Just wondering if I should ever try this on my own... I'm new to the idea of shaving with Safety Razors, and wondering about straight razors. A couple of questions: (1) How often do you have to have it professionally sharpened? (2) Do you have to use a strop every time? (3) How scary will it be for a first-timer? Am I likely to cut myself? (4) Where should I go to buy my first -- brand recommendations welcome -- *if* I decide I want to give this a try. (5) What's more expensive for Total Cost of Ownership... Safety Razors, Straight Razors, or (gasp) refillable store-bought brands like Gillette Fusion, etc.?
Hi Eric. I'll do my best to share what I know on the subject... (1) How often do you have to have it professionally sharpened? A well-kept & maintained straight razor need not be sent out that often. There are folks who use many razors in rotation and when they do send them out for honing, I'd venture to guess they'd do this maybe once a year? (2) Do you have to use a strop every time? Yes. Every time before use. There are those who do so after every shave as well—although there's some disagreement on the merits of doing this. (3) How scary will it be for a first-timer? Am I likely to cut myself? SRs can be intimidating. The odds of cutting oneself with a straight razor are higher than a safety razor (hence the word 'safety' in the name), but with practice, these odds diminish greatly. Always respect the edge, but in time, one's trepidation regarding the use of straight razors seems to go away as it becomes part of your normal routine. (4) Where should I go to buy my first -- brand recommendations welcome -- *if* I decide I want to give this a try. Before offering suggestion on what to buy, I always recommend doing research on all matters related to straight razor shaving. Best to go in with eyes wide open before making a financial commitment. (5) What's more expensive for Total Cost of Ownership... Safety Razors, Straight Razors, or (gasp) refillable store-bought brands like Gillette Fusion, etc.? With SRs, you only need ONE razor, one strop .... and that's it. No need for refill blades (DE or cartridge). Care & maintenance requires greater attention by the owner, but all things being equal, the cost of SR shaving could be considered cheaper than the maintenance cost and 'feeding' of DE & cartridge razors. I always say if you can get decent shaves using a cart or DE razor, theres no reason to go with a straight razor. They have a steep learning curve which requires much from the user—both time and practice—just to get a decent shave. One you do get the hang of it (SR shaving) though, you are in for a real treat.
And when you tell people around that you shave with a straight (let it come up organically) people will joke about you being a hipster or a psychopath (both of which you might be) but your coolness factor will climb a couple notches on their scale. I think I can speak for all straight razor shavers in saying this single factor alone is why we got into it. Am I right? Huh?
Oh, and yes, you will cut yourself. I didn't know what 'razor sharp' meant beyond the abstract until I put a razor sharp razor up to my face. There will be blood.
When I learned, I started with Shavette. It's sharper and less forgiving...so for the first six weeks my sink looked like a prop from a set for "Helter Skelter"...But once I learned how to control a Shavette, and started to get comfortable and bloodless shaves, I felt like a quality, shave ready Str8 was a PussyCat. (I mean that in a good way)....;^)
You've got some good answers so far but I'll add a couple things on cost. There's a huge range in what you could spend. You could go with a vintage shave ready straight and pay $40 or so on the low end. A decent new strop would run you about $40. Just as a guess, I'd expect at least $100 worth of honing in the first year. That can vary a lot too. So I think you can get started for about $200 but it's likely you'll spend more. Theoretically, you could continue just having your razor honed when needed for $40-100 a year. Or you could buy some hones and do it yourself but it'll take you a year or two to recoup the cost. DE - a multitude of choices for $10-$50 that'll get you started and keep you going for at least many years. Cost for blades can vary but say $20 per year. So DE's are very competitive if you're looking to save money. If I were smarter and just bought one $5 Tech and 100 Personna Labs at $13, I could have shaved for my first 2 years for under $20 (not including soaps, etc) I think Fusions are clearly the highest cost and even though you could potentially save the most money over the long-term using a straght, the initial investment can be relatively high. DE is probably the best money saver in the short term and hard to beat in the long term as well. Of course this is all theoretical because nobody ends up spending as little as possible once they start really enjoying their shaves. They buy stuff to try to keep getting better shaves.
I would say this is already true to a slightly lesser extent with a traditional safety razor. I showed my brother the 80 year old NEW that I've been using (he is a head shaver as well since he got the same great hair genes). His first comment was "why, do you like to bleed?" After a while he came back curious.
As for wondering about trying it, I've always put it this way - it's all my ancestors had to use. If they could do it, so can I. Yeah, there is a learning curve, but you can do it.
So... Did I get a good deal here? http://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/e1100...281422135534&ssPageName=ADME:B:EOIBSA:US:3160 I bought this on a lark since it had only 10 minutes left in the auction. Figured it would be a cheap gamble, and something I could either experiment with (getting it honed and cleaned first, of course) or re-sell. So I took a flyer and bid on it. Didn't think I'd win, so am a little chagrined and shell-shocked. Did I just throw away $15? Or is this thing worth at least what I paid for it?
There are MANY razors such as these on ebay—passing themselves off as 'vintage straight razors'—that are in reality, nearly useless. I would qualify the razor in that auction as exactly that. The blade has been worn down to the point that there's only a portion remaining. On top of the missing metal from the blade, there is excessive hone wear across the top (spine). Not a razor I'd wish to use or resharpen. You're not the first to 'win' one of these types—someone keeps buying these formerly razor-like objects off ebay. On the plus side, the horn scales are in decent shape and possibly could be reused if one were into restorations. But the blades itself? Not something I'd wish to use. These type of bad purchases are why I always recommend 'research first, purchase later' so as to avoid throwing money at sellers of these 'goods.' If you see a razor that interests you, ask a member here who has some experience with straights. They'll lead you down the right path. Illustration on the purchased razor as to how the shape of the blade possibly looked in its original form...
" Read, study, learn first. Invest later." - HolyRollah If your curiosity level is still running a solid 10+, and you are just "itchin" to give the straight a try, go here: http://whippeddog.com/products/find/straight-razors-1 Larry has an excellent reputation, and you will NOT get a useless junker. Razor: I recommend that you choose a sight-unseen razor for about $40.00. You will get a used vintage razor that has some life left in it. It's not going to be shiny brand new pretty. But it will certainly be serviceable. Strop: I recommend that you choose a 4 sided paddle strop for about $40.00. For now, forget the sides meant for pastes, sprays, powders and like. Just use the leather side. Clean and simple. The paddle strop is about the easiest thing to learn stropping on. Just set it flat on a table, and strop. Fancy, high dollar hanging strops with exotic materials and surface treatments can come later if you like. Right now, just use the leather side and learn to strop. Hones or "Refresher" stones: You may, or may not wish to do this for yourself. If you are so inclined and wish to add to your "things I'm going to learn to do" list, then I recommend you go here: http://www.sharpeningsupplies.com/ Look for a Naniwa Super Stone in 10K or 12K grit. Occasionally you will need to refresh your razors edge. The Naniwa stones are of excellent quality, and are relatively easy to care for. Also important is the fact that if you decide to sell your straight and gear, the Naniwa will be easy to sell. This stone is just for refreshing the edge. Honing almost always requires a full set of stones. (i.e. 1K, 3K, 6K, 10K, etc.) If you decide to get into honing later, you can just add stones and you'll have a full set that can be used to set bevels, and proceed right up to finishing. It is possible, and you CAN do this. However, it IS a journey, and it takes time to become proficient. I wish you the very best in your straight razor endeavor, and Happy Shaving!!
(2) Do you have to use a strop every time? -yup every time. (3) How scary will it be for a first-timer? Am I likely to cut myself? - It is only scary because it is unknown. After doing a few strokes I found it just wasn't going to peel my face off. It is way less intimidating than it looks. I only cut myself once (a tiny dot) in the entire 30 days I was using it and it was only because the blade had a nick. Just go slow. Like an SE safety razor, the straight will warn you before it cuts you. You just have to listen to it. And go slow. Very slow... The scariest part for me was the learning curve. I heard, for the longest time, people talking about doing laps on 10k stones and using ferric oxide and I was .Here are aspects of the learning curve: Learning to shave- I grasped SE shaving enough to get a good shave in 3 days. At 30 days of straight shaving I get the razor to cut fine on the sides of my face but on my chin I get awful tugging unlike anything else I've experienced. Some straight shavers don't even shave their chin because it is so much trouble to shave there. Some people say you will have to wait like a year to really get good at it. Learning to strop- You can screw up your edge if you strop wrong. There is a 99% chance you will nick your strop. In my case, many times... Learning to hone- it has just as high a learning curve as the actual shaving. Honing sets can be very expensive. And if you send them out to get honed over your life because you don't want to learn or can't it can become much more expensive. (4) Where should I go to buy my first -- brand recommendations welcome -- *if* I decide I want to give this a try. -Like others have said- whipped dog. (5) What's more expensive for Total Cost of Ownership... Safety Razors, Straight Razors, or (gasp) refillable store-bought brands like Gillette Fusion, etc.? -- A lot of us got into DEs, SEs, or Injectors on cost but I doubt many where attracted to straights because of cost but rather the experience. Straight shaving is hands down cheaper than shaving with a Gillette Fusion and it is theoretically cheaper than a safety razor but in reality not so and it can be considerably more expensive than safety razors when you take RAD into consideration. I can get an injector razor for $10-20. If I shave every day I can get a lifetime of Personna injector blades for $250. Since you are older $100-150. With a straight if you go the cheap used razor route you will spend $40 on the razor + $25 on the strop + $ another nicer strop after you've ruined the first one + 12k hone for blade refresh $85+ the $ for the junk razors you will get to practice on+ you will probably want a nice pricey vintage or new razor once you have learned to shave with the user grade whipped dog razor so an extra $100-200 Keep in mind you will also need to oil the razors and be careful water won't get in their handles. Carbon steel can rust very easily. Unless you are retired or straight shave on the weekends only ain't nobody have time for that- the shaves too will be considerably slower than a safety razor shave with the shave itself, stropping, drying, and oiling. And time is money. You will probably want to get a safety razor anyways if you do get a straight for the times where you don't have time. I'm not trying to discourage you but rather warn you because it looks like you are looking to jump headfirst into it. It is quite daunting compared to safety razors. I am glad I gave it a try but they are not for me. The feel of SEs is very similar to straights but they are much more accessible and meet my lifestyle better.
True but most men back then went to the barber. There was a reason the Greeks, Vikings, and Civil War soldiers had beards. Just playing devil's advocate so all you enablers' opinions are balanced out
Good advice. I think I'll give it some time with the Safety Razor(s). You make a very good point about the extra time it would take.
Google the word to see what they look like. They often have beards, wear skinny jeans, have an attitude, consider themselves artists and are "trendy." They also ride fixed gear bicycles and drink PBR. Just another subculture. You will find them in any major city in wealthy (or gentrifying) but trendy areas.
From Wikipedia: "...broadly associated with indie and alternative music, a varied non-mainstream fashion sensibility (including vintage or thrift store-bought clothes), generally progressive political views, organic and artisanal foods, and alternative lifestyles."
