Thread: Greetings from an Aussie straight razor noob

Hi everybody,

Sorry I missed this one earlier.

Random thoughts:
- 5 pips is a truly awful cider. Monteiths (NZ) is one of the better readily available ciders in Oz. If you can find a bottleshop that carries some French (Normandy) cider get some and you won't look back. Bulmers and Scrumpy Jack are also good. 46 is a new in Oz Swedish cider and IMO is a ladies' cider - too sweet and apple-ly for a proper cider.
- I haven't got around to uber-lather but hard soap + cream is better that either of the components.
- A good brush is a necessity.
- Different grinds and different widths suits different people. I prefer my razors on the narrow side (closer to 4/8) because I find them more nimble and easier to handle. I also prefer extra-hollow grinds. Until you try a variety yourself you won't know what your niche is.
- We are talking finely tuned pieces of metal with razors. I have found that French and German blades respond best to my honing and stropping. Just because other people rave about XYZ doesn't mean that it will work for you - find what works for you.
- Come along on the 20th - the more the merrier.

Originally Posted by carlmaloschneider

There's a great video on the Wikki about Überlather. Basically, it's simply a mixture of shaving soap, shaving cream and glycerin. You load the brush with soap (it's best if you put a little hot water on top of the soap while you have a shower), then place some shaving cream in a bowl, with a little bit of glycerin (size of a five cent piece) and mix. It makes a really nice mix that, in my opinion, is really nice. I think one needs to try an Über at least once. BTW, my comments about consumerism were just a joke of course (I do tend to make outrageous comments at times) and I completely understand about buying quality goods :-)

After watching the video you may think that an Überlather is complicated, but it's not really....

Thanks, I found that video tonight. The Überlather looks great. I haven't bought a soap yet, just a few creams that some other members here seem to like. I'll look at getting a soap and glycerin sometime soon to try it out. Yeah I knew your comments on consumerism were just in jest, no offense taken

Originally Posted by Pauly

Hi everybody,

Sorry I missed this one earlier.

Random thoughts:
- 5 pips is a truly awful cider. Monteiths (NZ) is one of the better readily available ciders in Oz. If you can find a bottleshop that carries some French (Normandy) cider get some and you won't look back. Bulmers and Scrumpy Jack are also good. 46 is a new in Oz Swedish cider and IMO is a ladies' cider - too sweet and apple-ly for a proper cider.
- I haven't got around to uber-lather but hard soap + cream is better that either of the components.
- A good brush is a necessity.
- Different grinds and different widths suits different people. I prefer my razors on the narrow side (closer to 4/8) because I find them more nimble and easier to handle. I also prefer extra-hollow grinds. Until you try a variety yourself you won't know what your niche is.
- We are talking finely tuned pieces of metal with razors. I have found that French and German blades respond best to my honing and stropping. Just because other people rave about XYZ doesn't mean that it will work for you - find what works for you.
- Come along on the 20th - the more the merrier.

Hi Pauly, thanks for dropping by. I wouldn't say it is awful, 5 seeds is just the value option . Monteiths is pretty good, but still around the quality of 5 seeds, same price, less quantity. There is a Dan Murphy's just up the road from me, and I'm pretty sure I've seen a few french ciders there, one is in a large bottle with plain labelling .. There are a few swedish brands coming in now, like rekorderlig, with its strawberry, elderberry, and whateverberry flavoured ciders.

I ended up buying a brush based on what I saw in the wiki page on brushes. Super badger (imagine the little "S" on his furry chest).

Yep its all part of the fun and games of using a straight razor, which is actually part of the appeal for me. It's a bit of an art form, a combination of skill and finding well suited hardware, perfected over time by each individual.