Thread: My Mastro Livi razor, at last: a wonderful life experience!

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Now quick question for the experts. The damasco inox, does it need to be left with a coating of oil on on not as per my Damasteel?[/QUOTE]

Congratulations to everyone for the beautiful razors that I can see in this forum. On stainless steel is true that it is not immune to rust but Mastro Livi says that if you use and dries every time it will 'never rust. In addition, the same polish that undergoes the knife is already 'a barrier against rust. I do not put oil on stainless steel.

this is my new razor made ​​by Mastro Livi. 8/8 damascus steel and nickel with wooden handle juniper that gives off a fantastic scent. The grinding of the blade as seen in the picture, it looks like a layer of onion, and the sweetness of the face is guaranteed!
Fantastic!

Originally Posted by stefanosup

this is my new razor made ​​by Mastro Livi. 8/8 damascus steel and nickel with wooden handle juniper that gives off a fantastic scent. The grinding of the blade as seen in the picture, it looks like a layer of onion, and the sweetness of the face is guaranteed!
Fantastic!

Congratulations stefanosup! Magnificent razor (and it would be nice if you could post the pictures in the club as well)
That's what I would call a real "full hollow", or even "extra hollow", definitely not a hoe!
And if we consider this grinding was completely made by hand, it simply proves what kind of artist and craftsman is Mastro Livi!

Gentlemen, I am very proud to show you the ninth Mastro Livi razor in my collection.

Mastro Livi Carbon Steel K720, 7/8 Full Hollow, Square Point

• Steel: Carbon Steel K720
• Blade: 7/8 Full Hollow, Square Point
• Scales: Box wood with chequered box and black ebony inlays

The chequered inlay made of box and black ebony wood at the heel of the scales

This razor has a special story. I did not ordered to Mastro Livi and it can be said I did not plan to buy it. It was however a chance I could not miss.
The story goes like this. A client of Mastro Livi returned this razor to him because he complained he was getting chips in the edge after honing with a Belgian coticule. I guess you all here know Mastro Livi does not speak English, so he wanted me to go to his workshop and to personally witness the whole process of checking and fixing because he asked me the favor to tell this client what he would have found and what he would have done in order to repair the razor.
I witnessed every single phase, from the unpacking of the razor to the final tests. I also thought it was a good chance to make a new video in which everyone could see Mastro Livi repairing and honing a blade, as well as checking and testing the edge. I did not plan to make this video, but I thought it was however interesting. All I had in that moment was just a smartphone, so the video was filmed with the phone's built in camera. For this reason, video quality is quite awful, however I hope you will appreciate it. I will publish this video very soon.
It was also interesting to see how Mastro Livi checks and tests his razors before delivering to his clients, in particular it was interesting to show the "quite old" optical microscope Mastro Livi uses since 1965 to inspect and check both straight razor and microtome blades. I guess you all know microtome blades are very special blades used for histological analysis and they must be very, very, very sharp and very, very, very polished and super smooth. In case they are not, the result would be damaging the sample to be cut and analyzed. Mastro Livi in fact polishes and hones microtome blades since 1965 and many Italian institutes and universities send their microtome blades to Mastro Livi for restoration, cleaning and honing. He says a microtome blade is the most difficult tool to hone as you need to take very exceptional care about everything: even the tiniest particle would ruin the edge. He says honing a straight razor is very easy when compared to microtome blades. As far as I can tell, Mastro Livi is one of the very few artisans in Italy who can restore and hone a microtome blade.
As for this razor, Mastro Livi and his son - Mastro Luca Livi - started by checking the condition of the blade and then planned the operations needed to properly fix it. They basically reground the blade in order to get a straight and even edge and to restore geometry, the razor was then honed and passed on chromium oxide, including tests consisting in cutting dry hair and dry beard. Every single step was checked with a microscope connected to a computer in order to let everyone see what was going on. As a matter of fact, Mastro Livi has an optical microscope, a USB microscope and some loupes he uses during the making of the razors. As I asked them to make this video, I also asked them if we could use a USB microscope so I could film what they were seeing.
At the end of the job, they fully repaired the blade and, as they would have not sold the razor as new, Mastro Livi however ensured the razor was in optimal condition and like new. I therefore asked if I could buy this razor and asked if it was possible to mount one of those inlaid scales made by Mastro Livi. So, it was a deal and I am now the happy owner of a new (repaired but however new) Mastro Livi razor. You know gentlemen what I mean: it was such an irresistible temptation I could not miss! After all, the razor looks like new, it is super sharp and geometry has been properly fixed. I can't wait to shave with this new stunning razor!
By the way: as a matter of fact the fault complained by this client was not found by Mastro Livi and his son. The razor never showed a chip - not even a tiny one - in all of the fixing and honing phases. The blade resulted to have no faults at all: no chip was found or seen.

Really a masterpiece!! I love that handle and I'm waiting for one of this. My compliments for the razor and for the collection. K720 steel is great in my opinion.

Three beautiful razors -- that snake is amazing! Perhaps a more elongated point of some form, is all that I'd change. Those scales, though...

I still would love one of Mastro Livi's masterpieces but my money is being spent elsewhere right now, so I will just have to wait.

Truly a stunning razor (that is directed at both Jordy and to razorguy.) Razorguy for documenting this and sharing that story with us. It's nice to hear the Mastro has someone helping him and that his son will perhaps continue the tradition? Long before that I hope Mastro Livi will be able to continue making razor for many, many more years! Perhaps one day I will own one of his razors.

Thank you Razorguy for shooting such an informative video. Ofcourse I also thank Mastro livi for sharing his knowledge with us.
And enjoy with your new razor.

I can still see chips in that 'finished' edge and I can pretty much say he saw them too judging by how fast he moved the scope and how little tome he spent reviewing the edge.....compared to the length of time he criticised the edge when he first got it.

Originally Posted by markodams

I can still see chips in that 'finished' edge and I can pretty much say he saw them too judging by how fast he moved the scope and how little tome he spent reviewing the edge.....compared to the length of time he criticised the edge when he first got it.

I witnessed the whole process and I can tell there were no chips in that blade. Moreover, as I bought that blade, I too have checked it with my microscope and found no chip.
I don't know where you are seeing chips in the video, but I am not seeing any. It can be because of the poor quality of the video but all I had with me was just a smartphone and its built in camera. I will shave with this razor tomorrow morning and I will check the edge again.