Thread: giesen & forsthoff

This thread is what lead me to discover SRP. I bought a Giesen & Forsthoff razor a while back and was a bit disappointed so I hunted a bit for other's opinions and found this thread.

What made me disappointed was two things; the blade doesn't center very well when closing the razor. While the edge doesn't fully touch the scales, it's close. Secondly I thought the edge was a bit too dull to be called shave-ready. As it was, it even came with a letter recommending not doing anything to it before the first shave. I could probably have cut myself by using a sawing motion, but not much more. It certainly didn't do anything to my beard. And it had problems cutting a hair pulled tight even with a sawing motion.

I have honed it over several days, spread out mainly because it felt strange having to hone that much. Probably because I'm not experienced with a lot of different razors. Today though, I tried shaving with it
again and it performed very well. It'll be fun to see over time how well the edge holds.

Still, I would have been less disappointed if they just got rid of the shave-ready stamp.

Heh eivind.

You need to get the basics right. From my experiences, Dovos when brand knew say 'shave ready.' as do most razors. I''m yet to find a brand new razor that is truly 'shave ready', the exceptions are the razors Ron Spencer sells (rspe7027) I mean, wipe of the oil and away you go. All my brand new razors were 4 x dovo took a similar amount of time on honing stones to get them shave ready. Now the Geisen & Forsthoff brand new, won't even com close to being ready out of the box. As I mentioned, these razors take a fair amount of progressive honing. I mean, setting your own bevel and if all you have as a finishing hone say a 8k, you will still get an acceptable edge for shaving. But, be prepared for disappointment as this razor needs a lot of patience. To just strop it then try and shave will not work. I don't know mate, what your system/honing equipment is. But to get this and all other brand new ones completely 'Shave Ready' you will need to get it professionally honed, or if you are intending to hone it yourself, then you will need to at the minimal, an 8k waterstone. This stone will only keep sharp the work already done by someone who may hone it professionally. The other option, is that you own a set of honing stones, (These are my collection of stones, ...which you won't for practical uses, need) 1k,4k,8k,10k,15k, 20k is my own collection of waterstones.Synthetic) (You won't need this comprehensive a set of hones, but more a collection over 18 months) If this is your first go at it, send it out and get it pro done, then you will truly know what 'sharp' is. And as you run through the stages of honing, you will know, really quick, that it is right, then its as good a razor as any I own. I own 2 of the G & F #571 horn scales, so if your honing your own and have the skills to do so, you will really have to work hard at it. But you will...just need some patience, good technique and persistence. Best of luck.

regards Bob.

Yes, indeed I was not expecting a top level edge, but when the cutting ability is completely lacking, I don't hesitate a second to call their claim a plain lie. As far as I can see, lying is sadly the norm these days, though, so I don't think razor makers are alone. And it seems atleast that people here do a nice job of informing about that.

Yes, I had to go to one of the coarser of my stones on this razor. I don't have any idea about grit. I could make a guess, not knowing how much that is worth, by comparing the sound with some videos I've found here and say perhaps around 1000. Then something finer, and a coticule for final refinement. As I said, it's sharp now, so it'll be interesting to see if the steel is any good keeping the sharpness.

I see your suggestion and I'm certain that somebody more experienced could get a better edge than me, it's not normally razors I sharpen. In fact, this was the first new razor I've bought, so my experience from before is all from using and maintaining a couple that I've inherited from my great grandfather. However, I'm not that fond of having other people handling my tools, and certainly not when it's a personal tool such as a razor. I realise that I'm probably quite alone having that opinion though.

Got one off eBay, and of course forgot to read here. Marked 292 Adoration Ax. I suspect newer manufacture, as blade is clean, a bit short, thinner spine than any razor I own, and no inlay in scales. The logos, and names are stamped in, rather than chemical etched. Just freshened it on a 12k, stopped. Shaved well. While thin, it seems very straight, sharpening line is even on both sides. Opinion? Its in my rotation.
Wish I had a way to date something like this.

Mate there are many views on the G & F razors. I'd disregard my earlier posts and go to the posts of the founder of our Forum, Lynn Abrams back on page 3. Hard to justify any comments that disagree with Lynn, he has 10 years here, that's some experience!. Cheers and enjoy your chosen razor!
Cheers Bob

Originally Posted by RandomGS

Got one off eBay, and of course forgot to read here. Marked 292 Adoration Ax. I suspect newer manufacture, as blade is clean, a bit short, thinner spine than any razor I own, and no inlay in scales. The logos, and names are stamped in, rather than chemical etched. Just freshened it on a 12k, stopped. Shaved well. While thin, it seems very straight, sharpening line is even on both sides. Opinion? Its in my rotation.
Wish I had a way to date something like this.

Adoration 292 Axe is an example of a 'modern grind' wedge, much like Red Imp wedges and DD Special wedges and many more. Easy to hone and maintain. Easy to shave with. I think probably from the late 40's, 50's. Was made by the old company.
Good razors, FME

What Sharpton said. Original scales would have had an inlay, but my experience is that the scales tend to shrink over time, leading the tip of the blade to strike the wedge when opening and closing.
Likely a previous owner took the time to put new scales on it. I have owned 4 of them, They are my favorite example of bigger is NOT always better!

I've recently received several of the new production G&F razors for testing. I've just honed and shaved with a 6/8 Timor Hamburg Ring. I've gone through this thread and seen both negative and positive comments and figured I would add my thoughts. My first impression was that it's a handsome razor that looks and feels well made. The tortoise scales feel solid and the blade centers well in them. The blade has a nice polish and the etching and gold wash look good too. Under magnification the bevel looked like it was honed to about 4K with a small double bevel that was finished on a higher grit. I tried shaving with the factory edge and was unimpressed. It shaved, but it was pulling pretty good so I finished shaving with something else. I reset the bevel on a Chosera 1k. I was expecting it to put up a bit of a fight, but it was done in four or five minutes(maybe I got lucky with this one). Went through Naniwa progression (5k,8k,12k) CroOx and stropped without incident. I've gotta say, it shaved pretty well and felt good in hand. I'm actually pretty impressed. With the exception of the factory edge, I have nothing negative to say about this blade. I think it would easily hold its own against a Dovo or TI. I'm going to be shaving with it exclusively for the next couple of weeks to see how well it holds its edge. Hopefully the others will hone up as easily. I'll let you guys know how the others go and how this one holds up.

Wow, this thread is aging! Anyway, I still like my G&F, it's never done me wrong.

Been a while since I've posted, so I'll chime in. First razor I ever honed was a G&F 6/8 with tortoise scales. Dummy me put the weight on the spine and not the edge. Factory edge sucked, plain and simple. Fit was and is decent. Very heavy razor. It is a smiling razor, so rolling x strokes for honing. Not a fan of that. After I finally got an edge, great shaver.

Now, how does it hold up? I've used it and it alone since October 2014. Any problems can be tied to strop or honing error, not the blade. I do fairly well doing 2 passes 7 days a week. Can get 2-3 weeks in.

Now, would I buy it again? Yes. Probably would get 2 or 3 or so.

That's my experience. Take it. Leave it. Make what you will out of it. You can spend hundreds or <$100 with a little more honing and get a good shave.