Thread: New Guy! Hi everyone! Could I get some help on a couple things?

Hey everyone,
I'm just getting started on SR shaving and have purchased a W.T. Staniforth Ascend, it has the word "IMPERIAL" imprinted on the blade. I picked it up at an antiques shop for very cheap. The razor has some pockmarks and a little degradation but it doesn't seem to bad. It looks like someone recently tried to sharpen it and didn't put any tape on the back because there is some wear on the spine. I tried the hair test and it failed, it is very sharp but not good enough for shaving. I'm considering restoring it myself but am unable to find any information on this brand or model. I was wondering if anyone knew if this is a top notch razor and I should get it done by someone with experience? Or if this is a junk model that won't matter if I screw it up.
Any help on this would be appreciated.
Thanks for the help

first: welcome to SRP its a great place and a place with great nolageable people

Second: I would recomend reading the wiki and getting farmillair with sttraights

thrird: pics say a thousand word and most poeple can help you better with seeing them

Welcome to SRP. I'm not familiar with the maker of that razor. It sounds like a Sheffield. Whether it is worth restoring depends on the condition it is in now. If the pock marks you mention are in the bevel it may not be restoreable. If you could post a photo members would be better able to give you an opinion.

Sharpening razors correctly is an acquired skill. Chances are you would be best served sending it out for honing or buying a new shave ready razor from a trustworthy vendor or from a forum member. This would give you something to shave with and a benchmark with which to judge your own efforts if you do begin to sharpen your own razors.

Here is the SRP Wiki with tutorials on all things related to straight razor shaving. There are also videos on shaving, stropping, lathering, preparation and of course on honing. Ask questions if you can't find the answers in the wiki or in the forum archives and someone will be along to help out.

everything has been said before me.
WElcome SRP and enjoy.

Hi,
Thanks for the quick response everyone. I was busy reading the photo guide and taking pics. Really didn't expect a response so fast. Here are some photos i just took. Realize they aren't the best but i'm working on it. I realize the razor looks like crap in the photos but it's not as bad as it looks. Thanks for the help and quick response.

That looks like a great buy. Based upon your pictures, I'd say that's a very stiff grind, or what we call a wedge. Most modern razors are more hollow ground. But wedges can be excellent shavers, they just take a bit more experience to sharpen well.

Some recommendations:

Learn to shave first. Learning how to hone a razor comes later. You need good shaving skills in order to assess your honing results, otherwise you will be in the dark about what's the cause when something 's not going the way it should. For that reason, I really, really advise you to buy a razor from a reputed seller. It doesn't need to be new, as long as it has a trustworthy edge on it.

Once you gained confidence in your shaving technique, you can start thinking about learning how to hone and maintain your own. By the way, you'll need to learn how to strop the razor in order to shave with it. That in itself is a stimulating learning experience, that you need to tackle before anything else.

The imperial is a great restoration project. It could even be used as is, but it obviously needs a decent honing job. Plenty of people knowing how to do that on SRP. Once it has a decent edge, it would be a great first razor for you.

Welcome to SRP. I believe you came to the right place.

Best regards,
Bart.

Welcome onboard.

Sheffield blades are usually top notch. I would have found one of the excellent restorers in the classifieds here.

Good luck.

G'day & Welcome to SRP.
I don't know the maker but I see that razor is stamped Sheffield England so highly unlikely it is 'junk'. I would send it it out for honing if you want to see its best potential..

Welcome to SRP oblonglego! That is a sweet razor you got there. Being Sheffield razor, IMHO it is one of the better blades. There is something about the steel from Sheffield. That razor would be easy to clean up and hone.Like what has already been said, go check the classifieds under member services and find somebody to give you the first good honing. It's the only way to go. Like they said, learn how to use it first, then you can move into other areas of owning a Straight Razor. This is the BEST site on the internet because of the people on here, they are all willing to help and will give you honest, true info when you ask. And no attitudes either! Hope to hear more from you! Good Luck and God Bless!

oblong,

Good morning and welcome. You could probably shine up that razor pretty well yourself with a little metal polish like Flitz, Simichrome, or Maas and then send it out to a honester for sharpening. This will get you started well with a minimum investment. Wait for a while before maximum investment (acquistion disorders) starts to set in with your having to have hone upon hone, strop upon strop, soap upon soap, and all the other stuff that we seem to so easily become afflicted with.


good luck, good shaving