Thread: stone? please help

Ok so im about to be buying my first acctual straight razor rather than the injector im using. so im looking for a wet stone that is cheap cheap but good im only 17 so money isnt very much.

Well, if you're buying something that's already "shave ready" (which you should), then all you would need is a touch-up stone. So maybe a little barber's hone would be good? Or, you could pick up a Chinese 12k from whippeddog.com for cheap. Those work well for touch-ups too...

I'd say you don't need a stone at all. Just buy yourself a razor from the classifieds. Or from one of the websites that sells them shave ready. You're only going to have to have it sharpened maybe once per year. Some guys offer discounts if you send the razor back within a certain amount of time for rehoning.

The more important purchase will be a strop. I recommend StarShaving strops. But others have their favorites as well. At any rate, you'll need the strop every day. You don't really need the stones.

Originally Posted by jpcwon

Well, if you're buying something that's already "shave ready" (which you should), then all you would need is a touch-up stone. So maybe a little barber's hone would be good? Or, you could pick up a Chinese 12k from whippeddog.com for cheap. Those work well for touch-ups too...

There are a lot of different brands of barber hones out there. Some , Champion for instance, are not good at all. The C-12k is a better bet.
Find a Mentor in your area and you will save a lot of time and money by spending a few hours to get together with that person.
~Richard

Lynn has a video somewhere around here on the subject of barber hones, it is more than worth the look. Ingenious little devices.

Do not buy a stone! Learn to strop and shave first. Get your techique down-pat first and worry about honing months from now. If you dull it, send it out to a pro for the first time. Give yourself a few months of reading this forum before deciding on what stone to get. Otherwise, you'll end up spending a bunch of money needlessly (like I did). Go slow and keep it cheap. Take your time before buying anything.

As others have said it's probably best to get shave ready straight and learn how to shave/strop first.

For cheap shave ready razors and means to keep them shaving Whipped Dog would be worth a look. For edge maintenance on the cheap some chromium oxide powder on a bit of balsa wood or leather works a treat.