Thread: Newbie looking for home info and help

I happen to have a W&B Certified that belonged to my grandfather. I have had it put away for quite a few years and have become interested in it an shaving with a sttaight razor. I also happened to pick up a Nox-all stone from his things many years ago and while I was not sure, i had always felt like it was for use with the razor.

I recently found this forum and am interested in learning a little more about the stone and its use. Is it used dry, with water or oil. The razor is in good condition, sharp, but I dounbt it is sharp enough to shave with.

I wouls appreciate any info you can provide on the stone, either here or links. I have a birthday coming up soon and am going to have one of my kids get a good strop for it. My daughter is a stylist and can pick up many of the supplies at a discount. If I can get it all figured out and learn how to sharpen it, I am going to start trying to use it.

Thanks in advance for the help. i am sure I will have many more questions.

Welcome to SRP. I don't know anything about your Nox-all stone, but usually razor hones are used with water or sometimes dry. Don't put any oil on it, at least for now! Can you tell us the dimensions of the stone? Might help someone tell you more about it.

Sounds like you have a nice razor. If you take the right approach you will enjoy using it. Read the wiki (link is above) and read posts in the newbie section of the forum, that should set you in the right direction.

Not sure where you're based, but sending your razor to be honed by one of the guys providing this service here on SRP would be a good idea. Do not get it sharpened at a local knife shop, they will ruin it.

I'm guessing the instructions sheet for your grandfather's hone is lost. Sometimes the instructions were printed on the box. Not to worry though. Nearly every razor hone I've seen was meant to be used dry, with water, or lather. I think I once saw some instructions that called for oil, but I can't be sure. Oil is just not typically used on razor hones and I wouldn't use oil on any of mine.

I suggest looking in the SRP "Help" section and downloading the Thorpe barber manual. Especially read the section on honing and stropping. There you will find all you really need to know. Then it's up to you to practice. If you are near-by anyone experienced with straight razors, a couple of in person lessons could really speed up the learning process. Otherwise, we're here to answer all your questions.

Scott

Thakns very much! From the little I had been able to find before I found this site, I thought the right answer might well be water. I am located in central Oklahoma, and had actually thought about visiting with a barber for some information.

Unfortunately the box was not with the razor. So i am on my own.

Thanks again very much. I am looking forward to doing a lot of studying on the site to see what all I can learn. I will check into the links you have given and get started.