Thread: Vintage vs. modern vs. custom

I've been truly enjoying my Dovo Best 6/8 as of late as my daily driver. A real solid performer.. I do bring out a vintage Boker 6/8 on occasions. Modern and Vintage German steel for me. YMMV

I think this can be answered as , if the grind and steel + the man behind the hone are right they all shave well. I mean heck even a GD can be made to shave( tongue in cheek) the ugliest razor vintage or not rusted everywhere but the edge will give a shave, so it really is personal preference which is one of the great aspects of shaving this way.

So as for me I have two vintage in the rotation, both happen to be American steel out of New York and they will take an edge as far as can go, I love to shave with them, and I now have 9 customs. 3 of them get used more than all the others. Why? Personal preference, they do not shave better than my vintage. They shave as well. Ok now that may be as clear as mud. Tc

Vintage straight razors all the way, I have a few modern production razors, quite nice, but to me, the feel and experience is a universe apart.

One thing I read here that I found amusing and has stuck with me, is that many of the vintage and antique razors that survive today obviously made is past a long quality control period, as, how did the OP phrase it, "otherwise those razors would have been turned into buttons or something...."

I love vintage, and I have quit a few of them, and I have 1 new TI. They are all good shavers, but my preferance is vintage, because of the history. Back in the day they shaved with a straight, or did't shave at all. So my way of thinking since thats all they had to shave with the makers did alot of work to make the blades the best they could to make it a better shave!!

Realize that all *can* be crap and no group is perfect. It boils down to "You pays your moneys and you takes your choices".

I own vintage, vintage restored, new and custom.... Most of mine are restored vintage, just because it worked out that way. I have found that a good razor is a good razor, no matter it's source.

Vintage and restored vintage are my favourite users at the moment... The new and custom come out to play once in a while, when I feel guilty about ignoring them.

My all time favourite razor... a plain ol' Clauss Special 47, probably 1960s vintage, quite tarnished, wonky scales and some hone wear. It was my first straight razor, found for less than $15 at a local antique shop, and it was the razor I used to teach myself how to hone. I finally sent it to Glen to get new scales and he even cleaned up the blade a bit, just to make it look a little prettier. I'm waiting for it right now, it should be back in my hands this week.

It comes down to what a person likes, there is no difference in shaving as long as the razor is well made and honed correctly. Old steels may require a different approach to honing vs more modern steels that can be harder, as in Coticule vs Synthetic etc. and it's why many of us spend a great deal of our time and money trying to figure it out.

Regards

Christian aka

Kaptain "Run whatcha brung, ya can't shave with a razor you haven't got" Zero

My favorite so far is my vintage Germania Cutlery Works. Not by much, my new Dovo is a close second. But the curved blade of the GCW razor gets into some nooks and crannies easier than the straight blade of the Dovo. I'm leaning toward vintage blades as favorites at the moment. They're more cost efficient, and there are more blade profiles to experiment with.

I prefer vintage I have a few new and custom but always go to the vintage. But I do have a new one that holds its own against vintage. Can't remember the name right now but a member that past (Bella) helped me get one.

I just like the feel and use of a straight so it has no bearing on me whether it is a vintage (which I own none); modern; or slightly modified modern to my liking razor. As long as they shave well and are well made that is my criteria. I guess to a big degree I am a utilitarian type personality shaver.

Going backward, where does one cross the line from modern to vintage? From vintage to antique (not even mentioned by the OP)? Most of my "vintage" razors are modern when compared to my oldest 6 or 7!

I have all three, and prefer vintage razors the best as long as they are not warped. Good steel that is easy to maintain, and the added bonus of the history behind them are the push factors for me!