Thread: Modern vs Vintage

I am fortunate to own two Robert Williams razors. I have a 8/8 Purist and a 7/8 Square Point quarter hollow dressed in Mammoth ivory. I am very happy with my razors but am I missing anything by not trying a vintage razor, or is this about as good as it gets?

Originally Posted by mikegeorge

I am fortunate to own two Robert Williams razors. I have a 8/8 Purist and a 7/8 Square Point quarter hollow dressed in Mammoth ivory. I am very happy with my razors but am I missing anything by not trying a vintage razor, or is this about as good as it gets?

The feeling of accomplishment from buying a "way past it's prime" piece of steel, spending many hours sanding with your fingertips, buffing it to a mirror finish, repinning some nice scales, honing it to shave readiness and shaving with it are something that shouldn't be avoided, but at the end of the day... a good shave is pretty nice.

I am not fortunate enough to own any Robert Williams razors so am in no position to comment on whether or not that is as good as it gets. I do own a fair few vintage ones however, and genuinely love the shaves that many of them afford me. Try them and see is my advice.

Originally Posted by mikegeorge

I am fortunate to own two Robert Williams razors. I have a 8/8 Purist and a 7/8 Square Point quarter hollow dressed in Mammoth ivory. I am very happy with my razors but am I missing anything by not trying a vintage razor, or is this about as good as it gets?

You're only missing the experience of variety. There is much more variation in grinds sizes & shapes in the vintage market. You may be yet to find your "perfect" razor".
I have a Iwasaki kamisori & a $15 eBay razor that shave equally close & I'm keeping both

I have a Purist as well, but mostly reach for my vintages. They all shave excellently, but I love shaving with many of my sheffield razors that are 150+ years old. Something about the history of the razor and were all it's been appeal to me.

I've never come across a vintage razor that when properly honed doesn't provide a great shave. Happy hunting!

I have a couple RW's as well and they are amongst the very best shavers out there IMO.
That said, variety is the spice of life, so I enjoy equally all my other new and vintage razors

When I first started using a straight, I bought a Dovo Special to learn on, then a Dovo Bismark because of their beauty. Then, the next 80 or so razors I bought were all vintage - the older the better. The vast percentage of them were excellent shavers.

But lately, I have come to consider that there are 3 major manufacturers of straight razors left - in the world. Plus, a handful of extremely competent small batch and custom makers. I think about the 100's of great razor manufacturers from the golden age of the straight razor that are now out of business. Everybody wants those razors. I also think, wouldn't it be nice if this art grew to a point that at least 1 Sheffield company could come back. What if Filarmonica started making razors again? This is only going to happen if the market for new razors grew to the same demand that the market is growing for vintage steel.

Now I fully understand that I can buy $25 vintage razors all day long that once restored are superb. But that really isn't my point. 25 years from now, my new Dovo Special will be considered and antique. So will a new Thiers Issard. All of the new razors will eventually be considered vintage. I'm not sure where I am going with that point, except to say that I am reconsidering my vintage steel snobbery in support of new razors.

So I have now decided that I have enough vintage steel and I would like to contribute to the new razor market that might just bring back one of our beloved vintage manufacturers - however improbable that goal might be.

Alembic,

I like what you have said. It makes sense to me. I personally (still under a year of straight shaving) have two Dovos that I bought new. They are great. I have just recently purchased a vintage from a member (forgive me I forget from who), but I am overseas and have not been able to use it yet. I am sure it will be a great shaver.

My thing is this, I want to have a razor/s that are new and I can pass on to my children. As mentioned, by the time that time rolls around, those razors will be vintage. But I wanted at least one vintage, so I got one. I am sure I will love it just as much as I do my Dovos. I suppose I like the thought of having a vintage at the same time growing old with a "modern" razor.

My apologies to mikegeorge for not being able to answer your question. I just wanted to comment on what alembic had said. My thought is that it would come down to what you try and which one you like.

You're not making a fair comparison. Custom razors like Robert Williams makes are very different to modern factory razors. Compare a modern Dovo to say a vintage Le Grelot. My personal preference, customs aside, is for vintage razors.

Originally Posted by mikegeorge

I am fortunate to own two Robert Williams razors. I have a 8/8 Purist and a 7/8 Square Point quarter hollow dressed in Mammoth ivory. I am very happy with my razors but am I missing anything by not trying a vintage razor, or is this about as good as it gets?

Now this has nothing to do with vintage being better, but........
Yes you are missing something by not trying a vintage razor. If you are not willing to spend the time and learn how to restore one, your best approach would be to pay a modest premium for one that has been properly set up. You will experience the differences between vintage Swedish, German, Sheffield, American and Japanese. All have there differences and you will appreciate each one. Just make sure you take the time to select best brands and the grind style and blade size you prefer of that time period and you will then understand.
And good luck with not getting an overwhelming curiosity to explore the incredible selection of grinds, blade sizes and styles, you can end up with quite the collection.