Thread: New to the site.....but not really

Thanks I will take your advice and put it to work. Yes i've researched hones and i've found norton 4/8 combo is a good place to start. I do want to jump in but i have a lot more learning to do before i actually start honing. At first one my razor needs it i will send it off to have it honed so i can compare what i'm doing to what its actually supposed to be like. I'll get frustrated for sure but i love learning new things and it will be enjoyable experience for me. Feel free to either correct me or offer help along the way. Whatever you say will be read and applied to my shaving experience.

Very true they aren't making them anymore. I am eager to learn and that initially may be my demise. Ha, though i do appreciate the luck, i will need it. I'm sure i'll be posting a honing thread and many people here will probably be correct in their assumptions about me jumping in. So goes the process of learning.

yes! very true. See how much i'm learning already from all you guys! I will either keep a blog when i start honing or post a thread of how its going. I'm hoping once I start getting into it, it will be a relaxing task. We will see.

Originally Posted by mmilby

Thanks for the input. I will def be taking advice and putting it to use! Can I ask what made you disenchanted with honing in the first place? How are you more organized? If I do jump into it, and jumping into it by no means to go fast, what advice can you offer me as a beginner. Yes I agree thats one thing I put in my original post that I did love the sense of community at the SRP.

It just got too frustrating for me. I would try for a few hours to hone a razor, get high hopes for the shave, then I would get mixed results. After that I would be down in the dumps and stressed out. Then I would put off more honing and shaving for a while because of the stress. Then the cycle would repeat. Then in may 2007 I had a really bad shave on my Birthday, and maybe touched a straight one or two more times over the next four years.

Now I hone in shorter sessions, much more frequently. If things start to go bad, I put the razor down and save it for another time. I keep a journal where I write down what I do to each razor, and what the results are. I use a variety of tests as I hone, but I rely most on the shave test. After I shave I make a note in my hone journal, and write down a plan for the next step on the razor. I shave regularly and I enjoy each shave. When I get a good shave I am high on it all day, a bad shave still gets me in the dumps. Either way I just make a note in my journal and look forward to the next one.

My best advice? Never be afraid to ask for help! If you post today that you are the next honemeister, don't be afraid to ask a newb question tomorrow. Find someone to sit down with you and hone with you. Watch Lynn, and gssixgun on youtube.

Practice on some e-bay razors. You will wind up treasuring those razors, not ruining them.

PM me if you ever have any questions. I always love to talk about razors.


Michael

Thats exactly what I do in my beer making, I keep a journal of ingredients i use and what temps I hold the boil at and refer to it often. Thanks for the advice. I can see how easily it could put you down in the dumps because you spend so much time honing and if you have no so great results, it could get depressing. Like I said i'm excited to jump in but right now my jumping in is consisting of watching, reading and learning. I know its a long process, even lifelong process but i am excited about getting started. I will definitely contact you if I run into a snag, which i'm sure I will.`