I was wondering are custom razors worth money and are they really that much better than manufactured razors.
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I was wondering are custom razors worth money and are they really that much better than manufactured razors.
A subjective question. You will hear many replies.
My favorites are from the Golden Age simply because they all work and are of the historical persuasion. Generations of knowledge went into them. Most are home-runs in good condition.
Some fine razors being produced these days. No better than the old ones, IMO.
My thoughts as well, my favorite car is my 33 year old diesel mercedes.
Now THERE is a trooper!
There are some custom and semi custom makers out there that maker fantastic razors. Look great and perform as they should. I do not have many, but I have quite a few vintage blades. There are some crazy expensive vintage blades too, but I don’t have many of those either. There are some incredible razors from hardware stores and barber supply shop, shave as well as anything and sell for not much. It’s all about what is in the eye of the beholder I think.
The bottom line is it's about the shave, I saw the Charlie Lewis razor and was curious about it. Not that I am going to lay out that much money on a razor.
33 year-old diesel razors shave wonderfully. As do 133 year old ones.
Even some made today.
I do get a sense demand has increased for the older razors.
Buy 'em all, buy 'em all! :D
I have some great custom, some awesome modern, and some fantastic vintage razors and damn, they all shave well! Rez nailed it, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
Find the sizes and styles you prefer, check up on the few to avoid, and then have fun and....buy 'em all, buy 'em all! :y
I already have a few of these things..its addictive
It is........
Spot on, Tom--Andrew and I are laying in a horde of suds just in case Armegeddon comes or if lye gets banned or when our significant other is looking the other way.
Oh and strops and also hones and.... :roflmao
No compulsive addictive personality here.... ;)
I only have one strop, it seems not wide enough for my feeble attempt to strop.
With a custom razor, a portion of the cost goes into decorative features such as blade etchings, engravings, a decorated spine, thumb notches, and fancy scales. Those items may have little effect on the quality of the shave you get from the blade. However, if those elements enhance your enjoyment of shaving with that razor, then they may be worth the extra cost.
If you main priority is getting a great shave at a reasonable cost, then avoid the fancy aesthetics. You can achieve this with either a vintage or modern razor as long as the blade is properly honed. If you can afford a custom razor and appreciate it both as a tool for shaving and as a work of art, then find one you like.
There are some razors that have nice scales and other aesthetic improvements. They are not one-of-a-kind custom razors, but they are a step up from the lower priced razors "plain Jane" razors like Dovo Best Quality or Boker King Cutter.
I am really enjoying my dovo, I am more interested in the older blades that are in reasonable shape. I bought my dovo new but my other rapes are older ones. I just was wondering about the shave quality of the custom razors. Thanks for the advice, I can't see my wife being happy if a dropped a grand on a razor.
Kidding aside, Riga and Koraat do nice razors at reasonable price-points. Koraat is easier in terms of contacting Ulrik and you can play around with his configurator and get a very clear idea of what one of his razors will cost.
Ray's spot on with getting or having a blade well honed. If you buy on eBay, send it to one our resident honemeisters for that work (don't strop it when its returned--that will put you on the map with its sharpness and later with the stones they used).
I wasn't kidding in my earlier post though about size and style--new or old. Discovering what size(s) and points (round, square, French, Spanish, and etc.) you prefer will save you bucks down the road. Likewise, trying a few grinds is helpful as well (1/4 hollow, full hollow, and etc.). If you're not sure on these, don't sink a lot of money into blades...look for reasonable prices and blades in reasonable condition and try the blade for awhile.
Nearly any good, vintage blade that's honed well will give a decent shave. Finding your preferences will help you later with zooming in on what you want, esp. with custom blades and again, that will save you some money in the long run. Some decisions on these choices will also become more clear as technique and comfort and experience levels and etc. grow.
Have fun finding what you like and works for you!
I don't own any customs...yet.
But the best shave I've had yet, came from a 1700s razor I recently restored. I was floored, by a razor over 200 yrs old. :bow
The customs I have personally seen so far have not been quite up to sniff compared to vintage. Exception was a Max Sprecher razor that I got on a loan to try.
I am big fan of hollow ground razors and so far aesthetically only Koraat appeal to me with their Filli 14 replica model. I have not tried a Koraat though.
I personally gravitate towards vintage blades because we know they work for the most part.
I have a bit of old, and a bit of new. I will say that in my experience, most custom or semi-custom razors are quite a bit better than modern production razors like dovo, boker, etc...
That said, I've never had a custom razor that out-performed my best vintage razors in terms of shave quality. Looks are a different story. The benefit of buying a custom new razor is that you get exactly what you want and can be assured of good quality. Sometimes with vintage razors purchased online there are imperfections that you just aren't seeing in the pictures. And because the person that made it is long dead and gone, no one is going to take a vintage razor and give you a new one to remedy the situation like a modern custom razor smith (hopefully) would to preserve his/her name in the marketplace.
I know that's not extraordinarily helpful in terms of making a decision either way, but it will hopefully shed light on some of the different considerations when you ultimately make that decision. There's only one modern production razor that comes up in my rotation and that's a Dovo prima klang simply because the grind is exceptional and it's fun to shave with. Other than that, the rest sit in a cabinet.
If you understood the time and skill that goes into them, then you would think "what a deal" on most custom razors.
Considering what you are talking about auto's, here is a perfect analogy: "Is a Rolls Royce/Ferrari worth the money and are they better than Chevy/Ford". No, they aren't necessarily any better, both the auto and razor will "get you there", it is more about how you get there. Sometimes you want to add a bit of style to your life, whether it's when driving or shaving.
Unfortunately I do not have the ability to restore the razors. It does make sense about the quality if that particular razor.
Yes, that is a very good way to put it. If you consider the time and skill that goes into making a custom razor, that alone justifies the asking price. It is then up to a potential buyer to determine if it is worth it to them to add that amount of style to their shaves.
I just would not want anyone to think that because they can't afford and/or otherwise justify the asking price that they are getting an inferior shave with a none custom razor.
Bob
Good point gentlemen, my only point of reference was online. We all know it's good , but can be misleading as well. My business I own is full of misinformation on the web. That's why I joined this forum and I wish I did earlier. Thanks everyone for the valuable information.
Practice x-strokes. I have scads of strops. Not a 3 inch one in the bunch.
Begin the stroke at the heel and be in the middle of the blade at the middle of your stroke. Finish the stroke with the toe on the strop. Much more effective than going straight up and down on a 3 incher.
Like honing..Except going the other direction. ;) Look at some stropping videos here by doing a search.
Slow and easy is every bit as good as super fast, BTW.
Customs might be more fun to look at, and at times more fun to shave with, but I do not think they shave better than quality factory made razors.
I like the feeling of shaving with a giant 9/8s (maybe I am compensating :shrug:) ,but for everyday use I love a 5/8s factory made wedge.
My only experience is with a 6/8, my only issue is a few nicks on my bald head.
The only thing that matters in the shave us the very edge, the rest of the razor us to hold on to and look at. My vintage shaves as well as my customs. But like has been said, I could also drive around with in a 1980 Mitsubishi tiny truck or my new ford big truck, it's all about style both get the job done.
I always steer new guys to a cheap, quality vintage with a pro honed edge on it. That way if you don't stick with it your not out the grand. But if you stick and the money doesn't bother you, then it's a wonderful thing to have. I speak from more customs than vintage, but they all shave the same. Tc
When I show my razors to people who are unfamiliar with straight razors I am quick to point out that they could spend $40 on a vintage and shave happily for the rest of their lives.
I have customs from some of the best artisans, vintage and current production razor makers. First, a great shave can be had from all depending on the steel, edge quality and your technique. That said, if you can afford a Rolls instead of a Ford then there is a lot of personal art and craftsmanship in customs you won't get in standard razors. I really enjoy a good vintage razor. I find the shave, razor edge and feel to be exceptional for what you pay but I really like my Mastro Livi's for blade quality and looks.
Now you just KNOW when you do one side of your face with a vintage Dovo and the other with a custom Williams the Williams side is just smoother and closer right?
The same as when you detail yer car it always seems to run better.
Of course it is all relative, different strokes for different folks, etc. Speaking of strokes, a lot of custom/costume razors I have seen nearly gave me...are really not my thing. A few exceptions (eg. Tim Zowada), but even those demand prices that are not worth it to me.
Like some of you mentioned, custom/costume/artisan razors are about looks and style. However, instead of a car analogy, this illustrates my view on the matter better:
Even if I made filthy amounts of money, I would never, ever buy a guilded toilet bowl with an ivory flusher and diamond encrusted toilet brush.
But again, whatever floats your, errm...boat.
Best regards,
Pieter
I have a friend who has a lot more money than I and frequently buys high end cars. He says he knows he has to trade in his most recent vehicle when he no longer wants to wash and detail it on the weekend.
On the other hand, my cousin has an older Miata that he only drives on weekends in the summer. He’s had that car since it first came out in Canada and probably has fewer than 15000 miles on it. He babies that thing and takes it on Miata convoys whenever he can.
Two different attitudes that sound very much like what we are talking about with respect to razors.
For me in general, the more costly an item, the higher the expectation of perfection is and the more easily I am disappointed with it. Conversely, the expectation of perfection is lower with less costly items and the less disappointed I am with them. I prefer the latter.
With particular regard to razors, I have gotten as good a shave with a plain Jane restored old vintage razor as I have with the more expensive new current production ones I have bought. It would take a very aesthetically appealing custom razor for me to overcome my inherent cheapness because of these past experiences. That is just me though and everyone is free to spend their cash on whatever turns their crank.
Bob
And I’m sure you got a lot of pride and satisfaction from that shave because you brought that old blade back to life yourself.
I now have about 25 razors, all but two of which I got for cheap and cleaned up or restored because I enjoy doing that and get satisfaction shaving with them. I have one TI that I bought new from a reputable honemeister/proprietor who takes pride in getting his razors shave ready and that provided a benchmark for my own honing. The only “collectible” I have is a 7/8 WB wedge with a barber’s notch that was just too good a deal to pass up.
When I was a lot younger, I used to collect books and pipes until I moved a couple of times and realized a lot of that stuff never came out of the boxes. If I want a smoke now, I get a good cigar. When I want to read, I download an eBook or pick one of my dozen or so favourites off the shelf.
As I get older, I find I’m simplifying and reducing the amount of “stuff” I keep and enjoying more the things I do rather than the things I have.
Apologies for the philosophical diversion :soapbox::OT
I am lucky, I haven't had the money, even when working, to buy a custom razor. I get along by enjoying the razors that I find for cheap or trade services and equipment for.. NOW, don't get me wrong, were iI to comfortably obtain a custom razor, I would.
It would seem that here are a few different types of folks in every hobby/ business.
The acquisition bug, any all that come his way
The hoarder whose finds never see the daylight and are lost forever when he passes on.
The experimenter that uses any razor to find what is best for him, and never finds it.
The visual guy that has displays of razors and suchlike and enjoys the viewing.
The tactile fellow that enjoy using and honing his stash because they feel good.
Being a combination of the above, as most folks are is what makes this hobby a winner.
YMMV
~Richard