Thread: Greetings From Canada

Hey Everyone,

So I've finally had my fill of paying insane amounts of money for cartridges and I want to take the plunge into using a straight razor. I have some experence with sharpening with whetstones (no expert by any means) and stropping so, since I already have most of the stuff, I'm finally ready to figure out how to shave with a straight razor.

That decision has brought me here to figure out what I need to know about razors, technique and equipment I should be looking at. I like to do research but I'm hoping someone can point me at a solid, long term razor. I'm willing to pay for one or two and I don't like to re-purchase things unnesessarily. That said, I have no idea about this stuff with the exception of 1-2 hours looking (Which brought me here!). At any rate, I'm happy to take any recommendatiions you might have.

Thanks for reading and thank in advance!
Tracey

Welcome aboard. I highly advise you to look at our BST .

Buy
Sell
Trade

Y'all find great used equipment . some vintage, some modern, from trusted folk, here. Just make sure its shave ready, most are.. As for unnecessary purchases, watch out for the numerous rabbit holes.

Yes you could get by with only two razors, but that can get boring, with so many different sizes and grinds, to choose from.

Like women, I want um all.

Welcome to SRP from a fellow Canadian. You’ll find a bunch of us here.

Start by reading the info for beginning straight razor shavers.

I suggest rather than buying a cheap new razor, like a GoldDollar, watch what comes up for sale on the BST forum on this site. You can be sure that the razors sold by our members are high quality and, maybe even more importantly, are shave ready.

If you want to buy a new razor, make sure you get it from a vendor that will guarantee it will be honed properly before delivery. Do not trust most manufacturers’ factory edges.

If you have a truly shave ready razor to start with, all you need to keep it going for quite a while is a strop.

The folks here are generous sharing their expertise and experience. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. They will be answered quickly even if the question has been asked before.

Explore the forums. There are a lot of things that interest SRP members. Feel free to join the discussions or start your own.

Welcome and have fun.

Thanks for the replies! I'm not super tied down to 1-2 blades, outback, but I'd like a couple to start with that won't be a complete waste of money. I have looked the beginner's stuff on the Wiki (if tht was your suggestion, DZEC) and I have looked at the BST forum (where I was completely overwhelmed!). I will poke around on the forums more but I was hoping for a bit more specific guidance on a "first purchase."

Again, thanks for the replies and any new insight!
Tracey

Oh, Mike, that picture scares me! I get obsessive about stuff like this!!!

Welcome to the best wet shave forum still on the web.
Lots of fine gents to help you on your journey.
As Mike said, the bst is a good place to find some fine starter blades as well as rebuilders, restorers and hone meisters that can also help you out.
Keep an eye on the get together pages as some of us do have events where a bunch get together for some hands on practice and swapping of toys.
I personally have had a few, and plan to again this com8ng summer.
Again, welcome Tracey.

A specific reference, only you would know.

As for modern makers, you can't go wrong with Boker, or Ralph Aust, razors. But anything coming thru our BST is quality. If not, its typically stated so.

I'm just saying, u can buy more good used/restored stuff cheep, or spend a bunch of money on one brand spankin new one.

You might find u like a wedge over a full hollow. A smiling, over a straight edge razor.. The ones ya don't like, put um on the BST...help the next guy out..

I helped our newest add, er member find a great razor value on B/S/T as well as that incredible Lehman's $99 Thier-Issard 6/8 Bison deal.

Talk about starting off with good steel!

Now let's see how crazy he goes with the softwares...

Welcome to the forum. There is so much to learn when you start learning to shave with a straight razor. You are off to a good start by reading the Wiki. Another good thing to do is use the search box in the upper right corner to find threads on what people have recommended as a first razor regarding blade size etc.. Do the same for honing a razor or any other pertinent subject too. Doing that will give you very specific questions to ask.

I think you will find honing a razor slightly different from sharpening knives and other tools. I'd approach it as if you have no experience sharpening anything.

Enjoy your time here.

Bob

Bob,

Thanks so much for the direction. I will definitely look into your suggestions!

I also intend to come at sharpening as a new experience. I've seen a couple videos of knife guys sharpening razors and read the comments on them far enough to know it's not the same. I was trying to say that I have some decent stones already.

Tracey