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I told my friend that I collect Gillette razors, he assumed I collect straights too and he gave me this for Christmas. Am I happy or extremely happy?

Coffin and razor are mis-matched - coffin is for a Wonderedge and the razor ia a Goldedge. So the original owner may have had more than one duck. I hope you can track him down.
 
Coffin and razor are mis-matched - coffin is for a Wonderedge and the razor ia a Goldedge. So the original owner may have had more than one duck. I hope you can track him down.
Since the original owner was a barber you are probably right about him owning more than one.

I know he was from Lexington, Kentucky so my next step will be to contact the County Clerk's office to see if can arrange an intermediary contact, if his heirs still live there. I was told that his sister, now in her 70's, operated a beauty salon in Lexington.
 
My plan is to find Cecil Frank Johnston Jr. and return the razor his grandfather used almost a century ago. I like gifts that keep on giving. I hope I can find him.

I would love to keep it but no way my conscience will let me now that I know it's significance.

Best wishes on your efforts to reunite the razor with the owner's family! Please let us know how it goes.
 
How many cuts are in the learning curve on average? :)
About 2 minor cuts a day for the first 30 shaves then it’s pretty much plain sailing. That said I still get the odd cut (pulling an almost infinitely sharp piece of steel across my face left handed, early in the morning with a hangover it’s to be expected) but I’ve never once had a bad one.
 

Old Hippie

Somewhere between 61 and dead
How many cuts are in the learning curve on average? :)

Interesting question. How many would you consider to be too many?

Since we're rappin' about straights and barber razors, in that category I have had the following experiences in my early going:

Razorine: I really want to like this one, but I am guaranteed to get at least 3 nicks every time I use it. Last time I got zero nicks and one really good hack that required the help of a nurse to get it stopped up. I now have a nice scar, and chicks dig scars.

Parker SRX: Probably one nick or corner-stick every time. I grabbed a pocket stone and "de-honed" the corners and it was better. Still getting that razor to feel right, though.

Focus Slim Al: It has corner guards and angles that can act as guides. I have had a couple times when my angle got a little less acute and the razor threatened to dig in, but at least so far I've not let any blood with it.

O.H.
 
About 2 minor cuts a day for the first 30 shaves then it’s pretty much plain sailing. That said I still get the odd cut (pulling an almost infinitely sharp piece of steel across my face left handed, early in the morning with a hangover it’s to be expected) but I’ve never once had a bad one.
~60 cuts to get the hang of it... I have a mole on my cheek. Should I say goodbye to it?
Interesting question. How many would you consider to be too many?
O.H.
1?
 
I honestly got away pretty smoothly, no cuts, just a few weepers here and there. That being said I may have paid the blood sacrifice when I sliced my hand being careless.
 
~60 cuts to get the hang of it...

My 2¢: starting out, keep the SR blade perfectly flat on your face. Only shave the parts where you can do this (cheeks, mainly). Finish the rest of the shave with you regular razor. When the terror subsides and you have built some muscle memory and gotten a feel for things, extend your SR territory.

You shouldn't have 60 cuts over your entire SR career, not counting small nicks that you can get from safety razors as well.
 
~60 cuts to get the hang of it... I have a mole on my cheek. Should I say goodbye to it?

1?
It all depends on you, I did an almost 3 pass shave on my first straight shave wtg, xtg and against the grain and kept it up from there so I was in unknown territory and got a nick or two most days during the first 30. But they were all superficial and were nearly always healed the next day. Just be careful around the mole you’ll be fine, it’s worth a little blood for the outstanding shaves you’ll be getting.
You could go slower, most people just do their cheeks for a week or two but I was less patient.
 
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