Thread: New to the site.....but not really

I want to learn to shoot heavy artillery.
I think I'll wander out to the range at camp while the boys are at lunch, and figure it out.

haha never, I would only blame myself. God hope I don't need a transfusion. With all the people on here and all the questions and newbies I'm impressed all of you keep up as well as you do. I can't believe i've responded to as many posts as I have already. Yes though if help or advice is given, it is appreciated. Wet shaving is supposed to be an enjoyable and relaxing experience and I try my best to keep it that way.

Originally Posted by mmilby

HUH? I have the highest respect for history. I'm sure to learn how to hone you will have to wear down a razor or so to learn proper technique. I already have some very old razors that I want to learn how to restore by getting the rust off and buffing them back to shave ready. Buy some new pins and replace them if they are rusted and so forth. Saying I want to ruin a few razors doesn't mean i'm gonna intentionally ruin them just for fun but i'm sure wearing one down to a certain point with come with learning to hone. I'm sure at first i will stink but i will teach myself and with the help of others get proficient. Hopefully i don't completely ruin a razor but knowing myself i probably will. I mean I make a pretty nice living but razors are expensive and I don't want to spend more than I have to on replacing razors. One razor I bought was very expensive and I don't plan on using it until I have a great handle on shaving and honing, sort of a reward for myself. Maybe i mis-spoke, its kinda like saying i want to sling some lead or burn through some ammo. I'm not really gonna actually sling the lead or actually burn ammo. I just want to get to the range and shoot. Just a figure of speech. By learning how to hone and how to do restoration I will be preserving history. There are a lot of great old razors out there I would love to put back into commission.

Gotcha. Hopefully you will take some time and research before taking the plunge. There is a little something different to an old razor I have.

Please please read through this thread:

http://straightrazorpalace.com/razor...ery-razor.html

Long and boring, maybe. But the BEST warning I can think of for someone with a small collections and an itch to repair/hone. Some things are even better if you just leave them alone.

HA. I get your point. Though one kills and one can give you a nick or two or three. Though I can show you to shoot heavy artillery.

Cool thanks, I will definitely read that. I do read quite a bit and jumping right in for me so far has been buying materials I will be needing and lots and lots of research and reading before i think to begin honing.

mmilby,

I sort of jumped in to honing and shaving at the same time. It sucked basically. That was six years ago. The fire went out after about a year and I stopped. I hadn't gotten very far.

I've been back for the last 8 months or so. For me the obsession is as strong as ever. I'm much more organized than I was back then. I'm making progress. And I'm not exactly doing it on my own this time. Part of it has been accepting advice from those more experienced than me.

Take your time. Look around the site as much as you can. Feel free to disregard any advice you that doesn't apply to you. The more experienced members here will still talk to you, mentor you, and answer your questions. But you may want to ease up a little.

The best part of SRP is the community. Enjoy it!

Thanks for the input. I will def be taking advice and putting it to use! Can I ask what made you disenchanted with honing in the first place? How are you more organized? If I do jump into it, and jumping into it by no means to go fast, what advice can you offer me as a beginner. Yes I agree thats one thing I put in my original post that I did love the sense of community at the SRP.

Originally Posted by mmilby

Changing the brakes on a car I learned just from watching.

Sure you can do that but there are other aspects to a brake job other than just replacing worn brake pads. Hopefully you already know that.
But first of all you need to know how to drive the car so you can test your job & that's a bit like us recommending to get the shaving wired prior to honing & restoring.

I can understand wanting to do things your way. I'm a bit stubborn, although not as much as I used to be. I think you just came on a little strong on your first post on this thread. I totally understand that sometimes what you say or type, isn't exactly how it could be taken by people overhearing or reading. I'm bad for that myself. I can't add much to what has been said, just repeat that others here have been where you are, and are where you are. There are members here that have been shaving for their entire lives, and there are members that haven't received or even ordered their first straight razor yet. The ones who can, teach and guide. The others like myself try to soak up the information they give out so that we are not starting from scratch and we end up enjoying our hobby more than just the dreaded yet needed (in some cases) chore it was before. Keep in mind that you didn't mention you had already ordered and shaved with a shave ready straight on your first post. That alone could mislead our view of you.

Basically I want to applaude that you have drive, but please keep in mind some starting out may never hone in their life. A service from someone like gssixgun, or in my case Maxi, is only part of the cost of one hone, let alone an entire set of stones. No one NEEDS to buy a hone, but many of us, myself included, want to learn. If someone wants to learn, a Norton 4/8 is suggested, just because it is relatively inexpensive, consistent and for some people is all they need to hone their own razors. Also many people have them, so they can give advice based on working with that hone. Then that person can go from there and decide what else they want, if anything. I'm just using that as an example. Some people prefer and/or started with natural stones. some may have unlimited funds and they are not worried what it will cost, but others are going to a straight razor to try and spend less than they have to for replacement blades.

I wish you luck in your adventure. Against all advise I did the same thing. I believe the structured approach prevents a plethora of "cant get hht5 off my stone", "this razor wont take a bevel" posts- you get the picture.
That being said, in a year your going to look back at the razors you wrecked and wish you didnt.
Remember, they arent making antique razors anymore.
Good Luck!