Thread: Greetings from Quebec, Canada !

Hello everyone !
My quest for more informations regarding straight razors brought me here ! I am currently at the stage of collecting more information about straight razors as I know nothing about them but as soon as I gather all the information I need I will hopefully buy my first one and try not to destroy my face !
Hope to talk to y'all soon !
Frank

Welcome to the most friendly, helpful and informative site on the Web!

Use the Wiki and do your research for your questions there first, but feel free to ask questions.
But with that said; 99.9% of the answers are in the Wiki but we will try to help as best we can!

If you do decide to move to a better way of shaving, I offer this advice:

Stay the hell away from Ebay!!! You’ll need at least 6-8 months after you start using a properly honed and truly ‘shave ready’ razor and by then after reading the posts here you will be able to make an informed purchase at that site!

If you decide to give it a go, don’t spend a ton of money on razors, strops as you may find that this art just isn’t your cup of tea!

Personally (and you will find that much of this art is all about ‘Personal Preference’) I recommend that you start with an economical vintage razor from the Classifieds here at SRP. If you like the art, then you can join the fray and spend more money! My first razor was my uncles but my first purchased razor was from SRP and it shaved very nice! It cost me $35 delivered. Prices seem to have gone up but what new about that today!

Lastly please don't try to start honing!!! You MUST LEARN HOW TO 'STROP' 'LATHER' AND SHAVE FIRST!!!!!!!! Honing can wait, it is very satisfiying to shave with an edge that you have created but please wait as it's a whole different learning experience!!

I’m expecting that there will be others who will offer other counsel but as I said much about this art is personal preference!!!

I wish you well on your endeavor and if I can be of any personal help, PM me!

Hi Frank, Welcome to the forum. Un autre Quebecois!
Mike

Welcome to SRP. You have question, we have anwsers. Ask way.

Hello from the snowy streets of Montréal!

I just saw this thread and figured I might as well sign up and say hello too; I've been lurking around here for the last 6 months after all (there's a lot of great info to be found on the forum and wiki).

I'm also a newbie in regards to straight/classic shaving. I started with a DE Parker 98R Barberpole this summer and looked into straight blades at the same time. However, I had to go back to cartridges a month later for time purposes (I traded sleep for a baby boy) and to finish the stock of cartridges and canned foam I had. The upside is that I got 5-6 months to figure out what blade to start with, and I just made up my mind this week on a TI Singing 6/8 that I'll be ordering within a week or two.

So anyways. Cheers.

Welcome to both FPL and Pi3!

Some very good advice up there: stay away from ebay for starters (you *can* find great deals there if you know what you're looking for, but there's also a lot of garbage), check the classifieds, and you may also want to check out Whipped Dog Straight Razor Shaving Equipment. Larry's blades aren't necessarily pretty, but they are wicked sharp and he has good deals on other shaving gear like strops, brushes, etc.

Excellent advice re honing as well. Start off with a blade honed to shave-ready by a pro, work on your technique. Once you're comfortable with that, you'll be at a good point to consider learning to hone if you so wish. But throwing honing into the mix right away just introduces another variable to consider. (Why was that a crappy shave? Was it my technique? My prep? Or was my razor dull? Eliminating that last question can help!)

So take your time, don't rush things, pull up a comfy chair, start digging around the wiki and forum, and when you have questions, we're here to help.

Et surtout @Pi3: félicitations pour l'arrivée de votre fils!!

Welcome to the forum. All of the members here are more than willing to offer help, just ask. Best of luck with your journey through the straight shaving world.

@Mmmike Bin oui un autre Quebecois !

@Pi3 Congratulations for your baby !

@Cangooner Thanks for the reference ! I'll be sure to take a look at Larry's website, how is it working exactly ? He is taking misc. blades and honing them to resell them afterwards ?

And a big thank you to everyone of you guys, you make me feel at home here !

He usually has two deal son the go at any given time:

Sight-unseen is exactly what it sounds like. You'll get a razor that will shave well. And that's about all you know about it until it arrives.

Half-seen - there is a brief description on the site that may help you narrow down your search if you are looking for something in particular.

They are probably best thought of as good utilitarian blades. They won't win any beauty pageants, but they will shave well. So if that's not your thing and you'd rather see some pics of what you're buying, then it's probably best to go straight to the classifieds.

Haha well I don't plan on winning beauty contests with my first razor (Maybe the second one tho...) And the fact that he sells nice and pretty kits can spare me the sourcing of all the other components for a good shave is pretty interesting, can't seem to find any stores dedicated to this over here ...