A Kamistory, starring Jenes Sandor

[Tierdaen]

After acquiring a handful of Japanese razors, I decided I generally liked the fixed blade concept but did not really love the execution and design. I also thought I'd explore a custom razor option, rather than accumulate more of the same style.

I'd been in touch with a few makers, going by those who have an aesthetic that doesn't clash too much with mine. The "Dragon Slayer" (hereafter "DS") concept by Jenes Sandor really appealed to me because it had nice lines and contrast, so I got in touch with him and inquired about a fixed razor based on the same design, but perhaps with a smaller 5/8 or 6/8" blade of about 50mm.



Mr. Jenes (Sandor is a given name like Alexander, IIRC) got back to me a while later with a very rudimentary starting sketch, with a simple straight handle and a blade like that of the DS.



I wasn't sure exactly what direction to take the design, but I felt the starting design ought to be further developed, so I opened up Photoshop and did some quick line drawing and kind of ended up with a fishtail thing that Poseidon would have used if he were a shaver.



Mr. Jenes was encouraging and threw some ideas back at me for adjustments we could make to the design. Big mistake. I got a bit carried away trying to figure out how to tweak it into something interesting, and also started really thinking about ergonomic considerations.

Kamisori are really designed to be used by a barber who can hold the razor in a way very different to the grips of a self-shaver. When I hold my Iwasaki, for example, I either have to hold the sides which are nice and wide, or I have to pinch the thin edges which feels unstable (holding a coin by the edges is a similar feeling).

Robert Williams did a very nice job developing his "Purist" series (Robert Williams Custom Straight Razors – Introducing the “Purist”) to suit the self-shaver, in my opinion. It's not really my style, but I think it's very thoughtful. I continued manipulating my initial icthyosori thing.



Sandor said it was somewhat similar to what he had in mind, and encouraged me a bit more. Gotta stop doing that, because I wasn't really satisfied and there were a few lingering questions about comfort. Did some cardboard cutouts to see how the fingers would sit on the razor and decided to revise it a bit...



The entire time, I'd been imagining the toe to be like the DS (and the whole handle to be etched dark), but out of curiosity, decided to put a more conventional oblique point on it to see how it'd look.



Crap. Both Sandor and I thought it might be sexier that way. I went through a few rounds of working it out, using mostly intuition about how the design would work out in steel, rather than just in a 2D drawing. We shifted to a solid 6/8" design, and I'd toyed with some 7/8" concepts, and got Lloyd Harner to produce a few based on the fundamental shape (http://www.harnerknives.com/wp-conte...dsc06577sm.jpg). I didn't buy any of his initial attempts, but I may have one on the way in the future.

Mr. Jenes and I discussed steels to use, and while O1 was right up there, I thought I'd like something different. We discussed 52100 and a few other steels, then he offered up some Bohler K510, which is referred to as a "silver steel" with pretty high carbon content. I thought it'd be a worthwhile experiment as long as his heat treating guy knows how to work with it.

I opted to not get jimping, since the thickness at the thumb notch would be substantial enough to provide a pretty sure grip. I'd thought about an etched finish or a brushed finish having a tiny bit more traction, but it's not really an issue. Some of my most slippery razors are jimped, and some of my most secure are not. Jimping would affect the clean lines of the razor (Sandor initially said he'd do some filework on the spine like he did on DS, but that changed as well), so they were left off.

The final design I sent him, which had been refined quite a bit both for usability and aesthetics:



It was a long wait, and I didn't really know what to expect. I told him to modify the design as much as necessary/desired. I may have a little knowledge, but I'm not a razor maker, and did not have the ability to test prospective designs in metal before adjusting them. I guessed that blending the grind with the curve of the thumb notch would be a difficult thing to nail, and I wasn't sure about rounding edges or tapering the handle.