Best Beginner Straight Razor.

Title says it all. I have really gotten to enjoy the wet shaving relaxing experience and I would love to try a Straight Razor. However looking around the web all I can see in my Price range seem to look like cheap garbage that will leave my face looking like Frankenstein's Monster.

So what Straight razor would you fine folks recommend for a true beginner like myself that does not cost more than say $50.00 - $100.00 Max as I simply want to try it and see if I can give it an honest 1 month run as I know the "Getting used to it and developing technique" may take some time?

Sincerely;
Nate

You can't go wrong with a starter set from somewhere like Whipped Dog - that is not the only vendor on here that sells starter packs, but the only one that I can remember at the moment.

Basically it is a strop and a shave-ready razor that will be perfect for use, albeit not always beautiful. But the important thing is that it will work well and not break your budget - in fact, there should be enough left over that you can then look around for a second razor, something that really catches your eye.

The best beginner straight is definitely a 4/8, 5/8, 6:8, 7/8 or 8/8 with or without a smile. Definitely vintage or new. As long as it is properly honed by a verifiable source you will have a great experience. Just say no to Shavettes. Unless you like Tofu bacon.

Depending on where you are in the world: there are options.

There are now many online stores selling shave-ready Gold Dollar razors at reasonable prices. Some reputable shops and some... others.
Larry at Whipped Dog is great to deal with and has a lot of good advice.

If I did it over again: while I don't regret the WD route but I would get a shave-ready Gold Dollar. It's a near-6/8 round point, hollow, razor with good weight to it.

SpikedLemon said:

Depending on where you are in the world: there are options.

There are now many online stores selling shave-ready Gold Dollar razors at reasonable prices. Some reputable shops and some... others.
Larry at Whipped Dog is great to deal with and has a lot of good advice.

If I did it over again: while I don't regret the WD route but I would get a shave-ready Gold Dollar. It's a near-6/8 round point, hollow, razor with good weight to it.

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Great advice. I love my GD's. Great heft but not a wedge. Unfortunately for every online seller providing properly honed GD's there are 5 claiming to while instead delivering jagged butter knives. The OP should PM Spikedlemon for directions to a good source.

Now that was definitely unexpected, I have seen the Shave-Ready brand all over the internet so I just figured they were a bandwagon company that wasn't worth a second look. Having them touted here as a good beginner set is definitely a plus.

I looked up WD and couldn't find anything on the site that came up. I know that when I am ready to get one I would truly prefer to get it from someone here at the B&B in order to support our own rather than a huge conglomerate company just trying to make a buck off the masses.

Thank you everyone for the advice.
Sincerely;
Nate

Devonmoonshire said:

Now that was definitely unexpected, I have seen the Shave-Ready brand all over the internet so I just figured they were a bandwagon company that wasn't worth a second look. Having them touted here as a good beginner set is definitely a plus.

Thank you everyone for the advice.
Sincerely;
Nate

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I'm not sure anyone recommended a specific company. Shave ready should mean a properly honed razor. Unfortunately the term had been coopted for marketing gain. Just because a seller says Shave Ready does not mean it is. Amazon has some vendors using this term and I have my doubts.

Avenolpey said:

I'm not sure anyone recommended a specific company. Shave ready should mean a properly honed razor. Unfortunately the term had been coopted for marketing gain. Just because a seller says Shave Ready does not mean it is. Amazon has some vendors using this term and I have my doubts.

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Well that definitely identifies me as a Rookie LOL So the Gold Dollar is the actual brand name and the "Shave-Ready" is what the condition of the blade should be in. Got it

I think I will just contact Whipped Dog and get something nice from there because if they are a trusted vendor here then I have confidence in their products a lot more than Amazon.

Thank you very much for setting me straight on that.
Sincerely;
Nate

I may venture that maybe a fourth? Plenty anyway, got our start with Larry at Whipped Dog. Great guy, great business philosophy.

I was using a safety razor for a couple of years and also wanted to try a straight. Looked around at post on the forum and what everyone was saying. I was in Phoenix on business and stopped in at Razor Emporium. They were great to talk to and very helpful. I ordered a Gold Dollar 6/8 and have been very happy with my purchase. They did a great job making it shave ready.

5/8 with a round point and jimps

Avenolpey said:

The best beginner straight is definitely a 4/8, 5/8, 6:8, 7/8 or 8/8 with or without a smile. Definitely vintage or new. As long as it is properly honed by a verifiable source you will have a great experience. Just say no to Shavettes. Unless you like Tofu bacon.

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What they said. A Whipped Dog razor would be a great first razor. Check the hobbyist forum for shave ready Gold Dollars. Just about anybody there who says their razor is shave ready will be telling the truth. They got their reputation on the line. EBay and Amazon, buyer beware. Be VERY ware.

Many modders and honers remove the shoulder altogether when prepping a GD. This is highly desirable but not abso-tootly-lutely necessary, except it makes subsequent rehoning much easier. A few might even thin the spine a bit, for a more acute bevel angle but for a newbie the stock angle of a GD 66, about 19 degrees, is much more forgiving. Its nice to have a razor that is science fiction sharp, but you do have to survive the experience of using it. A razor with a 16 degree bevel will punish the careless shaver.

Some of the GD razors you see will be heavily modded, artistic creations of great beauty. Pretty doesn't shave, but it looks good. The amount of work in some of the GDs I have seen for sale here should command a much higher price than I usually see. So go plain vanilla for cheap, or go full dress artisan for a higher but very reasonable price. Either one will shave, and either one will usually be a great buy.

Larry, the mastermind behind the Whipped Dog brand, specializes in finding quality vintage blades, cleaning them up a bit, honing them, and getting them out to newbies at the lowest possible price. Due to the nature of his sources, no two are the same, and rather than take the time to list, with pics, each individual razor, which would probably double the price he would have to charge, he sells most of them sight unseen. You can tell him what you like and he will try to pick one that most nearly meets your preference, but he sells no junk. These are all quality razors from respected early 20th century manufacturers, just a bit used, even abused, neglected, etc, brought back to life. Your WD razor probably won't be pretty, but you will be getting a fine piece of steel that will serve you well for many many years to come. Me, I like the idea of shaving with a 100yo razor that will probably last another 100 years, and keeping it out of the dumpster or some dusty rusty old collection of relics that will never be used again. Larry is a great guy to deal with, and really wants to introduce newbies to the manly art of straight shaving. If he is making a profit, it sure ain't much. Its all about the love of the art.

With the Gold Dollars, there is a certain smug satisfaction in getting great shaves from a razor that many "experts" insist is utterly useless. Of course these same experts also usually are trying to sell Dovo Best razors and are naturally suspicious of razor that comes from China, shipping included, for three bucks and change. Its a very real threat to them. The trick is that while the factory razor is indeed useless due to incredibly poor grinding and quality control, the steel is pretty good, and there is a lot of it. So, it can be thought of as an unfinished blank. Properly set up, its a good shaver. It can even become a true work of art.

So there's your two best options. Also you might watch the gentlemanly deals forum for shave ready or even restored vintage straights.

EBay is a great place to find vintage blades, but you got to know what to look for cause there are a lot of lemons out there. Plus they usually are not shave ready even if the seller insists that they are, so a newbie would also need to get it honed.

One vendor here was selling a Dovo model of the same pattern as their famous Bismarck. Don't know if he still is. The price was well to the north of $100, but very reasonable for this razor and if you are ready to jump right into the deep water, this would be a great razor to learn with, and an easy razor to learn to hone. Dovo's entry level "Best" razors give me nothing but headaches and while others might disagree, I say give them a miss. The higher end Dovos are generally quite nice. Revisor in Germany has a huge selection for very reasonable prices. There have been some hiccups with customer service, but they are more preoccupied with the art and sales sometimes take the back seat, I guess. But everybody seems to like their Revisor razors once they get them.

Ralf Aust is another brand I am hearing good things about.

I want to thank you all so much for all of the input. I have been looking at the Gold Dollar 6/8th inch ones and they do seem to be reasonably priced in several places. I also looked at the Sight Unseen section as well at the Whipped Dog and that is most likely the route I will take as I too love the thought of using something that could have been manufactured up to 100 years ago and had new life breathed into it. I may get a GD as well just to test out my equipment that I already have as I am a very keen knife sharpener and have a wide selection of stones from 100 grit all the way up to a Sushi Knife Japanese Red Clay stone as well as Arkansas White and Marbled stones which provide my Gerber with a Mirror finish.

Here's Hoping once I take the plunge that I do not carve myself into a Scarfaced Rookie
Sincerely;
Nate

Ralf Aust Razor Design $105 or less. Don’t forget a strop . Use a leather belt you might be able to find a 2” belt in Wally world. Good luck

Get a GD honed up right!Inexpensive and they shave as well as any! 13/16 hollow ground. And if you love it you may decide in the future to start honing so theres your practice razor. If you love it you will end up with more. IMO they all shave as well as the guy honing them. Vintage, new, sheffiled solingen gold dollar etc. All good. They are all good unless theyre honed improperly or are worn out. And one of the biggest outfits consistently delivers subpar edges on their new stuff. ive seen too many of them to call it coincidence. Strops? Cheap is good. you may nick it or otherwise damage it. Dont spend big until your proficient. Good luck!