Thread: Test shaves done with "new" razors?

Originally Posted by wingdo

My collection of straights is slowly moving from mostly vintage to "modern" customs for the most part. Modern razors just work better with my hands.

Anyway, a huge portion of my razors have been from Robert. That said, a few have been from others like Butch and Max as well. As we all know customs take time to create, and I've had word back on two of them in the last couple weeks. Both e-mail chains have included the phrase "I did a test shave, and it was great". I was taken aback by both of these as I was expecting a new razor. Yes, the test shave was done by the maker, but to me there is a certain pleasure on using a new razor for the first time.

I asked Robert if he does test shaves and he said no, he relies on his honing knowledge to know the blades will shave properly. This is really what I expect from any custom maker. So I was just wondering what others think. If you pay $500+ for a new custom...
Again, just looking for the opinion of others out there.

I must say I fell the same as you, not that I have the mega bucks like you. However, when I found my last Rolls Royce had been driven and sold as new I sent it right back. I have a nice pair of Italian shell cordovan hand made shoes now instead - takes a bit longer to get places, but I'm damn sure they were not test-walked!

My last custom was a disappointment, too, I confess to having a few customs. In the literature that accompanied it it said 'hand wrought' so I phoned the maker to ask what that meant - apparently he had pounded it with a massive great hammer. I wasn't having that, no way, so I sent it straight back.

Honestly, what is the world coming to?



Regards,
Neil

Originally Posted by Neil Miller

I must say I fell the same as you, not that I have the mega bucks like you. However, when I found my last Rolls Royce had been driven and sold as new I sent it right back. I have a nice pair of Italian shell cordovan hand made shoes now instead - takes a bit longer to get places, but I'm damn sure they were not test-walked!

My last custom was a disappointment, too, I confess to having a few customs. In the literature that accompanied it it said 'hand wrought' so I phoned the maker to ask what that meant - apparently he had pounded it with a massive great hammer. I wasn't having that, no way, so I sent it straight back.

Honestly, what is the world coming to?



Regards,
Neil

Funniest answer in the lot.

Well I do understand everyone's point and it does make 100% sense. I honestly never even thought that a new straight would have been used by the maker to test out the blade. It does make sense though and don't consider it an issue now.

Man I'm glad I don't work for Dovo ..... I can't imagine how many test shaves I'd have to do every day but I imagine my face would be raw.

FYI, unless I'm wrong, Dovo doesn't test shave their or deliver them really "shave ready", but to the point, I have heard it said over and over on here by some of the finest honemeisters there are that the ONLY real test of an edge is the shave test, and I am under the impression that they all test shave an edge before sending it out. I could however be wrong, so we'll wait and see if one of them chimes in.

Originally Posted by wingdo

Funniest answer in the lot.

Well I do understand everyone's point and it does make 100% sense. I honestly never even thought that a new straight would have been used by the maker to test out the blade. It does make sense though and don't consider it an issue now.

Man I'm glad I don't work for Dovo ..... I can't imagine how many test shaves I'd have to do every day but I imagine my face would be raw.

I wonder if you would even know if a razor was "test shaved" or not if they didn't tell you. Maybe there are custom razor makers that test shave a razor and never say anything. My guess is if they did test shave and didn't tell you, you'd never know. On a personal note, all of my razors are vintage antiques, so it wouldn't bother me. I do get the idea of buying a brand new virgin razor though.

Pete <:-}

I always test my razors (I dont have the same level of experience as most on here, but I put a good edge on my razors and my friends are happy with the edges I have put on their razors) I also just assumed everybody else would test the razors as well.
But on the plus side you gotta admire Roberts honesty in his answer.

I have two razors over 200 years old, they probably have seen some use prior to my usage, they probably shave better now than they did new. Point being, if a razor can take thousands of shaves over a multitude of generations, what is one shave? Take into account the fact that honing is where the wear and tear comes into play, abrasion of the spine and edge upon stones compared to your stubble.

This reminds me of an eBay transaction I had a while back. Bought a razor, the seller sent the wrong one. No big deal, I sent it back.

But apparently it was a big deal to the guy who originally bought the razor that was sent to me. He refused to take it after he learned it had been sent elsewhere and someone else had TOUCHED it. I mean, my god, who knows what foul oils were on my finger tips when I briefly opened that box. (I halfway wonder if it was just an excuse to get out of an impulse purchase he was regretting).

The seller was a gem though. We had a long chatty conversation about the other guy's silliness.