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Straight razors are available in many different styles, grinds and tempers, and thus can be a daunting prospect for someone looking to buy
Rifle. The issue most often asked is, where do you start?

This article help guide you towards making that first, challenging step.

Now that you have decided to buy a straight razor, you need to know that a straight razor is basically a very simple shaving device. Unlike its safety and modern multi-bladed counterparts, an upright razor features a single cutting edge that can hold an amazing sharpness when honed properly.

The handle part of a straight razor, known as the "scales", usually includes two separate pieces of celluloid, horn, bone, wood, mother of pearl or stainless steel. Exotic woods and materials are often used when a straight razors existing scales become damaged, or even the owner needs to replace them.

The scales are usually held along with brass pins and washers, one of which is located on the shoulder/tang of the blade which allows the razor to pivot to the open and closed positions. Most straight razors include 2 pins, though some are available with 3. Most of the time, 3 pins are employed to provide greater strength to larger and heavier razors.

Straight razors would not have a locking function included in them, and are free to open and shut with gentle pressure with all the thumb. Great care must be taken when you first take hold of your razor and open and close it for the first time, regardless of how sharp the blade is. It is advised that you simply do this while seated, utilizing a desk or table covered with a towel to control it’s action to enable you to observe the correct usage of the razor without dropping it or cutting yourself.

There are 2 types of metal used in the construction of the razor, carbon steel and stainless. Carbon steel is the most commonly used kind of steel used because of it having softer properties than stainless and thus requires less time to produce a keen edge over it through the honing process.

While this may seem off-putting at first having softer steel inside your razor, the advantages far outweigh using stainless steel. The explanation for this is that stainless is a more difficult material as well as far greater effort to hone it.

Stainless is also much better to keep clean and is resistant to rust, something which it’s carbon brother is susceptible to.

Regardless of which kind of razor you end up buying, honing and maintenance would have been a constant part of the ownership of your straight razor which is used on a daily basis and it’s also always beneficial to apply a thin coat of mineral oil after every shave to guard the blade and inhibit rust.

The razor blade edge is ground about the leading edge look out onto the top fringe of the razor in which the material with the blade is at it’s thickest point. This is known as the grind.

When razors are manufactured they are manufactured in a variety of different grinds based on purpose, though generally it’s considered that the best overall performing form of grind will be the "hollow grind". In the early days, manufacturing was actually done by hand, though down the road newer technologies saw the grinding process move across to machine made methods.

The hollow ground is probably the most common grinds, however it is not the only kind of grind you will find when looking to buy a new straight razor. Razors are also available in quarter ground, half ground and full wedge.

Hollow ground blades would be the thinnest grind available and the full wedge is the thickest. The obvious difference is that the full wedge gets the most metal in its construction and therefore is preferred to cut thicker beards.

The down-side to full wedge ground razors is that they offer less feedback to the shaver and can be harder to understand with. It is suggested that your first straight razor needs to be a full hollow ground razor as they are easier to maintain and discover with.

Besides the grind of the blade, there is a "height" of the blade, referred to as the straight razors size. The greatest manufactured size of a straight razor is 8/8 inch and decrements as a result of 3/8 at its smallest size.

Larger sizes, like grinds, are preferred for cutting thicker beards, where 3/8 sizes are compatible with trimming moustaches. The dimensions of the razor naturally relates to how much it’ll weigh, which can affect the balance of it in your hand. In the first place, a 5/8 or 6/8 blade for most people is an ideal size.