Thread: New guy needs your help!

Gentleman,
First and foremost I'm glad to be a new member, and please excuse my mistake if I posted this in the wrong forum. I need some advice. I live in Knoxville, TN and I am about to graduate from the University of Tennessee. My grandfather invited me to lunch to swap college stories, discuss graduation, my plans for law school, etc. After a few beers the Topic changed to Straight razors. He asked if I had ever considered swapping to a straight razor. I admitted I had been interested for a while, but that I had just never pulled the trigger. He explained that he had a unfinished razor he bought, but hadn't done anything with. He had purchased a razor from Alabama Damascus. http://www.alabamadamascussteel.com/...r-ads0073-dkg/
The description says it needs a final edge put on. My grandfather realized he was not able to work on the razor due to his arthritis, and decided he would like to give it to me. I was thrilled but incredibly skeptical. I would say my sharpening skills are mediocre at best, and I know very little about razors. Let alone how to make one shave ready. I feel that I would do more damage than good. I would rather the edge be finished by someone much more experienced than myself. I do not have the experience or the equipment to finish the edge. I apologize for the long winded story, but a little background information can always be helpful. I have a series of questions, and would really appreciate all input.

Questions:
#1: Is Alabama Damascus a quality manufacturer, and could this be a quality razor?
#2: Would it be worth the trouble to make this a complete razor?
#3: Do you have any recommendations of businesses or persons that would be willing to finish the edge and make it shave ready?
#4: Opinions on what scales to use? (Material, color, manufacturer, DIY, etc.)

Thank you for your time.
UTVols13

If you don't have the tools........Why take on a project?
Probably will take months to get it completed and require just as much money as to buy a reputable shave ready razor that you could have in a few days.

might be better to start with a shave ready razor from the classifieds , there are some nice starters come up all the time that wont set you back a lot. you really need to learn how to shave with one , take small steps or you might set yourself up for failure. building an unfinished razor of unknown quality is really going at it backwards. get you a nice inexpensive strop ,brush and soap ,and a vintage or new razor that has been honed by a pro , then read all you can here on getting started. leave honing for after you have learned to shave , which takes a while. then a year or so from now you,ll have a better idea what to do with the gift if it is good enough to put money into it .. good luck tc

To me it sounds like grandpa would like to have you finish this razor.

While you read and discuss options with some of the guys offing services here, you could purchase a starter kit and learn to shave. You may be able to find a mentor near you that can give you one on one advice not only in the Damascus but shaving with a straight.

Welcome to SRP by the way. Watch some videos and read a while.

At that price it is not a quality razor and certainly not real damascus. The edge would need more than just honing it almost looks like it may need grinding too. I'd pass. That's for someone with advanced skills and a collection of hones and if it needs grinding specialized gear and knowledge.

First of all, I will stipulate that I have neither the honing/sharpening skills of the previous posters (read: NONE), and I am barely started on my journey in shaving with a Straight Razor. That being said, I feel compelled to offer a differing viewpoint:

Your Grandfather OBVIOUSLY wants to make a gift to you of the razor he purchased.
The quality of that razor is questionable, but the quality of the gift is certainly not.

I would suggest that you accept his generous gift in the spirit he intended, namely a razor which will, eventually, provide a lasting memory of your Grandfather long after he is no longer present in your life. somewhere down the road, after you have learned to shave with a Straight you purchased elsewhere, and learned the skills needed (should you choose to), you can spend the time needed to bring this blade to shave readiness and, each time you pull it out to work on it, you will think of your Grandfather. Finally, when all is said and done, you will have the gift of an heirloom razor that was gifted to you, and that you have had the added pleasure of "bringing to life". I can think of nothing better with respect to this kind of a project.

Congratulations.

Some very good advice given so far. I learned to shave with a str8 exactly opposite* of what is recommended and trust me, doing it like that is slow, painful and very disheartening at times. I stuck it out and have been getting the best shaves of my life for the past 5 years.

*What I mean by opposite is due to very limited funds from being disabled and out of work the first str8 razor I bought had broken scales so I had to learn how to make scales first. Next I tried to learn to hone with hones not meant to be used on a str8 razor, had some rough shaves that felt like I shaved with sandpaper. Finally I was able to concentrate on shaving.

Learn to shave and strop first; maintaining, honing & restoration (if interested in doing) can come at a later date and your learning curve will be shortened and less painful, str8 razor shaving can be very enjoyable. Good luck and have a pleasant journey into the world of str8 razor shaving!

The price of sharpening stones for this would probably be in the $200+ range, you can buy replacement scale starting at about $20.

None of the above matters if the steel is no good. I would try and find someone near you from the forum to have a look at it and assess the steel to see if it can even be sharpened before you put anymore money in it.

Here's one way I'm doing it:I had someone give me a basic Wade Butcher with broken scales.I didn't want to take their gift lightly and wanted to show them the respect I think they would appreciate.I sent the razor off to Mycarver for a complete restore.So, my first post was on the basic razor itself.The GrandPa aspect is totally different. If that was given to me by my GrandPa: I would Mac Daddy/Pimp that razor out and show it to him just to see his smile. I would use it at least once just to tell him what a great razor he gave me. Let him see the the results even if I just shaved with a Gillette Mach III. Then place it high up on the mantle in a display box and act like it was gold; telling everyone how sharp it is so they won't screw with it.This is how I'm also dealing with my Grandfather 1904 Railroadrers pocket watch.My Grandfather put two dents in it with a hammer. I'm having it restored but leaving in the dents. Because, my Dad's face lit up when he passed on the watch to me telling me how my GrandPa was crap at using a hammer and dented the watch while it was in is pocket by swinging and missing a nail. The dents stay!This may just be about GrandPa not the blade.

I would suggest accepting it, your grandfather obviously would like you to have it, send it as is to one of the honing guys in the classifieds here and see what they can do with the edge/ whether they think it is honeable. It will only cost return postage to get professional advice, plus cost of Honing IF you decide you want it honed.
Maybe contact a few of the guys and see what they say.

After that you can make a decision on where to go with it.