Southern Ontario (very Southern) chiming in.
First off, great forum. Tons of great information. I can't believe you let me in but you're stuck with me now. Lol. My obsession started just before Christmas. I watched James Bond Skyfall and there's a scene involving a straight. Well, it seemed like a good idea. The next day while Christmas shopping for the kiddies I stopped at a Barber Shop in the mall. I grabbed a straight razor that accepted the disposable blades to see if it was for me. (And of course I had to grab a Badger brush, a styptic pencil and a tub of Proraso) Initially, I told the wife that it was to save money on cartridges. Hah, she believed it. My coworkers did have a couple of good laughs at my cut up face but soon I was shaving my face and head without the need of the styptic.
I discovered Ebay. I found a nice 1949 Tech with original packaging and blades for $8. SOLD. Not wanting to break into the vintage package required blades. I discovered Amazon. I bought some Gillette 7o'clocks. (Along with some stones, 3k and 5k, a couple of 208GDs, to practice my honing, a strop and a mug of Tabac) The wife was starting to wonder how much money that I was originally spending on cartridges.
Perusing Ebay became a daily ritual. I picked up a new Dovo Inox for $30. It was unused but had a broken scale. Thanks in part to this forum, and a little help from YouTube, I learned all about micarta and the art of making razor scales. Meanwhile, on Ebay, I picked up an unused Valet Autostrop for $11. (Packaging, strop, everything. Apparently, it was old store stock. Nice). I ordered some Feather blades for the Valet and picked up some Lavender Witch Hazel and Pinauds Talc locally. Everything became part of my daily or sometimes more frequent routine.
My current dilemma; if it looks to good to be true... I had been getting some great deals on some awesome finds. Well, I didn't have a Rolls Razor yet. Found one on Ebay that had never been used. (Viscount model, original packaging, the works.). For some reason, no one was bidding on it. I was the only bidder and got it for $1. Hehe. It came in today. Pristine, mint, perfect, unused condition and my problem - DO I TRY IT OR NOT?
I blame James Bond.
First off, great forum. Tons of great information. I can't believe you let me in but you're stuck with me now. Lol. My obsession started just before Christmas. I watched James Bond Skyfall and there's a scene involving a straight. Well, it seemed like a good idea. The next day while Christmas shopping for the kiddies I stopped at a Barber Shop in the mall. I grabbed a straight razor that accepted the disposable blades to see if it was for me. (And of course I had to grab a Badger brush, a styptic pencil and a tub of Proraso) Initially, I told the wife that it was to save money on cartridges. Hah, she believed it. My coworkers did have a couple of good laughs at my cut up face but soon I was shaving my face and head without the need of the styptic.
I discovered Ebay. I found a nice 1949 Tech with original packaging and blades for $8. SOLD. Not wanting to break into the vintage package required blades. I discovered Amazon. I bought some Gillette 7o'clocks. (Along with some stones, 3k and 5k, a couple of 208GDs, to practice my honing, a strop and a mug of Tabac) The wife was starting to wonder how much money that I was originally spending on cartridges.
Perusing Ebay became a daily ritual. I picked up a new Dovo Inox for $30. It was unused but had a broken scale. Thanks in part to this forum, and a little help from YouTube, I learned all about micarta and the art of making razor scales. Meanwhile, on Ebay, I picked up an unused Valet Autostrop for $11. (Packaging, strop, everything. Apparently, it was old store stock. Nice). I ordered some Feather blades for the Valet and picked up some Lavender Witch Hazel and Pinauds Talc locally. Everything became part of my daily or sometimes more frequent routine.
My current dilemma; if it looks to good to be true... I had been getting some great deals on some awesome finds. Well, I didn't have a Rolls Razor yet. Found one on Ebay that had never been used. (Viscount model, original packaging, the works.). For some reason, no one was bidding on it. I was the only bidder and got it for $1. Hehe. It came in today. Pristine, mint, perfect, unused condition and my problem - DO I TRY IT OR NOT?
I blame James Bond.
