Thread: Vintage razor help

Originally Posted by Lucille92

I was looking around a local flea market for a good cheap straight razor to start shaving with. Some of the ones i was looking at had some slight surface rust, some had very small nicks in the blade, and some seemed to be almost new. The three that seemed to be in the best shape were Torrey, Krusius Brothers, and a Magnetic.

What all should i know about these razors before i buy one? How do i know if their shave ready? What should i stay away from, exc. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

If you want a cheep razor to start out with, check out Whipped Dog Straight Razor Sales
The guy who runs it is really a great guy, you cannot go wrong with him.

He caters in inexpensive straights for people to get their feet wet with. He even has a hone for trade deal, so that if your razor gets dull you can trade it in for the price of a honing.

If you find you enjoy straights, you can always get a nicer razor later, but this way you can check it out without spending a lot of money.

Thanks for the help so far everyone. I kinda figured the ones there wouldnt be shave ready, i just thought i would throw it in the post. I did find a place around here that sharpens grooming supplise and i plan to call them tomorrow sometime to see if they can hone one, and if they cant im going to talk to the place my mom sends her professional dog grooming supplise to get sharpened.

About what RobertH said, yes i do know i need to get soap, a brush, mug, strop, etc and i was thinking about getting a burma shave kit with the soap, mug, and brush for $5 on Amazon. Ive seen strops for around $25 or so too. I figure if i get that Torrey from the antique store for around $20 or so and add the price to get someone to hone it im still saving money then buying a $200 kit online somewhere.

Be careful with cheep strops. I got a 30 dollar one and its wavy and does not make good contact with the razor. Now its looking like I'm going to have to break for a slightly more expensive one, and the $30 I spent on the cheep one is a lesson learned on getting what you pay for.

Originally Posted by Lucille92

Thanks for the help so far everyone. I kinda figured the ones there wouldnt be shave ready, i just thought i would throw it in the post. I did find a place around here that sharpens grooming supplise and i plan to call them tomorrow sometime to see if they can hone one, and if they cant im going to talk to the place my mom sends her professional dog grooming supplise to get sharpened.

About what RobertH said, yes i do know i need to get soap, a brush, mug, strop, etc and i was thinking about getting a burma shave kit with the soap, mug, and brush for $5 on Amazon. Ive seen strops for around $25 or so too. I figure if i get that Torrey from the antique store for around $20 or so and add the price to get someone to hone it im still saving money then buying a $200 kit online somewhere.

Torrey is a great razor I have one. I just scored a nice old Wade and Butcher pre 1890 at a local antique shop for a really nice price.

Originally Posted by RKP

Torrey is a great razor I have one. I just scored a nice old Wade and Butcher pre 1890 at a local antique shop for a really nice price.

I just bought the Torrey today, im going to take it to a local shop and have them hone it and get it ready to use!

You're feeling pretty adventurous, eh. Have fun, and let us know how it goes.

Originally Posted by gugi

You're feeling pretty adventurous, eh. Have fun, and let us know how it goes.

Haha, well, i figure worse case i just use this razor to practice honing on whenever i decide to start that

Hello...I'm a NUB here but I saw a post today on Torry's and the feedback was all good. But I can tell you also as a newguy, the others are correct in their advice on buying from the classifieds and going with somthing new and more reliable at this stage. Dovo is probably going to be your best choice at this point and just as a personal opinion. A 5/8 is a good starting width usually and a full hollow grind is a good bet too. But as they say,it is all a personal choice. And whatever you get, get it honed as I have been told repeatedly,there is no such thing as shave ready till you are certain it is.Check the Wiki section out as it is extremely helpful with this kind of thing and they even have a recommended list of good brands and negative brands . Also look up topics in here for early shaving manuals.They really are quite helpful . Hope this helps ya out a little. Good shave to you