Thread: New to the lifestyle - Question on quality of blade

Hey all,

I'm new to the world of straight razor shaving, and recently purchased the sight unseen deal from whipped dog. What I ended up with was this razor Larkin "Unspecified" 5/8 - Straight Razor Place Wiki . My shaves have been... okay, and am mostly taking the blame for the average shave quality. I have been researching blades extensively the past week and I'm wondering if it would be worth it to shell out some money for a higher quality razor.

When I start my shaves I know the razor is shave ready because I strop it around 100 times before and after each shave and it always passes the hanging hair test. About halfway through my shave (usually when I start my second pass) I feel like the blade has lost much of its sharpness already (a lot of pulling). Is this unusual? Consequently on the second pass is usually when my nicks occur.

Also, does anyone have any recommendations for where to look for quality blades besides the classifieds here (which I stalk ), and ebay? I don't have much money as I'm in grad school but I am willing to spend around $60-$70. Thanks, I appreciate any feedback whatsoever, and am really loving the community!

The Larkin was made in Sheaffield England, and is considered a "Good" brand.
Other than that info I can't tell you much more, I can't see or feel the edge, so you have to decide where the problem lays, I would begin the search for the problem in the mirror

Better than 9/10 times it is operator error, honest look through this forum for 1000's of posts just like yours, trust me it usually gets better with time...

For another razor there are tons of trusted vendors on here in the Vendor corner and even more trusted sellers in the Classifieds...

First, I am also relatively new at this -- just at few more steps down the road going on 5 months now, but I've been a member here and done a lot of research here as well since before I took the plunge into straight shaving.

I haven't bought anything from whipped dog myself - but generally people here consider the package you got a fine way to start. I can't speak to your razor quality specifically but generally speaking, you being so new to this, I imagine it has more to do with your technique than anything. It does take some time to be consistent at this so having patience with inconsistent results at the beginning is a virtue.

Some questions for you -- when you make your second pass, is it against (ATG) or across the grain (XTG), or are you shaving the second time with the grain, asme as you did the first pass? Also, you may be stropping 100 times, but if you're stropping technique is not good and inconsistent, your stropping may actually be dulling the blade.

I've been shaving with the same razor now for the entire 4 months now. About two or three weeks ago I noticed irritation and weepers creeping back into my shaves just when I thought I had gained a bit of mastery around the irritation etc. It turns out that my blade needs a honing touch up. I took my second back-up razor that is freshly honed out and shaved with that to check if my first blade was getting dull. I had a smoother, closer, overall better shave with newly honed razor, so it confirmed that it's time for a honing touch up.

I mention this only because as far as I was concerned, my first blade was sharp as heck still! But sharp and shave ready can be two different things. I was compensating for a slowly degrading edge and it took me a while to realize it. It doesn't take much to dull and edge, especially when you're first starting out and stropping and shaving angles etc are all new. I'm sure that my blade's early degradation has something to do with the fact that it is my first razor and had to undergo my learning curve with stropping and shaving. Hopefully this second razor I'm using will last a while longer before needing a touch up on the hone. I've sent my first blade off to the honemeister for a touch up in the meantime.

You can get a really nice shaver on the classifieds here for the money you're willing to spend, I did. It's also great to have a freshly honed razor around that you can use to test and see if your blade has become dulled.

I'd stay away from ebay unless you really know what you're buying and you can hone yourself. Much of what you buy on ebay will probably need to be sent out for a honing anyway and there's extra money. I myself, do not feel confident enough yet to buy razors there. I'd rather trust my face to something that surely is shave ready.

I've bought both my razors from two different guys here on SRP. Both were honed by the seller and they both have performed admirably! Making sure you REALLY have a shave ready razor in your hand when you're shaving is the single most important variable you can eliminate when you are starting out, IMO. It is still taking me time (even after 4 months) to realize when I'm shaving with a not so shave ready piece of steel.

I have found that there are many great people in this community who really care about whether you succeed at straight shaving. Buying a razor from them doesn't just get you a razor, it often gets you priceless advice, offers to rehone should you need it or have a mishap, etc. This was the case with both my purchases here and I feel I did the best thing I could to ensure that I eliminated the variable of trying to shave with a razor that is not shave ready by purchasing it from a veteran shaver and honer here on SRP. That's just my opinion and the route I chose to go.

All this said, it may just be your technique on your second pass that's getting you, especially if that pass is ATG or XTG. These passes are tricky and have taken me much more time to learn to do without irritation, weepers, and nicks. I am still learning these passes and still sometimes have mixed results, whereas, my first WTG pass is much more consistent and smooth, every time now.

Hopefully, some of the veterans will pipe in and they will have much more extensive and quality advice for you. Keep at it and get another shave ready razor from the classifieds here. You'll need a back up anyway when it's time to send out the first razor for a honing, so it's worth the investment in the long run.

Hope this helps a bit....

Originally Posted by gssixgun

For another razor there are tons of trusted vendors on here in the Vendor corner and even more trusted sellers in the Classifieds...

By the way, you just heard from one of the best. I will have a razor from Glen in my collection someday when I can swing it. His excellent honing and restoration skills are well known on this forum.

KeithS,

Thanks for the extensive reply, I have not ventured ATG yet but I have been going XTG. Interesting point about stropping, its most likely my inexperience showing through, but the razor is usually very sharp (or so I think) at the beginning of my shaves. Getting another freshly honed razor seems like a great idea to use as a control to test whether or not it is me.

Your advice about buying within this community matches my gut instinct of buying here. I also realize I have an extensive amount more to learn to improve my technique and thanks for all the advice and tips =).

Glen,

Thanks for the assurance about the brand. Still think I am going to look for a nice backup as well. I am pretty sure most of the problem lies with my technique as inexperience and I know it will be easier with practice. These past couple weeks are the first time in my life I wish my beard grew faster =). Thanks for the quick reply and advice!

Zip,
You've gotten some great advice here.

I've worked with Larry in the past and he's a good honeman.

I'm inclined to think that your struggles are from stropping technique. A blade that starts out well but doesn't last the shave generally signals a poor bevel...that the edge geometry isn't right and therefore isn't holding up. This usually happens from a lack of proper honing, and that's possible, but Larry has a very good rep for his honing, and my personal experience with him supports that rep. So I'm suggesting that your stropping technique may have overworked the blade edge and gotten it out of spec.

For comparison, I've been using straights for about a year now, hone my own and am no honemiester, and my blades last about a month before they need a touch up (daily 3pass shaves). I'm relatively happy with this, and it seems to be about on par with most guys' experience. When it comes to stropping I strop 30x linen, and 50x leather before each shave. 100x before and 100x after, IMHO is opening the door up for improper stropping to be more likely, and more detrimental.

So far as getting a backup: DO! Classic Shave, Straight Razor Designs (both of whom use Lynn Abrams for honing), Vintage Blades, Gem Star Customs, and many, many more are well attested vendors associated with this community. Check out the Vendor corner as Glenn (I think it was him) suggested, and feel free to click on the ads you see here. These vendors cater to our niche market and do a good job to please their relatively small customer base.

Peace,
Jim

P.S.>>>I have no affiliation with any of the vendors listed, and receive no kickbacks for promoting them. (Not that I wouldn't be open to it! )

Originally Posted by KeithS

By the way, you just heard from one of the best. I will have a razor from Glen in my collection someday when I can swing it. His excellent honing and restoration skills are well known on this forum.

Here's what Glen did for me! (A pictures speaks a 1000 words)

http://straightrazorpalace.com/custo...ered-horn.html

Pretty unbelievable. That makes me feel more confident for buying not so glamorous razors and saving some money to restore them. =) Thanks for the share!

I'm inclined to think you are correct sir. I hope I did not come across to question the quality of Larry's work as I have only heard good things. More of a question about the blade but that has already been addressed. Thanks for all the positive feedback and the list of vendors in the community.