Thread: Hmmm...is this for me?

Time will tell. Interested in saving money and the environment by not buying new heads and tossing them out. I'm in central florida, so I can't go around with anything but the most minimal beard and usually shave my head too, but using razors on my head gets expensive because I wear them out so fast that way. Lately been settling for using my beard trimmer on my head to save money.

The initial investment is a significant hurdle for me. I have a mediocre income and 6 kids (we're a yours/mine/ours family) mom doesn't work cause child-care would make it pointless. Right now I'm just doing my homework.

Welcome to SRP.

I'm not so sure you'll save a lot of money, but here's a very basic breakdown.

Get a decent, but not fancy razor from the classifieds section here. Make sure its shave ready. Anywhere from $40-$90

Make yourself a strop. $20

If you don't already have one, you'll need a brush. Again, don't go nuts. $25

You can get going with two razors (you will want a back up while one is being honed occasionally) a brush, a strop and some soap for between $100-$150 if you're careful.

You'll probably want your razors honed professionally once or twice a year $50

The initial outlay will probably take 12-18 months to pay itself off and after that you'll probably end up saving a bit of money. Not really enough, in my opinion, to make it the only reason to use a straight razor. The environmental aspect is there, but again, its pretty small.

The real reason for me (and I suspect a lot of others here) is the great shave you're going to get. I've been through virtually every style and brand of cartridge type, disposable and electric shaver you can imagine in the past 35 years and I can honestly say that a straight razor shave is the most comfortable I've ever had. It does have a learning curve, but most everyone can learn it.

After all that, there's the "nostalgia" factor and the pleasure (for me) of going low tech in a world that just moves too quickly sometimes.

I'm sure others will chime in here shortly with their take on things. Give it some thought and ask questions. We're all here to help.

The real question is whether you will be able to resist the temptation to buy pieces of rock and minerals for 100 dollars or more.

I would recommend the sight unseen deal at whippeddog.com. You will most things you will need to get going. All you need after that is a brush and some soap.

The van der Hagen set at Walmart is hard to beat for a quality boar brush and soap for a beginner at $8, bowl included. I'm still using that brush.

I originally got into this to save money, too. Currently, it will take me 3 years to break even, though seriously, you don't need to spend that much. Sight unseen at whipped dog, poor man's strop from the same place, and the above-mentioned soap set will definitely get you going. On the cheap.

I would most definitely NOT pay someone else to sharpen anything for me. I have a rough stone I think I got from a dollor store at some point years ago...I plan on making a strop before I spend any money on steel, and maybe a finer stone if I can find something affordable. I've been watching videos for the last 2 days on sharpening and stropping technique. If I can do it or make it myself, I try to do that first. Having such a big family and limited income I've really become a DIY kinda guy.

Another draw of this method of shaving for me is that I really like to learn and master new things. I think I could use the skill I'd need to learn to maintain a razor with all the other bladed instruments in my home. In fact I've been wondering if I can't just get a knife made of decent metal and turn it into a razor. lol

A friend of mine found out that I was interesting in learning all this and he said he has one he got on ebay at some point he's going to give me...I don't know the details as yet.

So apparently he's already been by my house and handed them off to my lady. I'll be able to look at them in more detail when I get home.

Dang Ken, you rock. - Dads iPhone

Based on what you are saying, you might want to look into double edge safety razors as well...

Blades run .15-.20 per, last about as long as a cartidge and (while I haven't looked into it) since its nothing but steel, might be recyclable. Again, JMO...but might be the cheapest and best results based on your comments

Originally Posted by Nonstickron

I would most definitely NOT pay someone else to sharpen anything for me. I have a rough stone I think I got from a dollor store at some point years ago...I plan on making a strop before I spend any money on steel, and maybe a finer stone if I can find something affordable. I've been watching videos for the last 2 days on sharpening and stropping technique. If I can do it or make it myself, I try to do that first. Having such a big family and limited income I've really become a DIY kinda guy.

Another draw of this method of shaving for me is that I really like to learn and master new things. I think I could use the skill I'd need to learn to maintain a razor with all the other bladed instruments in my home. In fact I've been wondering if I can't just get a knife made of decent metal and turn it into a razor. lol

A friend of mine found out that I was interesting in learning all this and he said he has one he got on ebay at some point he's going to give me...I don't know the details as yet.

I don't do my own honing...yet. Maybe someday.

I did have a look at it and, as I recall, you're looking at a minimum of 4 stones. 1000, 4000, 8000 and a finishing stone. At about $75 a piece average for synthetics. Unless you have more than a few razors, the payback is going to run into years.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for DIY, but in this case I don't think its going to end up saving you a lot, if any money. Its more about the joy of the hobby.

Welcome to SRP. Once you have a shave ready razor and learn proper stropping techinque, the edge could potentially last months for you. My first shave ready razor served me well for about a year before it needed to be honed again. Honing a razor and sharpening a knife are two different games, so you may want to hold off on that aspect of wet shaving until you're comfortable with shaving with a straight. I have a 2 inch wide Dovo strop I don't use anymore. It has a couple of minor nicks in it that do not affect stropping a razor. Send me a PM if you're interested.