Thread: Sweyn Forkbeard shavette

My boss at work gave me this shavette today as he knows I use a straight. He sports a beard and wanted to use it to shave his neck. After just one use he said it wasn't for him, I tried to offer help and point him in the right direction but he wasn't interested. Shame but at least he still uses a cream and brush.

Sweyn Forkbeard was the first Viking King of England in 1013 and he is what the brand is based around.

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Unfortunately all the branding and marketing comes at a cost, £25/$33 to be precise, about £23/$30 more than you can get exactly the same on fleabay, less branding, for.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Barber-Sh...IAAOSwIQdZLJXM

You do get a wooden box though!

On to the shave...
I loaded up the half Derby DE that comes with it, it was a bit fiddly and you could easily cut yourself if not careful but once in seams solid enough. It has a nice weight to it and in all fairness looks ok, I gave it 50 palm strops and used with Meißner Tremonia Moroccan Rhassol.
I must say it turned out a very nice shave indeed. As many have reported, with a shavette the angle has to be higher but it's easy enough to do. No nicks or cuts just a BBS shave.
Could it ever replace a straight? No, not for me. It does the job quite nicely but has no soul. I like the time I spend getting a razor shave ready. I love to strop, its meditative, almost hypnotic and the final act of shaving is so much more enjoyable for it.

Mark

Never tried one, they look like a scar in the making to me...

I see where you're coming from, but if you've been in the game long enough you should be fine. I dare say a beginner could more easily have a mishap but the same could be said with a straight.

I decided to have a weeks worth of shaves with a shavette, and do you know what? I really enjoyed them!
I can see the allure, no honing, no stropping, no maintenance, just easy bbs shaves all the way.
To me it will never replace the satisfaction of using and maintaining a straight but id defo recommend a shavette to someone who wants to step up from a DE but dosnt whant the learning curve of using a straight razor.

Thanks for your comments on the Shavette. I recently gave one a try. Its not bad at all. The little extra angle can cause issues as its so close to causing irritation if you go too much. But i agree with ya.

Yeah, I have to use feather like strokes, especially around my neck otherwise I get irritation. A one pass multi directional shave works well for me. Quick and easy.