Just bought my first razor

[Jbird45]

Hello everyone! I recently purchased this straight razor (still in the mail) and was wondering if anyone knows anything about it. Its a t hessenbruch and has a picture of a bear on the handle.

Also, when this gets here, are there any steps i need to take to disinfect? I have heard barbisol but want to make sure what i use isnt going to harm anything.

This is my first antique razor so i appreciate the advice!

 

[Slash McCoy]

I think you mean Barbicide. No you don't really need it. Most dangerous germs won't survive long on clean dry steel. You can sanitize with alcohol if you like. I do happen to have Barbicide on hand but most guys don't. I give all incoming vintage razors a nice bath in it.

If it is not sharp and made so by someone in the community, then that is your next move. You will need to find someone to hone it for you. Look on this forum or another razor forum but make sure you get someone who is a long standing member of good reputation or who is at least known to the members. Just because someone says he can make your razor sharp means absolutely nothing at all. Verify.

When you get it back, start learning to shave. You will need a decent but expendable strop. I suggest something in the $30 to $50 range. Any less and it might well be junk. Any more and you are likely wasting money because most beginners put a lot of damage on their first strop while learning. You will also want a badger brush of probably around 26mm. My favorite is the long handle 30mm silvertip from www.whippeddog.com. You can't beat his price unless you get one from China. Mug or bowl from the kitchen. Soap online. Or cream. No, not that stuff in a can. Forget it. Cream in a tub or tube. Soap is in round pucks or sticks. Some good but inexpensive brands are Godrej, Proraso, and C.O. Bigelow which is just Proraso rebranded for the US market. Even cheaper is Arko.

When you got your gear together, come back here and read up on how to shave. Don't be in a hurry. This is going to take a while.

 

[Jbird45]

Is there anything I need to do as far as clean up or maintenance other than sharpening?

 

[Slash McCoy]

Is there anything I need to do as far as clean up or maintenance other than sharpening?

Not so much. Keep a coat of oil in it if you like. Keep it in a dry place. Send it out for honing. Maintain with the balsa if you like but I would just concentrate on shaving for now. Don't try to "sharpen" it yourself just yet. You would only be setting yourself up for epic failure.

 

[Dilbone]

Like Slash says, focus on shaving...learning to shave with a known sharp straight razor is paramount.
My first razor was a gold dollar from buca nearly 7 years ago and it was the best decision I could have made. I was extremely careful when stropping(a paddle strop I made). I got a good 50 shaves from that razor with some occasional balsa crox stropping near the end to keep it going. By the end of that time I was beginning to hone some other blades myself. Having a good edge was the only way I could effectively gage my progress on my self honed blades.

Good luck and welcome to the never ending acquisition rabbit hole of straights!!!!!

Sent from my SM-G981V using Tapatalk

 

[Jbird45]

Im not trying to sound like i know what im talking about, but i do have sharpening experience from woodworking with hand tools. I know

Not so much. Keep a coat of oil in it if you like. Keep it in a dry place. Send it out for honing. Maintain with the balsa if you like but I would just concentrate on shaving for now. Don't try to "sharpen" it yourself just yet. You would only be setting yourself up for epic failure.

I trust what you are saying. I will send it out. I do have a good set if waterstones for sharpening my woodworking tools but i have a feeling this is a new learning curve.

Did i do ok with the razor i picked? I figured I would be better off with a vintage razor than a cheap new one.

Or was this mistake # 1?

 

[Dilbone]

Im not trying to sound like i know what im talking about, but i do have sharpening experience from woodworking with hand tools. I know


I trust what you are saying. I will send it out. I do have a good set if waterstones for sharpening my woodworking tools but i have a feeling this is a new learning curve.

Did i do ok with the razor i picked? I figured I would be better off with a vintage razor than a cheap new one.

Or was this mistake # 1?

The only non vintage blades I own are 5 gold dollars that I've modded into fine looking shavers. Lots and lots of vintage blades. You did just fine by the looks of it.

What stones do you have? Natural? synthetic?
Most folks doing tool sharpening aren't nearly as fine as we need for a comfortable shave. I would say your experience will definitely help you along with razor honing but we're talking about edges so ultra fine that the slightest imperfections become painfully obvious to the user. There's definitely a learning curve, but you sound like you have some valuable foundational skills.

Sent from my SM-G981V using Tapatalk

 

[Slash McCoy]

Im not trying to sound like i know what im talking about, but i do have sharpening experience from woodworking with hand tools. I know


I trust what you are saying. I will send it out. I do have a good set if waterstones for sharpening my woodworking tools but i have a feeling this is a new learning curve.

Did i do ok with the razor i picked? I figured I would be better off with a vintage razor than a cheap new one.

Or was this mistake # 1?

I don't know the brand but I would bet a dollar to a donut that it will do just fine. A decent vintage beats a cheap new one, yeah. No mistake, well played.

 

[Jbird45]

The only non vintage blades I own are 5 gold dollars that I've modded into fine looking shavers. Lots and lots of vintage blades. You did just fine by the looks of it.

What stones do you have? Natural? synthetic?
Most folks doing tool sharpening aren't nearly as fine as we need for a comfortable shave. I would say your experience will definitely help you along with razor honing but we're talking about edges so ultra fine that the slightest imperfections become painfully obvious to the user. There's definitely a learning curve, but you sound like you have some valuable foundational skills.

Sent from my SM-G981V using Tapatalk

I have a set of norton synthetic water stones from 1000-12000 and also a norton india stone. The india stone im sure is out of the question. Its not fine enough.

I use the waterstones mainly for my Japanese chisels, which i can get sharp enough to shave arm hair or end grain cleanly.

I admit i have no experience sharpening a razor, and I may have been a little biased thinking because i can get my tools sharp a razor cant be that hard, but i didn't learn how to sharpen my wood tools overnight and the same applies here. I will find a reputable person to hone and strop it for me and concentrate on my technique first.

Thank you for your advice.

I am hoping that this will be like my traditional woodworking where focus and attention to detail are rewarded with results superior to a machine. It may not be as efficient, but the results are worth the extra effort and patience.

 

[Dilbone]

I have a set of norton synthetic water stones from 1000-12000 and also a norton india stone. The india stone im sure is out of the question. Its not fine enough.

I use the waterstones mainly for my Japanese chisels, which i can get sharp enough to shave arm hair or end grain cleanly.

I admit i have no experience sharpening a razor, and I may have been a little biased thinking because i can get my tools sharp a razor cant be that hard, but i didn't learn how to sharpen my wood tools overnight and the same applies here. I will find a reputable person to hone and strop it for me and concentrate on my technique first.

Thank you for your advice.

I am hoping that this will be like my traditional woodworking where focus and attention to detail are rewarded with results superior to a machine. It may not be as efficient, but the results are worth the extra effort and patience.

That Norton set will be a great way to begin razor honing as long as you keep them stupid flat.

I would say straight shaving and maintenence will pair well with your traditional wood working. Very rewarding.

Honestly, I would be on the lookout for a 2nd razor that you can begin your honing journey with while using the one you send out as your bar for comparison. I started with film and got some great edges and some not so great edges. Warped and twisted razors gave me fits...nice and straight blades nearly honed themselves. The frustration for me was figuring out how to read each blade to know how to address all of that blade's unique issues. It has been nearly 7 years now and I've never looked back. Now I use synthetics up to 6-8k then jnat and coticule finishing. A recently acquired jnat is giving me edges unlike I've ever produced on any other stone or film.

You will be so glad you took the plunge. It wasn't long before I also started making my own shave soap(which I use exclusively, aside from a puck of Tabac I enjoy occasionally) There are a lot of rabbit holes to get lost in around here hahaha!!!
I look forward to hearing about your experiences, I hope you'll post those along the way.

Sent from my SM-G981V using Tapatalk

 

[Slash McCoy]

I have a set of norton synthetic water stones from 1000-12000 and also a norton india stone. The india stone im sure is out of the question. Its not fine enough.

I use the waterstones mainly for my Japanese chisels, which i can get sharp enough to shave arm hair or end grain cleanly.

I admit i have no experience sharpening a razor, and I may have been a little biased thinking because i can get my tools sharp a razor cant be that hard, but i didn't learn how to sharpen my wood tools overnight and the same applies here. I will find a reputable person to hone and strop it for me and concentrate on my technique first.

Thank you for your advice.

I am hoping that this will be like my traditional woodworking where focus and attention to detail are rewarded with results superior to a machine. It may not be as efficient, but the results are worth the extra effort and patience.

Your woodworking experience will definitely be an asset, yeah. Your Nortons? I'll tell you about Nortons, from a razor perspective. You have been using them all along for your chisels and stuff, I am sure. The Nortons through 8k used to be the go-to for American honers. Then suddenly the quality took a nosedive. I believe they moved production to Mexico and a whole new cadre of workers threw a big monkey wrench in the quality control. There were voids and inclusions and inconsistencies in the matrix. Sometimes you could lap through bad spots. Sometimes not. At the same time, the very good Naniwa stones started to become available so the honer had another alternative beside super hard Arkansas. or Coticules. Pre-internet, a lot of international small scale commerce just wasn't a thing. There were barber hones, of course, but meh. So Nortons sort of took it on the chin and still suffer from image issues. I recently acquired an apparently new Norton 1k and apart from actually being about 500 grit on the JIS scale I am not more used to, it isn't so bad. Long wearing, fast cutter. So they used to be okay for razors at one time. Then they weren't, and now in 2020, maybe again? Don't know. I imagine yours were made during Norton's "Dark Ages". The flaws guys were noticing probably would not be a big deal for honing plane irons, chisels, stuff like that.

Your Nortons might be okay for razors. You will want to lap them, of course, if you haven't been keeping them lapped all along. And you will probably want a Naniwa or maybe a Shapton for a finisher. The Norton uses the ANSI grit scale and the more common JIS grit scale runs a good bit finer.

In some ways honing a hollowground razor is actually easier than other edged tools, because you have a built-in honing angle guide. The spine is always touched to the hone before the edge. The edge is always lifted off the hone before the spine. When turning at the end of the stroke, the spine remains on the stone and the edge is flipped up and over. We mostly hone edge-leading. If you imagine a VERY delicate knife with a permanently attached honing guide, you won't be far off.

I am sure you have honed plane irons and stuff to the point where they shave arm hair. That's a start, for razors. Once you are a few shaves in, and have actually used a (face) shave ready edge for a while, you will be ready to hone. It won't hurt a thing to try your Nortons. It's not like a bad one will wreck your razor beyond saving or anything. You can always finish on lapping film if your 12k Norton is found wanting, and you don't want to drop $90 on a Naniwa Superstone.

Your India stone might be of use, on some razors. There are times and there are razors where a lot of steel has to come off, to get a good bevel. For instance, a new unhoned Gold Dollar, or an entry level Dovo. Or a vintage with a frown. You will learn about them, yeah. Or fixing a heel hook or an intrusive heel. Normally your 1k will be all you need to set the bevel and get the ball rolling but some razors demand harsher treatment to beat them into shape.

 

[Jbird45]

Your woodworking experience will definitely be an asset, yeah. Your Nortons? I'll tell you about Nortons, from a razor perspective. You have been using them all along for your chisels and stuff, I am sure. The Nortons through 8k used to be the go-to for American honers. Then suddenly the quality took a nosedive. I believe they moved production to Mexico and a whole new cadre of workers threw a big monkey wrench in the quality control. There were voids and inclusions and inconsistencies in the matrix. Sometimes you could lap through bad spots. Sometimes not. At the same time, the very good Naniwa stones started to become available so the honer had another alternative beside super hard Arkansas. or Coticules. Pre-internet, a lot of international small scale commerce just wasn't a thing. There were barber hones, of course, but meh. So Nortons sort of took it on the chin and still suffer from image issues. I recently acquired an apparently new Norton 1k and apart from actually being about 500 grit on the JIS scale I am not more used to, it isn't so bad. Long wearing, fast cutter. So they used to be okay for razors at one time. Then they weren't, and now in 2020, maybe again? Don't know. I imagine yours were made during Norton's "Dark Ages". The flaws guys were noticing probably would not be a big deal for honing plane irons, chisels, stuff like that.

Your Nortons might be okay for razors. You will want to lap them, of course, if you haven't been keeping them lapped all along. And you will probably want a Naniwa or maybe a Shapton for a finisher. The Norton uses the ANSI grit scale and the more common JIS grit scale runs a good bit finer.

In some ways honing a hollowground razor is actually easier than other edged tools, because you have a built-in honing angle guide. The spine is always touched to the hone before the edge. The edge is always lifted off the hone before the spine. When turning at the end of the stroke, the spine remains on the stone and the edge is flipped up and over. We mostly hone edge-leading. If you imagine a VERY delicate knife with a permanently attached honing guide, you won't be far off.

I am sure you have honed plane irons and stuff to the point where they shave arm hair. That's a start, for razors. Once you are a few shaves in, and have actually used a (face) shave ready edge for a while, you will be ready to hone. It won't hurt a thing to try your Nortons. It's not like a bad one will wreck your razor beyond saving or anything. You can always finish on lapping film if your 12k Norton is found wanting, and you don't want to drop $90 on a Naniwa Superstone.

Your India stone might be of use, on some razors. There are times and there are razors where a lot of steel has to come off, to get a good bevel. For instance, a new unhoned Gold Dollar, or an entry level Dovo. Or a vintage with a frown. You will learn about them, yeah. Or fixing a heel hook or an intrusive heel. Normally your 1k will be all you need to set the bevel and get the ball rolling but some razors demand harsher treatment to beat them into shape.

I lap my waterstones before each use. They have been reasonably flat. When using my stones i always try to work the whole stone as well, and not just work one spot so they wear as even as possible. And when cambering edges of plane blades i have an inexpensive whetstone from the hardware store so I avoid digging gouges into my more expensive stones.

I was going to ask about shaptons. I have been considering getting one for a while.

Im not afraid to spend money on quality equipment as i look at it as a lifetime investment, but by the same token i dont buy super expensive equipment to learn on either. I wouldn't teach a 16 year old kid to drive in a Ferrari, so i usually try to buy mid-grade equipment.

As far as sharpening, part of my confidence had come from the fact that you pointed out that you rest the spine of the razor on the stone and basically have a built in honing guide. I am used to sharpening all of my tools freehand, and i only use my honing guide when regrinding primary bevels.

I will keep my eyes open for a cheaper razor to practice sharpening with. What i found with a cheap set of chisels is that they are wonderful for learning on because you can get them sharp, but you dont have the edge retention of higher quality steels, which means you have to sharpen more often, which in turn means you building skills faster. And if you make a mistake, its very minimal as you dont have a lot of money invested.

 

[Slash McCoy]

Shaptons have their fans. I am not really one of them. I think the Naniwa Superstones are better high grit stones but not everyone agrees with me on that. I do like the coarser Shaptons,and I have a couple of Kuromakus of 320 and 600 grit that are pretty nice.

 

[bluesman 7]

Hi Jbird.

What grits of water stones do you have?

Contrary to the well meaning advice of not trying to learn shaving and honing at the same time, I did exactly that. If your a skilled woodworker used to sharp tools you should be able to avoid doing any real damage to yourself, and the razor is just a piece of steel in the end.

After you have tried, and hopefully succeeded in shaving with your edges for a week or so, I would advise purchasing an inexpensive, truly shave ready, razor from someone who is well respected on this forum to compare your edges to.

Owning two razors is a good thing anyway as you can use them to leapfrog your honing skills. Hone the worse of the two until it exceeds the other, then switch, rinse, and repeat.

 

[Jbird45]

Well i took the advice and bought a second razor. This one is a Frederick Reynolds Sheffield i got for under $20. Looks like it should do the job

 

[Frank Shaves]

Welcome, @Jbird45!

Turns out that there are some pretty good deals out there on new razors right now, and one such razor that gets a lot of love on this forum is the Dovo Bismarck and in particular the 6/8 inch version. Here are two pretty good deals:

DOVO #2 Bizmark Straight Razor 6/8 inch Full Hollow Ground Carbon Steel Blade, Ebony Wood Handle (26810)

DOVO #2 Bizmark Straight Razor 6/8 inch Full Hollow Ground Carbon Steel Blade, Ebony Wood Handle (26810)

www.knifecenter.com

DOVO Bismarck Straight Razor 6/8 inch Full Hollow Ground Carbon Steel Black Oxide Blade, Ebony Handles

DOVO Bismarck Straight Razor 6/8 inch Full Hollow Ground Carbon Steel Black Oxide Blade, Ebony Handles

www.knifecenter.com

Something to think about.

 

[Frank Shaves]

One more. You should also consider getting a Gold Dollar for the purpose of learning to hone plus they shave pretty well. This one, a P81/1996, is a good choice as it has no stabilizer:

Amazon.com: GOLD DOLLAR straight razor wooden scale vintage razor for men & barber shaving ready without stabilizer: Beauty

Amazon.com: GOLD DOLLAR straight razor wooden scale vintage razor for men & barber shaving ready without stabilizer: Beauty

www.amazon.com

And it won't break the bank.

 

[bluesman 7]

I have a set of norton synthetic water stones from 1000-12000

I've never heard of a Norton 12k water stone.

 

[Slash McCoy]

I've never heard of a Norton 12k water stone.

Good point. I don't recall hearing about one, either, now that you mention it.

 

[Frank Shaves]

I noticed that Sharpening Supplies sells the Norton water stones, but I don't know anything about them.