Anyone use a straight razor? Thinking about starting.
 

Information would be great. I'm hearing "used" is the best as it is tried and true, but information would be awesome. Going to go look at new tomorrow, but from what I've seen, new and quality is $$$$$$

$25
http://www.amazingshaving.com/mm5/gr...2r_325x325.jpg

http://www.amazingshaving.com/parker...al-finish.html

$11
http://t0.gstatic.com/shopping?q=tbn...Y9ylW&usqp=CAY

http://www.google.com/shopping/produ...d=0CKwBEKYrMAI

These work better than a straight razor and the pack of 100 (20 cartons of 5 blades) will last you more than a year. If you go to a shaving store they will tell you the blades last as long as the 3 or 4 blade razors but that is just not true unless you use copious amounts of shaving cream.

When the straight razor goes dull, you'll be stuck either waiting for the local place to sharpen it or trying your own hand with a wet stone and if your anything but very advanced with a wet stone it won't end up as sharp as new.

This setup will make you very happy.

Shaving, whats that?? I've rocked the 5 O'clock shadow for years.

I've looked into these as well.

Here's the information I've come up with.
- Go used. It's cheaper, and usually "shave ready" vs a new one that is anywhere from $150 for a cheaper one up to $500 for a nice one that even though they say "shave ready" usually need to be honed still. I'm seeing used vintage ones on forums (yes, there are shaving forums oddly) for about $100.

-Strop the razor before every shave. Once again, don't cheap out on the strop.

-You need to use a wet stone every 15 shaves (about once a month) to keep it sharp.

-If you take care of your razor, it shouldn't go dull

Please understand, I've literally just started looking into this, so I might be wrong on some of my information. If I am, please correct me.

I also hear that you can buy disposable straight razors at a beauty supply store. I'm going to go this rout first to see if I even want to continue. Too many cuts and I might just stop, and from what I hear, there are going to be quite a few cuts.

I use a safety razor, but nothing can get close to a properly sharp straight razor. That's a mans tool.

Good thing to learn, teaches you patience.

I don't know man. "Used" for something like a razor doesn't rub me the right way. No pun intended

I considered a safety razor in the past. Then I just stopped shaving, because having a beard is awesome.

Now with extra Hepatitis!

I switch between a straight and a double edge razor. I use the DE for daily shaving and the straight for weekends, just because the straight is more of an event than a simple shave and it takes longer.

Straights are fun. It's nice to learn an old-fashioned man skill. To start with, you'll want a middle of the road razor, probably 5/8", 1/4-1/2 hollow ground, round or french point. Don't get a square point, spike point, or barber's notch point on your starting razor, you're more likely to cut yourself.

You'll also need a leather strop, good facial cleanser, a badger hair brush, shaving cream or soap (Mitchell's wool fat is excellent), alcohol-free aftershave, and a styptic pencil. A shaving bowl and an alum block would be nice to have as well. Learn to whip up a good lather first.

I got my razor, strop, and a honing board from www.whippeddog.com. Larry finds old razors on eBay or wherever, cleans them up a bit, puts a shave-ready edge on them, and sells them pretty inexpensively. Right now I think he's selling razors for around $43. Much better than dropping $300 on a brand new Dovo for a hobby you might not like.

Badger and Blade has a good shaving guide and a lot of information here. They also have a lot of information on various soaps, creams, fragrances, etc... All around a good forum. I've also used StraightRazorPlace.com for information.

Mantic59 on youtube has a LOT of tutorial videos as well.

I use a merkur, feather blades and cremo cream (all available on amazon)

I was scared as fuck I was going to destroy my face the first time trying it because everyone on the internet makes it seem way more daunting than it really is.

You can buy old/"vintage" razors for pretty cheaply; used is definitely the best way to go unless you're looking for something specific or something custom.

Strop before and after. And sometimes halfway through, if you have a coarse beard that takes its toll on the blade.

Honing a little is ok. If you're talking about truly sharpening your blade, send it out and have it done professionally; it's not that expensive. There's definitely a technique to sharpening a straight razor without damaging the blade, and not a lot of people have it.

The Dovo Shavette and Feather RG series are disposable straights. Between the two I'd get the Feather RG, just because it looks more like a straight and less like a WW2 can opener. I'd get a regular straight before I got a disposable though. Straight razors are made sharp by honing and polishing, so the edge is smooth. Disposable razor blades are made sharp by machining them to be sharp, so there are leftover uneven and jagged edges from the machining process. You could strop them or run them through a wine cork, but if you're going through that much effort you may as well have a real one.

I also use a safety razor.

From what I gathered the straight razor has a huge learning curve, going from a cartridge to a single blade, something a cat could shave with without hurting themselves to a single blade that can seriously chop you up. Getting the angle right and figuring out how to best shave your beard (every beard is different, still struggling with mine) is tricky and a safety razor just makes it a bit easier.

This book is pretty good, pretty well recommended:
[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Leisureguys-Guide-Gourmet-Shaving-Enjoyable/dp/1477436804"]Leisureguy's Guide to Gourmet Shaving - Sixth Edition: Shaving Made Enjoyable: Michael Ham: 9781477436806: Amazon.com: Books[/ame]

I use a double edge. There's a learning curve, of course, but not like straight edge. If you use a cartridge I recommend you try double edge first. Pair with a decent brush and good cream (I use Geo Trumper) and you should be good to go. You will have to experiment with blades for a while to see what your skin likes/doesn't like. Coworker of mine hates Feather platinums while I love them with the caveat that you must be careful with them since they are quite sharp. He doesn't like Gillette blades either while I find them a nice medium between too sharp and too dull.

Agreed. I don't even shave, except to finish up, with a modern razor. I hate them with a passion. I normally just go to my barber for a straight razor shave. They use disposable razor blades in a straight razor. It also means only going a few days clean shaven before the beard grows back.

I need to get myself a safety razor. My beard doesn't grow out far, but it grows thick, and modern razors just end up yanking the hairs more often than not, leaving fine ones still there, and not at all getting the contours.

Bought a straight razor starter kit today….my poor face :confused0068: