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Went a little crazy... did I miss anything?

I am presently in Hong Kong and cruised the city looking for a straight razor and had "Dovo" fixed firmly in my mind. We took my brother in law out for lunch and then after he had eaten we went walking around town following Google Maps for a barber supply store.There appeared to be one nearby. I took us the wrong way looking for the first shop so our brother took over. I was disappointed when we found it because they only sold some Feather shavettes/creams. We began tracking down the second store. I began feeling uneasy about him playing tour guide for us as shopping wasn't part of the plan. The second shop didn't exist.

Well by the time we got to the third shop, I was feeling desperate. The guy wasn't even in there! We figured he was in the bathroom so my wife and brother sat down and I wandered around a bit. Fifteen minutes in, I asked a shopkeeper across the way if he knew where he was...turns our his desk is in a corner behind some shelves and had been there the entire time.

So after having spent a couple hours shopping for a razor, which nobody cared about besides me we had found a shop but yet again there were no straight razors in sight. Only shavettes.

To shorten an already long story, I bought a Dovo shavette and was sorely regretful when I realized that it was nothing like what I expected. I should have bought a Parker, the Parker was even cheaper. But hey that is how I got my first razor a couple weeks ago and now I am hooked.

I talked my wife into letting me buy a real straight razor so I just ordered an Astrale on Amazon for $158 with 5 month payment plan. I also got an Illinois strop also on Amazon for $36, and also 8k/12k Shapton wetstones. I already have some shaving cream (Taylor of Old Bond Street -Jermyn Street Collection) and have been using Listerine as after shave..

Am I missing anything? Soon we are going back to China where this stuff will be extremely hard to find and I doubt I will even be able to find anyone to hone my razor if I need so I should become self-reliant ASAP. Been watching tons of videos like Dr. Matt on how to maintain your razor's edge with just those two rocks. I'm afraid I will do something wrong. If I screw this up I will be in big doo-doo with my wife. She doesn't even know how much money I just spent. She was already angry when I wasn't satisfied with the shavette...

I have never shaved much, been rocking longer hair and never cared much for grooming. I recently decided to make some lifestyle changes including learning how to cut my own hair to maintain a shorter hairstyle as well as making a resolution to never rely on disposable razors. And if I ever have children, I probably won't have a Rolex to pass down but maybe I can pass down this Astrale? Collecting SR's seems cheaper than wristwatches :D

Let me know if I need to place another order before the wife sees my bill. I am super excited to be here. Thanks :)

-Shawn
 
You will need something to flatten your stones with. Be it an Atoma plate or some sandpaper and a piece of granite or glass. The stones probably won't arrive flat so this is something you'll likely need right away.

A roll of electrical tape to protect the razor when you are honing it might be something you'd want to pick up.

I'd probably start with the shavette as in learning you're likely going to kill the razor edge with poor technique and less than ideal shaving angles. With a shavette you can just change the blade and you're good to go. This could be a decent option until you get the hang of it or at least get a few shaves in. Watch a ton of videos on straight razor shaving and maybe start by shaving just your cheeks. Realize that you're not going to get a truly good shave for a while as the learning curve is about 100 shaves.

The other question is will your razor arrive shave ready? You might need to send it to someone to have it sharpened as even some that say shave ready truly are not.

You also might want to pick up an Alum block and maybe a stypic stick. You're going to get some nicks and cuts as you figure this out. The block will take care of the small stuff. It's much cleaner and easier to use than a stypic pencil. The stypic is much more effective and you'll be glad that you have it when you get one of those cuts that doesn't want to stop bleeding. These are cheap, and it's good to have both on hand.
 
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You will need something to flatten your stones with. Be it an Atoma plate or some sandpaper and a piece of granite or glass. The stones probably won't arrive flat so this is something you'll likely need right away.

A roll of electrical tape to protect the razor when you are honing it might be something you'd want to pick up.

I'd probably start with the shavette as in learning you're likely going to kill the razor edge with poor technique and less than ideal shaving angles. With a shavette you can just change the blade and you're good to go. This could be a decent option until you get the hang of it or at least get a few shaves in. Watch a ton of videos on straight razor shaving and maybe start by shaving just your cheeks. Realize that you're not going to get a truly good shave for a while as the learning curve is about 100 shaves.

The other question is will your razor arrive shave ready? You might need to send it to someone to have it sharpened as even some that say shave ready truly are not.

You also might want to pick up an Alum block and maybe a stypic stick. You're going to get some nicks and cuts as you figure this out. The block will take care of the small stuff. It's much cleaner and easier to use than a stypic pencil. The stypic is much more effective and you'll be glad that you have it when you get one of those cuts that doesn't want to stop bleeding. These are cheap, and it's good to have both on hand.


Thanks for the reply! I am *hoping* it arrives shaving ready. Dovo always advertises their razors as such but I have no delusions. I was hoping if worse comes to worse I could touch it up with those Shaptop wetstones. But yeah, I don't have anything to hold the stones though I could probably find some sand paper locally and set them on the bathroom floor tiles. What do you think? I wish the wet stone would at least arrive flat. Didn't expect that one!

I have already cut myself up quite a bit. I just had my fourth shave with the shavette. The first time was pretty decent and the second time was okay too. The third time I was anxious and over caffeinated which led to my worst shave yet. I made the mistake of doing it during the day instead of at night and so I was stuck walking around looking like a bloody mess haha. That taught me to settle for a less than perfect shave. A few cuts feels like a win and I can try again in a couple days without cutting off scabs and making it a mess.

I don't have one of those sticks but is the Listerine just as effective for killing germs and stopping the bleeding? It is the original Listerine with the alcohol and cooling stuff. I haven't tried it with any big cuts yet.
 
In a pinch, with no stone holder, you can put the stone on top of a damp towel on your countertop and use it like that. Maybe wrap a brick in a towel and set it on top of the brick to raise it up. With some creativity, you can make a lot of things work here. The stone holder is nice and you'll probably want to pick one up later on but you can get by without it for now if cash is tight.

With the floor tile it's going to depend on if it's a completely flat tile or not. Some are flat and others not so much. I was using a scrap piece of granite countertop for a while before I bought a lapping plate. Some use glass that they pick up from the local hardware store.

The alum block (about six bucks) is worth the purchase price instead of putting mouthwash on your face. I suspect the alcohol in the mouthwash is what is stopping the bleeding but the alum will do a better job. The stypic pencils are rarely used but when you need it, you're going to really need it. I think they are under two bucks. I don't see Listerine closing a decent sized cut.

In starting out maybe just do your cheeks for a while at first. They are a flatter surface for you to get used to the razor on. Keep a light touch and the proper angle to avoid nicks and discomfort. You can always use another razor to touch up with or get the areas you're not shaving with the straight razor now. At first you're just trying to get used to the razor and develop some muscle memory. So don't go for perfection as it's not gonna happen for a very long time.
 

rbscebu

Girls call me Makaluod
@edgie a good place to visit for shaving supplies (including SR's) is in Tai Wai, Hong Kong. I'll post the details in a couple of hours when I get into my office.
 
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