Originally Posted by
suzuki
I've said it before and I'll say it again.
Newbies are generally best served by purchasing a couple of vintage straight razors in "shave-ready" condition from board members or purchasing from a reputable e-bay vendor and having the razor professionally honed.
I purchased my first three razors from altima55 on e-bay for under $100 shave-ready and shipped.
For this price, I got three 5/8 razors (two hollows and one 1/2 - 3/4 hollow - the later being one of my favourite razors - I like it better than my 6/8 TI Sheffield Steel) - all of which had been completely restored, cleaned and honed. This is what I would have paid for one entry level TI or Dovo.
If I were to purchase a new razor, I'd likely go for a TI Gnome - at $80, you'd get a nice 1/2 hollow 5/8 (for $12 more you could go up to a 6/8) which is a nice grind for starting out - add $20 for honing and a few bucks for shipping and you've got yourself a nice shave-ready razor for just over $100.
Its up to you, but I've never purchased a brand new razor - all of mine have been used (in many cases they were near new) and have saved a lot of money in the process.
Anyhow, its your $ and you can do whatever you want with it. I will say that it took a few razors before I figured out what my size/grind preferences were.
Just my $0.02