Help with what to buy!

Hey all...new here. I've been looking into straight razors ever since i got my first straight razor shave at a barber several months ago. I was amazed at how close the shave was AND how comfortable it was. I have very sensitive skin, and using my Gilette Fusion 5 blade setup...constantly have red bumps and irritation on my neck after shaving...so much so that i'll often skip shaving to lessen the irritation. I definitely have the time to put into shaving, especially if i can get that close comfortable shave without irritation.

I've read the FAQ's, and the wiki pages about buying for function not style, and not buying a cadillac as my first razor.

I've got a budget of ~ $100-200 total. I don't have a problem buying a more expensive razor if it's going to give me an obvious benefit, but as a beginner i need to make sure it's a hobby i can stick with so I don't want to invest too much just yet.

The problem I'm having is finding the 'beginner' razor that's talked about in the wiki... I've looked at SRD.com and ClassicShaving.com but can't find anything close to my budget, and rather than clicking every section I figured someone here may have a "goto" set for beginners.

If there's another sticky or wiki i've missed please feel free to point me that direction! I just hadn't seen anything saying "if your budget is x, go buy this!"

Thanks all, looking forward to getting that great shave!

hmm oopps...how did i not find those! Much thanks!

Sham is selling a nice looking Red Imp 133 for $100 in the classifieds. He guarantees his razors, and the Imp is a popular brand. I just got a friend started in the world of straights with a Red Imp. It is a very smooth shaver, but ask if the toe is too sharp for a beginner because he can round it off for safety.

Around page 3 of the classifieds is a "Lifetime" that is going for less. It looks ugly but I bet it shaves awesome!

I love the classifieds...

heh...i hate classified sections of forums...they're entirely too dangerous! Thanks for the suggestion i'll shoot Sham a note...certainly seems like it would push me over my budget though...that $159 deal seems like a great one to get me started

Oops, I kinda skimmed over the "total" part of your budget plan. That is an amazing price for the full meal deal. Have fun!

+1 to recs to go with a razor & strop set from SRD. You can save a LOT of $$ that way--I did. I'd just add that going with the 3" strop might be a good thing--you don't have to learn the X-stroke. The learning curve on this whole thing is kinda steep--if you can eliminate a piece of that, do. You can always go with a traditional-width strop later if you really want to.

I'd also suggest going with a round-point for your first razor. Save the spikes for when you've mastered the basics of driving a really sharp piece of steel around your face.

Good luck, and keep us posted on what you decide to do!

mellman,

+1 on the Dovo Best.

Excellent value and and a lovely shaver; I really treasure mine :)

Best of luck with the shave :)

Have fun !

Best regards

Russ

Roger...That Dovo looks like a fantastic deal to get me started...the other razor in the classified section is certainly nice, but it would put me well out of my budget, and I think as a beginner it'll be a good place to start...rather than investing in something that is nice...i may not actually be able to appreciate!

Thanks for the help all, will likely be ordering that dovo today!

I just started myself and spent a total of $74.

$40 razor of the classifieds.
$22 for a strop (filly) RupRazor
$12 for a brush & cream

(according to tracking I'll have everything today)

nice catch, congrats!

For a razor, I'd also recommend a good vintage razor from the classifieds. Sham puts a really nice edge on his blades.

I'd recommend starting with a boar brush. I don't like pure badger because it's scratchy on the face, so I don't like cheap badger brushes. Boar still has the scrubby feel of low grade badger, but it can be much cheaper and isn't prickly. Semogue brushes from vintagescent.com are a great option in my opinion.
If you really want a super soft tipped badger brush, get a 2 band finest brush from here: Shaving Brushes : Fountain Pen - Antique Pen - Vintage Pen - Fountain Pen Ink - Penworks AZ
There are some cheap ones and for the price, the 2 band finest is the best knot out of the many I've tried.
Message here: Unless you like prickliness, don't buy some low grade badger brush that'll make you want to buy other brushes, because it's too annoying on the face.

For a strop, start with something cheap and then get a nice one later. A filly strop from ruprazor is often recommended (haven't tried it myself). The SRD strops that I've tried have been a nice option, so you could step up to those later.

For a soap, get something that's easy to lather like Speick brand shaving soap or cream. There are a bunch of other cheap and great ones:

Proraso
CarrieM's creams (PM CarrieM here to buy the cream)
Kiss My Face available at many stores (e.g. Whole Foods)

You could come in anywhere between 75-200 dollars with these. 75 if you get an OK razor and 200 if you get a really nice one (that'd be much nicer to look at than that Dovo IMO).

Quote:

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Originally Posted by heirkb

I'd recommend starting with a boar brush. I don't like pure badger because it's scratchy on the face, so I don't like cheap badger brushes. Boar still has the scrubby feel of low grade badger, but it can be much cheaper and isn't prickly.

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That is good to hear. When I initially bought my brush I didn't realize it was a boar brush. I was a bit concerned.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jeffy

I just started myself and spent a total of $74.

$40 razor of the classifieds.
$22 for a strop (filly) RupRazor
$12 for a brush & cream

(according to tracking I'll have everything today)

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Good Work! Take your time. Let us know how it works out.

--Shoki

Soaps were mentioned recently, and a bad soap can frustrate you and make you hate shaving. I only recently discovered Cella in the red bowl for $10, and have found it the easiest soap/creme to work with since starting with straights.

You can not go wrong with Straight Razor Designs good products and a shave ready razor honed by lynn himself what more could you want.

+1 to anyone who recommended a Dovo from StraightRrazorDesigns. My first, and so far only, shaver is a Dovo Best Quality I got from there. It's holding up great, and now I love shaving instead of seeing it as a dreadful chore. If you haven't already made a purchase, I would suggest doing some digging around on eBay for items too. I got my strop there (someone found it at an estate sale), and so far I have had a good experience with it. You'll definitely nick your first strop, so don't spend too much on it or get the fanciest, highest grade thing out there. As far as soap, I recommend Proraso Menthol/Eucalyptus Shave Soap (which can also be found on StraightRrazorDesigns by doing a search). I have sensitive skin that gets irritated very easily too, and this stuff provides a really nice cooling sensation as I go about my shave. It also can make up some thick, creamy lather after a little practice. I had it down by about my third shave. Whatever you decide though, I hope you enjoy your straight edge shaving experience. I know I'll never look back!

+1 to anyone who recommended a Dovo from StraightRrazorDesigns. My first, and so far only, shaver is a Dovo Best Quality I got from there. It'll come with a screamin' sharp edge that holds up great through all the newbie mistakes. If you haven't already made a purchase, I would suggest doing some digging around on eBay for items too. I got my strop there (someone found it at an estate sale), and so far I have had a good experience with it. You'll definitely nick your first strop, so don't spend too much on it or get the fanciest, highest grade thing out there. As far as soap, I recommend Proraso Menthol/Eucalyptus Shave Soap (which can also be found on StraightRrazorDesigns by doing a search). I have sensitive skin that gets irritated very easily too, and this stuff provides a really nice cooling sensation as I go about my shave. It also can make up some thick, creamy lather after a little practice. I had it down by about my third shave. Whatever you decide though, I hope you enjoy your straight edge shaving experience. I know I'll never look back!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mellman

Hey all...new here.
...snip...
I have very sensitive skin, and using my Gilette Fusion 5 blade setup...constantly have red bumps and irritation on my neck after shaving...so much so that i'll often skip shaving to lessen the irritation.

.....snip....

I've got a budget of ~ $100-200 total. I don't have a problem buying a more expensive razor if it's going to give me an obvious benefit, but as a beginner i need to make sure it's a hobby i can stick with so I don't want to invest too much just yet.
...snip....!

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Fusion 5 and bumps.....

My diagnosis is to upgrade your "lathering" and
switch to any of the single edged razor solutions.

This is the budget path....
For lathering get a good brush and good soap or cream
and learn to use them.... More on that later.

For shaving... bumps are most often caused by the
multi blade mass marketed blad guys. Multiple
blades can shave closer but bumps tell me that
you are shaving too close.

You are on a tight budget... so first things first.
A good lather is the first and least expensive thing
to address. Start with the $12 VDH shave kit.
Van Der Hagen Premium Shave Set. This will
get you a brush, shave soap and lathering bowl.
Hunt a shave cream like Proraso ($9) and Williams ($1.50)
shave soap. I have found that Proraso+Williams can be mixed to
good effect. The boar brush is as basic as they get
you will someday want and buy a fine badger brush
but never toss your original boar brush except to
replace it when it wears out in a couple years.

Next set your Fusion 5 on the back of the shelf and
pick up some inexpensive yellow handle BiC single
edge blades for sensitive skin. My local grocer has
a dozen for about $5.

This and a jar of Nivea shave balm may be all you need to
upgrade your shave and calm the red bumps.

This is my budget path.... other paths apply.
It taught me lathering and the value of a single edge sharp blade
that can be a BiC tossable, a good DE or a Fine straight razor +strop.

More than anything this gives you time to shop. Since +80%
of a good shave is lathering and lathering is a small part
of the expense this budget path works for many.


Speaking of shopping -- the holidays are almost at hand
Cella in the red jar seems like a stocking stuffer. Proraso
in the green jar is a fine seasonal color to join it under the
tree and is legal for the teen agers (I want Scotch Whiskey
myself).

You cant go wrong with the DOVO Best Quality set from SRD IMO, thats a really great set and you know that the razor will be coming to you shave ready as well!

If you are still wondering what to buy:
Read this thread.

There is sometimes a lot of angst by beginners when a razor is called a "starter" razor. The Dovo Best quality is only a starter because of the cost, not because of the quality.

It is the precursor to a full onset of razor collecting that encompasses inexpensive vintages to really expensive vintages and customs.

So don't look at the Dovo Best as a starter razor that somehow will not shave well or will fall apart. Neither of these are any more true for the Dovo Best as they could be for another razor. It is just really a no frills razor distilled down to the barest essence.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Otto

If you are still wondering what to buy:
Read this thread.

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+1 read the above thread.
Worth a read...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Alembic

There is sometimes a lot of angst by beginners when a razor is called a "starter" razor. The Dovo Best quality is only a starter because of the cost, not because of the quality.

It is the precursor to a full onset of razor collecting that encompasses inexpensive vintages to really expensive vintages and customs.

So don't look at the Dovo Best as a starter razor that somehow will not shave well or will fall apart. Neither of these are any more true for the Dovo Best as they could be for another razor. It is just really a no frills razor distilled down to the barest essence.

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+1 on the Dovo Best quality I love my Dovo 5/8

Hey all!

Just wanted to follow up and say thanks to everyone for the informative responses. Did some more research of my own and ended up purchasing a few things tonight.

I purchased a silver tip badger brush, the "filly" strop, a "Workman" $50 razor off the classifieds, all said and done i'm in for ~ $130 and now am just shopping for some soaps and trying to make sense of all of those! I've got a 2+ week scruff right now so i'll use a trimmer before attempting a shave in a week or two when all this stuff gets in.

Thanks again to everyone for the help!