Thread: Amount of hollowness

Hi guys,

I've been trying to find and buy an extra hollow ground razor.

I've downloaded a .gif file with the various grinds.

I've been asking the ebay sellers for a picture of the blade's front.

Well, eventhough the razors are stamped "extra hollow ground"

they seem more likely half hollow ground to me according to the .gif file.

What is it that I don't get right?

Thanks a lot.

Well obviously I don't know what razors your looking at nor do I know what .gif file your looking at. But most illustrations of blade differences are usually exaggerated a bit so that you can easily see the difference.

Also different manufacturers might have different standards as there are no legal measures to ensure the uniformity of hollowness between manufacturers or even razors of that manufacturer.

"Extra hollow" is a variable term. Razors made in the 19thC and marked as EH may not conform with our current idea of what constitutes that degree of grind. I have razors that are marked EH that I would describe as half or three quarter hollow in modern terms. If you want to buy a true "extra hollow" you're right to ask the vendor for an end-on photo so you can assess for yourself the degree of hollowness to which the razor has been ground.

I think your best bet for finding an extra hollow blade would be late production vintage German and some American made razors. Almost a sure sign of an extra hollow blade is one that is bellied. There are illustrations of these here The straight razor - Straight Razor Place Library . Besides an end on shot of the blade to see the grind sometimes, if the lighting is right, you can see a reflected line the whole length of the blade on it's lower half. That line sometimes indicates it is bellied.

End on shot of a bellied extra hollow blade.




Bob

Personally extra hollow grinds in my opinion are the rarest of all razors to find I have only owned one and it was the most lethal blades ever with a spike point, you couldn't drop your guard whenever you choose to use that razor it was a little 4/8 Maxotte so finely ground was the blade you could flex the blade edge with your thumb.

Here's a profile of one of my Japanese half hollow as long as the second half of the grind is done well some of those half hollows like the big Filarmonicas can shave and feel like you are shaving with a full hollow, in the same way a reallly fine grind full hollow will feel no different to an extra hollow.

My favorite razor, to date, is my late-1910's Böker "Extra-Hollow Ground" (quotes show what is etched into the blade). It's pretty light compared to the wedge and my Bismarck, but it cuts like a dream. VERY flexible, too. I'm pretty certain it's a true extra-hollow, and I picked it up on eBay for $20-something (don't remember exactly).

Rich

I have about 6 extra hollow "singing" razors which have become my favorites. The new 6/8 Boker Silver Steel extra hollow with faux tortoise shell scales is an excellent razor. The blade is very thin but also stiffer than my other EH's.

I have 2 Dubl Ducks (5/8 & 6/8) and 2 D.R. Droescher (5/8) vintage razors that are extra hollow. I also have an Anton Wingen Othello 5/8 EH that is an excellent singing razor.

There doesn't seem to be a standard EH so you have to see the blade's end profile view to see the thinness of the blade. The final determination is how the blade feels during shaving. My Dubl Ducks look slightly thicker than other EH's but the blade shaves like an EH.

EH blades "sing" during the shave and when stropped. They give very close shaves using very light pressure and proper angles.

Originally Posted by BobH

I think your best bet for finding an extra hollow blade would be late production vintage German and some American made razors. Almost a sure sign of an extra hollow blade is one that is bellied. There are illustrations of these here The straight razor - Straight Razor Place Library . Besides an end on shot of the blade to see the grind sometimes, if the lighting is right, you can see a reflected line the whole length of the blade on it's lower half. That line sometimes indicates it is bellied.

End on shot of a bellied extra hollow blade.








Bob

I have also heard these call double hollow ground. They are much stiffer than an EH and give less feedback than even the full hollow grounds I have.

Originally Posted by john3126

I have also heard these call double hollow ground. They are much stiffer than an EH and give less feedback than even the full hollow grounds I have.

Yea, also called double hollow by some. Yea, the belly is there to help stiffen them because they are hollow/extra hollow ground. I dunno about less feed back than full hollows. The bellied razors I have are plenty noisy when shaving or stropping if that is what you mean. It is awful easy to flex the blade with your thumb too.

Bob

I have been shaving with a Cattaraugus bellied hollow this week. The belly looks a bit wider and extends further up toward the spine than the one pictured above. I guess there is variability in this feature from one razor to the next. Mine is definitely quieter than my full hollow ground razors and I cannot flex the blade with my thumb. Still it is a great shaving razor and one of my favorites to use.