Project: "Shave with Eight SE hoe razors in a row"

What's a hoe razor?
Popular around the end of the 1800's and up to, roughly, the 1930's the hoe/wedge razors is as close as you can get to shaving with a straight razor - without actually using one.
It seems like the French in particular took to this type of shaving but variations on these razors can be found in many corners of the wetshaving world.
It's argued that Samuel Henson (England) designed the very first 'hoe razor' as early as 1847.

There were a number of designs but some things are common across them all;
- they use a multi-use, removable wedge blade, and
- the blade is honed and stropped just like a straight razor.

*Note: The term 'wedge blade' is used as an umbrella term for all blades of this type even though I know it's a bit of a simplistic term.

These hoe razors introduced a number of inventions that later got adopted into other shaving tools such as the ability to adjust blade exposure and angle.

I personally find the design very visually appealing and some of these razors are near pieces of art. That, and these things were made to last!

My hoe razor 'collection'
I've happened to accumulate some really nice SE hoe razors over the year - eight of them to be precise:http://i57.tinypic.com/2hzh7v7.jpg

Top row: L'Essor (France), Louis (France), Le Coq (France)
Middle row: Le Touriste (France), Le Coq (France), Roger (France)
Front row: Tip Top (France), Rapide (Germany)

As you can tell - mostly Frenchies.

The 'sad' thing is I have actually never shaved with one the way they were designed to be used - using an original 80+ year old blade that is honed and stropped.

That is - until today :)

For the next 12 days or so (I will skip a day here and there as I normally do) I will use one of these razors and see how well they perform and how feasible it would be, for me at least, to have one as my daily razor.

Thanks to gssixgun / Glen I have a freshly honed and stropped wedge blade in my possession so there is no excuse not to - that I am really curious about how they will perform.
http://i57.tinypic.com/5nnaqc.jpg


I haven't worked out the order of how I will go through the eight razors but I'm sure that will just resolve itself as I go along.

For those curious about this, if there are any of you, I'll be posting photos and shave reports here for each razor as I go along.
If anyone is interested I can also post a video showing how I strop the blade.

What's a comparison w/out a grid? Nothing I tell you!
So, here it is, I'll fill it out as I go along over these two weeks:
http://i58.tinypic.com/eh4rl.jpg
And that's that.

More to follow :)

Wow that's an impressive collection. I'm always impressed by the engineering that goes into those S.E.'s and D.E's.
Form, function, and tons of beauty.
Thanks for sharing.

I don't have any of the SEs that are in your impressive collection but from the ones I have used I think you will be in for a pleasant surprise. They are a unique experience and are well built. Looking forward to your comments.

Bob

Shave Report #1: L'Essor
Attachment 204570


I was too curious about trying out the blade so I started out already today

One of the first SE Hoe razors I ever bought was the French L'Essor so I thought it was appropriate to start with that one - that and because I've been dying to try it out ever since I got it.
I think it's one of the most visually appealing razors I have and when you pick it up it has that immediate wow-factor in how it feels. Solid, heavy and just pure quality through and through.

I did a write-up of the razor some time ago here over on TSD for anyone curious to learn a bit more about it - and see a few more pictures of course.

I had almost two days of growth so the blade and razor had a bit of work cut out for them (no pun intended).

Since the blade arrived honed and stropped I skipped the stropping part today - but will do so prior to next use.

The gear of choice for my SOTD:
Attachment 204571


Put the Rex blade in that gssixgun / Glen had honed and off to the den.
Attachment 204572


Lathered up my now instant soap-favorite i Coloniali Mango and went to work....

Right away I could feel this was very, very different than shaving with a modern blade. There was something more 'solid' about it. Very much like a straight razor in a way.
I tried to put these pre-conceived notions out of my mind and just focus on how the shave it self felt.
It felt great.
Glen did an absolutely stellar work on bringing an edge to this blade. It felt 'buttery'.

There was quite a bit of audible feedback - just enough to let me know that I was angling the razor correctly or not.

I finished my first pass, WTG, and rinsed off my face. My cheeks were as smooth as when I used a straight razor - I actually audibly said "Wow"

One of the things I am not able to do yet with a straight razor is to shave around my mouth - with the hoe razor I felt more confident doing that even though in many ways I'm using a very similar blade to that on a straight razor. I think because of the familiarity of the shape of the razor and that it felt easier to maneuver.

I completed my second pass, ATG, and was extremely pleased with the result - a very, very close and smooth shave.

I had such a great time shaving today with this thing that I can't wait to strop the blade and plop it into the next razor!

Based on my one shave, if you have/get a chance to try one of these - do it!


Stay tuned for seven more razors........

You know, if Buck Rogers used a razor I bet it would look like one of these old SEs.

Bob

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BobH

You know, if Buck Rogers used a razor I bet it would look like one of these old SEs.

Bob

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I'm going to take that as an endorsement to use these razors as I loved Buck Rogers :D

I am very very Happy the edge turned out well. not my area of expertise, and no test shave so I was flying blind :p

Quote:

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Originally Posted by gssixgun

I am very very Happy the edge turned out well. not my area of expertise, and no test shave so I was flying blind :p

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You did a fantastic job Glen - it was like cutting through butter with it :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by gssixgun

I am very very Happy the edge turned out well. not my area of expertise, and no test shave so I was flying blind :p

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I also meant to ask - was it much different than honing and stropping a straight razor (size aside)?

More like a Kamisori not the ratios, but the feel of it in the hands

That is a fascinating collection, @Darkbulb. Thanks for sharing the test. How are the blades stropped with these razors?

Have you ever used a Rolls Razor, by the way? I also got that "Wow" thing after my first shave with a proper-sharp blade and, like you found, also nice in tough/tight spots.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by MisterMoo

That is a fascinating collection, @Darkbulb. Thanks for sharing the test. How are the blades stropped with these razors?

Have you ever used a Rolls Razor, by the way? I also got that "Wow" thing after my first shave with a proper-sharp blade and, like you found, also nice in tough/tight spots.

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Thanks, never used a Rolls but I've heard great things about them.
I'll post a short video this week showing the blade being stropped :)

Will that blade work in all of those razors? I would have thought there would be differences in width/length!
I just got a rolls blade from an expert honer (Bayamontate). Wow! :D Another of my favorites is an Everite Saftey razor. The handle screws in from the side for honing/stropping. Amazing shaver! Good to see others waking these old things up and using them. Big fun! Great shaves!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sharptonn

Will that blade work in all of those razors?

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I actually don't know yet - it LOOKS like it will fit but I haven't physically tested the one honed blade I have into all of them.
It does seem to be a rather standard size for the French hoe razors made during that time period so I'm hoping it will work in them all....we shall see :)

Use caution if it hangs out too far ! :dropjaw:

Shave report #2 - Tip Top

http://i60.tinypic.com/ajry82.jpg


Next up to bat is the rather striking looking "Tip Top". Another French hoe razor. There's not a whole lot of information about this brand available.
If I had to guess I'd say around the 1930's as far as years of manufacturing goes.

It does have a very, very neat feature and that's a knob on the back of the head that allows you to adjust the blade exposure to be exactly the way you want.

Here's a short video trying to demonstrate that:
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2v...rcedQuality=hq

Video link for Tapatalk users

Anywho, since this was my second time using the freshly honed REX wedge blade I decided to strop it as well a bit prior to using it.
I promise I am not really this terrible at stropping normally (as you can see the spine is sometimes not flat against the strop on the return stroke, etc) but with having to shoot the video at the same time as stropping I had to secure the strop flat to a table (as opposed to the doorknob it's normally attached to). Excuses, excuses :)

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2v4qmr_stropping-a-wedge-blade_lifestyle?forcedQuality=hq

Video link for Tapatalk users

I'm sure @gssixgun is crying inside seeing how his blade is abused here :)

Popped the blade into the razor and off to the den we go.
http://i59.tinypic.com/208jzx0.jpg


I fiddled around with the adjustment knob quite a bit - unsure of 'where to start' but settled on something that looked ok and had at it.
Ouch, turned out that my guesstimating was a tad off - felt way too aggressive. Dialed it back a turn or two and it felt a whole lot more comfortable.

The razor doesn't have that same fantastic feeling of solid quality that the L'Essor for instance have. Don't get me wrong it's a very sturdy razor but if I had to guess I'd say it would probably had been a less expensive option back in the days.

Completed one pass and once again - just like when I used the L'Essor - it strikes me how much this feels like shaving with a straight razor. The blade is a bit more 'forgiving' I think than a modern SE/DE blade.

I lather up some more of the fantastic i Coloniali Mango soap and complete a second pass (ATG).
End result: Pretty clean shaven. Some touch ups required on the neck and under the chin but very passable.

Between the two razors I've tried so far I'd say the L'Essor holds the lead but it's hard not to give a nod to the Tip Top and its blade adjusting mechanism.

Tip Top: The Original Fat Boy. Neat stuff, Darkbulb.

I have several rapide's but have not successfully won another style of hoe razor. I thought I had a Wilkinson and it came with seven days of wedge blades but the razor was one of the Empire models, but the blades are the same size as the Rapide blades, and I have seen Dorko boxes of 6 NOS a few times also. The Rapides are great shavers, I can only presume the rest will be too.

Shave report #3 - Roger

I was hoping I'd get lucky in that the one wedge blade I have would fit into all of these eight razors - unfortunately that wasn't the case for the French Roger razor.
The REX blade is just about 2mm wider than the original Roger blades (of which I have two).
See comparison photo below where you might be able to see that difference (REX to the left, Roger to the right).

http://i57.tinypic.com/14siq8y.jpg

So I guess that means two things;
a) I can't include it in this little shave project, and
b) I'm going to have to get one of my two Roger blades honed.

Hopefully the remaining five razors will work better with this blade :)

Shave report #4 - Rapide



After the no-go with the Roger I decided to take a gamble on the only German razor in the lot - the Rapide.

I did a bit of stropping - about 25 or so - and loaded the blade into the Rapide and it fit perfectly.

http://i62.tinypic.com/6riyxe.jpg

Loaded with the blade:
http://i58.tinypic.com/or2iyb.jpg

The Rapide has a visually rather intimidating 'grill' under the razor but during the shave it worked really well as sort of a lather catcher which I assume was the intent of the design.

Lathered up some i Coloniali Mango (apart from that I love this soap in general I've also found it to be really slick which helps with these shaves) and went to work.

Even though these razors all have a lot in common design wise I've also come to realize in a short amount of time that they are still very different beasts to actually shave with.
The Rapide has a much longer and skinnier handle than the L'Essor and Tip Top that I've shaved with so far and as I started my first pass (WTG) that made it self apparent in that the blade 'vibrated' more than with the other razors. I assume it's due to the pole-like structure and it did make the razor feel a bit less 'solid' when shaving and my strokes were a bit more choppy. I tried adjusting my grip to be closer to the head but that only made a small difference.

I re-lathered and went for the second pass (ATG). Exactly the same impressions as from the first pass - a bit more wobbly and choppy. If I wasn't comparing this razor to others in this way - w/in a very short timeframe - I don't think I would had noticed it much but as it was the difference was very noticeable.

I ended the second pass and even though I wasn't completely smooth it was still a very passable shave (well, I hope so as I have a thing downtown tonight) :)

Of the three razors (not counting the Roger of course) I'd say it was the one I favored the least but it was by no means a bad razor - just not as, subjectively, good.

On to the remaining four....

That one looks like you loosen the two little screws so the blade will slide down more. Tighten them and it gets higher?
Seems adjustable in a way. Have you experimented with that any?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sharptonn

That one looks like you loosen the two little screws so the blade will slide down more. Tighten them and it gets higher?
Seems adjustable in a way. Have you experimented with that any?

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Hmm...I haven't but now you are going to have me to do that tonight :)

I have one similar, made in Germany from the Exclusive Cutlery Shop in San Francisco. It has a different setup and blade stops at the cutting edge. I suppose no adjusting on this one. Handle seems much more substantial. I presume it was made by Henckels for them.
Who knows how many variations were made?

Attachment 204862Attachment 204863Attachment 204864

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sharptonn

I have one similar, made in Germany from the Exclusive Cutlery Shop in San Francisco. It has a different setup and blade stops at the cutting edge. I suppose no adjusting on this one. Handle seems much more substantial. I presume it was made by Henckels for them.
Who knows how many variations were made?

Attachment 204862Attachment 204863Attachment 204864

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Very nice - you should take it for a spin :)

I will someday. Just a challenge to hone the blades. Bayamontate has given me some instructions.
If I can get another Rolls blade to shave like he did, I will be in. An advantage to this one is, like my Everite, a handle is provided for honing and stropping. Should be pretty easy, although it surely needs lots of cleaning! :p

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sharptonn

I will someday. Just a challenge to hone the blades. Bayamontate has given me some instructions.
If I can get another Rolls blade to shave like he did, I will be in. An advantage to this one is, like my Everite, a handle is provided for honing and stropping. Should be pretty easy, although it surely needs lots of cleaning! :p

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You might be able to use a modern SE blade in it as well. Not sure though. But my L'Essor takes a modern blade just fine for instance.

I have the same razor branded Kronenberg 101 which I absolutely love, she shaves great.

Attachment 204904
Attachment 204905

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bayamontate

I have the same razor branded Kronenberg 101 which I absolutely love, she shaves great.

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Looks great! Don't see many of those around actually.

Yes, Nelson. It seems a ringer for mine. Much cleaner and sharper, however! :tu

I came across it by pure accident, its prior owner sold me a vintage coticule and we bungled the Kronenberg in with the deal. These razors have great balance, much better than the Darwin and the Rolls IMO.

Yes it is Tom, she cleaned up rather easily. The only issue was a hairline crack on one of the corners of the blade, I was told by someone in the know that some users over tighten the screw and/or dropping the razor can cause these types of cracks. I was able to salvage the blade by rounding off the corner past the crack with a DMT, she works great.

I have two styles of the Rapide. One like the one used in the test shave, with no "stops" built in for the blades and the othe which looks just like sharptonn's razor with the limit as to how aggressive the razor shaves. I have only used the with stops design, the other one scares the pants off of me, and you don;t want to shave without pants. The with stops is a great shave, not aggressive at all.

love it what an awesome thread great write ups
but no Rolls LOL??

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Darkbulb

Hmm...I haven't but now you are going to have me to do that tonight :)

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In looking at the Rapide with the Roger blade, make certain there are not 'blade stops' in the corners. It almost looks like the blade is a bit to big and is sitting upon the blade stops instead of against them. If so, that may make it seem unstable?

Attachment 204916Attachment 204917

I love the Rolls Razor, especially the Imperial #2.

I did mention the Rolls in post 13. I suppose the Rolls never 'took off'! ;)

The Rolls Razor is the slickness piece of over-engineered shaving apparatus ever made.

Indeed, but the Darwin seems about the same?

The Darwin Universal comes in a very close second.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sharptonn

In looking at the Rapide with the Roger blade, make certain there are not 'blade stops' in the corners. It almost looks like the blade is a bit to big and is sitting upon the blade stops instead of against them. If so, that may make it seem unstable?

Attachment 204916Attachment 204917

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Great observation - I will take a look when get home late tonight