Thread: BARBERS NOTCH

WAS THE USE OF A BARBERS NOTCH TO MOVE SHAVING SOAP BY THE BARBER SO THEY COULD SEE A MOLE,BUMP OR SOMETHING IN THAT NATURE

Originally Posted by canadajt

WAS THE USE OF A BARBERS NOTCH TO MOVE SHAVING SOAP BY THE BARBER SO THEY COULD SEE A MOLE,BUMP OR SOMETHING IN THAT NATURE

No one knows the purpose of a barber's notch. The most popular theory is that it was used by barber's to open the razor onehanded, but that's a guess.

Please turn off caps lock

Just for info..

This has come up multiple times it is even in the Wiki it is such a popular question...
Not only do we not know the original purpose if there was one, but no one has found a spot in pre 1970 print that even calls it a "Barber's Notch",,, in the old ads it is referred to as a Hollow Notch, or Hollow Point....
After that bit of info I personally tend to believe there is no "Purpose" it is just the same as every other point, basically just a design....

Take that FWIIW at this point in time, with the info available right now...
IOW stuff changes as we find more info out there...

As a self-barber, I can tell you how I use it.

But "WAS THE USE..." is doubtfully ever going to be answered in the affirmative, considering how many barbers used how many razors during how many years. That feature must have been used in more ways than one, and continues to this day to be used for different purposes

To me the more interesting question is how and why did the notch first appear? Maybe it just evolved from the old inwardly-curved style as a way to style the end of the razor with varying shape, size, and degree of notch

I'd like to think it made it easier to open but I doubt we'll ever know for certain.

I've read on-line that the hollow point is a stylistic reflection of naval war ships sporting a very similarly shaped prow during the same period... I'd call it "fashion". (If it's true)