What is essential?

[jonnyt]

Hi all,
I've been a brush/ soap convert for over a year now and have been happy with the performance of my sledgehammer DE but recently visited a friend who told me that "real men use straights" and gave me a vintage straight that he has restored as a gift.
I've spent a month poring over the straight section of this site (and others) and my plan is to get myself a strop (preferable a Tony Miller if he'll send to Europe) and possibly a finishing stone.
My original plan was to get a Norton 4/8, a chinese 12 and a strop but given that my friend assures me that my blade is shave ready and only needs a stopping before use, am I right in thinking I can probably get a good few months of use with just a strop and something like a belgian to give it a fine polish?
I'm keen to get started but don't want to spend a bunch on equipment that isn't ideal or necessary for me. Can anyone offer advice on whether I'm on the right track, and if so, where the best place to go to pick up the equipment is?

 

[leighton]

Everyone thinks they need an 8k stone, but in reality they don't. To keep the edge touched up forever, all you really need is a finishing stone, ie a barber's hone, 12k, etc. Crox is optional. You could also make do with crox and a pasted strop for a long time too. I say get the crox. You can apply it to balsa wood. Its your cheapest option if price is a concern. Otherwise, a finishing hone is all that is needed and you can get the crox too.

 

[colin39]

hi if yab contact neil miller through his ebay shop Millers-Militaria or n1elus on ebay he sells great strops stone and hes in da uk so europe shouldnt be a problem

 

[jonnyt]

Cheers, price isn't really an issue, am happy to pay for whatever is the best option for me - even an expensive stone that gets used for over a decade works out quite reasonably.
I just don't want to buy things that I really don't need. ie, the Norton 4/8 is obviously very popular but do I really need one if I am just using one sharp razor and polishing/ stropping it regularly?
Of course, if I get as addicted as I fully expect to do and start buying vintage blades that need restoring then I'll have to re-evaluate, but for now, I think I'll just be keeping my current blade sharp and maybe buying one more shave ready blade (of a different size/ type to experiment with) and keeping them both sharp.
So After the comments, I think I'll go for a latigo/ canvas strop (with some crox for the canvas side?) and a belgian or barbers stone.
Thanks.

 

[gugi]

I'd suggest to pick up only a strop for now. There are plenty of options to keep your blade sharp, but the most important ingredient is not honing, but stropping it properly.

Your best resource may be your friend who gave you the razor.

 

[leighton]

Adding to Gugi's comment, your more likely to damage your razor by honing it yourself.

I highly recommend sticking to pastes because its the same motion as stropping.

 

[professorchaos]

What is essential and what you will end up with are two entirely different lists. I warn you now, if you continue down this path you might well end up - contrary to all good intentions - with far more shaving gear than you could possibly need. Something about modern straight shaving makes us like gear more than the average fly fisher.

 

[tsmba]

If you really want to go economical, you can strop on a newspaper. It does work. As a step up, one could use a web belt, smooth belt combo as a strop.
I think Murray Carter's video is online now....using a concrete block as a hone, newspaper strop, then shaving (with a knife....or machete). I've done that, too (the knife, not the machete).

 

[SavantStrike]

If you really want to go economical, you can strop on a newspaper. It does work. As a step up, one could use a web belt, smooth belt combo as a strop.
I think Murray Carter's video is online now....using a concrete block as a hone, newspaper strop, then shaving (with a knife....or machete). I've done that, too (the knife, not the machete).

Something tells me that even if that newspaper was treated with paste, the newspaper stropping will NOT hold the edge for the years to decades you can get out of a real strop and some paste (on another strop of some sort, either paddle, hanging, or improvised paddle). At least not comfortably anyway. And no one is using a camping knife as a daily razor (that I know of).

I'll second the suggestion to just get a basic starter strop (don't cheap out and get zeepk or selective NY though) and some paste. Grab yourself some cheap lumber and make your own paddle.

 

[jonnyt]

So I've got myself an heirloom red latigo from tony miller on its way along with a practice strop. Are people saying that I could put some paste on one of the strops to sharpen and use the other as a normal strop?

I had planned on getting a single stone, maybe a Spyderco ultra fine to keep a polished edge but people seem to be suggesting a beginner shouldn't be honing his own blades (In that case, how did you all get started?)
Money really isn't an issue (within reason, I'm not a millionaire), I'm not looking for the cheapest way to keep one or two blades shave ready, I'm looking for the best way and am happy to pay for the right equipment whilst trying to avoid buying a dozen stones I'll never get round to using.

 

[leighton]

So I've got myself an heirloom red latigo from tony miller on its way along with a practice strop. Are people saying that I could put some paste on one of the strops to sharpen and use the other as a normal strop?

Yes. Exactly, you could even use balsa wood if you wanted to keep both strops as strops.

I had planned on getting a single stone, maybe a Spyderco ultra fine to keep a polished edge but people seem to be suggesting a beginner shouldn't be honing his own blades (In that case, how did you all get started?)
Money really isn't an issue (within reason, I'm not a millionaire), I'm not looking for the cheapest way to keep one or two blades shave ready, I'm looking for the best way and am happy to pay for the right equipment whilst trying to avoid buying a dozen stones I'll never get round to using.

Well, I didn't have the forums to help me, but I started with hones. But a much better route is pastes and honemeisters.
edit: As to why, the answer is that my edges sucked big time and I had no idea until after I finally figured out how to hone. Yes, I had to teach myself for the most part too. I was stubborn, probably still am....

 

[gugi]

So I've got myself an heirloom red latigo from tony miller on its way along with a practice strop. Are people saying that I could put some paste on one of the strops to sharpen and use the other as a normal strop?

don't put a paste for now, learn to strop properly and your edge will last very long time. At some point you'll no longer want to use the practice strip and you can put some paste on it and see what it does.

a beginner shouldn't be honing his own blades (In that case, how did you all get started?)

most of us got somebody else to hone our razors.

Money really isn't an issue (within reason, I'm not a millionaire), I'm not looking for the cheapest way to keep one or two blades shave ready, I'm looking for the best way and am happy to pay for the right equipment whilst trying to avoid buying a dozen stones I'll never get round to using.

keeping your razor sharp isn't really honing, it's far far easier. almost any finishing hone would do it, and pastes can as well. i think a hone is a bit more robust solution, since it's a hard substrate and isn't prone to rounding the bevel (the later isn't necessarily a bad thing, it's just trickier long-term with probably slightly better short-term results).

It really doesn't matter much, you'll get used to whatever gear you get and if it ever becomes inadequate you can get something else to complement it.
Just start with a good edge, one that it's not honed by you but by somebody experienced.

 

[jonnyt]

So after listening to B&B's collective wisdom, I got hold of a Tony Miller red-latigo and a practise strop. Through not paying enough attention when ordering, I didn't get a cloth backing, only the leather, so my final question is am I ok to apply pastes to the rough leather backs of the strops and in which configuration?

My plan is to put 1 micron diamond paste on the back of one strop, .5 on the back of the other and keep the two fronts clear for practicing/ stropping.
Once I get comfortable stropping and don't need the practice srtop, I could maybe put .25 paste on the front of the practice strop to get an even sharper blade but I figure for now I'm ok learning on a blade that has seen a .5 paste and a good leather stropping?

I figure that if I start with a near-enough shave ready blade, this set-up should last me a while before I need to send a blade off for honing (or buy my own hones...)