What Happened and where do I go now?

I was pretty active several years ago, loved my straight razors, and had a great collection of stones. Gave it up, gave my stuff to my son and carried on with a boring modern razor. Well, as anyone that has been exposed to greatness, I eventually started to miss everything involved in wet shaving. Not being an Indian giver, I was not going to ask my son for any of the stuff I gave him back, and, he is really using it.
So I have ordered some nice razors, got some cheepos to practice on, got a new strop, and have ordered a nice coticule and Belgium blue from Howard. I still have a DMT for setting bevels. What am I missing? My Escher. I can't find one either. Used to be, if you had the money, you could find an Escher. Now they are either too small, or just unfindable. I would be happy with one say, six inches by 1.5 wide. Can't find them. Keep missing them in classifieds or Ebay, and not many there. Is there someplace that actually has some for sale? I can go up to 400 bucks for the right one. Directions anyone? It seems like all my contacts have dried up, or blown away since a few years ago. I would appreciate some help here. Thanks.

The only "place" I know of that sells Escher thuringians pretty regularly is Ebay. You can always check the classifieds here as well. But with your budget, you shouldn't have any trouble securing a labeled Escher thuringian on ebay. Sometimes the auctions will surprise you, but generally speaking, you should be able get one below your maximum bid.

In a quick search, I found three labeled thuris on auction listings on Ebay right now.

I wouldn't discount the idea of buying a synthetic finishing stone instead. I recently shaved off a Shapton Pro 15k that a friend used on my razor. The shave was smoother than what I'm capable of with thuringian stones. And the price is far less. Several members write highly of the Naniwa 12k synthetic also. That stone retails around 80 bucks. I can't imagine it wouldn't be worth it.

Best of luck in your search.

There's an escher in the classifieds here right now. $550 though.

I am looking for one 6 inches or longer, nice width, but a little short. I got to say, the hunt is thrilling. I gave most of my stuff to my son, kept my Scuttle, have a few stones left, just bought a couple of belgiums, and some practice razors, have a couple of good ones on the way. Can't wait for them to get here, waiting at the mailbox is fun,if not frustrating. Looking for some great razors, and an escher is challenging. I need to see if I can still shave with one!

With yous specs and budget I have to wish you luck as you will need a lot of it to get labeled Escher of that size.

There is a thread about a new stone you may find interest in called a "Zulu Grey".

http://straightrazorpalace.com/hones...can-hones.html

There are also lots of threads about JNATS and where to buy them without having to worry :)