- Joined
- Feb 6, 2009
- Messages
- 65
Looking for a decent $50 straight razor for actual use. Any suggestions? Is there such thing as a decent one for $50ish?
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The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is ready to order! See this thread for details: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/bladeforums-2024-traditional-knife.2003187/
Price is$300$250 ea (shipped within CONUS). If you live outside the US, I will contact you after your order for extra shipping charges.
Order here: https://www.bladeforums.com/help/2024-traditional/ - Order as many as you like, we have plenty.
Decent Straight Razor
- Thread starter Barehunter
- Start date
- Joined
- Sep 25, 2008
- Messages
- 45
You can get a DOVO str8 for around $70 at a few different pllaces and I have heard nothing but good about them.
Go to Str8 razor design and get free honing for as long as you own the razor if you get it before the end of the year, so that saves a couple of bucks.
But you can also check the classified section of "straightrazorplace.com" get somthing shave ready from there. It IMHO is a ton of fun to just do the resurch to get started. Good luck!
Go to Str8 razor design and get free honing for as long as you own the razor if you get it before the end of the year, so that saves a couple of bucks.
But you can also check the classified section of "straightrazorplace.com" get somthing shave ready from there. It IMHO is a ton of fun to just do the resurch to get started. Good luck!
- Joined
- Jun 13, 2006
- Messages
- 3,724
For that little cash, your best bet will probably be to go hunting for antique razors, either locally, or online on eBay and the like. The material I've read on the subject indicates that for the dollar, old straights will beat new ones, provided you've also got the equipment to hone and strop them into shape... but then, that's more or less a prerequisite for straight use to begin with. 
Gollnick
Musical Director
- Joined
- Mar 22, 1999
- Messages
- 29,258
As far as I can tell, straight-razor shaving harkens back to an era when men did not shave themselves. An upper-class gentleman was shaved by his valet. A lower-class man was shaved by his wife (or a daughter as part of her preparation to become a wife herself). And a middle-class chap, while he might not have a valet, saved his wife this task by going to the local barber for a penny or two once or twice a week.
I've often thought that a straight razor with all of that honing and stropping and whatnot would be the perfect answer for the man who did not have enough for his valet to do. Very often, an upper-class man would own a set of seven razors, one for each day of the week. The whole set could be sent out to a local (or household) craftsman for maintenance occationally. Gentleman's travel sets from the era often include several razors so that the honing and stropping gear could be left at home. The point here being that men didn't do the maintenance on their razors themselves either. The upper-class gentleman either had his valet take care of the razors or sent them out. The lower-class man's wife took care of his razor. And the middle-class chap left the razor's maintenance up to his barber.
Also, in that day and age, the standards for shaving were less demanding. The upper-class gentleman was expected to be shaved every day. But, with his valet taking care of most of the work, this only took him a few minutes per day. The middle-class and lower-class men might shave only once or twice per week and a bit of stubble was acceptable for a man in their station.
So, for the modern man, without valet, barber, or wife to aide him, who tries to take on daily straight-razor shaving is trying to take on something he was never intended to do anyway.
I've often thought that a straight razor with all of that honing and stropping and whatnot would be the perfect answer for the man who did not have enough for his valet to do. Very often, an upper-class man would own a set of seven razors, one for each day of the week. The whole set could be sent out to a local (or household) craftsman for maintenance occationally. Gentleman's travel sets from the era often include several razors so that the honing and stropping gear could be left at home. The point here being that men didn't do the maintenance on their razors themselves either. The upper-class gentleman either had his valet take care of the razors or sent them out. The lower-class man's wife took care of his razor. And the middle-class chap left the razor's maintenance up to his barber.
Also, in that day and age, the standards for shaving were less demanding. The upper-class gentleman was expected to be shaved every day. But, with his valet taking care of most of the work, this only took him a few minutes per day. The middle-class and lower-class men might shave only once or twice per week and a bit of stubble was acceptable for a man in their station.
So, for the modern man, without valet, barber, or wife to aide him, who tries to take on daily straight-razor shaving is trying to take on something he was never intended to do anyway.
- Joined
- Jun 13, 2006
- Messages
- 3,724
Interesting points Gollnick... :thumbup:
The convenience of paying someone to do the shaving and/or maintain the razor itself is likely one people opted for whenever possible. For the most part, the work and skills involved could be an experiment in learning for those of us taking the time... in an age where more and more technologies are becoming hopelessly specialized and folk are able to fix less and less things for themselves. There's a certain comfort in being able to work with something relatively simple and getting it to function as intended, even at the expense of time and a little money.
The convenience of paying someone to do the shaving and/or maintain the razor itself is likely one people opted for whenever possible. For the most part, the work and skills involved could be an experiment in learning for those of us taking the time... in an age where more and more technologies are becoming hopelessly specialized and folk are able to fix less and less things for themselves. There's a certain comfort in being able to work with something relatively simple and getting it to function as intended, even at the expense of time and a little money.
Barehunter,
You can check out this set, it includes a strop that you will need to use before every shave. i do not own it but have read many good things about it.
http://ruprazor.com/store/index.php...category_id=6&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=32
Good Luck
You can check out this set, it includes a strop that you will need to use before every shave. i do not own it but have read many good things about it.
http://ruprazor.com/store/index.php...category_id=6&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=32
Good Luck