Thread: Present for My Husband

I would like to buy my husband a straight razor for Christmas. He's wanted one forever, but he's only had a shavette. Would like to know what a good razor would be for him. My budget is around $100. Any input is greatly appreciated.

Originally Posted by johnmrson

Very good advise.

deft appraisal

Kudos to you for the attempt and it's lucky for you that you sought out advice here rather than making the mistake of buying a razor shaped object that might look good but will never shave.

The razor suggestion above is good, but I'm sorry to say that a straight razor needs one more item to go along with it. Unlike a shavette whose blades are discarded when dull, a straight razor needs to be stropped before every shave in order to help keep it sharp. Stropping absolutely is essential and stropping is done with (here's the obvious part) a leather strop.

If you do consider an Aust razor, you might want to check out StraightRazorDesigns for razor and strop sets. The two cheapest sets are $116 for a Dovo set and $124 for the Aust set. Either will be a great starter set for a beginner but like others' comments above, I do consider the Aust to be worth the extra $8.

You can also check out the Classifieds here. It may freak you out, but "used" razors often represent not only a lower price but a better value in terms of actual quality and function.

What kind of variations would I need on the strop? I'm willing to spend up to $150 for the set.

Beginners strop = Smooth as you can get 2 1/2 to 3 " wide, long as you can find. They have a 50% survival rate :<0) Learning curve thing.

Originally Posted by ELBrace

What kind of variations would I need on the strop? I'm willing to spend up to $150 for the set.

As this will be his first razor/strop set, the only change you might make is to go with a 3" instead of a 2" wide strop. No need for the fancier leather types, a basic latigo strop with your choice in color will suffice. Strops will get beat up by new users until they develop their muscle memory. An SRD strop can have the leather strip replaced later, and one can select any of the leather types they have at that time. The primary reason for the variate of leathers is simply personal preference and as your husband is just starting, he has no preference and so it would be impossible to pick something better.

A 3" wide strop makes stropping a razor easier as it is wide enough to strop the entire length of the razor without fancy handwork. A narrow strop requires using something called an X stroke or pattern... easy enough for most of us, but the 3" avoids that learning curve completely.

Regards

Christian

I was a beginner a couple of years ago, in contrast to the very wise, experienced gentlemen who've already answered, and I couldn't agree more. The 5/8 Ralf Aust with a 3" strop is the way to go. Both are very high quality products. A 5/8 razor is generally recommended size to start with, as it's much easier to manipulate than larger razors, and as mentioned, a 3" strop is so much easier to use than a smaller strop. Purchasing the razor from SRD assures that the razor is shave ready, meaning that it's been professionally sharpened and is ready to shave with right out of the box. Your husband will be a happy man on Christmas morning.

Richard added some very important information about Straight Razor Designs. They do indeed hand hone each and every razor they sell, so you can be confident in it being ready to use when it is removed from its packaging. They (SRD), also include a coupon for one free honing in the future with each kit, which will come in very handy down the road.

Regards

Christian

Personally, I don't consider a 3 inch strop to be necessary. The vast majority of old strops were 2.5 or 2 inches wide, or less, and they (we) got along with them just fine for years before the 3" strops came into vogue only about 5 years ago.

Especially given the tendency of so many beginners to trash their first strop, it does not make a lot of sense to spend a lot on that first one. As long as the leather is good, a 2 inch strop is just fine. Seriously, it ain't that hard to put a little bit of side to side movement along the length of your stropping stroke. If you are not coordinated enough to do that, then you probably should not be putting a straight edge to your face.

Originally Posted by ELBrace

I would like to buy my husband a straight razor for Christmas. He's wanted one forever, but he's only had a shavette. Would like to know what a good razor would be for him. My budget is around $100. Any input is greatly appreciated.

Without looking at any post so far a Ralf Aust from SRD. The basic model for $102.99 I believe and comes honed superbly and ready for shaving from Lynn the owner! No better in my opinion. Nothing fancy here, just a great brand new razor!