Advice on getting started

P

p90

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1
Hi all,

I am new to shaving with straight razors, so new that I don't yet have one and am looking for advice on how to get off the ground.

In looking for a straight razor I was on th trail of an entry level DOVO or a Broker Classic but then read some bits and pieces about the entry grade razors being poor and a cleaned up vintage being the way to go, which appeals.

I am looking to part with not much more than £100 for a razor, happy to go 5/8 or 6/8, and also am looking for a strop.

Being new I am not sure how I am going to take to it so don't want to blow too much money but also want something that will last me a good while.

Any advice on a solid starting set up would be gratefully received.

The newbie box looks great and may be something I would look to get into in the future but for now I just wanted to get started.

Thanks!
 
Hi mate and welcome to TSR.
I personally would buy a shave ready ( that's important) vintage razor and then get a paddle strop, both if kept well will last decades and a nice slick shaving cream or soap.
That's basically all you need and if you love it then feel free to fall down the rabbit hole and spend lots of your hard earned like the rest of us lol.
 
Hello and welcome to TSR p90.
It makes sense to buy a vintage straight razor that is shave ready and a leather strop.
You may love straight razor shaving or you may not so don't spend too much too soon. :)


Paul.
 
Welcome, it's a dark and dangerous path but it's a bloody fun one. Would only echo what's been said, go vintage shave ready. For a starter I could recommend billji1 on ebay, picked up my first vintage from the guy and the edge was excellent.

billyji1 on eBay

Follow billyji1 on eBay. Buying, Selling, Collecting on eBay has never been more exciting!
www.ebay.co.uk

You can also pick up strops from him but I haven't tried those, I imagine they'll be decent. I prefer the wider 3" strops in general, negates the need for an x-stroke (for the most part), but it's a personal preference.

Above all, enjoy!
 
Welcome! I echo the above. I bought my first straight from Billyji1 on ebay, a 1940s Fritz Bracht Tennis extra hollow 5/8 round point. It cost about £65 and was good to go. I still use it regularly. I also have one of Bill's paddle strops and one of his hanging strops too. All recommended.

As Marc said, you can be sure the edge is good from him and it's important when you first start, because otherwise you have no way of knowing how it should feel and behave. It takes a while to get the hang of straights so you need to be confident you're starting with a good edge. You do not want to find yourself putting pressure on.
 
Thanks so much for the great welcome, made me feel really excited to get started. I will get onto Billyji1 right away!

On the strop, any particular reason to go for a paddle over hanging? I was minded to go for hanging but mostly because that is what I had come across more of
 
The theory is that paddle strops are "harder to get wrong". IMO you don't have to start on a paddle strop but they're flat and solid so less prone to getting cuts on the edges. You could conceivably use paddle strops your whole life, I don't think it matters, but if you want to use a hanging strop, first get one like the ones Bill sells, they're well made, canvas on one side and bovine leather on the other, and won't break the bank. Plus his are 3" wide so the whole blade will fit (at least diagonally) on the width of the leather, which makes x-strokes less of a necessity, although I find that it still helps to do that so that all parts of the blade get run across the edge.

You will inevitably catch the edge at some point and put little nicks on it so don't spend big bucks on your first hanging strop. These can be fixed by trimming off any flap and sanding down gently.

At some point you may feel you're unlikely to damage your strop any more and want to treat yourself to a more expensive one, but it's not necessary to start. However do avoid the very cheap ones from no name sellers on ebay, some of them are absolute rubbish.
 
Hi all, I got a J. Nowill 5/8 from Billyji1. All good so far, so thank you for your advice!

Definitely need to practice doing the jawline and moustache, unbelievably tricky! The left hand side of my face too, I read somewhere that going lefty is the best way to do this so am trying that. But so far, so good, so thanks!
 
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