Thread: Ruined my straight razor in Vancouver

Hello
Im not sure if this is the right forum or not but I desperately need help. I have been reading a lot and have decided to start using a Straightrazor. I bought a cheap starter razor from ebay for now however it was not sharp enough. Basically I got confused, lost focus, and screwed up big time in using all kinds of stones, 180, 320, 600, 1000, 6000 and leather belt, 0.5 micron paper, cardboard, antique black and white newspaper etc..
My straight razor is so dull that it wont even cut anything and I really need help in how to resharpen it back. Is there anyone in Vancouver Canada area who can help me set it up so that I can understand how a sharp straight razor is suppose to be.
I would be very grateful if someone can help me get started and point in the right direction.

First of all, what brand of razor is it? There are super cheap brands out there, basically straight razor imitations that are made of bad steel that don't take edges at all. If you could give us the brand name, then your headed in the right direction.

Originally Posted by Skippy

First of all, what brand of razor is it? There are super cheap brands out there, basically straight razor imitations that are made of bad steel that don't take edges at all. If you could give us the brand name, then your headed in the right direction.

Sorry feel ashamed to answer.. I bought a gold dollar straight razor from ebay. I thought before I invest a lot in a good razor I should first learn how to shave and keep it sharp.. I put more investment in those stones :-(
Sorry i know i screwed up

You can't start shaving with a straight razor without screwing up. It's part of the learning curve. If it wasn't, it probably wouldn't be worth doing. Someone will comment on Gold Dollar razors, but I'm afraid that might be the problem. Being new at shaving, honing, and stropping all at the same time is a recipe for disaster. Find a way, which you are seeking here, to get a sharp razor, then gradually learn the other stuff in sequence. You've bitten off a lot here, but this forum and its helpful members will get you straightened out quickly.

Originally Posted by ace

You can't start shaving with a straight razor without screwing up. It's part of the learning curve. If it wasn't, it probably wouldn't be worth doing. Someone will comment on Gold Dollar razors, but I'm afraid that might be the problem. Being new at shaving, honing, and stropping all at the same time is a recipe for disaster. Find a way, which you are seeking here, to get a sharp razor, then gradually learn the other stuff in sequence. You've bitten off a lot here, but this forum and its helpful members will get you straightened out quickly.

I know, this forum is great and people always step up to help. The razor was not sharp at all from the very first, thats why I tried to strop it with plain leather belt and abrasive 0.5 micron paper from lee valley, also used old black and white newspaper but had no go, so I thought of using stones to put and edge but I really dont see any edge at all - its wierd and funny cuz I dont know where am I doing wrong.

Originally Posted by chattersking

I know, this forum is great and people always step up to help. The razor was not sharp at all from the very first, thats why I tried to strop it with plain leather belt and abrasive 0.5 micron paper from lee valley, also used old black and white newspaper but had no go, so I thought of using stones to put and edge but I really dont see any edge at all - its wierd and funny cuz I dont know where am I doing wrong.

Like I said, you've bitten off a lot here. As Skippy said, job one is to find someone to make the blade sharp for you. Step two will be to get a proper strop and learn (it does take time and practice) how to use it. Honing should probably come later. Trying to do all of this at the start is extremely difficult. Try to do it in steps.

Originally Posted by chattersking

Sorry feel ashamed to answer.. I bought a gold dollar straight razor from ebay. I thought before I invest a lot in a good razor I should first learn how to shave and keep it sharp.. I put more investment in those stones :-(
Sorry i know i screwed up

While I'm not that familiar with Gold Dollars, I think that is a good starter razor. Don't be ashamed. Now that we got that out of the way, let's move on to honing. Send your razor to an experienced honer so they can put a good edge on it again. Read articles on here about how to strop. Once you get your razor back, it will be sharp. Just focus on stropping and think about honing later. Hope this helps.

Originally Posted by Skippy

While I'm not that familiar with Gold Dollars, I think that is a good starter razor. Don't be ashamed. Now that we got that out of the way, let's move on to honing. Send your razor to an experienced honer so they can put a good edge on it again. Read articles on here about how to strop. Once you get your razor back, it will be sharp. Just focus on stropping and think about honing later. Hope this helps.

Do you know if there are anyone in Vancouver canada area? It would save me on shipping if I could do it locally.
If im out of luck then I guess I have to ship it to a honemeister. Do you know how much does it generally cost to get it sharpen again? Im tight on a budget so sending this for sharpening, or buying a new and better quality razor is what iam pondering.

If you have a strop practice using a butter knife, that way you don't screw anything up. When you get your razor back from being honed and until you are comfortable stropping try laying your strop on a table/counter top, that way it will be flat and lesson chances of ruining the edge. Then when you feel confident enough try letting your strop hang when stropping.

BTW, good luck in your str8 razor journey!

hey,

don't feel bad. I did practically the same thing. Except I actually thought I had to hone the razor before each shave. I was fortunate enough to realize that I was up to no good early on and then Catrent helped me out and honed it for me since we both live in edmonton (thanks buddy, it's shaving great!)

If you can find the money you should just buy a razor from straight razor designs. the sharpening is free and it will be honed by the absolute best.
You could buy a Dovo for 68.00 and then shipping (and maybe tax?). If you pay 20 dollars to hone and ship it both ways you probably will not save too much money overall. Plus if you buy the dovo you will now have a shaving razor that is a perfect example of a honed razor and a razor to practice honing on.

That's what I would suggest.

Stultsy