Sydney straight shaver salutations

Straight up

Straight up

Member
Joined
Oct 18, 2020
Location
Sydney
Hey fellow wet shavers,

I have been straight shaving for 22 years as of last month. During that time I have made scales, restored and sharpened blades. My son started straight shaving this year.

I spend a lot of time on Badger and Blade but miss local news, and measurements in metric units. I'm also sick of seeing great razors that I can't buy due to shipping etc.

I have 10 razors all up, 1 strop and 5 brushes. I wanted to be a minimalist with 1 razor/strop/brush but fell down the rabbit hole, but only up to my knee.

I'm partial to Thies Issard razors, but also really like German blades. I have 5 Chinese made 'Comoys of London' blades which are perfectly fine but aren't inspiring.

I look forward to seeing how the local scene compares to the OS sites.
 
Thanks, it's novel to get feedback so fast. Post on a US site and wait 8 hours for everyone to wake up & read your posts. That's what I'm looking forward to :)
 
Welcome aboard Straight up, you'll find a pretty mixed bag of SR and DE or other safety razor shavers here, though it seems straights are enjoying a "thing"at the moment. So you won't be alone, howling into the wilderness... :p
 
Gargravarr, thanks for the welcome.

Although we differ in our blades of choice we all use brushes, soaps, & aftershave so I'm interested to see what the locals are doing.

It's so expensive to buy artisan soaps & brushes from OS. I'd like to see what everyone else has discovered on the local market.
 
Straight up said:
Gargravarr, thanks for the welcome.

Although we differ in our blades of choice we all use brushes, soaps, & aftershave so I'm interested to see what the locals are doing.

It's so expensive to buy artisan soaps & brushes from OS. I'd like to see what everyone else has discovered on the local market.
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OK, lots of people will chime in here, so I'll start the ball rolling with Forgotten Art brushes, made just an hour's drive from me here in TAS (you'll need a Facebook or Instagram account to see what he's got going, or PM him at @Irish). Also Stirling Soaps are represented here by @Ozwhisker of Artisan Arcade.
 
Welcome to the forum @Straight up, fairly new to straight shaving myself with less than 50 shaves under the belt.
The TI's are beauties. What's your preferred soap(s) and brush synth, badger, boar, horse?
Face or bowl latherer?
 
Straight up said:
Gargravarr, thanks for the welcome.

Although we differ in our blades of choice we all use brushes, soaps, & aftershave so I'm interested to see what the locals are doing.

It's so expensive to buy artisan soaps & brushes from OS. I'd like to see what everyone else has discovered on the local market.
Click to expand...
I think you'll find plenty of valuable information in this thread:
https://paste-and-cut.com.au/commun...oming-suppliers-and-artisans.3821/post-164707

Some local soap artisans include:
Australian Private Reserve (NSW) - @todras
Squadron Soaps (SA) - @SchoolForAnts
Whispers from the Woods (NSW)
Face Fat (WA)
Washpool Skin Wellness (QLD)
Artisan Arcade (local stockist of all things Stirling Soap Co.) - @Ozwhisker

Local brush makers include:
TF Customs Shaving Brushes (QLD) - @Tony Forsyth
Billy Goat Brushworks (QLD)
Forgotten Art Brushes (TAS) - @Irish
Rhodium Knots (ACT) - @Srdjan

Best to reach-out to them as I understand some of the soap makers have had supply issues due to Covid-19...? They could all use our support during these difficult times. (y)
 
Holiday I have used a lot of Geo F Trumpers (my parents used to buy it for my Birthday present) which is ok, but has changed over the years. This year I bought Proraso for my son by complete accident. I tried the Green and loved it, so I bought the red & white. I find it a great soap, much easier to work than the triple milled GFT soaps. I am also using Jack the Barber soap which is the best value I have ever seen (on sale at Wollies for $6!) and has a wonderful sandalwood smell. I first started shaving with Bardsley's and it seems very similar to Jack the Barber.

Brushes, I have Badger, Boar, and synthetic. I like a brush with a good backbone & sadly many of my Badgers are a bit floppy. I like the look of the Badger brushes, but find boar or synthetic work better. My daughter pulled faces at my latest brush "poor badger", so I'm going to move to synthetics when they die.

I'm a face latherer getting a bowl messy and having to clean it is too much trouble.

Hey Rbscebu, nice to see a familiar face from Badger & Blade.
 
Straight up said:
Holiday I have used a lot of Geo F Trumpers (my parents used to buy it for my Birthday present) which is ok, but has changed over the years. This year I bought Proraso for my son by complete accident. I tried the Green and loved it, so I bought the red & white. I find it a great soap, much easier to work than the triple milled GFT soaps. I am also using Jack the Barber soap which is the best value I have ever seen (on sale at Wollies for $6!) and has a wonderful sandalwood smell. I first started shaving with Bardsley's and it seems very similar to Jack the Barber.

Brushes, I have Badger, Boar, and synthetic. I like a brush with a good backbone & sadly many of my Badgers are a bit floppy. I like the look of the Badger brushes, but find boar or synthetic work better. My daughter pulled faces at my latest brush "poor badger", so I'm going to move to synthetics when they die.

I'm a face latherer getting a bowl messy and having to clean it is too much trouble.
Click to expand...
Cheers @Straight up , my girls are none the wiser badger, boar ,synthetic ¯\_( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)_/¯
After 22 years of straight I thought you may have a preferred soap such as Mitchells Wool Fat, Tabac or one of the shave sticks
Good to see the $6 Woolies bargain meets your needs (y)
 
Gday mate. I pop in from time to time.
I too am a straight razor collector and shaver.
If you're after a badger with a bit of back bone, 2 band is where you need to be looking. Silvertips, whilst luxurious and soft, offer no back bone.
2 band tend to be a little firmer.
Synthetics are user friendly, very soft and can be manipulated by an artisan to have a little more back bone than you can expect from mass produced products.

Occasionally I do stock squadron soaps, I'm waiting on an order of assorted soaps and aftershaves now.

Check out my Facebook page to see what brushes i have available if youre on the hunt, or, you can request a pour that suits your needs.

Cheers, Irish.
https://www.facebook.com/Forgotten-Art-401501850328499/
 
Holiday, TBH I find shopping for shave cream in local shops almost impossible. I just went to Westfields Parramatta and the best I saw was canned shave foam, or crummy plastic toothpaste tubes with cheap shave cream.

I bought my Proraso from Puremale but they have gone bust (they had a 50% off sale just prior to closing!)
 
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