Cheap Practical Razors for Beginner Honing

Hi everyone,

I've been straight shaving now for about eight months and would like to embark into the art of honing. I've already accumulated a decent collection of razors I am proud of and the last thing I would like to do is end up damaging a razor beyond repair due to user negligence.

I was wanting to ask you fine people if you have any recommendations for razors that are cheap ($20.00 or less) that would actually be considered "honable". I understand the difference between the level of need for honing whether you need to "refresh" a razor, do a moderate job, or a complete restore of the bevel. I've purchased a Norton set (220/1000, 4000/8000, lapping stone, thinking of getting a Naniwa 12k soon) so I would like to get my feet wet with as many different variables as possible.

I understand that a lot of people on the forum recommends shaving/stropping for a period of time before jumping into honing, but my current train of thought is to gain experience on razors I don't mind possibly damaging so that when I come across the need to lay my nicer razors on a stone, I won't have to worry about creating damage due to lack of experience.

Thanks everybody in advance!

1. The 220 is pretty much useless for razors. Heavy work should be done with the 1k.
2. The 1k is a thirsty beast. You have to keep adding water nearly every 10 strokes.
3. The Norton lapping hone may not come flat and does not stay flat so watch for that.
4. Don't be in a rush for a higher grit hone. If you can't get a nice comfortable shave off the 8k, then another hone is not the solution.
5. At least until you learn what you are doing, tape is your best friend. Tape every spine and change it often. That way you won't destroy your razors.

For your actual question, vintage blades on ebay probably are you easiest option.

Your plan looks good to me. You can and should shave off your 8 K but the 12 K really makes the shave better in my opinion. I would recommend viewing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxrs5kFkmJg&t=2s. Pick up an inexpensive razor off ebay and use it to practice on, consider it expendable.
Come back to the forum if you have problems.
Al

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Utopian

1. The 220 is pretty much useless for razors. Heavy work should be done with the 1k.
2. The 1k is a thirsty beast. You have to keep adding water nearly every 10 strokes.
3. The Norton lapping hone may not come flat and does not stay flat so watch for that.
4. Don't be in a rush for a higher grit hone. If you can't get a nice comfortable shave off the 8k, then another hone is not the solution.
5. At least until you learn what you are doing, tape is your best friend. Tape every spine and change it often. That way you won't destroy your razors.

For your actual question, vintage blades on ebay probably are you easiest option.

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What ^^^ said. Only add would be to find a honing mentor within driving distance and once you "think" you have it right, send a shave ready blade to someone who shaves and hones straights for an evaluation of your edges.

As far as razors to learn honing on, i started with buying 2 ZY razors. No stabilizer and they dont cost much.

Avoid the gold dollar and all those other cheap razors that are being peddled on ebay. There are always nice lesser known brand razors, most out of Germany it seems, that can be had at a very fair price. Get the best you can afford and avoid hone wear and rust. Chips in the edge, even small ones, avoid. This will save a lot of frustration.

Brands of Straight Razors to Avoid - Shave Library

There have been some good answers. ScottGoodman, Utopian and Grazor more or less have all already echoed most of my sentiments. I might add that most barber supply razors sell for very little and were all made by quality manufactures. There are many hardware store branded razors that follow along with that too. I avoided all of the Chinese razors because of their reputation for quality issues. I was trying to learn to hone, not trying to trouble shoot blade geometry and other quality control issues. If you want to focus on honing then you might want to up you budget a little, buy vintage blades with no issues. One way to do that is to buy shave ready no name or lesser name razors from members in the BST. You could also consider putting an Ad in the BST, looking for good blade for honing practise and someone to evaluate your progress. Another option is to PM experienced members near you, perhaps mentors.

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Originally Posted by RezDog

There have been some good answers. ScottGoodman, Utopian and Grazor more or less have all already echoed most of my sentiments. I might add that most barber supply razors sell for very little and were all made by quality manufactures. There are many hardware store branded razors that follow along with that too. I avoided all of the Chinese razors because of their reputation for quality issues. I was trying to learn to hone, not trying to trouble shoot blade geometry and other quality control issues. If you want to focus on honing then you might want to up you budget a little, buy vintage blades with no issues. One way to do that is to buy shave ready no name or lesser name razors from members in the BST. You could also consider putting an Ad in the BST, looking for good blade for honing practise and someone to evaluate your progress. Another option is to PM experienced members near you, perhaps mentors.

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BAM! Rez beat me to it.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by boz

Your plan looks good to me. You can and should shave off your 8 K but the 12 K really makes the shave better in my opinion. I would recommend viewing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxrs5kFkmJg&t=2s. Pick up an inexpensive razor off ebay and use it to practice on, consider it expendable.
Come back to the forum if you have problems.
Al

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That was 2012?!?!

I remember that like it was yesterday

You see some old well made razors sell for pretty cheap that aren't made by the bigger names like Boker or Wade & Butcher.