Thread: New to straight razors

Good morning. I am new to this. Can anybody advise on videos or books that I can use to instruct me for my frst shave? I have a Dovo Bismarck. Is it ready out of the box?

Thanks

Welcome aboard Al. The razor is NOT ready to shave out of the box. I repeat: THE RAZOR IS NOT READY TO SHAVE OUT OF THE BOX.
As for reference materials:
1) Send a PM to adjustme69. That's Lynn Abrams the macdaddy of straight razors and he has a top-notch instructional dvd for beginners. Even more advanced users can learn a few tricks from it.
2) Check out the Help Files section here. It contains lots of great info.
3) The forums have a search function and answers to almost every question you may have.
4) If they don't, there are people who know them anyways, so all you have to do is ask.

Thanks for the advice. Even though I am just starting I am actually pretty excited about my "new hobby." Hopefully my wife will understand. Any advice as to having more than one razor?

Originally Posted by Al in Cal

Any advice as to having more than one razor?

Get as many as you feel comfortable owning. Myself, I have 12 but am currently only using three for shaving. The rest are in various stages of cleaning/restoration.

I maintain a rotation of about 10 (it's really fluid). Here are my observations...
1 -- enough to get by
2 -- to have a spare if you ding the edge
4 -- to have a couple of razors you could take when you travel. Even if your bag gets lost, you still have 2 waiting for you at home
Anything more than that is really an extravagance. Fortunately I was into restoration so my extravagances usually cost $10-15 a pop.

Advice on owning razors, huh. I guess my advice would be to mix it up:

Start with a full hollow 5/8 or 6/8 since those are the best sizes to handle when you're learning. Then get a smaller and a bigger and make sure you try a half hollow and/or a quarter hollow.

There are also shape differences with the spike point, round point, semi-round, French and Spanish points two.

For construction you want to stick to Solingen, Sheffield or Eskeltuna steel. The blades will display this distinktion on the shank or grip of the blade. There's also a choice between regular carbon steel or stainless steel. The guys that use SS seem to like it but the rest of us outnumber them.

You might want to try a few blades on the cheep (say $35) and sell them again if they're not quite your style. Above all, keep blades which are great shavers and/or works of art. That should be enough for you to think about.

X

Originally Posted by Al in Cal

...Any advice as to having more than one razor?

Yes...be afraid, be very afraid....

No, really, get as many as you like. So many razors, so little time. I see from your profile that you are in Hacienda Heights. There is a great antiques mall not far from you in Whittier, King Richard's. You may not be ready yet, but at some point you may find some neglected and forgotten treasures (straight razors, strops, hones) there, and at decent prices too (it's one of my favorite "junk" stores).

For now though, I recommend you concentrate on learning to use just the one you have. But watch out! Once you get bitten by the razor bug....


Scott

Hey guys thanks all of you.

I guess I will go out and purchase another razor. I am a traditional guy so I will stick with the carbon steel. Any advice on what site to buy from? I would also consider used, but haven't seen anything on Ebay that appears descent. I don't mind spending $100-$150 for the razor.

Question: What shaving soap do you recommend? Should I use a good aftershave balm?

Work with me fellas..........

Al in Cal

Al, quite a few of our members sell shave-ready restored pieces. Then Tony Miller sells some great looking DOVOs (shave-ready).
E-mail Colleen at thegentlemensquarter@verizon.net for a price list on her soaps.
I prefer alcohol-based aftershaves like Dominica Bay Rum, but if you really want a balm-like substance, get Trumpers Coral Skin Food. It's been getting universally great reviews. For generic store stuff, Neutrogena Razor Defense is the best.

Originally Posted by Al in Cal

Any advice on what site to buy from? I would also consider used, but haven't seen anything on Ebay that appears descent.

Hi Al. Welcome to SRP! There's lots of good sources for str8 razors and wet shaving products. Have you checked out the Classifieds section? The Member's for Sale area of the Gallery? The Links area on the main site? The Vendor Buy and Sell Forum? The Vendor Forum?

These are all good starting points. Most all of the individuals and businesses you'll find in these references are long standing members of our community and can be trusted to deliver what they say they will and stand behind their products. It would be very difficult to recommend one vendor over the other in any objective way. Any given product (eg, a razor, a soap, an aftershave, etc.) will perform differently for various individuals... this is not a one size fits all thing.

Read read read is my best advice. Our Forums are full of useful advice and guidance. Spend some time in the Library reading various documents and how-to's. Once you do, you'll have a much better idea of what you want and who to get it from.

And don't forget, you can always place a WTB ad in the Classifieds or the Buy/Sell/Trade Forum and see what offers you get.