Beginner Setup

Hmmm, want to get an alternative to my cartridge razor. Just borrowed another cartridge from dad so time to buy unless I want to sink the money into another pack of cartridges. Really wanted to go disposable for the benefit of ALWAYS having a SHARP blade around and I had a shave with one recently and it was very good. So I am comparing, I can get the pretty slick (it seems) setup below for $177, or I can get the true introductory deal, get deal #2 for $80- though just the nice brush and soap makes #1 look worth it! I am working on buying a condo and the extra $100 is not an insignificant amount. To be honest, I would probably still buy the parker so I could compare the two (heck it is only $20).

So I know everyone wants to say go with the Dovo, but if you are being honest... I am just not all into the idea of stropping (though I recognize once I am good at it the extra time is minimal) and more importantly having a blade to maintain. There are a ton of reasons I love the disposable idea. On the flip side, despite the fact that a good number of people shave with the disposable and love it, the majority choose the true straight. I can't imagine the, majority of the majority (if you will) are doing it just because they are bored and want a hobby... May give up Art of Shave a call tomorrow and see if they will give me a deal to bundle all the crap/try to get close to online pricing :D I know they won't but can't hurt to try!

Deal 1 - $177
Dovo Best Quality Blond 5/8" Straight Razor Set <- Only because they are out of white, poo!
Your Strop - 2" Red Latigo Leather
Your Brush - Simpson Beaufort B4 Pure Badger Shaving Brush
Your Mug - Col. Ichabod Conk Shaving Mug
Your Soap - Lavender
Your Acrylic Brush Stand - Ivory
Your Pinaud Styptic Pencil - .33 ounce
World of Straight Razor DVD - No Thank

Deal 2 - $80
Van Der Hagen Men's Luxury, Shave Set $31.49
Parker SR1 Stainless Steel Straight Edge Razor and 5 Shark Super Stainless blades $17.88
Bloc Osma Natural Alum Block $9.95


EDIT: Or I guess... Though for $60 I think it might be worth a new razor, better strop and mug.

Deal 3 - $120
WhippedDog sight unseen razor and poor man's strop - $54
Same soap and brush from deal 1 - $65

Welcome to the forum Vova!

If you think you'd hate stropping then skip deal 1. Or get it and send the things you don't want to me. :p

I think the Parker is at quite a good price, I think I might have gotten mine at the same price. I have a parker SR1, it's pretty good at what it does, though don't expect it to be pretty. I'm not sure about the van der hagen shave set, can you list what's in the set?

I also recently got whippeddog deal, it's a sweet deal with a shave ready razor, and Larry is a great guy to deal with. If you want to try a real straight without breaking the bank, I recommend trying whippeddog.
For the brush, I believe whippeddog also have black and silvertip brush at awesome price. I have heard great things about Larry's brush, and I am getting one from him right now. :)

Hope that helps,
Sy

Thanks. The van der hagens is just a kit of their soap (has good reviews here), brush, stand and mug. I don't mind spending the money to get the nicer setup if I like it lol! I would love to save money, but hate to love it and wish i had spent a little more for deal 1 heh.

Of course if I don't love it, better chance in selling/trading a nearly new dovo and strop (than a sight unseen deal) in the classifieds to go shavette/safety.

I would go for the Deal 1 (and also the World of Straight Razor DVD it is worth every penny).
I don't trust anybody enough to buy sight unseen anything.

I'd say deal number 3. Whipped dog is a fantastic place to start your journey. You'll literally get everything you need, and it won't break the bank (and the razor will definitely be ready to shave--not necessarily so with The Art of Shaving). Once you know you enjoy shaving with a straight, then you can splurge on aesthetically superior items, but you don't need something that looks fancy to get a good shave.

If you're uncomfortable with buying something that you haven't seen, you could spend a little more and get one of the razors that he has pictures of on the site. That's the same quality of razor that you'll be getting with the sight unseen kit, but it can be peace of mind for some folks

EDIT: However, if you're the kind of guy who likes better quality upfront that's fine too. Deal 1 would also be a great choice. That razor will also be shave ready.

If you go with Deal #1, upgrade to a 3" latigo strop. It covers the razor better when you strop.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by pmburk

If you go with Deal #1, upgrade to a 3" latigo strop. It covers the razor better when you strop.

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You know I did the search, and I figured for $15 more for a strop I am likely to cut anyway, I might as well go with the 2". Most people said they think you should start 2" to get the "x stroke" form down, and/or said they do the x pattern with a 3" anyway. $15 in savings is not a ton, but that allows for fancier cream or something if you look at it that way.

I've used a lot of strops through the years and my least favorite are the 3 inch strops -- it's been my experience that they're prone to cupping to one degree or another. I prefer 2.5 inch strops but also use the two inch.

I started with a 3 inch black latigo (although it was from vintage blades, not SRD), and I was actually kind of unhappy with it. It was really stiff and waxy and I felt like it wasn't stropping the edge equally. Also, I dont know about all the different brands of latigo, but consensus seems to be that latigo these days needs to break in before it gets good, which is not conducive to learning.

After a month of trying, I upgraded to a scrupleworks strop (as I'd heard a lot of good press). Since it was expensive, I went for the 2 inch version. Leather aside (I found it fantastic, but this is all subjective), I found that I really liked the narrower width. The x-stroke really isn't that hard to learn as long as you go slow and steady.

To be honest though, if I were going for a beginner strop and you're doing the 2 inch anyways, I'd go with the poor man's strop from whipped dog (or you can get a 3 inch version with fabric component for $47). If you're going to nick it, it's cheap so that's no big deal. It's also english bridle, so it's more supple than the latigo. There are other good choices out there for beginner strops (ie the filly strop from ruprazor, or one of the walking horse strops from thesuperiorshave.com--although that's a little more expensive it will be good quality), and this is all just my experience, but I think as a new user you'd be happier with a more supple leather.

Van der Hagen also has a set with bowl, boar brush, and soap for about $10. I would get a puck of their soap, a Shea Moisture brush (Targer or Wal-Mart), and use a household container as a bowl until something speaks to you. Get the sight unseen deal from Larry and you will have a good, shave ready razor and a 2- 1/4 inch strop with a balsa strop having both CrOx and FeOx. This is all you will need (if you don't ding the edge or roll it while you strop) for at least 6 months.

Then while you are learning to use the straight you can look for other razors, brushes, and soaps at your leisure since you won't need them to get started.

VOVa, where in WA are you? I always suggest that a new shaver try meeting with a senior member before purchasing and especially before attempting to shave.

Before doing anything I think you need to take a step back and ask yourself what is your ultimate goal here? To save money or to get a closer shave/enjoy the hobby? You are talking an awful lot of money for a lot of stuff you may not like and some that you really don't need.

If you don't want to take care of a blade (Strop, touch up etc) and you are just looking for a close shave at a cheaper cost, then I'd highly recommend you get a DE Safety razor to start out with BEFORE you decide if a SR is something you want to take the time to learn (SR or Parker they both have a much higher learning curve then a DE or a cartridge) the DE will give you a few advantages here.

1) NO maint, just replace the blade every few shaves or when it starts to pull
2) It starts you into the habit of a multiple pass shave using gradual beard reduction technique which is the basis of a good SR shave
3) It is cheap to get into (You can find decent DE's on Lynn's site, or Geo's site or even in the classifieds)
4) You can take your time finding a blade you like (and they are CHEAP)


As far as brushes/soaps, I'd go for a cheap boars hair brush and some decent inexpensive cream (Poraso) to get started, you don't need a mug even with soaps, you CAN face or palm lather, and if you REALLY want a mug, take an old coffee cup, works great as a starter. This way you can start with the practice of "Wet Shaving" even with your current cartridge and then slowly accumulate the stuff you want and find which soaps/creams you like/dislike etc.

I know it's tempting to want to get everything at once, but do it slowly and you will make wiser purchases....

Look, Straight razor shaving is NOT for everyone.

If you don't THINK you don't want to strop, then I suggest you forgo the Straight and stick with a DE. Straight razor shaving takes quite a bit of effort, and I don't think you have your heart in it. At least using the DE, and a brush will give you a pretty good shave with just a little effort...

Enjoy...

OK Everyone, thank you so much for the responses. I have wet-shaved before with a cartridge, and I think I will enjoy straight (strop and all) when I have it down. Being the overthinker/cheapskate that I am I priced out all my options and think I found the winner.

Option 1 - $123 +/- a little
-Parker SR1 Shavette
-Dovo 6/8 Full-Hollow
-Whipped Dog Poor Man's Strop (also looked at RupRazer Filly but poor mans seems like a better bargain w/ the balsa and pastes)
-Van Der Hagen Premium Shave Set (Soap, Bowl, Brush)

I will also add something like the Prorasso cream to try cream vs. soap. Intent is to go with cold water as a post-shave, I will pick up some bargain brand if need be. Worst case scenario follow up with some nicer stuff if necessary. Read up on size and hollow, opted for the 6/8 as my barber recommended I go for a heavier blade and I will have the shavette if I have any problems maneuvering with the larger blade.

I looked at slightly nicer brush options and even going all Whipped Dog. But I feel like this is a good compromise in price, I think if I decided I hated it and wanted to sell my razor I could probably recoup nearly all of the $40 difference had I bought the sight unseen deal.

Final comments before I order?


*That being said, SRD is all out of the white which I think I would rather get. Though I like the blond ok too, SuperiorShave has the white in stock, but I do not see much mention of them here in regards to their honing. I would rather get a slightly less preferred color for a better/more confident hone!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Vova

I would rather get a slightly less preferred color for a better/more confident hone!

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I'm sure you made the right choice about that. Good luck.

OK Could not wait any longer. Picked up the VGH kit tonight, found it more enjoyable than I recall. That being said I used to just leave the soap in the mug as I lathered (never though to read about it online!) and doing it the proper way tonight was quite nice.

Just placed the amazon portion of the order:

Parker SR1 Stainless Steel Straight Edge Razor and 5 Shark Super Stainless blades $17.88
L'Oreal Paris Men's Expert Comfort Max Anti-Irritation After Shave Balm, SPF 15, 3.3-Fluid Ounce $6.99
Proraso Shaving Cream 5.2 oz (147 g) $11.00
Merkur Double Edge Safety Razor Blades - 10 Count $6.79
Norpro Stainless Steel Grip-EZ Meat Pounder $19.99 (dad's birthday coming up :D)

That leaves the Dovo and strop. May hold off until I try the parker out, I know I want to try the real deal but on the flip side if I just fall in love with the parker maybe no need to rush into the extra $100 until I get my bonus at the end of the quarter :D.