Newbie with a straight Razor Question

[ChessKombat]

Hello,

It is nice to meet all of you. I have been on this page a few times and never have made an account but finally have. There is so much knowledgeable and honest feedback on this forum that I find harder and harder to come by these days.

I have been using a Gillet razer since high school and I have been wanting to learn how to shave with a straight razor for a while now and since I have been working from home the commute is shorter and I have more time on my hands to practice. I have found two vintage German ones nearby on Craigslist. Both sellers are selling for 30$. I am concerned about the one with the color change on the blade as I think it might have lost some of its temper. Any support on if either of these would be a good or better over the other to start with would be much appreciated.

Here is the description of what each of the sellers say:

"Fried. Wilh. Engels (Friedrich Wilhelm Engels) Solingen Germany Warren Velvet Edge Razor with, I believe, is silver inlay. In the box. Highly collectible! Boy and Girl image, who I think may be Hansel & Gretl. The box has some wear. The blade is incredible with no chips, and very little if any wear - it's still razor sharp. Very slight discoloration, I don't think it was used much. F.W. Engels Solingen Gr Germany. "

***************
H. Boker & Co's Unrivaled Razor (Germany)
- Straight Edge Razor
- 9 TE 5 "Dutch Point" 3"long, 5/8" wide blade, w/jimps
- Closed Length 6 1/2" w/tang
- 5 1/2" Long Beige/Tan celluloid scales
- C. 1907-1915
In Original Box
Solingen, Germany (City of Blades)
$30.00

 

[Lightcs1776]

Welcome to the forums. I'll let those with more SR experience address your questions.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

 

[global_dev]

Hard to say on first 2 pics, id guess not (ask for better picture)

second set of pics look good. (Boker box)

Better yet, check BST as i think one user has similar priced blades for sale currently.

 

[NickCutlip]

Welcome to B&B !!

 

[Invicta]

Welcome to B&B.
I cannot help with the razors but hopefully you will get some answers.

 

[KW Driver]

The Engles/warren razor simply doesn’t have good enough pictures of the blade to make a judgement on the quality, staining/discoloration aside. The Boker looks fine, with some rust spots at the toe that are easily delt with.

get better pics of the Warren if you’re interested in that.

unless the seller shaves with straights, they’re unqualified to comment on shave ready condition of the edge. Assume it’s not shave ready and will require honing, despite most seller’s claims.

come on down to the straight razor section and start ready around. And welcome here.

 

[Kaldane]

Welcome to B&B. I’m only a little way along the curve myself with just short of 100 straight shaves, and I only broke cover on the site yesterday. You’re right about the resources here, and someone with a lot more experience will be along soon.

You’ll probably be looking at doubling the price of each to send away for honing (though there might be someone on the site who’ll come to an arrangement). If you’re looking at getting into honing yourself, I’d recommend something cheap and easily replaceable before trying it on something that’s worth keeping (and the one with the Boker box certainly looks like it might be one of those - hard to tell with the other pictures).

Global_dev’s suggestion of the Buy/Sell/Trade section is worth a look : if you’re buying a video recorder (yep – I’m that old) from a bloke down the pub, it’s better if it’s one of your mates than someone you might never see again (or “buyer beware” for those who don’t speak British/Australian vernacular).

Happy shaving

 

[BigJ]

Welcome aboard!

I agree with others that this is likely one to avoid. However, the real SR experts are on the straights forums. So, that is where you might also post your question.

 

[Njguy1977]

There are a few things you need to consider.....you have the razors which is step 1, you will need a strop, and you will need to either look for someone to hone them or start taking lessons by looking at Slash's honing compendium that's posted on this board. Getting into straights is a huge rabbit hole....I'm already into it with 23 razors, coticule, thruingian, and Arkansas stones for honing, learning how to hone and restore them, and I'm 4 strops in. I can honestly say though its all worth it and its a lot of fun to get into as long as you have the time dedicated to doing it. I only use my straights on the weekend when I have the 15/20 min. available to shave that long. During the week is DE Fatboy and I'm done in 10 min. Remember, a rushed straight shave can never end well

Larry