Thread: Victorian 7 Day set....opinions???

Yes, have to say, as much as I like the 7 day set idea, the more I thought about it, the more restrictive it actually is.

The same razor, just with a different day on it, forever. Wrote this in another thread, so what if Tuesday's blade is the best and Friday's is the worst? Suddenly you hate Friday's!! haha

For me, I can rotate the blades I have and use what I want, when I want, without being restricted by the set, which is exactly, IMO, like JBHoren said, restricted to 7 mediocre blades forever....

So, YMMV, but not for me....

Big Phrank!
Like you, I like changing things up blade wise; 5/8 full hollow, followed by 13/16 near wedge, then settle in on day 3 with a 6/8 hollow.
7 days in a row with only the day changing on the spine would get old after a while....

OK, here's my experience with multi-blade sets.

Early on in my straight razor life I was fascinated with multi-blade sets. Absolutely fascinated. Loved them, loved the idea of them, subsequently bought a few.

You know where those sets are now? Oiled up in a storage box. Last time I used one was quite some time ago now.

Now this could just be me, I have a notoriously short attention span. But that's been my experience. They seem like a great idea, but the shine wears off (for me at least) quite quickly.

Plus they usually end up quite expensive on a per razor basis for some reason.

James.

Colonel...

Firstly, I have several Heiffor's and they are very fine razors. Sheffield steel all the way...

Having said that...I would ask for lots of extra pics of each razor including close-ups. If your satisfied with the condition of ALL the blades, and you have the money, time, tools, and skill set to restore and hone these razors then consider it. Personally, after weighing all the factors I would maybe (MAYBE!) go one more Ben Franklin...but that's it, and that's just me. That's MHO...

If you are a dedicated collector...these sets in GREAT condition are nice to have. BUT...for what you normally pay for these sets you can build your own 7 day set of some pretty incredible razors if you have the patience. As an example (and just ONE EXAMPLE)...I have a Jacques LeCoultre complete set with 7 blades, box and screwdriver (a very NICE frame-back and wonderful shavers IMO) that is absolutely Pristine! I mean MINT!

I paid way less than 1 BEN Franklin for this razor, and it is inscribed on the inside of the box as once being owned by a Cadet at West Point. Just an example...

Anyway...that's my opinion.

WP34

WolfPack Mike!
Thanks for weighing in with your insights AND an example of what a motivated man can do when putting together his own set.
And the box that was once owned by a West Point Cadet open a whole other research tangent. I don't think they've used SR at the Academy for quite some time...long before it was seen as a resume enhancer. My guess is that Cadet stayed in uniform for quite some time and more than likely has an interesting professional timeline.

I'm just an ROTC guy....

Thanks for sharing.

My experience mirrors Jimbo's. I have 3 sets currently. I've only used any razors out of one of the sets, the other two being mint when I got them remain so. The one that I got used was not pristine and I got it at a very reasonable price. That is a nice set you've linked to but it is already beyond what I would pay if I was attracted to yet another 7 day set of identical razors. Variety is after all, the spice of life.

Thanks Jimmy for sharing your insights and experience as well.
WOW, I'm really thankful for getting so many Heavy Hitters responding to this thread.
I keep learning!
+1 for Variety!!!

Actually, one thing I've found in their favour is they are quite useful when travelling. If I have to be away from home for a reasonable amount of time (>5 days say) I'll usually chuck in one of the multi-blade sets. My favourite for that is a 5 day Joseph Rodgers wedgey set with a single clip-in handle.

So to be fair they can be practically useful in that kind of way - just that in the past couple of years I haven't had to travel a lot, and the travel I have done has been shortish trips.

James.

Jimbo,
Thanks for yet another perspective, and this one carrying MAJOR weight b/c you have a couple of sets.
Awesome!!

Just looking at the sold bay listing Oct/Nov for John Heiffor, about 12, and generally they sold at around $30.00. Did not see one that went for $75.00 and more. They seem to be very workman like razors with not a lot of pazzazz sort of like a 4 door chevy vs a caddie.
It might be a relatively low cost way to get into a 7 day set if you really want one.

I watched a nice 7 day set for the last 2 minutes it was on and it went from holding for days at a little over $200.00, a slight bump with about 30 sec. to go and in the last sec jumped to over $1000.00. A new 7 day set is over 2 grand.

I think I would rather just pick a blade I like and buy it. The most I would go for in a set would be a gentleman's matched cased pair if I traveled with straights. that sort of has some practical logic to it from my perspective.

Bob