Thread: Thinking about a custom straight, need your inspiration

So I have been using a SR now for a little while, due to the support of this community. Almost gave it up at first due to a dull blade. However, now I am getting consistently decent shaves.

So the wife is going to get me a custom razor for fathers day from her and the twins. A little about me: I have a heavier beard, I typically trend towards elegant designs. Now I need some inspiration from the forum, please feel free to leave picks, grind preferences, quality & good value makers what every you like! I will read and be grateful for it all!

I think you should go look at as many reputable makers as you can. They each have a bit of individual style. See who makes a razor that you feel has a very high cool factor. Then talk to them about what you would like. If you have a good report, picking everything should go quick. Let them do what they do and make the razor. I would suggest not getting too far into the design. Their designs is after all why you picked them. There are a lot of cool razors to choose from.
As for size and grind, it’s all personal preference. My pick is 7/8 to 8/8 half hollow.

What are you currently using? What do you like and not like about the razor(s) you have now?

Right off the get go I'm going to suggest a blade from Snail Forge. Bruno's work is all by hand, and in my opinion, it doesn't get any better. He's also a member here in the forum. His work is truly custom.

Maybe just take a scroll through this page. https://straightrazorpalace.com/razo...lade-club.html

Originally Posted by Utopian

What are you currently using? What do you like and not like about the razor(s) you have now?

My rotation includes:
- New Dovo Dusy
- Vintage Henkel
- Vintage Woshtenholm
- Vintage Torry
- Vintage BullDog (Not yet used, need honing)
These are all hollow razors so not much differentiation in them. They are all roughly 5/8th and I feel I could manage a larger / heavier razor. The biggest factor for me right now is that the blade is sharp. When I first got a few of my vintages, they were horribly dull. I got the Dovo and it can with a pro hone, that is where the love affair begins.

Subscription worthy!

All your razors up to date are full hollows and 5/8 this may be a factor, you should at least try a quarter hollow before you splash the cash on an expensive custom razor you may not like the way a heavier grind razor shaves, there are a few very nice custom makers out there.

Call Portland Razor Company and speak with Scott Miyako or Hunter Lea. They can give you some options and design what you want from scratch. They make wonderful hand made products, and can offer an array of options. They stand behind their work and do some very impressive things in the process.

Originally Posted by celticcrusader

All your razors up to date are full hollows and 5/8 this may be a factor, you should at least try a quarter hollow before you splash the cash on an expensive custom razor you may not like the way a heavier grind razor shaves, there are a few very nice custom makers out there.

Yes, this. Before going far from your zone of familiarity, try something close to what you are considering. Someone here might be willing to loan you a razor to try so that you know what you are getting into regarding size and grind.

Originally Posted by Utopian

Before going far from your zone of familiarity, try something close to what you are considering.

This reflects my way of thinking too.

I probably owned around 30 razors before I bought my first custom straight.
Some of these 30 razors were bought new and some were bought second-hand (mostly Henckels Friodurs), and for the latter I usually had to go through the full honing process to get them shave ready, which proved to be an excellent opportunity to develop my skills.

Only then did I order my first custom straight and, truth be told, the experience has been mixed. Some give me excellent shaves and some not so much (to put it politely).

Customs straights can vary greatly depending on who made them (obviously) and how much manual labor goes into them.

A custom straight can be made entirely by hand. That makes the razor unique, but carries also some risks.
In the glory days of straight shaving, perfectly made, affordable, precisely machined hollow ground straight razors arrived when razor makers started using two wheel grinders (e.g. Carl. Friedrich Ern introduced the “Hexe” grinder), but such equipment has become increasingly rare and many customized razors are today made on single wheel grinders. Like making pistons for car engines, there is an advantage in using a mechanized process and “manual” does not necessarily mean better.
Of the two worst razors that I ever bought, one was a custom straight.

Regarding size, my razors range from 4/4 to 8/8, but fairly early on I settled for 6/8 as my “sweet spot”. Over the last years however I found myself using regularly my 5/8 razors again that I had somewhat neglected for a while, as I found that, while I could get excellent shaves from 8/8 razors, they were for me not the best tool for the job.

Regarding the point, over time my preference evolved into Spanish or round point first, French point second, and square point last.

All these discoveries came with more razors, more practice, and more experience.
As you seem to be fairly new to the game, it might be advisable to hold off on a custom straight for a while until you settle down on the size and style that works best for you, instead of forking out money for a custom razor that could cost 3 times as much as a regular straight and in the long run may not be the style that you like best.

There are several razor makers who make razors to order (e.g. Ralf Aust) by manufacturing a razor from standarized components, based on the customer’s steel (carbon or stainless), blade size, point (round, French, Spanish, square, etc.) and scales (resin, plastic, bone, and many more wood types) preferences.

These “semi-customized” razors can be excellent value for money, perfectly made, and yet be highly personalized. In short, if you look at a razor also as a tool for a job, they can be among the best there is.


B.