If after evaluation of your received straight razor(s) we conclude that the straight razor is not serviceable, no fee will be charged except the shipping charges for returning the straight razor back to you. We will notify you if this is the case. While your razor is in transit to us we are not responsible for any shipping damage. We therefor strongly recommended that you package your razors very carefully and insure your package. Razors we DO NOT accept or hone are all cheap or dubious razors with too many issues ranging from poor to non existent heat treat, grind, steel choice....mostly made in Pakistan, India, China and even in the USA. Zeepk, Kriegar, Gold Dollar, Gold razor, Rex Sovereign, Double Arrow, Equinox, Master, Magnum, Sweeney Todd, Timber Wolf, Rattler, Craig Barr, Solomon, Beard Struggle Krakis, Naked Armor, Grim Reaper, GB Buckingham & Sons,... If unsure contact us and let us know what you have as the market is daily getting flooded with new, cheap and poor quality steel that does not take an edge but does well as a letter opener. We call them RSO (razor shaped object). It's hard to keep up with current market offernings. If you are unsure how to evaluate the condition of your razor please contact us. If we haven't been notified beforehand about a non-standard condition of a razor we will not accept it. If we do receive a razor that's on the accept list or it's not honeable we'll ship it back, you'll get a refund minus the return shipping charges. Inform us if a razor has excessive hone wear, chips or cracks bigger than 1 mm, rust or pitting on the razor's edge. In case you missed where to send your razor(s) the instructions and address are listed on the same page where you placed your order, right below the add to cart / buy now button.

There are several reasons why modern straight users favor the use of a straight razor. Many are attracted to the nostalgia of shaving with the old and traditional art of shaving with a straight razor. It's very masculin to use and most people are into the 'going green' aspect of it and are mostly interested in reducing the waste of disposable blades. Still many other users agree that because of the larger blade and much greater control including blade angle, one can achieve a superior shave. Because the cutting edge of a straight razor is much longer that any other shaving tool on the market the razor covers a much greater area per shaving stroke! A straight razor needs less cleaning and rinsing during a shave, doesn't get clogged and can be used for any type of beard or hair grow. They also tend to remedy 'razor bumps' aka 'pseudofolliculitis barbae' which affects many multi-edge razors. There's also the satisfaction of maintaining your own blade, aesthetic, practical and collecting razors involved. It's known that a well kept razor can be passed on from generation to generation. The active market for antique, vintage and restored razors is growing everyday and many collectors use their razors for shaving too.

Most of the best available razors are made of carbon steel and if not cared for properly will rust. One can use a gun oil, camelia oil or any other rust preventive product by applying a thin layer after each use. I personally like and use ballistol. I also have a bottle of camellia oil at my disposal. For long term storage I definitely recommend ballistol as camelia oil can dry out and turn into a gunk substance. For daily or frequent use both work equally well. Always make sure the razor is totally dry before applying anything. I personally like to leave my razor in the open position after cleaning and drying. That way I'm sure there is no humidity left between the scales. Rennaisance Wax is another excellent product that can also be used to protect your razor especially for long term storage as it's invisible and not oily. For water spots or black staining any metal polish will do. My favorite is simichrome. Black Magic and Maas metal polish also work great. Be advised to clean up black staining or spots in the early stages. Once it turns into heavy rust no amount of metal polish will help as you can be left with pitting after removing the rust or heavy staining once oxidation starts to eat away into your steel.

Simply that the razor’s edge is ready - without stropping - to give you a shave right away. You will, of course, need to strop the razor before your next shave just as any other. A good strop is essential for maintaining the shaving edge of a straight razor. One of the most important aspects of enjoying straight razor shaving is to have a blade that has been sharpened to it’s full potential. This will provide you with a completely clean, comfortable and very close shave that we straight razor users enjoy so much. Most new razors do not come ready to shave when initially purchased unless advertised and sold as shave-ready. In addition a razor will normally become dull and need to be re-sharpened several times a year depending on daily use and on beard type.

Stropping a razor is a fine art developed by repeated practice. The aim in stropping is to smooth and shape the razor’s edge into a keen cutting implement. After being honed, the razor seldom needs any stropping on the canvas. Instead, the honed razor is stropped directly over the surface of the leather strop. The time to use the canvas strop is when the razor develops a worn edge from continued use. The effect of the canvas strop is similar to mild honing.

This is 100% real Abalone or Pāua shell with a backing (black, blue or green) and topcoat durable acrylic layer. The main difference between Pāua and Abalone is the size of the pattern on the shell. Abalone has a tighter grouping of the patterns while Paua a bit larger. In the wild there is no such thing as genuine blue, green, red or purple Pāua. They achive this by using a colored backing for the genuine Paua shell. Pāua, in general, has more purple, blue and green hues while Abalone features more of the gold, pink and greens. Shell is a natural occuring material and no two of the same are alike.

Mokume Gane (wood grained metal) originated in Japan in the 17th century as a mixed metal laminate with distinctive layered wood grain type patterns creating spectacular decorations for Samurai Swords. "M3 Mokume Gane" is a modern interpretation of this ancient Japanese metal art. Today's engineers and scientists use these "Mokume" patterns and M3 technology to create the new "super composites" that are making the privatization of space a beautiful reality.M3 Mokume Gane Blanks, Everything is handcrafted to exacting standards in the main facility in New Jersey. Macro-Molecular Materials (M3) are part of the new breed of composite designer materials that make everything from the Stealth Bomber to the International Space Station possible. Additionally recognized for its astounding aesthetic properties, gem quality finish and heirloom characteristics; M3 Mokume composites allow the artisan to transcend the barrier between art and craft and transform handcrafted objects into the finest heirloom quality luxury goods. These materials are made with high purity metals and other exotic elements that have been de-constructed to the macro-molecular level and then reconstructed with highly refined chemical binders. Heat, pressure and an exothermic chemical reaction cause the molecules to cross link forming a new material with a unique macro-molecular structure. Because the M3 process distributes the molecules homogeneously the new material gains the benefit of all the unique characteristics of the individual components.. All M3 Mokume Gane patterns are random, created by hand and by the reaction of the elements to each other. While we have some control over the overall patterns (ie:wood grain or burl) the end result is like a snowflake or fingerprint; no two are alike. It is the random nature of the patterns that make our M3 Mokume Gane so desirable. Mokume Gane come in solid or patterned colors. Patterned used to be Face, Side or Burl. They are no longer available and have been replaced with Random Linear and Random Burl. Solid Colors: aluminum, black titanium, blue bronze, brass, carbonite, cobaltium, galactic bronze, galactic copper, gold bronze, gunsmoke bronze, nickel silver, red copper, silver bronze, stainless steel, white aluminum. Patterned colors: classic mokume, black/gold, damascus steel, bits & pieces, white mokume, black & white, cobaltium, gunsmoke/gold, lapis, blue bronze/red copper, black/red and blue bronze/white silver. Classic Mokume: Purest Copper / White Aluminum Damascus Steel: Bright 316 Stainless Steel / Fine Carbonite White Mokume: White aluminum / Gunsmoke Bronze Cobaltium: Blue metal alloy / Black carbonite Black & White: Black carbonite : White aluminum Black/Gold: Black Carbonite / Gold Bronze Black & Red: Black carbonite / Red Copper Blue & White: Blue Bronze / White aluminum Blue & Red: Blue bronze / Red copper Gunsmoke & Gold: Gold Bronze / Gunsmoke bronze Lapis Mokume: Blue Bronze / Gold Bronze Ease of cleaning and durability are no more or less than any other scale material. It wipes easily clean and dry with a towel. It holds it's lustrous shine for a very long time. Any silver or metal polish will clean or shine it back up in no time if or when needed. Due to the metal alloys used to make Mokume Gane it will add an extra weight to the balance of the razor. It's a heavier scale material by about 20 - 25% compared to your standard scales. I do add a thin liner to every set of Mokume Gane and will use Torx screws at the pivot to help the tightening process if the scales become loose. Like any other razor or scale material, always be careful handling a razor and never drop the razor on a tile floor or sink as damage can and probably will occur one way or another.

G10 laminate is a fiberglass impregnated material with an epoxy resin binder which is formed under under a very high pressure into a sheet. G10 is a very durable and strong material. It is extensively used in the electronics industry. Micarta is a linen, canvas or paper impregnated material with an epoxy binder. It is also known as phenolic laminate. It was originally used in electrical and decorative applications. Micarta is very durable too and offers a slick smooth (paper), lightly textured (linen) and heavy textured (canvas) option. Because this is a phenolic based material the lighter colors will darken over time and the darker colors will fade over time.

Carbon Fiber, being on the expensive side has the advantage of an incredible weight-to-strenght ratio hereby making CF currently the best material that can be produced in appreciable quantities. CF is a material which consists of fibers (5–10 μm in diameter) and mostly composed of carbon atoms. Those atoms are bonded together in crystals. Those crystals and the way they are aligned give CF the incredible weight-to-strenght properties (stiffness, tensile strenght, low weight, chemical resistance, temperature tolerance, low thermal expansion). To form a composite Carbon Fiber (usually a woven fabric) is mostly combined with other materials (plastic resin). These are the sheets that are being mostly used. CF is very popular in the aerospace, civil engineering, military and motorsports.

This beautiful material is the most realistic imitation stone on the market today. It is available in full size Blocks, cut slabs, shaped Handles and Inlays. Recon Stone is produced from approximately 85% natural stone ore. The ore is pigmented, compressed into blocks and impregnated with approximately 15% acrylic gem resin.

Nevada SB 194 reads “a person shall not purchase, sell, offer for sale or possess with intent to sell any item that is, wholly or partially, made of an animal part or byproduct derived from a shark fin, a lion of the species Panthera leo or any species of elephant, rhinoceros, tiger, leopard, cheetah, jaguar, pangolin, sea turtle, ray, mammoth, narwhal, walrus or hippopotamus,” except as otherwise provided by state law. States that ban the sale of mammoth ivory in addition to Nevada include California, Hawaii, New Jersey and New York. States with proposed legislation in process that would include banning mammoth ivory are Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, Michigan, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington. There are probably more as well that will follow.