Thread: Starting out kit

Hi I've read around the forums a bunch and have recently become acquainted with straight razor shaving and have a lot of interest. I wanted to know if I bought a paddle if I could glue on a leather side for stropping and a balsa side /w paste for honing? And this would be all I need to keep it sharp? or it i bought a leather strop and a 4k/8k hone could i keep it sharp without sending it out? How long does a hone like the 4/8k typically last? a lifetime? Thanks.

welcome to srp

Originally Posted by JosephDSexton

I wanted to know if I bought a paddle if I could glue on a leather side for stropping and a balsa side /w paste for honing? And this would be all I need to keep it sharp?

for some time yes. eventually you'll end up with microchips on the edge, or since you're not very experienced you'll round the bevel and your razor will have to go to a hone.

Originally Posted by JosephDSexton

or it i bought a leather strop and a 4k/8k hone could i keep it sharp without sending it out? How long does a hone like the 4/8k typically last? a lifetime? Thanks.

yes, that would work for almost all situations. with this level of honing the hone will last many lifetimes. you can ask lynn how many razors before he wears out one norton 4k/8k, i think it's in the thousands.

You can't go wrong buying a Norton 4/8k . You will definetly need a strop . That's all you will really need to maintain a straight razor that's already "shave ready" to begin with . That's what I started with , and it worked for me . I now have a Shapton pro 15000 , a Nakayama Asagi , and 2 pasted paddle strops , one with Thiers Issard paste , and the other with .25 diamond paste . All of which is nice to have , and will give you a better edge but not absolutely necessary . I used the paddle strop with Thiers Issard paste to smooth out the edge from the 8k . After I got the Shapton 15000 I no longer needed to use the T.I. paste which is rated at 10000 grit . My point is , you can get by with an 8k hone and a strop but higher grit hones and paddle strops will give you a better edge IF you use them properly .