search for my first straight razor. I am aware that people recommend newbies to stay away from ebay, but I still wonder if there are any reputable sellers on ebay? There is the so called "Straight Razor Guy", who seems to have great feedback and sells some razors as "shave-ready." Is this someone who I could purchase from as a newbie?

eBay My World - ddoblar

Thanks

All very good points but I also find that ebay has a lot of people that have no idea what they have in their hands and what its really worth. So if you know what the product you are bidding is really worth you can get a real great deal, but I would never ever ever bid near what the item is worth. I am looking to take the seller for a ride.

As a newb I bought ebay razors. Some really great shavers at reasonable prices. Be an educated shopper and do all the homework required of an ebay purchaser (check feedback, read despriptions, etc).

Ebay presents more of a challenge (gamble). I dont spend great sums on any single item. And I am willing to overpay slightly if its something I want; subjectivity adds to the mix. I am presuming that if I overpaid by 10 bucks or so I will not be mulling it over on my death-bed.

Of course, I think its great to support our purveyors on this site...never disappointed with those purchases.

Life's too short for angst.