Thread: I'm New. I need help. I'm Poor!

I bought a straight razor off Ebay. I know it’s junk, but it’s in fair shape. I can not afford much of anything so . . .

First, the razor is knife sharp and not razor sharp. I cannot shave with it; I’ve tried.

I have two hones and an Arkansas super fine stone I use for knives. I have no idea the grit, but it is VERY fine. Ok

The razor is very, very worn. The spine area is not only flattened, but nearly gone.

Can I recover this razor?

A picture says a thousand words.

Welcome to SRP! I would first recommend posting a few pictures of the razor so maybe some members here who are adept at honing can give you some insight if the razor can saved if possible. If not, there are a lot of great used razors that are "shave ready" available in the classifieds here at very reasonable prices. I bought my first shave ready razor from a member for around $45 a while back. Best of luck and keep us posted.

Originally Posted by joemaples

I have two hones and an Arkansas super fine stone I use for knives. I have no idea the grit, but it is VERY fine. Ok

The razor is very, very worn. The spine area is not only flattened, but nearly gone.

Can I recover this razor?

I would say no . But someone else might tell you to put about 10 layers of electrical tape on the spine , and go for it .

Welcome. +1 on the pictures but from what you describe, it doesn't sound promising.

I'm thinking it may be beyond help.

You are going to need a strop at a minimum to start. After several weeks you will also need a hone.

Right now I have a "loner" Weltmeister 5/8ths, a good shaver, that I've loaned to another fellow here in Nashville. You are welcome to use it, but it may take a couple weeks to retrieve the razor and hone it. The other guy has had it for about 4 months so it is time I got it back anyway. He is also using my 4000/8000 Norton.

A slight delay might work in your favor anyway, you could save some money for a strop instead of wasting money on ebay razors.

Send me a PM if you are interested. No strings attached, and I'm not trying to sell you anything.

Hi and welcome aboard you really need not worry about being poor as the razors you have may be fine for the purpose you want them for and that is shaving not a decoration!

We tend to be like moths to a flame when we see a shiny decorated blade and scales!

You don’t say if you have a strop or not?

And if you can give more details as to the amount of wear on them they may not be as bad as you think I had an old Crown & sword that was nearly flattened by use but it took and edge that would shave a gnats eyebrow off as it flew by lol.

The stones you mention like the Arkansas will be fine as long as you take your time and don’t over hone it. I also have a superfine Arkansas and find it takes longer than my 12k stone but it can be used.

If the spine is gone then it would seem like your razor is finished. If you are going to go the ebay route I would choose a wade & butcher, geneva, dubl duck, puma or j.r. torrey. Then find someone to hone it for you

I have an Arkansas wetstone also which is fine for my knives but not my razors. A Norton 4k/8k is needed then maybe finish with a green chromium oxide paste on a paddle strop.

Rich

"There is no native criminal class except Congress,"- Mark Twain