Thread: good first razor?

hello I'm looking into buying a real straight razor but with so much choice I'm a little bit lost to say the least. I bought one of those ones with the interchangeable blades off ebay for about £6 but would like to move up to the real thing. I've had around 15 shaves with it and haven't cut myself yet GO ME!

i would need a strop also but i'm not looking to break the bank just yet any help would be greatly appreciated.

cheers

you're doing well to have not cut your self! i've had about the same number of shaves with the shavette but a few 1/4" cuts! They heal fast though.

If you have a look in the classifieds cheap shave ready razors come up with some regularity. There are also a couple of starter kits that are sold by members here, which you should be able to find in the vendors section.

It's a shame the exchange rate isn't as good to us as it used to be, isn't it!

Whatever you do, make sure it says shave ready. Classifieds is the cheapest and best option, here or the other place. Vendors also sell beginner sets.

i think Al missed theinvisibleedge. he also sells new dovos i think at dovorazors or something like that.
my understanding is that the stop options are a bit more limited on your side of the atlantic.

cheers for all the help lads! i think i'll look into a starter kit.

and gregs yeah mate it sucks!

If you can't hone yet, the cheapest shave ready shop bought razor is a Wapi from theinvisibleedge.co.uk the owner is a member here forum name blueprinciple. He is pro.
You could get a nice new Dovo from him for fifty odd quid.
Small hanging strops are about £24 there too.
I have bought old strops from ebay that with a little cleaning and oiling are quite nice.
Tony Millers strops are said to be excellent. He is in the US.
Neil Miller on here (neilUS on ebay I think) sells strops too. He is in the UK
Believe it or not, a really good source for badger brushes is TKmaxx. I bought one from there for a tenner made by Taylors. It's not big, but it's badger hair and it works very well.
The sometimes have good big name(to wet shavers) soaps too.
good luck

Welcome to SRP!. Check out the SRP Wiki here. There are sections on razors to avoid and some to look for. There are video tutorials here and the Invisible Edge is here.

If you are in the UK you will find the Invisible Edge hard to beat.

Dovo Razors

scroll down to "Dovo ‘Special’ razor 5/8 blade" and forget about buying another razor...just make sure to treat her right.

I bought a shave ready razor from here, which worked out at about £24 and a vintage strop from an ebay shop for about £11. For £35 all in I am VERY happy. Look about, there are deals to be had.

Thanks for the TKmaxx tip!