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I'm considering picking up a Le Grelot in the next couple of weeks, a quarter hollow grind. Wondering if any of you with coarse beards have any experience with them and how well they perform. I've never had a 6/8. I've got a 5/8 dovo special and Wapis that shave *ok* but not great, and two 7/8s that I'm waiting to be have sharpened if the post office ever finds the package.
They shave with the best of them. I have a pretty heavy beard also and find 5/8s just okay. My Le Grelot quarter hollow took a wonderful edge and one of my best shavers, if not the best.
How does one figure out if he has a coarse beard? What constitutes a coarse beard? Do we need to count the number of hairs per square unit and/or and couple that somehow with the diameter of the typical strand of hair? Do we use the hanging hair test? What if we've shaved off all our hair and have no hairs to hang? :hmmm:
These questions are, of course, somewhat tongue in cheek, but every time I see the statement, "I have a coarse beard", I wonder how does he know that and by what standards do the others of us shavers rate our stubble so we too can select the proper tonsorial tools for our own marvelous shaves.:shrug:
:nj
If you can dul a razors edge on your chest hair, then you have a tough beard.
And the LeGrelot 1/4 grind is a fine razor to handle it.
Ah Bruce, while you were being partially TIC, I've had the same thoughts. And while I'm relatively new to both straights and DEs (~6 months now), I'm pretty sure I have quite a coarse beard for a number of reasons I won't bother to go into. That, or my prep and technique are absolutely atrocious. But considering I can get a fabulous shave with minor to no irritation (more so with the straight than the DE actually), I'm guessing it's the former and not the latter.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bruce
Thanks for the responses guys.
I got the basic Le Grelot with plastic scales from rasurpur and it's great on my course beard, is smooth to shave with, and is easy as pie to hone. So I'd highly recommend it. I think they still have some of the plastic scaled ones at rasurpur, as well as some really nice high quality scale options. Martin is awesome to deal with.
I've the great pleasure to own a Le Grelot 6/8 1/4 grind - also bought from Martin, who is a really nice guy to deal with - and I am really happy. It was my first straight and it get me hooked (I think I don't need to give more praise than that)...
Lucius,
Tongue not in cheek and razor no longer in hand today, I can only say that I concur with the others' comments about the Le Grelots from Martin at rasurpur.de. I have a couple of them (bad, bad RAD) and they are my favorite razors. I have others I also like muchly and plenty, but the Le Grelots are the favorites. :tu
good luck, good shaving,
Don't say that! :cry:Quote:
Originally Posted by Bruce
I've been looking for a Le Grelot for sometime now, I got to get one.
Then go buy one at Rasurpur before they are all gone!Quote:
Originally Posted by Leon
Well I'm certainly sold. My next razor will certainly be a Le Grelot. Thanks guys.
I got mine a couple of months ago. Get it while they are around. You will not regret it.
The Le Grelot is one fine razor and can handle any beard type.
One smooth shaving razor!:tu
I have become minimalistic in that once I got a Le Grelot I now never seem to get around to shaving with another razor, for a couple of months now. I ended up buying another and that one shave the same way...awesome! :D I am starting to take pictures to sell off most of the razors that I have that I acquired looking for that really great razor.
Later,
Richard
Maybe I should start saving up for two then?Quote:
Originally Posted by riooso
Two is a good starting point ;^)
Just like the others .. I got mine from Martin and it's up there with some of my customs ... it's a fantastic shaver also excellent value for your money .
Garry
It is my best shaver at the moment. It is the only razor I have that gives me nick-free shaves.
Personally, I find it amusing when guys fret over the fact they have so and so type of beard and think or are told they need to buy a certain size or a certain grind in order to get a great shave. If you like using a particular size or grind that's one thing but to think you need to buy a certain size or grind that's another. I don't care if you have a steel wool pad for a beard a properly honed 4/8s hollow grind will dispatch it.
Realize that if you went into a barbers shop in the 1940s (when barbers shaved people on a daily and continuous basis) and looked at their razors you would see 5/8s and 6/8s razors of the hollow grind variety. Maybe some of the old timers used wedges or part hollows because that's what they learned on but as those guys started retiring in the 40s and 50s seeing some meatchopper at a barber would be a rare occurrence. if you supposedly need a certain type razor to be matched with a certain beard type how did the old barbers do it? It should be impossible eh?
I don't think thebigspendur's post was answering my post (I didn't say anything about beard and razor matching it), but I'd like to add a few comments:
I am happy you can have fun with other people questions or interest... nothing is better than a good laugh. I just wanted to say that people have indeed different type of beard: for instance, even with a BBS shave in the morning, I have my beard back in the evening-night and have to shave everyday; the whiskers are thick and dark black; my best man, for instance, can shave with a BBS shave and still look clean three days after (he only have to shave generally twice a week); so I think some people can have a coarser beard than other.Quote:
Originally Posted by thebigspendur
I keep reading the thread but cannot find a post where somebody says that only a 1/4 grind - or else - is necessary or required to shave a certain type of beard. What I can read is more like: I like more x or y, or I like the Le GrelotQuote:
and think or are told they need to buy a certain size or a certain grind in order to get a great shave. If you like using a particular size or grind that's one thing but to think you need to buy a certain size or grind that's another. I don't care if you have a steel wool pad for a beard a properly honed 4/8s hollow grind will dispatch it.
True, and I may add that you could also be shaved by a barber with a 4/8 blade - as was doing one near my home. I think - like you - what we have here is - almost - only a matter of likes and dislikes... but, and I must add here only my 2 cents, that when I begun straight shaving, I felt more comfortable with a 1/4 grind than a full hollow ground because I felt less feedback from the blade with the 1/4 (the 1/4 seems to me stiffer) and was less scared to cut myself. So maybe I am a sissy, or a loony, but I think that anybody can recommend to somebody else what worked well for him, according on how he thinks his beard is, safe the personal preferences. I don't think there is much amusement here, maybe only the reason for such a forum to exist.Quote:
Realize that if you went into a barbers shop in the 1940s (when barbers shaved people on a daily and continuous basis) and looked at their razors you would see 5/8s and 6/8s razors of the hollow grind variety. Maybe some of the old timers used wedges or part hollows because that's what they learned on but as those guys started retiring in the 40s and 50s seeing some meatchopper at a barber would be a rare occurrence. if you supposedly need a certain type razor to be matched with a certain beard type how did the old barbers do it? It should be impossible eh?
I'm sorry you totally either misread or misunderstood my post. There was no amusement or joking. I am very serious here. If you read various posts over time you will see this topic comes up all the time. People do have the notion they must match the razor or grind with the type of beard they have. I was only trying to point out this is not true.
The original post stated the author has a heavy beard and was thinking of buying a le grelot, a part hollow. The natural assumption was that he was thinking of buying it because he has a heavy beard and asks if people with heavy beards would respond to his question.
Personally I have all kinds of razors and sizes and grinds and people gravitate to the kind of razor they prefer. My only point was that people should not buy a razor thinking this is what I must buy for my beard type.
You seem to have misunderstood what I said. I did not say people should buy any specific type razor and in fact said people will buy whatever type they like. As far as barbers go, your correct some barbers did use 4/8s razors though that was rarer. My point was barbers will use what works best for them. It does not matter whether a barber personally prefers a 4/8s over a 6/8s. if the 4/8s just doesn't do the job he isn't going to use it.
razor wonderers,
This may be devolving into a bit of a he said, you said, if I read you correctly, you didn't understand what I was implying, you inferred what?, etc.
Let me re-direct the conversation to: if you want one really fine shave, get a Le Grelot. These are really nice blades and the ones which come from Martin @ rasurpur.de seem to fly in the face of the advice that you can't get a shave ready razor from your average vendor.
I have other razors of more hollowish grinds which will shave me as closely and as comfortably as the Le Grelots, but because of their full hollow singing grinds, I can hear each hair being cut - and I am really hard of hearing. To me, these razors do not sing, and I don't care what others may offer in explanation, they grumble. The Le Grelots are a comfort to both my face and deaf ears as they silently and most comfortably shave my face. And I rather like that experience.
Can other blades shave as well? Yup! Do I really like the Le Grelot a lot? Yup. Would I recommend others to try one? You betcha. :tu
Wade in all, but you can 't win this one with me on this razor.";"
best of shaving,
I think there are 2 issues here.
The question of the starting post was: would a le Grelot be good for me as I have a heavy beard? Answer IMHO: yes a le Grelot is a good razor for a heavy beard but also for less heavy beards.
2nd issue: do you need a haevier grind for a heavier beard? IMHO thebigspendur is right saying you should not automatically assume you need a heaveier grind because you have a heavy beard. Best is to find out for yourself what works best for you. Shaving results with a straigth depend on a lot of things: the intrinsic qualities of the razor (steel, grind, temper etc.), quality of honing and stropping but also your face's intrinsic qualities: heaviness of beard, sensitivity of skin, thickness of skin, your skin preparation and your own dexterity, technique &c.
To summarize: a le Grelot is IMHO an excellent razor. I get very good results with it although I DO NOT HAVE A HEAVY BEARD.
Sold my Le Grelot. It was a full hollow made from Swedish steel. Top quality in every respect. Gives a smooth comfortable shave. So I can well understand that the bespoke models from Martin at Raserpur German are fantastic.
He honed the razor for you in the price you paid. The razors do not leave the factory like that and most distributors do not rehone. So while you purchased your razor from a specialist, many don't and they will not receive the same experience. So the argument about the quality of finish from the big manufacturers has not been put to rest at all.
I totally agree with The Big Spender in that a well honed razor will cut any beard.
The narrower the blade width, the easier it is to maneouvre under the nose. The wider the width of a blade, the more soap it will collect and so the more strokes you can make between cleaning.
As production techniques improved, the straight razor developed from a full wedge to a full hollow singing razor. Unless razors are different to any other product, manufacturing improvements are driven by cost efficiencies more than anything. So to my mind, I have no reason to believe that a full hollow will give a better shave than a wedge. I like a medium hollow at least because the hollow stops the blade sticking to my face.
Still when you find the razor you really like, that's a great feeling and well worth sharing.