Hi all,
Would VG10 steel (Japanese hard steel) 62HRC be a good choice for a straight razor? Seem not many (if any) razors have this steel? Is it more expensive / difficult to hone, etc. Kindly advise, thanks.
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Hi all,
Would VG10 steel (Japanese hard steel) 62HRC be a good choice for a straight razor? Seem not many (if any) razors have this steel? Is it more expensive / difficult to hone, etc. Kindly advise, thanks.
I think cost is the major reason plus it is a Japanese steel so hard to get. That being said, I have it in many of my knives and find it to be excellent in that application. holds an edge fairly well, good rust resistance, easy to hone and takes a wicked edge.
Thanks, I actually received it today. A really nice & affordable VG10 hollow ground. Didn't have the chance to shave yet, but it passed the HHT straight of the box. Great.
Beautiful black ebony scales with metal insides. Double copperheads. Nice heft. I will take a photo soon.
I also own many knives in VG10 I like the steel also one of the very best steels if you want to put a mirror polish on a blade, If I'm not mistaken I'm sure Butch Harner makes a few razors using VG10 steel.
It's a quite normal stainless steel, how good it is for razors would depend on the heat treatment.
You want to keep the carbides small.
As promised, here are some photos. VG10 steel. 62HRC. Double copperhead. (nice solid heft at 115 grams) Ebony wood, copper heads 2x, metal on the inside of the scales. Jimping on the tang. (bottom side)
I shaved with it straight from the box, just to test it. It needed a little bit of stropping though. But after that... all set. It was my first shave with a straight razor. (normally I use Edwin Jagger DE89 (awesome), or a Parker Shavette. (good learning tool)
Shaving with this animal was easy, I noticed a totally different sound. A kind of metallic 'tingy' sound when shaving. Interesting. I think I am going to love this!
ps. the first few photos show a somewhat distorted look of the scales.. (wobbly) this is not the case. Take note. :)
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Haha, it's cool, looks like a pocketknife!
This has always been an interesting topic to me, and I'm sure there are tons of threads dealing with steels...I'm not trying to start something here lol
Unless I'm understanding incorrectly, the only reason to use a stainless (in this application) is to slow down corrosion. Carbon steels seems to set the bar for hardness, and stainless is always trying to get there.
That being said, there are some superb fine grain stainless steels out there that the knife industry takes advantage of (Uddeholm, Crucible, etc). I'm just guessing that if the straight razor industry were huge, we see similar application of these to try and get the best of both worlds.
So congrats on the VG10 blade - it certainly has a good reputation.
I've always fancied a razor made from ZDP 189, that as an extremely high carbon content.
that is NICE!!!!!!!!:dropjaw:
Nice pics, just wow. Please excuse me while I go to the store to buy a new keyboard, this one is not drying out anytime soon from the drool...
Sorry to rain on your parade, but usually when you see "pocket knife" scales along with the "affordable" label it is typical Pakistani junk, what we call a RSO (razor shaped object). Mostly found on ebay or Amazon, they usually sit next to the ads for $50 "Damascus" razors.
Congrats on the shave, though I am somewhat curious how the edge will hold up for subsequent shaves.
Wood double copper head handle razor , is , free shipping-inRazor from Beauty & Health on Aliexpress.com
Looks nice, hope it works out well. I don't know the company but I'm guessing the quality is fine, if perhaps variable. If you got a good one, don't worry about the naysayers.
I'm waiting for my first stainless (CTS-XHP) razor myself. Keeping my fingers crossed.
I was thinking exactly the same thing, in fact after seeing the picture I would bet my house on that not being made from such a premium steel as VG10, probably a cheap Gold Dollar blade with the words VG10 etch on the blade. I would like to have a link to the seller for sure.
I suspect it is much better than you give it credit for being.
Chinese retailer (Chinese language)
Actually doesn't seem too bad at all...the worst issue one might encounter would probably be a small geometry issue, but the steel and treatment are likely good or excellent.
I'm not going to vouch for a company I don't know, but Gold Dollar razors are produced in Zhejiang province in China and have a stainless model in the 800 but do not think it's imported steel. The one in this thread seems to really be made of VG-10 and is made in Taiwan. Very different creatures, with a large difference in Chinese prices.
I kept reading about the double copperheads.....WTF are double copperheads? Then I saw them and the tears started falling.
May I know why some think it looks like a pocketknife? Because of the copper heads on the top / bottom of the scales? :) Kindly advise, thanks.
I have a strong gut feeling that those scales really unbalance that razor. Good luck with it though and I truly hope it works out for you. Keep us posted on how it's performing after a few shaves.
I would never recommend anyone ignore the advice of others, especially if it's because you don't like the answer. Advice given by members is usually based on years of experience, both good and bad, and is meant to help others. Country of origin is not the determining factor here; multiple accounts of wetshavers being ripped off is, and we don't like to see members get ripped off at SRP.
Now some of us could very well be wrong about this razor, but there are just too many things that are suspect about it. Feel free to shoot me a pm if you wish to discuss it further. At the end of the day it's not my money being spent, so as with anything a little caution is always a good thing.
High quality straight razor, featuring a superior VG10 steel blade and comfortable ebony scales which are reinforced with metal on the inside. The tang has jimping for that extra grip. Two copperheads will ensure balance and additional sturdiness. This "Titan" straight razor is somewhat unique, as it uses superior VG10 steel. A rarity for straight razors, as this high grade steel is very difficult to find outside of Japan/Taiwan. Only a very few premium straight razors are made with this particular steel.
This razor, meticulously based on vintage design, comes pre-honed and will pass the hanging hair test.
Many of the lower end straight razors sold online and in particular on eBay are made of inferior metal. Those razors will not be able to be honed properly as the metal and design is simply inferior.
Don't waste your money and time.
Only the well respected traditional brands such as Boker, Dovo etc. or any of the real vintage straight razors will have the correct design and steel. However, you either have to buy a (very old) second hand vintage razor (which often have cosmetic flaws due to their age/neglect) or you have to buy a new one from one of the respected premium brands. This will cost you a quite considerable amount money.
Enter the razor sold here. First get something straight (no pun intended)... this quality razor is NOT made in e.g. Germany. (Solingen) Nor it is pretending to be. Its made by hand, based on a vintage design by highly skilled craftsmen in Taiwan. Due to the proximity to Japan, VG10 steel can easily be obtained and thus by combining the vintage design of the classic straight razor with this superior steel you too can have a truly high quality, yet affordable razor that will last a life time.
So what makes VG10 steel so good?
* Minimal sharpening maintenance is required as it holds its edge so long you have to sharpen them less frequently.
* VG10, the G stands for "gold" a good start already, can be heat treated to make it very hard (62+ on the Rockwell scale) and it's very strong and stain resistant. What that means is it's just about perfect for making straight razors which stay sharp for a very long time.
Fallkniven (a very famous knife brand) uses it in just about all their knives as their preferred steel. A lot of the Japanese knives use VG10 for their cutting edge too.
This particular straight razor has only be recently developed to cater for those men that are looking for an truly excellent, more affordable alternative to start with the manly art of straight razor shaving.
Remember:
VG10 steel. Superior hardness and edge retention. You will not find a better priced straight razor with this material.
Comes pre-honed, will pass the hanging hair test!
Solid, high quality materials!
... and FREE SHIPPING WORLDWIDE is included!
Reading the Sales Pitch on E-bay above it looks like the seller has hit every search trigger word possible to sell the razor... hehehe They missed Dubl Duck and Filarmonica
Here is the front of the razor with the brand name, Note the uneven grind :( looks much the same as the Kriegar, Frost, Marble, Master, Etc: Etc: Etc: :(
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Sorry but I ain't taking that bait...
The seller on Ebay claims they are from Taiwan but the seller is located in central Hong Kong, and they cost £51 now call me a sceptic but I cannot believe these razors are anything other than dressed up Chinese Gold Dollars. Shave Ready Straight Razor - 7/8 Hollow Ground VG10 Steel - Vintage Design | eBay
They are made in Taiwan for a Chinese contractor mainly for the Chinese market. Even the basic models are much more expensive than Gold Dollars in the same market.
They don't seem to have a Taiwan market presence, but if I stumble across one I'll give it a good look. The accumulated knowledge and experience on this forum about these razors seems limited to the OP for now.
I don't have any other experience with straight razors... so I can't compare... expect with a super el cheapo Chinese nobrand razor I bought long ago. I actually posted the ebay sale. (hence the same photos) As I didn't like the heavy scales. Some people might like it though I guess.
However, I believe the blade itself is excellent. The grinding is even... even though the photo seems to show an uneven grind... that is not the case. Its the poor lighting of the photos, playing tricks. Its an even grind. Also the material has a very nice clear metal sound when you tick on it... a nice clean ringing metal snappy sound. Not sure if that is good, but my guess is it is a good sign. Since the other cheap crappy razor I have doesn't have the same beautiful sound, just a dull sound only.
Does the sound tell you something about the quality of the metal?
I am planning to buy another one, without the heavy copper parts. I feel confident it will be nice as well, yet more balanced. The razor was very sharp out of the box. Just needed some stropping.
My favorite pitch: "meticulously based on traditional design."
;)
Just to make sure... the comments that it looks like a pocket knife is because of those copperheads? If without those, then it looks like a normal straight razor. No?
Those copper parts weigh around 30 grams in total or so. Total weight of the razor is 115 gram. Without those parts I guess it would weigh 85 grams.
Generally, scales on a razor are pretty light. If you open a straight so that the scales are in line with the blade, you should be able to balance it with the tang on your finger. More or less anyway. If you slide your finger as close to the pivot pin as possible (from the blade side) and you still can't balance the razor, this means that the scales are too heavy.
A standard full hollow 5/8 razor with proper balance weighs 40għ2g. Also correct grinding and honing means that the bevel should not extend inside the shoulder (the photographs are probably the stock photos that the seller is using for the listing, not of your particular razor, so yours is hopefully better).
You may have a good razor, but as others said the marketing spiel raises a lot of red flags - it shows clear incompetence as far as razors and steel are concerned.
Back to your original question - the steel is the least important factor in making razors - there are number of steels, some among the cheapest that are excellent choice for razors. And there are many steels that are very expensive that are a horrible choice. VG10 is fine for razors, but you're not going to get better performance than say 440C.
The heat treatment and the grinding are the critical components. Yes they depend on the steel, but more specialized steels are generally trickier to heat treat correctly and may be harder to grind.
All I am trying to say is that selecting razor primarily based on the steel, especially when you don't already have a few dozen razors and are looking for something very particular, is not the optimal choice.
Here we have a weight comparison of some vintage razors I own always nice to see these little details just gives you a better all round understanding of the straight razor in my opinion, as minor detail always builds the bigger picture.
Feather DX including the blade 53g
Vintage Japanese Fon Golden star 13/16 full hollow 51g
Vintage Japanese Orion Kikuboshi 13/16 half hollow 46g
Vintage Japanese "G' TOWA T" 7/8 full hollow 47g
Vintage Japanese Tamahagane Dragon God 13/16 Kamisori grind 49g
Vintage Japanese Gold Rex 13/16 full hollow 80g
Vintage Filarmonica especial Monserrat Pau 8/8 full hollow 64g
Vintage Sheffield 3000 special 6/8 full hollow 55g
Vintage Swedish Heljestrand Le Duc 13/16 quarter hollow 51g
Vintage German dubl Duck Goldedge 6/8 full hollow 38g
Vintage Max Otte German 5/8 extra hollow 31g
Including the scales.