Thread: newbie questions

Hi guys, I'm looking to make the switch from triple edge to straight, mainly because of the cost of replacing disposable blades.

I have a few old straights laying around : A dubl duck, an old one that's marked "Geo Wostenholm's celebrated IXL razor, Washington works, Sheffield" and a newer barber's razor. They really need a good cleaning/honing.

The Duck and the barber razor are both in need of rust removal (the barber razor being the worst). Somehow the ol' IXL escaped rusting in storage, but has a few stains on it.

Any tips on rust removal and or restoring them myself? If not, is there someone local to Oklahoma who can do the restoration? I have plenty of time on my hands as I'm no longer able to work. Also, I was thinking about contacting the local boot repair shop and having them make me a hanging strop , is this do-able or should I just expect to have to buy a strop?

I am blind in one eye, and am not too ambidextrous, will this be a major problem?

I'm sorry for all the questions, but I figured the one's who could answer them best is the people who've been there done that.

Thanks,
Tony

Those sound like some decent razors if they'r not in bad shape. Maas or any similar polishing/rust removal product will take care of surface rust and tarnish well enough. Anything deep erwill require sanding or regrinding in the worst cases.

Lots of guys have managed to create their own strops and you might have luck there. If not I highly recommend Tony for his outstanding products.

We had one guy arrive who was completely blind and seems to have made out pretty well.

I, and some others, shave with one hand so although there might be a few challenges in store for you, they're not insurmountable. Most guys actually have little trouble learning the off hand.

X

Welcome aboard. The Duck and the Wostenholm are great scores. Using Maas, Flitz, CLR Metal Clear or Simichrome will get the rust off. If there is pitting, you will need to do some hand-sanding. There are plenty of good articles in the restoration forum.
If you want to learn to hone oldies, get one of those two professionally honed, get yourself a Norton 4k/8k waterstone and try to emulate the results. We also have great articles on honing
I'll also recommend Tony's strops. They're reasonably priced and GREAT quality products.
Vision is not very important even to those of us blessed with better than 20/20. As long as you know approximately where you're going, you're fine. Touch takes care of the rest.
No need to apologize for asking. We're here to help

2 recommendations for professional honing:
Lynn Abrams -- the forum owner and the man who can take most of the credit for reviving the art of straight shaving. classicshaving.com's honing service is actually performed by him.(SRP nickname: adjustme69)
Joe Chandler -- he does excellent work with honing and very reasonably priced re-grinding (he did a GREAT job on one of my razors that was in need of a total re-grind). He can also do a restoration for you. (SRP nickname: Joe Chandler)

If you're looking for quick and servicable rather than 'pretty', once you have the surface rust off of those razors, there may not be any reason to 'restore' them by removing the pitting. For what it's worth, for my regular shaving razors I rarely do. The only place that all corrosion/pitting MUST be removed is from the cutting edge itself. However, that is accomplished by honing rather than polishing/sanding.

It is often advisable to begin with a blade that you know is shave ready...the only sure fire route to that is by getting one of the honemeisters to sharpen it for you. Personal preference/opinion here, but I would suggest that from the start you learn to shave with both hands. I know that some (sorry X) do not and are able to shave well. However, there are some places on your face where shaving off handed makes the pass MUCH less dangerous (i.e., you are less likely to cut something). Yes, it will feel awkward at first, but then again, so will your first several straight shaves...so you might as well jump in with both feet.

Welcome aboard, I'm looking forward to hearing back from you when you announce your LAST cartridge shave.

Cheers,
Ed

The IXL just needs honing, it has a few stains on the blade but no rust and no pitting. The Dubl Duck I used a pencil lead to remove the rust enough to read that it's marked Satinedge and might could get by with just a honing, but would like to see it (and eventually the IXL, it has some type of horn for scales) restored. The barbers razor is too far gone for just honing. It needs a new pin and I might just opt for new scales as well. I also cleaned it enough to read the inscriptions and it reads "The Moor, Venetian Steel" on one side and "Koken, Barber's S. Co., Solingen Germany".

Fwiw, the pencil lead does remove rust, but it also leaves the steel the color of pencil lead as well. Both blades will need further cleaning and polishing. It's an old trick my Dad showed me. I'm not sure it's good for the blades, but with the blades in the condition they were in they needed the rust removal,and at least honed, so it didn't set me back any.

if ALL they need are honing I'm doing free honing still for the next week or so while testing new linen for strops. You pay postage both ways. PM me if you want that.

Top of the Line strops will be Tony Miller (CLICK HERE), no questions asked. His top dollar strops come with a free 2nd strop to practice on. I make inexpensive, perfectly usable strops also. Lynn Abrams is also putting together a straight razor place give away you can put your name in for that will include some strops. You can check that thread out and watch for when they start taking names. Tony's donating some top quality strops and I'm donating some of mine as well. If you're not in a hurry that may be the route to go and then just buy a strop if you don't win one.

If funding is an issue Tony can work with you and so can I. My opinion is if you want the best possible strop, ask Tony. If you're just looking for something to strop with, an old leather belt works just fine or you can check out cheaper alternatives. Be warned though, a lot of bad merchandise is sold on ebay.

Local shoe shops won't necessarily cut the leather straight for you but you might get away with 3 to 8 bucks for a piece of 8 to 10 oz leather long enough to tool yourself. You'll likely have to wet it, press it and then put plexi-glass and weights on it over night while it dries to get a good surface for stropping.

Glen F

right now money is as scarce as hens teeth. I'm not trying to make anyone feel sorry for me, just putting it like it is. My Doctor suggested I file for disability and I'm in the process of fighting with Social Security to get it put through. I'm on my second appeal and should hear sometime this month how that went. Have heard that usually it takes 2 or 3 years to get it, and according to the lawyer that's about average. This is the main reason I'm making the switch from safety razors to straight, I got tired of having to scrape up 12 bucks for blades I'm just gonna toss anyway.

Alright. I'll make you a basic strop then when I'm making strops for the give-away this weekend. send me an email at [email protected] and we'll swap info. If you can afford to send me the razors that only need honing I'll pay postage back to you and include the strop along with it. Send them in a padded envelope first class,marked "fragile". it's cheapest and you can get a delivery confirmation on them due to the odd size. I do recommend you put your name into the give away and start saving your pennies to buy a tony miller strop once you can.

Glen F

What type of stones will I need for honing? Or is that going to be a "necessary" item? Also I saw mention of a honing video, is there one on site? I found a link in a message to the shaving video and downloaded that. I know I'm full of questions, but being iced in with not much else to occupy my mind I have to keep myself occupied some way

You generally need a series of hones to get a razor into shaving shape, though this doesn't have to be expensive. You can use 1000 grit sandpaper on a glass plate (like a window plate) to grind the initial bevel - if you're getting an old razor up to shape it's best to start with this because you'll probably need to get through the old oxidized surface steel into the good steel deeper in. After that you can use a hard arkansas stone (lap it flat on the 1000 grit sandpaper and glass plate) to get it sharp and smooth - I mention this one not because it's the best, but because lots of guys have these already for honing their pocketknives. Once it's as sharp and smooth as you can get it, then move to a barber's hone (~10-15 one ebay or a local antique shop) keeping a light touch on the hone, and keep at it until it will pop a hair dropped onto the blade.