Thread: W&B's Edges Are Weak (IMHO, of course)

I've owned 3 Wade & Butcher blades of various grinds and I've been SR shaving going on 6 months. I'm able to get great shaves every time I shave, and while I'm by no means among the experts here, I do believe I'm seasoned enough to make these sorts of observations.

If I could make one observation about the edges of a region/brand, it's that the W&B sheffield steel loses its edge faster than any other brand in my arsenal, to the point where (if you don't know how to hone, which is my case) it's almost not worth having them because of the cost of maintenance on them (both monetarily and in terms of time spent).

On the other hand, my German/Solingen steel holds edges phenomenally. My very first razor, a Robert Klaas 11/16, has never been re-honed in 6 months and I still use it weekly. The edge is still so scary sharp that I can get a way with a 1-pass shave in the morning when I'm in a rush.

I have also been going to my Filarmonica about every 3rd shave, and after about 6-7 weeks that thing is still holding up like a champ.

So, I don't want this to seem like a gripe session (though I guess it probably does), these are the observations of yours truly, and they are expressly the reason why I find myself staying away from the W&B's. \


Now, which way to the gallows?


EDIT: I don't doubt that people get great shaves from W&B's. When I first got each of mine, the first few shaves were phenomenal. The purpose of this post is not to slight W&B quality, just that the steel (as previously documented) seems to be a little soft, and therefore requires more maintenance.