New uncut from CA / Japan

Very interested in shaving with a straight razor. By uncut I mean never shaved with a straight razor before. I haven't purchased anything yet, I didn't want to make any mistakes...

I find as I get older the things you take your time and do well give you a feeling of accomplishment and enjoyment. maybe I'll be able to pass these little lessons on to my children.

I have collected Japanese Katanas. And I am
very interested in the "Japanese" straight razors. I have found many on eBay, however they are all old and things don't always turn out exactly as you expect them to on eBay... I have also seen the feather style and wonder if they are any good. I'm wondering why there are thousands of Japanese used blades but no newly made ones from the same companies or forges? Also any advice on where to find a Japanese steel folding straight razor? I'll be moving back to Japan soon, I'm sure some of the master sword smiths can make an expensive and amazing razor...

Thanks for your wisdom!

There is a seller on eBay that is from Japan, and offers numerous New Old Stock (NOS) Japanese razors. His prices are a little high but I have not heard any other negative reviews about this seller. If you search NOS straight razors on eBay you will find his products.

You may also want to look at the classifieds here on SRP. Spending too much money on your first SR could be a mistake, if decide you don't care for SR shaving.

Enjoy, and welcome to SRP!

Welcome to SRP. The Japanese razors are very desirable and good quality. They have quite a following here, and there are still some NOS razors available.

Welcome. There is certainly a lot to understand when it come to buying razors. The traditional Japanese razors are a little bit different from the western grinds. There are people still making them as well as many NOS vintage blades. I do not have the knowledge to be able to help you learn about them. There are couple of ebay sellers with quality goods in Japan. The problem with buying from other areas is the cost of shipping. Japan had a fast and cost effective method of shipping out of the country, unfortunately other countries are not as fortunate. I am sure that others will be along soon. If you do not see much response in a couple of days you could post it on the razors heading or use the search engine to find what you are looking for. I have a hard time doing research on subject I know little about.

Hi Rsbyrn & welcome to SRP. There is a wealth of knowledge to be gained here. As others have already mentioned there are a couple of sellers on eBay from Japan & i usually see them late at night here but it is probably daytime there. Some have Japanese razors & the best straight razors from Japan are the ones that use the Tamahagane steel for making the Samurai sword from what I have read. Also some of the other good straight razors made in Japan are those made wi the Hitachi steel.
Great to have you here & I hope you enjoy the forum.
Good luck my friend.

Thanks everyone!

Hi and welcome aboard. I am don't know a lot about kamisori but know that they can vary a reasonable amount in both length and shape. Have a good look and see what shape and size cutting-edge, thickness, tang wrap etc you might like . Good luck and any questions feel free to ask

Welcome to the forum Rsbyrn. Have a look on ebay for the seller 'japannippon' or 'tantokatana'. Should be plenty of razors there to make you drool. Enjoy!

There some very nice Japanese razor out there, but the quality of a razor is not just about where it is made, the style of razor, steel or keenness.

For knives and swords, steel quality for strength/ edge retention and keenness, is a big thing.

For a Razor, keenness means nothing without comfort. . They are two different worlds with completely different objectives. Knife guys have made razors from super steel, without a lot of success, or we would all be trashing our vintage collections and buying the new.

Interestingly a 100 year old razor made by unknown hands, cranked out 6,000 a week, shaves as well or better than those made by “Famous Smiths”, with modern techniques and materials.

It is a matter of personal preference. I have hundreds of razors, made from all over the world, and really… they all shave about the same.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by wayne394

Welcome to the forum Rsbyrn. Have a look on ebay for the seller 'japannippon' or 'tantokatana'. Should be plenty of razors there to make you drool. Enjoy!

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Cool Wayne. I have seen those guys & "fujiyama7" is another one.

Hi and welcome to SRP.

First of all as mentioned read everything in the library. Also search "Japanese razors" in the custom search, this will give you more than enough info on Japanese razors to be getting on with.

If you're looking for a perfect kamisori (single bevel) look no further than an Iwasaki Tamahagnae. More info here: 　Hide's Export　　: Iwasaki and Tamahagane
or here: JAPANESE RAZOR. Kamisori. Straight Razor
Aframestokyo also sell all manor of NOS and new production japanese razors including strops, hones etc, etc.

The reason that there is not many Japanese, or any new straight razors being made now is that, this hobby, if you will, is still very niche and most would not see razor forging a good investment.

As mentioned there are lots of NOS Japanese razors out there. Ive not had a bad one yet, and to me make some of the best straights to be had. Names to look out for are: Iwasaki, Tosuke,Henkotsu, Hayashi Diamond, Zubora, Kikuboshi, Tanifuji, and Eiko to name a few.

As for the Feather folding and non folding replacement blade razors, Ive never used one but always read good reviews, though just not for me.

Good luck on your journey!

Good post markbignosekelly. The reason I sent the link for the other seller was because he had a Tamahagane straight razor but it ended below. He might have others as well.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Near-MINT-Sa...vip=true&rt=nc

Welcome to SRP!