Thread: Very curious newbie.

What gugi said. You would do yourself a favour by reading the beginners guide in the Wiki (see signature), then come back with more informed questions.

Originally Posted by commiecat

EDIT: most people who get a do-not-buy list razor to start do so because of price or impatience (or both). If you do want to try it out without making a significant investment, give us a ballpark budget and we can offer up some recommendations aside from what's in that wiki link.

Just saw that you edited, umm how does anyone from 35 dollars to 40 dollar sound for a budget?

I'm guessing the budget will be for the blade itself, I'll probably look for a waterstone later on.

Originally Posted by Hgaara

Just saw that you edited, umm how does anyone from 35 dollars to 40 dollar sound for a budget?

I'm guessing the budget will be for the blade itself, I'll probably look for a waterstone later on.

Well you can buy in pieces. The stones are something you'd want to get into later as sharpening is a whole other expense and discipline.

If you have a soap and brush then that's a great start. Aside from the razor you'll want a leather strop as a minimum setup to keep the edge keen in between sharpening.

RupRazor.com is a good starting point as they have a great starter strop for $20, as well as some affordable razors. A kit (razor + strop) will run $60 from there which I'd suggest if you can. If not then your best bet is to keep an eye on the forum's classifieds, as there's usually a few nice razors in there for less than $50. Make sure they're marked as shave-ready, meaning that they've been sharpened and can be shaved with upon delivery. There's one for $31 listed now -- someone might even be kind enough to negotiate price for a first-timer.

As far as your lathering, it could be that you're not using enough water or it might just be that you have hard water. I lather right on my face and sometimes I'll do it in halves if I feel like taking my time.

I am of the opinion that you will be better served by purchasing a vintage razor from someone on the forum, rather than getting a package from a vendor. Not to say that he is the only one I would deal with, but Dylan has a multitude of different razors that are shave ready, well priced, have been cleaned up and he lists full disclosure of all of the high and low points of each blade. Worst case scenario, you give this a shot and don't like it. I think you might have a better chance moving an older Greaves or Hamburg Ring than you would a newer Gold Dollar. Best case scenario, you like it and stick with it. Over the years, I have tried many new things, some stuck and some did not. After watching Kill Bill, I wanted to learn Kung Fu. I still have an unused Gi folded on a closet shelf. See what I mean?


Holli4's Straight Razor Page

I'm all about different methods to improve my shaving. So, should I be singing pre-shave, during, or post-shave? Sorry.

One other thing that I feel compelled to mention:

There are a few inaccuracies in the movie that it is IMPORTANT THAT YOU ARE AWARE OF before you start!

For example, when Sweeney strops his razors he strops them edge-first instead of spine first. If you do this in real life it will damage your strop and dull your blade. You should learn proper stropping technique from the guides on this site and the beginner wiki.

He also goes straight for the ATG pass right off the bat. Most of the time an ATG pass follows at least one WTG pass and sometimes even a second XTG. Speaking only for myself (although there are many others that would tell you the same), I do not do a ATG pass unless its necessary that I be totally smooth. I find going against the grain leaves my face raw and it risks giving ingrown hairs. I picked up some very serious ingrowns from doing an ATG pass a few days ago and now I haven't been able to shave for a few days because I don't want to shave over them. As such, I stick with a simple WTG pass on my entire face.

I digress perhaps....

The point is... Do not learn how to shave from that movie. I know it sounds stupid for me to say it, but I would hate for anyone to try to learn from that film since it is highly inaccurate.

Incidentally, it is also not recommended that you sing and dance while shaving. I would imagine that it leads to fairly major cuts and razor burn.

Best regards