Ready to begin, but have some questions...

[KittensAndRainbows]

So, I've been wetshaving since December, and using a GEM SE for about half a year now. I'm interested in straight razor shaving, but I have a couple questions about which razor and strop to start with.

I was planning on getting one of the cheaper Dovo razors, something around $100 or so to start with. Are they decent starter razors? Or should I just save a few bucks and get a Gold Dollar?

As for the strop, I was planning on getting the modular strop from Straight Razor Designs. After reading the interactive guide, it looked like this would be a good solution for stropping and honing, as opposed to a bunch of stones. However, I'm not entirely sure what the different materials are for, and what I'll need to get started. I'd like the proper equipment to simply maintain/repair the edge on my razor, but I'm not planning on doing any restorations. I'm also not sure which CrOx pastes I'll need and which goes on which surface, etc.

Any advice would be appreciated, it's quite a leap from disposable blades.

 

[kg4ghn]

The Dovos are good razors, I have one and use it often.

You can use CrOx for touchups, although you will eventually need an actual hone. I would go with a barber hone or a Chinese 12k if you need to go cheap, or a Naniwa 12k if you can afford it. That way if you ever do want to be able to do full honing you already have a good start. But you can worry about that later. All you NEED right now is a shave ready straight and a plain leather strop.

You will find that hone suggestions are very YMMV, ask 10 people and get 12 different answers.

 

[Stevestan]

I agree completely with Kg4ghn. My first straight was also a new Dovo. It served me well. Then I ventured out on E-Bay and picked up a few vintage straights of various types and went from there. I think you will really have a lot of fun with this.

 

[DavyRay]

You would save more money by getting a vintage razor from one of the honemeisters here. Check out the B/S/T forum for deals. The guys get old razors, restore and sharpen them, and usually just want to get a little back so they can buy more vintage straights. All of the razors I have are vintage. They made plenty good steel in the 20th century.

You can always spend more money on gear, but for starting out, you just need a shave-ready razor. Add a RupRazor Filly strop for about $20, and you can begin.

 

[johnmrson]

I think that for a first straight you are better off buying one of the shave ready straights that Larry Andro sells on his site. They are well priced and if they are from Larry, they are well honed.

 

[Defend Tacoma]

Not much to add as I am new myself. Larry's website is www.whippeddog.com in case u want to check it out. Definitely give straights a shot if they appeal to ya! The more the merrier!

 

[Granaura]

This!

Larry is a great person to deal with (and generous to a fault IMHO)...

He goes above and beyond and I get the feeling that he does it not for the money, but for the love of the hobby...

Send him a PM like I did (I just let him know that I had a goatee and wanted to learn) and he will let you know what he suggests!

He set me up and I expect the payola in the ole Canada Post any day now!!

 

[Pinski]

Go with Larry.

 

[Luc]

I would recommend a shave ready straight from BST.

For the strop, you need a leather strop only to start with. Do not buy a big nice strop right away you will nick it a lot and that's normal...

You can buy a combo strop leather/canvas or leather/linen but to start, just a leather strop is enough.

 

[Slash McCoy]

For the beginner, yes, a Dovo is good. BUT... often when you buy a new razor, it is NOT shave-ready. Only if the seller says it is shave-ready might it actually be so. Also, the cheapest you will find a new Dovo is around $70, and remember, it will still need honing. The beginner can hone his own razor, yes, but chances are very, very good that you will not get satisfactory results. The initial honing is critical, since the bevel is being set and a lot of steel is being removed. Subsequent maintenance honing is not as touchy. So, you will want to send your new Dovo out to be honed, at a probable cost of $15 to $20, plus shipping.

There are two better options. You can buy a new Wapi or Gold Dollar, shave-ready, from various sources on the BST forum or ebay. Or, you can go with a shave-ready vintage razor, for maybe a few dollars more. Either way, you will end up with a serviceable razor. Many cheaper new razors have issues with the stabilizers, shoulder, or spine that interfere with honing. A shave-ready razor has already had any such defects corrected.

Of the two, I would lean toward the vintage razor. You will likely be getting a better razor, of a respected brand and good steel. Yes, it will be 30 to 80 years old. So? As far as I am concerned, that just makes it better. Pride of ownership comes into the picture when you have a blade that you shave with that is so old but still as good as any new razor today. That's not to say that a well-honed Gold Dollar is not good enough. I have one and I like it just fine. Actually I have three of them, but only one I bought in shave-ready condition. But I much prefer to shave with one of my vintage blades, and most of my vintage razors take a better edge and hold it longer.

As for strops, someone recently made a post regarding the use of newspaper as a practice strop. You will eventually want a quality strop, but it is very easy and very common for a beginner to nick up the strop pretty badly. So, a cheap strop is usually recommended for the beginner to practice on before moving up to a more expensive one. I suggest that the newbie try the newspaper before ruining the cheap practice strop!

Your shave-ready razor will need no maintenance for the first month or so other than drying and stropping. I like to dry my razor and give it 10 laps on the strop to ensure that the edge is good and dry, because microscopic rust spots will trash your edge. Then I strop "for real" before shaving with it again. This routine stropping does not need any CrOx or any other abrasive. A bit of saddle soap, neatsfoot oil, or any leather dressing will help the strop to "grab" the edge a bit and improve the stropping action, but abrasive is not needed on a daily basis. Also you want to keep your daily strop free of abrasives. If you use CrOx or diamond paste or whatever, use it on another strop. I would recommend a paddle type strop, myself. That is the kind with a wooden back that you lay on a table. The flattest surface possible is recommended for stropping with abrasives. This supplemental stropping is done when regular stropping no longer seems to be enough to restore the edge.

You could also invest in a very fine stone for routine honing. It should be at least 8k grit (fineness) but perhaps a 12k would be better if you don't mind a slow cutting stone and you want a really really good edge. With a 12k, you can slip the abrasive-pasted strop. Coarser hones are used for restoring a well-worn edge, or setting the initial bevel, or repairing a damaged edge. Typically, for this kind of honing, you start out with a 1K stone, then progress through 4k and 8k, then 12k if you have one. When a LOT of steel has to be removed, you can go with a coarse diamond stone before the 1k. Many straight shavers never do their own honing, even maintenance honing. Some do that, but never do the rough work of setting the bevel. Your honing practices or lack thereof are a personal decision that you base on your skill level and desire to do it. For me, the honing is a big part of the pleasure I get from straight shaving. For some others, it is a PITA, and some guys just never catch on to it.

The soap or cream you currently use, as well as your brush and mug scuttle or bowl, will still serve you well as a straight shaver. No need to change.

When you have made up your mind about what razor you are going to buy, you might want to post a pic of it here. Some razors have little quirks that you need to be aware of when you buy. In general, I would recommend a round-tip blade with jimps (grooves filed in the tang) and a width of 5/8 give or take an eighth. If you will be doing your own maintenance honing, try to get one with a nice straight edge. The "smiley face" edge is more complicated to hone. For a decent shave-ready vintage blade, expect to pay between $30 and $50. For higher quality, the sky is the limit, but that price range will get you something that will shave well right out of the box, and will serve you well for a lifetime.

 

[Gustav]

On the subject of strops, I have a Dovo linen-leather combination that I bought for 40€ and I am quite happy with it. The main thing is to stick with something cheap because you are going to nick it sooner or later.

 

[michiganlover]

In terms of strops, I suggest you take a look at these two budget minded choices:

Filly Strop @ RupRazor

Big Mamma Strop @ Star Shaving Supplies

For $5 more than the cost of the Filly, the strop from Star Shaving Supplies is longer, wider, has handles/ mounting hardware, along with a linen component. I think it is the better value, but either strop would serve you well as a newbie to straight razor shaving.

I have the 3" wide strop from StarShavingSupplies, and it is well made, and has served me very well.

Note, if you do want the Dovo instead of a vintage razor, or a Gold Dollar, several vendors do sell them shave ready:

Gentleman's Best owned by moderator "ThirdEye"

Straightrazordesigns

 

[KittensAndRainbows]

Thanks for all the advice, fellas. I was already looking at several of the sites suggested, due to their ties to the online wetshaving community. I've always been interested in straight shaving, but my main reason for holding out was I wasn't sure if I wanted to invest the time into it. I'll probably be purchasing a straight and strop within the next week or so, and then the fun begins! My wife already said she doesn't want to be around when I start cutting my face up

 

[Bay Rum]

I think that for a first straight you are better off buying one of the shave ready straights that Larry Andro sells on his site. They are well priced and if they are from Larry, they are well honed.

+1 Larry is great