WetShaving

A combined shipment from Stirling and Barrister and Mann arrived today. From Stirling, I finally got my replacement Varen tub (and added the frag) and got a tub of Mountain man to replace my soon-to-be-killed sample of it.

Braeburn was pointed out to me as a possible alternative to SBS Teacher's Pet (now sadly UnObTaInIuM) and it was a great tip. Dickens is a replacement from balm that has... not aged well, and Beaudelaire was on discount and I certainly can't resist trying a Fougère with Mousse de Saxe. Especially not if this is how Will describes it:

*Beaudelaire: A proprietary fougère that incorporates my recreation of Mousse de Saxe. [...] I describe it as the perfume Oscar Wilde would have worn. Rich, creamy, bright at the top, leathery and dirty at the bottom.*

edit: I just only now realised that Beaudelaire the frag isn't spelled like the Baudelaire the author.

I cleaned, polished, and honed these three vintage razors a while ago, but didn't get to posting a mail call. The main act here is definitely the big Henckels 14:

It is in great condition, just a bit of surface corrosion at the toe where the hollow grind touches the scales. I'm always amazed by how quickly these extra hollow 14 razors hone up. It really barely takes any work to get a great edge. This is my third 14 razor, the other two being a Filarmónica 14 and a Henckels Friodur 14 (the stainless successor of this new acquisition). Two shaves with this were wonderful.

The little Puma 88 is a fairly standard ⅝" round tip German hollow ground, but it seems extremely well-made. The absolutely even stamp on the shank, the completely regular jimps, and the pretty scales with brass inlay and the stamp around the pivot pin all scream quality without opulence. I get the hard-to-describe feeling from this razor that I also get from a well made hammer or screw driver. Great shaver.

Finally, this poor Frio 72½ took some serious abuse from its previous owner. If you look closely, you can see that the bevel looks wavy around the middle of the blade.

Here's a close-up.

The reason is that the edge has been bent out of true in three places. When I bought the razor, the images for the offer were taken in a way that didn't show this issue. I almost tossed the razor after it arrived, but then I decided to give it a try and it turns out it has no impact on shave quality. I'm still not sure whether to keep this razor of PIF it maybe.

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I just had this NOS Wüsthof razor land last night. 7/8 Extra Hollow Square Point.

Barbershop scents are my favorite genre (as faux and ill defined genre as it is), so when I laid eyes on this I knew it belonged in the collection.

I know Wüsthof is an old Cutlery company, and I'm having trouble dating this. I believe it's pre WWII, as it was still made in Solingen. Post WWII, Wüsthof moved production to both Canada and the US. I've reached out to Wüsthof to see if they could help me narrow down a date.

Update: I've already recipe a reply from Wüsthof. Their reply simply says they do not know, nor do they keep anyone on staff knowledgeable of their history. To the deepest depths of the internet I go.

Update II: Narrowed down a date, with some help, to between 1925 and 1932

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A razor can take up space in a gentleman’s vest-pocket… a problem several inventors searched for a solution to, including Mr Albert S Aloe. He came up with a folding razor all the way back in 1886.

Described, unsurprisingly, as a new and useful improvement in safety razors, Albert didn’t have the benefit of the thin replaceable blade. Like most razors of this era he had to work with a wedge blade. A wedge blade is chunkier than a modern razor blade, but also has the benefit that it can be stropped and honed.

In hindsight his razor is simple enough. A couple of pieces of sheet metal, shaped to hold and clamp a razor blade. The blade holder and guard were made to fold flat when not in use. In some ways you could see it as a folding version of John Monks’ razor.

Patent drawing for US patent 375,592

It is worth noting that the first claim in the patent isn’t the razor per se. Rather it is for the spiral guard, which was meant to ‘carry the lather endwise’ when the razor was used. Or in simpler words; keep the lather out of the way.

The blade was held in place by a spring loaded catch. This also made sure the distance between the edge and the guard stayed constant, even as the edge was gently worn away by stropping and honing. You could say the blade was self adjusting to keep it working as intended.

I see no reason why Aloe’s folding razor shouldn’t work as intended, nor any reason why a version couldn’t be made for a GEM blade. At the same time I see no reason why anyone would want one today, as it is unergonomic and looks like a kludge.

You can read the full patent for Aloe’s folding razor at Google Patents.

Spanish vendor YourShaving had their 11th anniversary sale recently and today my order finally arrived in Germany.

Hardware

• Omega Roma Colosseo 31 mm brush: this should now be my thickest brush together with the MOAR BOAR. It's definitely the most dense synthetic. Quality should be a (synthetic) hair under their famous EVO line, but already feels good in its dry state.
• Leaf Shaving Thorn SE razor, fig colour: a safety razor that is said to be perfectly suited for head shaves and in one of my favourite colours. It's metallic purple, uses half DE blades and feels nice to hold.

Soaps

• Barrister and Mann - The Full Measure of Man: a great tobacco-centered scent and it's in the Omnibus base. What more to ask for?
• Ariana & Evans - Boca Negra: dark, spicy coffee is my first impression. Kaizen 2e base, we'll see how this performs.
• Wholly Kaw - Transition: chosen by a combination of liking the scent notes, the artwork and the name. It's sweet and a bit gourmand off the puck initially, but not cloying. I hope the other notes come through a bit more once it is lathered.
• HAGS - YourShaving special edition 11th anniversary soap stick: simply ordered to support them and because I never saw artisan shaving soap in the stick format. I actually would love it if this would become a regular thing, as sticks are great for travel and short trips due to their compact format. The scent? Initial impression is a combination of warm citrus and masculine aquatics. Think AdG mixed with bergamot and lime. Should be a good fit for summer.

Post Shave

• HAGS - YourShaving special edition 11th anniversary aftershave balm: the balm is a nice creamy consistency, the citrus notes pop out a bit more here.
• Moon Soaps - Old School post shave balm: consistency is definitely more of a lotion than a balm! Too thin IMHO. Scent is delightfully dark and leathery. Tested on my forearms, it made my skin feel really smooth. The pump mechanism has insane amounts of pressure though - careful not to get this stuff everywhere
• Osma alum stone: the french gold standard for real alum stones, not just pressed crystals. Great for stopping nicks, weepers and cuts from bleeding.

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Just had this 7 day set land today. Very minor rust on the tangs, otherwise in great shape. They all have yet to ever be honed.

KOBAR was a brand belonging to Friedrich Emde (as was the trademark Kiebitz). The company changed name to Gebrüder Emde and later EMDE. They produced razors between 1902 and 1939.

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I little while ago I bought a Christy razor. It’s a fun and interesting razor, fairly unique compared to modern razor. And, as I mentioned, you can’t get blades any more, as the Christy blade (which existed in a couple of variations) went out of production sometime in the late 30’s.

Some of you wondered if I couldn’t get another blade to fit.. and the answer; no, not really. And this is why:

First off, apologies for the glare in some of these pictures – taking photos of shiny blades can be difficult.

From the top: Common DE, GEM, Injector, and Christy blades.

No other blades are a good match – or even a partial match, for the Christy. It’s not just a matter of width and thickness, but more importantly of the inclined blade alignment cut-outs on the sides of the Christy.

The Christy compared to a common double edged blade.

You could trim a DE to match part of the outline of the Christy. However the slot means you can’t replicate the top part of the alignment cut-outs. And the cut-outs are also the blade stops, so there would be nothing keeping the blade in place. Nor would anything stop it from sliding too far forward.

The Christy compared to a GEM blade.

The GEM is the best candidate for conversion. But you’ll have to despine it, trim some of the top, do some very careful trimming of the length, and nibble a little for the shape of the alignment cut-outs. And even so the alignment won’t work, as the cut-outs on the GEM are too deep.

The Christy comparted to an injector blade

The injector blade seems to be a no-go from the start. Yes, you could trim a little to match the bottom of the alignment cut-outs, since the length is a good fit. But since the cut-outs are also the blade stops, you’ll have the same problems as you would with a DE.

So the question still remains; Where can I get a Christy blade today? I have this interesting old razor, and I can’t shave with it.

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A little while ago I bought a Valet Autostrop, almost by accident.

Unlike some vintage razors, you can still get blades for the Valet. And since I consider myself a shaver and not a collector, I got some blades and gave the Valet a spin to see if it belongs in my rotation.

The jury is still out on that though. Yes, I have shaved with it for a week, but a few shaves isn’t enough to show me just how good the Valet is.

Of how bad, for that matter.

The Valet Autostrop in question

It is – mechanically speaking – a very interesting razor. The way it secures the blade is different. The way it aligns the blade is different – yet similar. And the blade itself is different too.

Then you have the whole “push lever to release blade holder so it swings freely”. It is there so you could strop the blade – hence the name Autostrop. The strop actually goes through the razor, and the blade swung in the right direction as you pulled the razor along the strop. The whole thing was highlighted in advertisements and animatronic displays.

Historically it is also an interesting razor. You could consider it an also-ran when compared to Gillette – but also compared to the GEMs and even Schick’s Injectors. It is more complicated than most other razors. The construction is mostly sheet metal. It requires it’s own blades. And yet it survived, unlike other also-rans like the Christy or the CURBO.

As mentioned, blades are still made for it – although you have a lot less choice in blades than you do for a DE or even an Injector blade. Some report using a de-spined GEM-blade in their Valets – I can see that in the early A, B, and VC1 perhaps… but in the VC2 and later you have to work around the alignment bumps. Bumps which, by the way, different between various models of the razor – but always lined up with part of the VALET name cut out in the blade.

A week of shaves with the Valet Autostrop VC2

As far as the shave goes… the Valet Autostrop VC2 is pretty middle of the road.

It is not great, but not terrible.

It don’t nip or scrape, but it is a bit on the mild side of things. Getting the angle right was a little tricky, until I realised that like my GEM razors you can simply place the top cap flat against the face. The left side blade stop has a small burr on it I probably ought to take a small file to. People tell me the FHS-10 blade dulls quickly, but I didn’t notice much degradation over the course of a week.

Will the Valet VC2 make it into my permanent rotation? How long will the blade last me? I don’t know.

I don’t know yet, that is. I’m heading into the second week of shaving with it. There might be a third.

I just had this land, but moments ago, in from Spain. Managed to snag this NOS Iberia 14 Doble Temple. I'm looking forward to giving this thing its first edge.

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