Thread: Site history

I was just wondering what the history of SRP is.
There is such a great community here, and I was wondering about the how, what, why, where, when and who of it all.
Where did everybody go before SRP.(I know i wouldn't be straight shaving without it.)
I'm guessing that pre internet, straights really were going to die out with the father teaches son tradition.
Any comments on learning about straights pre SRP and even pre internet?
Nick

(Wasn't sure if this should belong in general or site comments, so if its in the wrong place sorry!)

I was all-electric pre-SRP. Disposables irritated my face too much.

It all started around 10 years ago. I have been shaving with a straight razor for since I was 21. For years, I would send my razor out to a cutlery service for sharpening and sometimes it would come back shavable and sometimes not. Well.......I decided I would learn how to sharpen my razor and went to the internet for help. The only information available at the time was a few questions and not many answers on the blade forums. A couple of .com's sold straight razors and had some information, but it was definitely not their mainstay. In any case, I hooked up with a man named Don Walters out of Tucson, who was advertised at the Knifecenter.com shop and he spent a lot of time with me on the phone explaining to me the various brands of razors and the sharpening media he used. He also sharpened my razor and set the standard that I still compete with today for what a sharp razor is. I also got to meet Mr. John West who has been a straight razor collector for over 30 years and he has been kind enough to share his knowledge every time I talk to him. So.........I thought it would be great if we had a forum on the internet dedicated to preserving the art of straight razor shaving, collecting, caring for razors and on and on, so I started the original StraightRazorPlace in Yahoo in Nov of 2000. I started the group with me and my 3 sons as members. John West was our first moderator and I used to go on ebay when they had email addresses and tell straight razor buyers about us. As they say, the rest is history.......

For me, getting to hone and shave with every straight razor every made was the goal. I ended up sharpening thousands of razors, hooking up with Ray Dupont when he first started Classic Shaving and have been having fun ever since.

This has been an exiting journey and I have had the opportunity to meet alot of great people along the way. From the start, there has been an overwhelming desire on our members parts to share what they have learned. Our members have always also shown a generosity beyond compare to this community as I am sure they do to all the communities they participate in.

A few years after we started, our members started additional forums on the web and there are now at least a half a dozen. There are knifemakers and artisans in the US taking up the art of making straight razors as well as people like Maestro Livi in Italy creating beautiful works of art. Our population has grown so much that Dovo and TI can't keep up with the demand. In addition, now instead of straight razors being a side line for vendors, straight razors and wet shaving goods in general are the bread and butter for many vendors with new shops opening every day. There are now many people as well who are honing razors for people.

I am very proud to call the StraightRazorPlace home and to be a part of such a wonderful membership with so many outstanding people.

Thanks for asking and I would say "Mission Accomplished".

Some day, I'll write a book.

Lynn

Originally Posted by adjustme69

Some day, I'll write a book.
Lynn

If it's half as good as the DVD, it will be quite a read

Thanks Lynn!
It's a great story for sure, and certainly seems to have a huge following now.
I have tried most methods of shaving and been disappointed with progress in all of them except from DE and straight shaving, which i started after throwing my electric to the back of the cupboard in October.(I have only had one DE shave since the beginning of January now though, its not quite so fun!)
I have learned much and I hope that the day will come that I can be offering advice here to others just discovering straights.
Anbody elses straight stories?
Nick

Lynn,do you know if Don Walters is still here in Tucson? If so, then I would love to see about getting with him to get a lesson on honing.

Matt