Thread: Quarter hollow or near wedge koraat?

Originally Posted by dmnc

Finally getting round to ordering one of Ulrik's beauties, struggling to decide between quarter hollow and near wedge, please help me decide. My favourite razor so far is my John Elliot's celebrated razor 6/8 but all my others are near full hollow with straight edges apart from wapienica which is also straight edged. Basically my only smiler is near wedge and I love it. Also should I go for 8/8 or should I try a 7/8 first? Any and all opinions welcome. Basically just being my indecisive self.

I will let you know in a week or so as my Koraat 8/8 near wedge is in the mail! Have pictures from Ulrik and can't wait until it arrives. Ordered just the blade, old school and will put on some nice scales maybe honey horn or some nice clear buckeye burl, walnut lined. Lots of option but do want to dress her up properly.

Wish I had the skills to do that. Please post pics too. My vote is for the horn.

Originally Posted by dmnc

Wish I had the skills to do that. Please post pics too. My vote is for the horn.

This is what I am waiting on! Will post more photos when she is all dressed up. Thanks for your recommendation on the honey horn. That always looks nice and is very traditional. Lots of options on scale material ... I like the "Old School" Sheffield look. Didn't add hardly any of the bells and whistles on this custom. My next one ....

We can't really say what's best for you. If I were choosing between those options I'd go with 7/8 with a 1/4 hollow grind.

Those Koraat blades are awfully sweet. I've been playing around on his site... hemming and hawing... There are so many nice razors I would like, but there's only so much coin in my pocket.

As for size.... whatever you think you would like the most. Personally, I think 7/8" is about as big as *I* would want to go, my favorite razors are in the 4/8" to 13/16" size with 5/8 and 6/8 making up the lions share. I like the look of the wider blades, but I don't much like shaving with them... they just seem awkward in use. It could just be me of course.

Near wedge or 1/4 hollow is pretty much the same to me... I'm a 1/2 hollow kind of guy. I don't like full bellied hollows or singing type blades, but rather well hollowed blades that still shave silently without flexing. I like straight and smile edges and don't find much of a difference in use, but there IS a difference in honing and for sheer ease, the straight one takes the cake, but I won't shy away from a smiler.

So, I'm probably of no help... you'll just have to pick what you think you are going to like best. I love the looks of my 7/8 Joe Chandler custom, but my 6/8" razors come out to play more often, just because I ended up liking that size better.

Regards

Christian

Love the old Sheffield style too. I was thinking of camel bone or Grenadill wood on mine.

Christian,
I only own 5/8 and 6/8. Sure I want bigger, but not sure will be able to handle 8/8 in one jump. All comments are helpful with my indecisiveness.

Be Jay,
That's the most logical suggestion to me. Unfortunately I'm not so logical, was leaning towards 7/8 near wedge or 8/8 quarter hollow. I don't know why. May have to get both over time. Which first?

If I were from Sheffield, would go for a 7/8 - 8/8 wedge in horn. Mid 1800's style with a big smile, a rounded heel with a barbers notch. The larger razors are a challenge, but great fun once you master them.

Would you round the toe too? I was thinking of the camel bone, it has a really nice grain pattern to it and my Elliot's is ivory and camel bone looks really similar. Were ivory scales not just as much used as bone on the old Sheffield razors?

Definitely going for barbers notch. Love the look and ease of use. Can't tell on my Elliot's if the rounded toe is from honing or original.

Have you seen Ulrik's Meat Chopper? Was thinking very similar to that.

Originally Posted by ajkenne

This is what I am waiting on! Will post more photos when she is all dressed up. Thanks for your recommendation on the honey horn. That always looks nice and is very traditional. Lots of options on scale material ... I like the "Old School" Sheffield look. Didn't add hardly any of the bells and whistles on this custom. My next one ....

Finally got this scaled properly and with a nice shaving edge. Used stabilized Buckeye burl that I lined with black walnut, and used the BB for the wege as well . Now probably the best shaver I own. Really has a nice feel. My next one will be something similar, maybe a 7/8 with a barbers knotch. Just can't have one!

I did say that I was going to wait until tomorrow for a shave test. I couldn't wait. Smooth two pass shave. Few weepers(alum block and all gone), put this down to few drinks, never having shaved with bigger than 6/8 and/or keener than my usual coticule edge. Overall extremely impressed with this razor. Easy to handle, lovely weight and balance and smooth shaving. Also perfect smile, made hollows of neck easy as pie. Looking forward to perfecting my technique with it.