New to this, from a limited-availability country!

[TinFoilHat]

Good evening, everyone!
I'm completely new to this, I actually got into straight razors through bladesmithing. Need to know and use one before being able to forge a good one!
This seems like something extremely interesting, and I have always been a big fan of very sharp things. I have read through all of the beginner's guide and related links, and some more.

The 'bad' part is that I live in Argentina, and this is a new "hobby" here that is just taking off now. Availability is quite low for most of this stuff, and we can't easily import products from overseas (+50% taxes, 2-3 months for customs clearance, and usually high shipping cost because of uncommon destination, if shipping is even offered at all).
For that reason, I am starting with something that is quite far from recommended, and I am fully aware that it will make my first experience a lot worse than it could be, but I won't be scared away form straight razors just for this reason. My new razor is going to arrive this weekend, made locally out of good steel (but most likely not shave ready, maybe not even close). A leather strop (luckily good quality leather is highly available here!), a boar brush and some shaving soap is also on the way.


I'll just add one question to my introduction. I do not (yet) have the equipment nor the experience to correctly hone a razor, and I would like to have it done the first time by a pro, but I don't even know how to start looking for one here. Do you have any ideas in order to find one?

If I can't find one I'll probably buy some 'japanese' (as japanese as available here) stones and take my time to learn how to properly hone (already know how to correctly sharpen a knife so far), but it will be a lot more effort without a good first example.


Thanks, and I hope I can get enough experiences over time to share!

[BobH]

Welcome to the forum. You are off to a good start by having researched the subject before jumping in. Wish I could help with where to find a pro honer in Argentina but others may know. If you wind up needing to learn to hone I'd look at getting a synthetic set like Naniwa makes. Unfortunately knowing how to properly sharpen a knife only a partial help towards honing a razor. Honing razors is a bit different and takes some adjusting to. Feel free to ask questions as you go along because members here are very helpful. Enjoy the journey.

Bob

[RezDog]

Welcome. You are at a market and geographic disadvantage for shaving and related supplies. I do understand the geographic isolation. It really is not the best way to start, and if you had other options I would say start there, but there are not many. Japanese wet stones are awesome. I use Naniwa hones for the most part. Getting the apex formed perfectly is the key to honing, and that happens on the 1K. There are a lot of good past threads on the subject.

[PaulFLUS]

Welcome. I admire your fervor and diligence. Wish I had something helpful to say. Sharpton is another good Japanese stone maker. There's lots of information on the site to help and plenty of people who are eager to guide you. Best of fortune to you.

[Gasman]

Welcome to SRP.
As said, Japanese hones are great stones. Id try to stay away from the naturals (jnats) and stick with synthetics. Much easier to learn on. You can get great stones from Japan. And great razors. Some of the best. Just read and watch vids and ask questions. We are happy to help you along this new way of shaving. Just don't give up. It takes time to get good at straight razor shaving and much longer to learn to hone.

[Euclid440]

Welcome, there may be much more straight razor shaving material available than you think. For hundreds of year men have been shaving with straight razors all over the world, and up until the 40-50’s it was the way most people shaved.

Start with old school barbers, as here most still have their old school kit and at least the knowledge and can probably guide you to sources.

Which Japanese stones are available there? And does the maker of your razor shave with a straight razor? If he does, he may also be a good source for stones, and advice.

As said honing a razor is different from honing a knife, sharp is just part of honing a razor. Honing grits for knives end where razors begin. Many a knife guy/maker has left the forum frustrated thinking making and honing a razor would be an easy thing.

For how to information start with the Honing forum, be sure to read the first (sticky) thread.

[petercp4e]

Hello and welcome to SRP.
Some great advice given so far.
If available, watch honing, shaving and stropping videos.
Just the fact that you are here is a great first step.
We are all here to help you make this a successful experience.
Enjoy your time here on the forum.

Pete <:-}

[TinFoilHat]

Thank you all for the encouragement and advice! I have watched several honing videos (and will keep on doing so), and I'm mentally prepared to consider it as a whole new skill to develop.

Welcome, there may be much more straight razor shaving material available than you think. For hundreds of year men have been shaving with straight razors all over the world, and up until the 40-50’s it was the way most people shaved.

Start with old school barbers, as here most still have their old school kit and at least the knowledge and can probably guide you to sources.

Thanks for the tip, this is probably the best chance I have. If I can fid a barber, I'd guess he either hones his own blades or knows who does, so I'll try to ask. Having a good first example of a shave ready razor would help me a lot.

[Euclid440]

Not saying it can’t be done, many of us came to straight razors looking for ultimate edge sharpening, I know I did many years ago and am still an avid knife collector, they are all very sharp. No one shave with a knife, and no one butchers with a straight razor.

Yes, some of the skills will translate, but it is a different skill set, because the goal is very different.

The problem most “Knife” guys have is, emptying their glass a bit to refill with a bit of new knowledge.

Videos are great, but an hour with a real Barber learning to hone and strop will cut your learning curve tremendously. Stropping is your bread and butter skill, you will hone a few times a year, but strop daily.

What Japanese stones are available, and does your razor maker shave with them?

I always advise folks to have their razor honed by someone that shaves with them, the same can be said about makers.

[PaulFLUS]

In your situation I would think the most important thing to concentrate on learning would be stropping. Yes, you need to get the razor sharp in the first place but you could probably find someone, a barber or some other enthusiast in your country to get it honed correctly. After that if you're good at stropping You should seldom need to have it honed. That being said I think you can learn to hone on your own without that much trouble. Yes it takes some practice and it is a specialized skill but I learned to do it by reading posts and by trial and error. If my dumb @$$ can learn it then anyone can. With either naiwa or sharpton (which it sounds like should both be available to you if you can get things from Japan) you really can't go wrong. Also there is an article in the shave library I believe on the pyramid progression. I read that, followed the instructions and that was really what made honing turn the corner for me. In fairness I'm no but I don't have need to send them out with the abilities that I have. biggest thing while you're learning is not being too aggressive with the pressure on the blade especially if you have one that's very hollow ground. Also, I recommend putting a layer of electrical tape / vinyl tape on the spine. That keeps you from getting too much wear on the spine. Good luck with that whole process and let us know how you do.