Thread: New guy from Sweden -- advice on this first-time kit?

Hi all,
I've been browsing around here and elsewhere for a week or so now, and am thinking of making my first purchase quite soon. Since I live in Sweden, I'd like to buy from a Swedish seller, and am thinking about going for the following: link (passed through Google translate for the non-Swedish speakers!)

I'd really appreciate any opinions on this set from the experts here. Many thanks for your time.

It's a good and complete starter kit, good quality and reasonable price. I would say "Go and buy it", but you must be sure that the razor is REALLY shave ready. Ask to the seller if he is professionally honing it before shipping. If he tells you that it's shave ready from the factory, well it isn't. In such case I would suggest that you buy somewhere else and I could suggest some alternative in Europe (sorry, not in your country).
That because honing a razor is a difficult task, a lost art in these days and you could spend weeks before you succeed in getting it honed. Shaving with a straight is not easy, there is a long learning phase and if things are complicated by the razor performance you take the risk to get disappointed and give it up.

It looks nice to me I especially like the Russian leather strop. They are real great strops.
Good luck to you.
Darl (Tarkus)

Smolloy
I forgot to mention why dont you go to the Member Introduction thread and let yourself be known to all the fellow members. So you could be properly welcomed.
Darl

Thanks guys.

Following your advice, I've got in touch with the company to ask if their razors are shave ready, and if that means what I hope it means. I'll write back later if/when they reply.

Steve

That's about $230 USD it seems reasonably priced.

as a fellow new-guy I would say that (for me) stropping has certainly required some learning and having a 3" wide strop has made it all the easier to learn. I believe that this Dovo strop is around 2" wide so the razor will have to have some side-to-side motion as you strop not just up/down if that makes sense. Other than that one minor gripe - looks like a great kit to start with consisting of all quality components.

So they got back to me, and they say that they don't "sharpen" (I guess they mean hone) the blades themselves before shipping. This is done in the factory, and they claim that this means that the razor is "shave ready", and only needs a strop before the first (and every) shave.

Does this sound right to you guys? My guess is that you'll say I should go with a company that hand-hones the blades before shipping, right?

Hi! nice to meet you all.I am Alex and new here from New York.I am glad to join this forum.Its gonna to be very nice to share and discuss here.
Thanks to all.