Thread: Hart steel razor

That's a Friday afternoon razor right there

I had a poor experience also. My razor arrived far from shave ready with an uneven bevel. I was unsuccessful in contacting them. It was a night mare to straighten the bevel where it would sharpen from end to end.

Originally Posted by 25609289

I had a poor experience also. My razor arrived far from shave ready with an uneven bevel. I was unsuccessful in contacting them. It was a night mare to straighten the bevel where it would sharpen from end to end.

Best way I found to contact them was the telephone during business hours. Never failed to get to speak with a living breathing individual.

I never liked the quality of the 'satin finish' of these razors, and for that matter almost every knifemaker who has branched into razors that I've seen.
I do not mess with grinding and stuff, but from what I understand to achieve uniform finish like those on vintage razors, it is necessary to first go beyond the brushed finish and polish the steel and only then create the brushed finish. That's harder and costs more.

Plus buying american means you're willing to pay price premium just for the 'made in USA' label even if the quality is the same or lower.

On a related subject you can sometimes see people claiming stuff like 'the razor is in mint condition - the original grind marks from the factory are fully intact', but if you've ever seen a vintage razor with the factory finish you'll immediately notice that the claim of the seller is pure lie - the finish is from a buffer, or on sheffield wedges sometimes from a belt grinder.

It's quite likely though that if your razor is not up to spec they will fix it. That's what they've done in the past.

I'm sorry to hear about this, and it sounds like it's not an isolated incident either.
I've been thinking of buying one of their razors (my first "new" razor) now I'll think again.

Many people like that look and find it very attractive. I think what's important is to do your research and know what you're getting. Especially if you do not have much experience, it's best not to trust to those glossy photographs that the vendors use for their products. Razors are very shiny objects and rather hard to photograph for realistic look, so it's rather tempting to instead make them look very attractive. After all the straightforward business decision is that if you're going to be spending lots of effort on creating the image, go for the most profitable look.

For example, I do not like fancy looking razors (lots of ornamentation, goldwash, etc), so I rarely buy them. I also do not like the aesthetics of these 'industrial' or the 'tool' looking razors. But there are lots of people who love these looks. I far prefer 'rustic' and 'artistic' razors like for example the ones Charlie Lewis makes (but they really have to be artistic and not amateurish which only few people can do). At some point it's about the aesthetics that is appealing to you.

Called customer service and spoke with the g.m. this afternoon. They are sending out a replacement which they will personally inspect to be sure it's defect free. I will post again once I get the replacement. Wish me luck, but I suspect all will be well.

That's good......and here I thought that saying only applied to cars. Thanks

I'm not really wild about the looks of the Hart steel razors, I made the purchase based on reviews and the fact that it's made in the good old U.S.A. If I were at Hart I would smooth out the clunky looking scales, otherwise all else (if defect free) is fine in my book. I'll have to check out Charlie Lewis...the name sound familiar from my knife dealing/collecting days.

The vendor you purchased from is reputable and fair minded. They do not work on weekends in their online business so there probably is no one to monitor emails during that time. Nor should there be. They also operate a brick and mortar store
in Palm Springs California that is not associated with the online biz, except for ownership, AFAIK.
I feel pretty sure that if Classic Shaving was anything but a trustworthy business SRP would not be running their advertisements on our site.
I am glad they are addressing your issue and I would have not expected anything less from them.
Enjoy your new Hart Steel razor.