Thread: Greetings from Canada.

Hello everyone,

With a face still virgin to the straight blade I am definitely new to the art, however based on all I have come across the straight razor has more than piqued my interest. After lurking around for quite sometime and doing some preliminary research I finally purchased a razor that I knew I would regret not buying. I am still in the process of assembling the rest of my shaving set but I must say this community has already proven to be an valuable source of information and experience. I'm glad to be joining the forums and look forward to sharing my future experiences and learning from yours.

STS

Welcome to the clan!!! Just curious, what is this razor you speak of? I'd love to see a pic of it. Also, what part of Canada you from, eh?

Welcome! We're glad to have you here.

If and when you need help, just ask!

Good luck

It's a near mint (NOS?) Boker King Cutter, made in Solingen sometime between 1924-1935 for the Canadian market. Still has the original box and the guarantee from the Montreal office. It's en route at the moment so I haven't had a chance to handle it yet, figured I'd settle in here while I wait in anticipation. I've read only good things about the vintage Bokers and the condition of this one seemed too good to pass on. It'll most likely need some honing but I'll get to that once I have it in hand.

I'm from the Toronto area btw, thanks for the warm welcome!

Excellent choice - King Cutters are fine blades!

Looks nice, although square tips make me nervous.
classicedge.ca is in stony creek if you want somewhere semi-local to send your razor for a honing. They used to be in oakvile, I believe, but they just moved. Either way I give them all my business unless I want something that they don't have

Originally Posted by StraightToSamsara

It's a near mint (NOS?) Boker King Cutter, made in Solingen sometime between 1924-1935 for the Canadian market. Still has the original box and the guarantee from the Montreal office. It's en route at the moment so I haven't had a chance to handle it yet, figured I'd settle in here while I wait in anticipation. I've read only good things about the vintage Bokers and the condition of this one seemed too good to pass on. It'll most likely need some honing but I'll get to that once I have it in hand.

I'm from the Toronto area btw, thanks for the warm welcome!

I don't know who sold you this, but you should probably send me that. Just to make sure it will be ok for you to use. If its any good, I'll let you know.

That's an awesome razor my friend. I'm jealous.

Welcome! That is a fine specimen you've got there. Nice to see a Montreal connection with that blade
Go Habs Go!

Welcome to the Forum That's a fine razor you have there and once honed up should serve you well. Enjoy.

Thanks for all the replies and reassurance.

I've read quite a bit on the subject recently but I have no actual experience in honing straight razors. Ultimately I'd like to be able to do it all myself but I understand some patience and progression is in order. Right now all I have is a natural Arkansas translucent whetstone which I've used in the past to keep other blades sharp. I know the grit on the translucent is capable of producing a fine finish on an edge, from what I've read it may not be the most efficient option for honing straight razors but it is still suitable for the job. From experience I know the translucent is really slow on the grind and its effectiveness would depend on the current state of the edge. That being said should I attempt to hone the razor with the translucent whetstone and proper technique or would it be advised to seek honing done by a professional?

I would eventually like to get some more stones of varying grit but the translucent is all I have to work with right now. I found this promising video of a meister using a translucent Arkansas in the last stage of honing before he takes the razor to strop. Seems to pass the hair test no problem, makes me want to try it for myself.


Video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXkjXfuNbpg