Thread: A bit of research finding me still clueless

I started becoming interested in straight razor shaving only a couple days ago. After reading through the wiki I started to look for my first razor but even now I'm drawing a blank. The first thing I did without knowing anything was to research different brands and varieties of soviet razors (I am huge into soviet/Russian/Slavic culture and history, so a part of me gravitated towards this. The first thing I found of decent-seeming quality was a vintage Trud razor. It had very minor rust, however not being on the actual blade. The first concern I developed was a couple of very small nicks in the blade, that could possibly be honed out of it (?). The second blade was actually a kit, that came with strop, brush with stand, and a bowl, along with a Gold Doller 66 razor. My concern with this, was that I've read some bad testimonials for the brand of blade, and the seller claimed it needed to be honed and stropped as well. The third (and final) blade was in a similar kit on a website called Whipped Dog. It was a sight unseen deal, which comes with a Straight razor with cosmetic, non-shaving flaws and Poor Man strop kit. The main concern here is that I don't actually even see the razor I'm buying, and I do not know the credibility of this website. Would anyone here be able to address my concerns? I'll also note that all three buys are of very same price, and that without a strop (if I bought the soviet razor), I have found a DIY strop page on this site, and that none of the deals come with proper tools for honing.