Newbie introducing myself.

Hello all! I've recently gotten into shaving with a straight razor and I must say that I wasted the last 25 years scraping my face with disposables. Wow, what a difference a decent blade makes!

In a nutshell, my uncle passed away about 15 years ago and left me all of his blades. I got several very expensive Puma and Buck knives, and a JA Henckels twinworks razor along with an assortment of Arkansas bench hones and a strop. Only recently did I even try to use the razor and I must say our grandfathers sure knew what the h$ll they were doing when it came to shaving.

So hello everybody, and one question. Is it some kind of sin to actually use the JA Henckels razor, is it collectable? It sure makes a great shave so I will use it anyway, just want to know if I'm going to h$ll for doing it.

Hi Mr. Ozzlefish,

Nope, not a sin. Its a rite of male passage perhaps, but no sin. :)

Welcome to SRP!. Very cool to have your uncle's razor to shave with. Enjoy and if you have any questions don't hesitate to ask. Here is the SRP Wiki with a razor data base that may even have a photo of the same model you're using.

Welcome it is nice to hear that you have some nice heirlooms! There is a wealth of knowledge here at SRP. I would like to encourage you to not hesitate and ask questions FIRST do later.

Welcome to the list! It's very cool that you have razors and equipment with family history.

One thing I would do is send the razors you're going to use out for a honing. If you're like me, you see the stone, you see the razor and you think, OK, I'll give it a go. But as I've found, honing a razor is much harder than a knife. It would be easy to start the edge of your razor down the wrong path with a bad hone. Or you could fumble and chip the blade, etc. Plus by having an expert hone your razor you'd know what a quality honed razor feels like. There are a few people on the list who will hone for free. You pay shipping. Utopia is one. You can also look in the classifieds here for those that charge. You could also do what I did and purchase some old cheap razors off ebay to practice honing. Anyway have fun and good shaving.
Kent

Welcome to the forums!!! Glad to hear that you have seen the light.

Thanks for the warm welcomes. It's interesting about the family hierlooms and such. Is it just me or do men not pass down to thier sons "manly" knowledge such as shaving, sharpening knives (or the value of a quality blade) and other such testosterone filled activities? Seems to me anymore it's a disposable society so what is the use of old knowledge. My uncle had a very high standard of quality, all the items I got from him are valuable collectables now such as the Puma Game Warden knife and the Arkansas stones. I feel, as he did, that the stuff was meant to be used, not looked at, so use them all I do. That may horrify the elite collector, but what good is a high quality blade if it's never given the chance to be what it was made for? It's in the usage that one finds the true value of an item.

I'm glad I am not alone with the old timey shaving! I've done a lot of research before I ever touched steel to my pretty face (HA!), so my first attempts werent' that bad or bloody. I am still learning technique, my shaves are OK- I still leave a little bush here and there, but take far too long IMHO. It's clear this is not the way to de whisker a mug when one is in a hurry.

Yes, I was tempted with the hones and such, but the blade as I got it was a little wavy on the edge so I took it to a local 90 year old barber and he whipped it into shape with a smile on his face. He also showed me proper sharpening techniques and I am grateful for that. The problem now is me and getting in a hurry- there sure is not a quicky way to do this.

Anyway, thanks again. I will be reading and posting when I get the chance.

Welcome and thank God for 90 year old barbers. It would be a sin not to use that razor and Im really impressed that there are no blood stories, well done!

Personally, I think it's a sin not to shave with a Henckels if you've got one.

X

it would be a shame not to use the older razor. i have a new dovo and i am still using some old ones that i am buying from different places. i enjoy all as i am sure you will. just think of the heritage and history that goes with the older SR. enjoy and count yourself lucky to have an uncle that left you a prize to use and enjoy

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Originally Posted by Ozzlefinch

My uncle had a very high standard of quality, all the items I got from him are valuable collectables now such as the Puma Game Warden knife and the Arkansas stones. I feel, as he did, that the stuff was meant to be used, not looked at, so use them all I do. That may horrify the elite collector, but what good is a high quality blade if it's never given the chance to be what it was made for? It's in the usage that one finds the true value of an item.

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I used to agree with that sentiment 100% and now I'm at about 85%. :) I use almost every pocket knife or razor I get but I do have a few pristine mint collectible knives & razors that I am keeping that way ..... at least for the foreseeable future.

very cool that you were able to find an old barber near by that could help you out.

If it were me....I'm shaving with those razors :) But i'm not much of collector....

Welcome to SRP? J.A. Henckles is excellent. It is not a sin.

Thanks again for all the help. Just a quick observation, now that I've been using a real razor for a while now I've noticed my skin is smoother and I dont' have the ingrown hair problems that I've been dealing with since I started shaving eons ago. So OK, I'm sold and die hard 100% convinced straight razors are the way to go. Phooey on plastic disposables and uber techno Mach whatevers.....

Next time I'm at an antique store I'll pay a little closer attention to the razors they always seem to have in the glass case...