Thread: I have heeded the warnings and i still think its a good idea

"Hardware Store" straights go for pennies on d'Bay. They're a great way to work on your honing as some of them will throw the kitchen sink at you. As a bonus, once they're up to speed, you've got some nice shavers. Also a great way to break into restoration without breaking the bank.

I agree with you Mike I paid less than a gold dollar new for a Kinfolks Blue steel, and the blade is one of the finest pieces of steel around,, from Little Valley NY,, if a gold dollar is what you want go for it ,, I just don't like wasting my time on a maybe but YMMV, ive always bought quality over price any way tc

Timely topic, as I just shave tested a GD today. It was my third hone (fourth if you count two tries), and was the most difficult. The spine arrived "potato shaped" and took some work to get flat. I'm a little stunned at the better quality geometry in 100 year old blades than in current production from China...it's not rocket science.

In the end, I have a decent shaver, more experience, and new insight for a very few dollars.

Originally Posted by Bentlink

Timely topic, as I just shave tested a GD today. It was my third hone (fourth if you count two tries), and was the most difficult. The spine arrived "potato shaped" and took some work to get flat. I'm a little stunned at the better quality geometry in 100 year old blades than in current production from China...it's not rocket science.

In the end, I have a decent shaver, more experience, and new insight for a very few dollars.

this was exactly my intention not the decent shaver, but the experience and insight.

I have had quite a lot of fun honing,correcting and shaving with gold dollars.as an aside i use them when i travel by car in the cheap hotels i'v used it pays to not take your top shelf equipment along for the maids to pilfer.cheers. -CAM-

Very wise, I am still to become owner of "top shelf equipment" however. Really taken a liking to KROPP razors since i picked one up from auction, currently working on a second for which i just received some lovely spalted beech.

Originally Posted by stev

Very wise, I am still to become owner of "top shelf equipment" however. Really taken a liking to KROPP razors since i picked one up from auction, currently working on a second for which i just received some lovely spalted beech.

The KROPP were a plain "working man's razor." That said, I have never found one to be less than stellar in grind and steel quality.
Enjoy it for another generation!
~Richard

Originally Posted by Bentlink

I'm a little stunned at the better quality geometry in 100 year old blades than in current production from China...it's not rocket science.

When you have experience of trying to get a nice, tiny, even bevel on a 100 year old wedge, I suspect you will have changed your opinion. The thing to remember about any razor that is new to you is that you don't know how it was honed before. The OP makes reference to a razor that he screwed up that was shave ready before he started- was tape used previously? If so, how many layers? One thing is for sure, if a hone does not lay perfectly flat on the hone, it will take some experience to et a bevel set all along the edge. Tape may play a part in that so to my mind, experimenting with less than perfect razors gives valuable experience - especially in how spine wear and bevel differences start to become apparent. Looking at the wear on tape can tell you a whole lot about what would have happened to the steel without the tape.

I kinda figured just from appearance that this was their lot in life, you can tell they are pure functionality, my first hone was a KROPP and it was as if it told me how it wanted to be honed.
the one im working on is a beefcake. They really do just wanna shave you.