Straight Razor Kit AKUNSZ Black Cutthroat Razor with Leather Strop - Black Matte Blade & Rosewood Handle

I've been using the Classic Samurai razor with replaceable blades for about a year to introduce myself to straight razors. I finally decided to try a proper straight razor so I could get used to sharpening/honing one and thought I could expect something pretty decent for about $30. This razor didn't really live up to my expectations for the amount of money I spent on it, but after using it for a few months I wouldn't call it a terrible purchase. The first thing I noticed was the questionable quality on the wooden handle. One of the rivets isn't exactly flush against the side of the handle. It's also pretty obvious there was no attempt at protecting or finishing the inside of the handle, so I'm not convinced it will hold up very long since it's very likely to be exposed to moist conditions. I wasn't expecting a work of art, but a halfway decent handle is something I definitely expect for this kind of money, so that's one star off. As for the sharpness of the blade itself, I never have very high expectations for a factory edge. That means I wouldn't normally take off a star from my rating just for having to sharpen a blade. But I just can't stand when a seller makes some outrageous claim like calling this "shave ready," so I'm left with no choice in this case. Sure, you CAN shave with this razor out of the box, but it will feel like you're using a pair of tweezers to do it. Extensive sharpening and honing will be necessary before you can experience a comfortable shave with this razor since the blade is made of a fairly hard stainless steel. If you're not prepared for that, then look elsewhere. Also realize that since you're supposed to use the spine of the blade as a guide to sharpen it, the painted black finish will come off at the edge of the spine unless you take great care to cover it. I didn't buy this razor for its looks, so that's not a big deal to me. Having the strop included with both a leather and canvas side is nice, but definitely not enough to justify the price tag. That all being said, it was some great experience for me to have to spend so much time and effort sharpening it. So while I'm happy to have this as my first "real" straight razor, I probably wouldn't buy it again considering the price. I'd say it's worth about $14-$18 given the quality and my experience with it so far.

After using this for a couple weeks I have to change my review to a one star. I’ve used the strop for around 200 passes, I’ve watched instructional videos and spoken with my barber who uses straight razors on all of his clients and I’m doing it right, but that blade is just garbage. It needs to be professionally sharpened, and the nick in the blade needs to be honed out. The price and everything this box includes along with the price makes this an attractive deal but with another $30 to get this sharpened I’m $60 in. I should have spent the extra $20 and gotten a Dovo so I could have had a professional blade that comes ready to go and will last much longer. Every time I’ve used this razor I’ve had to go back to my safety razor to finish up and if it hadn’t been for using alum my face would still look like I lost a fight with a lawn mower. Seriously, spend the extra money and go with a Dovo or higher quality blade.

I decided to get into straight razor shaving and took a chance on this set. I think the most important thing to mention here like most other reviews state, is this razor is NOT SHARP straight out of the box. You definitely need to get it sharpened to even attempt to use it. I tried using the strop for hundreds of passes and it did nothing. I am in no way a shaving pro, but I did try to sharpen it with a stone we have. It did not work. I can understand needing some sharpening right out of the box, but after all the work I put into trying to get it sharp, it was still very disappointing and did not cut well. The packaging was probably the most appealing part of this kit. It came in 1 piece and contained a storage pouch. The handle was alright, but seemed pretty cheap and not weighted well. The strop was also junk made out of very cheap leather with a clip that was loose and small. If you are new to straight razor shaving, I definitely would not recommend, unless you want to spend more money in the long run to get it working well. I ended up returning and purchasing a 1 blade safety razor, which also was not a good decision.

Dull and impossible to sharpen. I tried to sharpen it with 320, 5000, 8000, 10000 and 12000, then green paste and leather. Still does not perform well. The blade's back is not eaven.

The nostalgia factor of wanting to shave the old school way like my grandfather. I know why they were called real men, i shaved with this blade and cried maybe only 3 to 4 times. I only bled one too two pints of blood the first time. After watching videos of how to shave, second time was much easier and less painful. The shave is close and clean, but the fire from razor burn is real. I applied alcohol based aftershave and the tears came back. Needless to say i will be placing this in the nostalgia drawer.

If I could give it half a star I would. I purchased this as a gift and was really disappointed when my boyfriend told me how terrible the blade had performed. Even after watching videos on sharpening and spending time to make it cut well, the blade just sucks. Buy a Mach 5 and use that to shave.

I can stone it and then strop it to shave ready and after two passes it is no longer shave ready. This tells me there is a problem with the steel. Just spend 50 bucks more and get a high quality razor.