Newbie recommendation......

Chefbaze · Feb 12, 2012

I know the general response is going to be to get a sight unseen set up from whipped dog, however, is there a better set up to get if I wanted to spend a little more? Say $70-$90 ? I just don't want to spend $50 and have something that looks all beat up. Also, I have an extremely coarse beard, and a not so flat face.so something that is maneuverable. Any recommendations as to what type of straight to get ? 5/8? Tip type? Grind?

Thank you guys

Slash McCoy · Feb 12, 2012

Have a look at www.starshaving.com. Their basic Giesens & Forsthoff 5/8 is under $60. They also sell fairly inexpensive strops. I like their "Big Daddy" strop. It is a full 3" wide and is reversible. They also have cheap but very good Frank Shaving badger brushes from China. Go to your local hobby store and get a piece of balsa, 3" wide, to use as a pasted bench strop, and go to www.tedpella.com and get some 1u diamond paste, and go to your hardware store for some Chromium Oxide powder, stick, or paste. This is the green buffing compound. Apply diamond to one side, CrOx to the other. Or get a 24 to 36" long piece of balsa, cut it in two. This is preferable.

That gear will put you well over $100. So, maybe for now go with Larry's Poor Man Strop Kit, which includes a very basic beginner strop and a pasted balsa block. Then just get a black badger brush from star shaving, and the G&F razor. That should have you at the high end of your budget range.

You might find a nicely restored razor that looks new, on BST, for about the same price as the G&F.

Honestly, the blade type is not going to be that important to you at this point, shave-wise. I would advise against a spike or square end for now, though. That point will getcha. A spike is nice but I don't recommend starting out with one. A wedge is a little harder to maintain, so maybe steer clear of full wedge blades for now. Any degree of hollow ground will do. If you do end up with a spike, you can always mute the point a bit on a stone. Width... a 5/8 or smaller is easier to maneuver, especially under your nose, and so ought to be preferred at this point, but that doesn't mean you can't make a go of it with just about any razor, if it is honed to shave-ready condition. BTW, most new straights are NOT sold shave-ready, so check on that with your vendor. The factory edge on nearly all new razors is not much of a shaving edge.

Some guys charge as much as $20 to hone a razor for you. Larry sells you a honed razor for a buck more than that. And there is no question about his edges being shaving sharp. I would reconsider and give a whippeddog razor and kit some more thought.

Actually, I just checked Larry's site, and he has been forced to raise his prices a few bucks, but still a good deal.

Chefbaze · Feb 12, 2012

Slash McCoy said:
Have a look at www.starshaving.com. Their basic Giesens & Forsthoff 5/8 is under $60. They also sell fairly inexpensive strops. I like their "Big Daddy" strop. It is a full 3" wide and is reversible. They also have cheap but very good Frank Shaving badger brushes from China. Go to your local hobby store and get a piece of balsa, 3" wide, to use as a pasted bench strop, and go to www.tedpella.com and get some 1u diamond paste, and go to your hardware store for some Chromium Oxide powder, stick, or paste. This is the green buffing compound. Apply diamond to one side, CrOx to the other. Or get a 24 to 36" long piece of balsa, cut it in two. This is preferable.

That gear will put you well over $100. So, maybe for now go with Larry's Poor Man Strop Kit, which includes a very basic beginner strop and a pasted balsa block. Then just get a black badger brush from star shaving, and the G&F razor. That should have you at the high end of your budget range.

You might find a nicely restored razor that looks new, on BST, for about the same price as the G&F.

Honestly, the blade type is not going to be that important to you at this point, shave-wise. I would advise against a spike or square end for now, though. That point will getcha. A spike is nice but I don't recommend starting out with one. A wedge is a little harder to maintain, so maybe steer clear of full wedge blades for now. Any degree of hollow ground will do. If you do end up with a spike, you can always mute the point a bit on a stone. Width... a 5/8 or smaller is easier to maneuver, especially under your nose, and so ought to be preferred at this point, but that doesn't mean you can't make
go of it with just about any razor, if it is honed to shave-ready condition. BTW, most new straights are NOT sold shave-ready, so check on that with your vendor. The factory edge on nearly all new razors is not much of a shaving edge.

Some guys charge as much as $20 to hone a razor for you. Larry sells you a honed razor for a buck more than that. And there is no question about his edges being shaving sharp. I would reconsider and give a whippeddog razor and kit some more thought.

Actually, I just checked Larry's site, and he has been forced to raise his prices a few bucks, but still a good deal.

Thanks! Actually Ive been DE shaving for about 4 months now, so I have Brushes, and soaps, alum, etc..Im just interested in the Straight setup. Allot of great info.. Thanks

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Newbie recommendation......

Chefbaze

Slash McCoy

I freehand dog rockets

Chefbaze

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