New Member - Australia

Hey Everyone!!!

A little history first. My grandfather for the past 5 years has been making knives, and i have always liked knives, I'm also studying a degree in mechanical engineering. I have a fair collection knives (for collection and utilitarian use, not fighting). Iv always loved the idea of straight edge razors, but i have never got one :(. I'm turning 21 in a 5 days and I want to get a straight edge razor, strop and brush for my 21st from my family.

My local shaver shop has a collection of razors ect, and the brand is Dovo, I have read on this website that it is a good brand and is trusted, and the razors look amazing!

I do have sharpening equipment for regular knives, i have the Spyderco Tri-Angle Sharpmaker, i love sharpening my knives, my knives can all shave the hair off my arm/legs, i tried a small patch on my face with a dry shave and it was a bad idea.... Anyway, the Sharpmaker has a present angle of 20 degrees and 30 degrees, the Sharpmaker also doubles as a flat sharpening stone. So my question is, would i be able to hone a str8 edge on the sharpmaker, then strop it? I also have a medium grit wet stone, would that be a better alternative?

For the strop, i was liking the idea of the paddle strops, and was thinking it would be a fun exercise to make my own one like in the DIY section of this website. I would make it with my grandfather because I'm sure he would love to make it with me!

So yeah, any comments, ideas ect are welcome!!!

P.S. this website is awesome!

Thanks
Marco

welcome marco,

my guess is that your sharpmaker won't be good, nor would your medium hones. take a look at the hones and the honing sections, as well as the relevant pages in the wiki.
i'd suggest you have somebody else who knows what they're doing sharpen that razor for you, or you may end up with the same experience as with your pocket knife. or you can just give it a try for a while and see what happens.

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Originally Posted by gugi

welcome marco,

my guess is that your sharpmaker won't be good, nor would your medium hones. take a look at the hones and the honing sections, as well as the relevant pages in the wiki.
i'd suggest you have somebody else who knows what they're doing sharpen that razor for you, or you may end up with the same experience as with your pocket knife. or you can just give it a try for a while and see what happens.

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Thanks for the speedy reply :D. Yeah i see what you mean, ill take a good look at the section :D.

One thing i love doing is doing things myself, working with my hands and learning, so i hope to learn about correct honing technique. Is there any good articles, instructions ect that i should read? Or would i be better off reading through the honing section?

Spartigus,

As the previous post by gugi suggested, read the SRP wiki on honing first. Then, if I were in your shoes, I would invest in a Norton 4k/8k combo hone starter set.

After that, the sky's the limit.

BTW...I wouldn't begin honing any of your new razors immediately. In fact, imho a brand new str8 razor that has been professionally honed shouldn't need any honing for anywhere from 6 months to a year after purchase. I would begin developing my honing skills on an old vintage razor that you pick up in an antique shop or a flea market.

Just my 2 cents...

Happy shaving!

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Originally Posted by jhenry

Spartigus,

As the previous post by gugi suggested, read the SRP wiki on honing first. Then, if I were in your shoes, I would invest in a Norton 4k/8k combo hone starter set.

After that, the sky's the limit.

BTW...I wouldn't begin honing any of your new razors immediately. In fact, imho a brand new str8 razor that has been professionally honed shouldn't need any honing for anywhere from 6 months to a year after purchase. I would begin developing my honing skills on an old vintage razor that you pick up in an antique shop or a flea market.

Just my 2 cents...

Happy shaving!

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Oh sweet thanks!! Thats an excellent idea!!! I plan to get the razor, i hope to make a paddle strop, and ill get a brush and soap.

With regards to making a paddle strop, is there anything specific i should look out for? Like any specific leather?

Spartigus,

Again, check the SRP wiki...There is a lesson in there on creating a pasted balsa paddle strop. Check the wiki about different types of leather for strops and their different qualities too.

I don't think you will want to paste your new paddle strop immediately, however.

BTW...You will need to use your paddle strop daily to maintain the edge of your new str8 razor.

Welcome Marco!

I do not know what part of Aus you are in, but if you have a shaver shop you need to be aware that the Dovos they sell are not generally shave ready - at least the ones I've tried are not. There are a few fellow Aussies who will hone razors for you (if you run into problems send me a PM).

With regards the strop, any decent bit of leather would do for a hanger - if you have a leather artisan/maker in your area, pop in and ask them what they use to strop their implements with. They will often sell you a bit of what they use. I do not really know much about paddle strops, so the other guys might help you there.

Actually, the Shaver Shops do stock, on occasion, Black Beauty hanging strops. They are expensive (at around 100 bucks or so), but they are good quality. However, not necessary if you want to make your own.

Good luck!

James.

Hey Marco!
Welcome from another fellow Australian.

+1 to above comments.

Also - check out the classifieds here at SRP for razors, unless you have your heart set on one of those Dovos.

If you like DIY, you can look into making your own strop as James suggested - there's a few of us here who've done this.

Before you buy any hones, have a read through the honing forums - might give you too many choices of course!

Happy upcoming birthday!!

All the best,
Michael

Welcome brother.

Good advice in previous posts.

Read, read, read and more reading in the forums and the wiki will see you right. Ask questions even if you think they sound stupid.. they will be answered regardless and almost always you will be steered in the right direction.
If you really intend on honing yourself at this stage contact the guy at Lie Nielson in Adelaide.. he is the sole distributor of Norton Waterstones in the country and he sometimes has some slightly damaged but completely usable stones going cheap.

Above all I wish you great shaves and completely pity you if you are a Collingwood supporter.:D

Cheers:tu

Mykel

Hey everyone!!
Thanks for the warm welcome!!!! Im in Sydney :D. On a side not, i was in Adeleide over christmas visiting family, and my knife maker grandfather just moved to adeliede, doesnt have his tools there yet :(. And we went to this custom knife makers shop in a small German town call handaarf or something?

Ill speak to the people in the shaver shop if they offer honing services too, but i would love to learn. Iv been reading through the wikki (and was almost late to work because i got too involved lol) and it looks like an amazing thing to get into!!! Iv been reading into the honing section and it looks like a lot of fun and hard work, cant wait :D.

My mom has lots of experience with leather so i think she could help me out with it too :D, she still has all her leather making gear :D.

What side of the leather strip do you use? the smooth side or the other rougher side?

Also i couldn't find the answer on the wiki, but at what angle are the razors sharpened to?

Marco, Welcome! There's lots of good information and suggestions here for beginners (like myself). Enjoy!

All the shaver shops are probably different, but the one up here in Brisbane suggested sending the razor out for regrinding when it needed to be sharpened! So be a bit wary. By all means ask them, but perhaps run their answer past us before making a decision. If you are in Sydney one of our members (Onimaru - Oz) lives there and might be able to help you out with honing initially.

You generally use the smooth side of the leather to strop on.

Straights have a built-in angle determined by the width of the blade and the thickness of the spine. In this respect honing them is perhaps easier than a knife. All you do is lay the razor flat on the hone, making sure the spine and the edge are always in contact with the hone, and move the razor edge first down the stone. Generally you do one stroke, flip, and repeat on the other side to maintain even metal removal on each side of the edge. The angle takes care of itself. Uneven grinds, warping, and uneven wear on the shoulders of the spine can influence this and make things a bit trickier with vintage razors, but these are nuances that should not be a major issue if you are buying a new razor.

James.

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Originally Posted by Spartigus

Hey everyone!!
Thanks for the warm welcome!!!! Im in Sydney :D. On a side not, i was in Adeleide over christmas visiting family, and my knife maker grandfather just moved to adeliede, doesnt have his tools there yet :(. And we went to this custom knife makers shop in a small German town call handaarf or something?

Ill speak to the people in the shaver shop if they offer honing services too, but i would love to learn. Iv been reading through the wikki (and was almost late to work because i got too involved lol) and it looks like an amazing thing to get into!!! Iv been reading into the honing section and it looks like a lot of fun and hard work, cant wait :D.

My mom has lots of experience with leather so i think she could help me out with it too :D, she still has all her leather making gear :D.

What side of the leather strip do you use? the smooth side or the other rougher side?

Also i couldn't find the answer on the wiki, but at what angle are the razors sharpened to?

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You're getting good info from the kind people here already so let me just add me voice to the chorus of well wishers.

X

Hello, Marco:

Welcome to SRP.

As you can see, SRP prides itself on a cast straight razor shaving experts. I am in awe of the extent of their knowledge.

We are delighted to have you.

Regards,

Obie

Hey everyone!!! Thanks for all the info!!!

I brought a razor, brush and soap from the shop, i love it!!!! The razor we got is shaver ready, and its the Dovo brand with an ebony handle :D.

I get the razor Sunday (Australian time) so at the moment im reading lots, and looking for leather to make the strop. I cant wait :D

Welcome aboard Mate :rock:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Spartigus

Hey everyone!!! Thanks for all the info!!!

I brought a razor, brush and soap from the shop, i love it!!!! The razor we got is shaver ready, and its the Dovo brand with an ebony handle :D.

I get the razor Sunday (Australian time) so at the moment im reading lots, and looking for leather to make the strop. I cant wait :D

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See Jimbos post previously. There is a BIG difference between what some retailers call 'shave ready' and what most of the members here would call 'shave ready'. Be careful. Give it a shot maybe but do not be surprised if it shaves like a rusty ban saw blade.
Hopefully somebody experienced with the Sydney Shavershop can chime in and let you know how the off the shelf razors travel.
As mentioned previously, maybe contact OZ, whom is based close to you and whom is extremely talented and knowlegable on all things straight shaving.

Good Luck:tu

G'day & welcome Marco .
Nothing much to add to all the great advice so far. Birdsalls carry all sorts of leather for your strop project but you'll have to buy a side if you want latigo. They sell veg tanned straps but I wasn't impressed with what they sent me. Better to go there & pick the best you see. Just PM if you get stuck or need a hand.

Leather, tools, dyes, belt buckles, leather craft, everything for leather crafters - Birdsall Leather

PS I don't recommend your Sharpmaker for razors either.

Yeah i get what you mean about comparison between a salesmen and the real deal. I was speaking to the lady about practicing, and she said when she was learning to be a hairdresser, they had to learn about str8 edges and how to shave with them. She said they practiced on a balloon with shaving soap, is this a valid learning tool?

Thanks for the info on birdsall :D, bookmarked the page :D.

I looked on ebay at leather, and saw these offcuts, provided i can get the right physical size, are they worth getting? Or should i order from Birdsall? I got in contact with the eBay seller and told him i planned to make a strop, so im waiting on his reply.

EDIT:
Should i make a new thread in the stropping section about the leather?

EDIT EDIT:
On a side note, are there str8 edge razor meets or something like that, where fellow str8 edge razor enthusiasts can gather, talk about razors, honing, stropping ect?

Welcome to SRP mate
Grant.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Spartigus

I looked on ebay at leather, and saw these offcuts, provided i can get the right physical size, are they worth getting? Or should i order from Birdsall? I got in contact with the eBay seller and told him i planned to make a strop, so im waiting on his reply.

EDIT:
Should i make a new thread in the stropping section about the leather?

EDIT EDIT:
On a side note, are there str8 edge razor meets or something like that, where fellow str8 edge razor enthusiasts can gather, talk about razors, honing, stropping ect?

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Best if you can see the leather first hand before you buy. Have a look at new strops if you can & use them as a guide for what you want

There's a handful of us in Sydney. Might have to organise a meet one day :)

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Originally Posted by onimaru55

Best if you can see the leather first hand before you buy. Have a look at new strops if you can & use them as a guide for what you want

There's a handful of us in Sydney. Might have to organise a meet one day :)

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Hey
Yeah i think im going to buy a strop first, then work from there. The last thing i want is to ruin my brand new razor on a bad piece of leather lol.

Yeah a meet would be awesome!