Hello,
I'm Gary (gllh17) from Murfreesboro, TN. I'm 58 years old. I've been lurking around for a week or so and registered a few days ago. SRP forum seems active and full of useful information.

I'm entirely new to straight razor shaving. Actually, I haven't even started yet. Based on my experience as a new hobbyist woodworker as few years ago, I decided to research things a bit before I made a commitment and began buying tools.

I inherited two straight razors from my grandfather and an uncle. One is a Gray and Dubley XXX and the other is a W.A. Case and Sons Preparedness. The G&D is beyond repair I think. Big knick on blade, lots of rust, and the scales are loose and partially broken. The Case is in much better shape. It had some rust and pitting, but no pitting around the blade. Had this been an otherwise decent chisel or hand plane blade it would have definitely been worth a rehab. So that's what I've been doing using information on SRP. Not finished with it, but hopefully it can be a decent number 3 in the straight razor lineup of three that I'm planning. (I know I'll end up with more than 3, but if I don't tell myself it will only 3 or so, I'll realize that I'm as much collector as user and don't need to start collecting other stuff.)

I'd like your thoughts on my plan. I've looked around the internet (no local sr sellers except maybe antique shops). My thought is to initially go with a set rather than buying the stuff individually. I've looked at various places and decided to go with Straight Razor Designs. I'd like to keep the cost at around $300, but will go over a bit if it means a decent upgrade. My experience in woodworking has been that my biggest waste of money has been buying either things I don't use or buying things that aren't that good. As a newbie, I never knew if it was the tools or the technique that was giving unsatisfactory results. I'd like to take the tools part of the equation.

The two sets I'm considering are the Genuine Grey Bone and the Invory Micro Inox, both are 5/8" and are price at about $230 for the basic set. I have no idea what the differences between the two are and how they differ from similar sets offered by SRD. I plan to upgrade the strop to the 3" premium horsehide and upgrade the brush to the Finest Over Stuff Silver Tip #7. I only need one of these sets. I'll search for a second razor after I learn some things from the first one.

I think I have the right kind of honing equipment already. I have quite a bit of sharpening equipment but I think my Norton's 1000, 4000, and 8000 plus my Shapton Pro 12000 seem to be appropriate for the honing.

I've read part of the razor review section and will continue but I'd like you opinion of this as a plan and any recommendations that you have. I realize success is as much a function of experience and perseverance as anything else, but I really want to take equipment failure out of the equation as much as practical.

Hello again and thanks,
Gary