Thread: Vintage Vs modern straight razors

I could rebutt all of the previous as sentimental hogwash and keep an argument suspended in midair but the fact is I feel no need. We all know that no one will admit they are wrong on the internet. I will just say that my house was built in 1996 and we have all the same appliances that came with the house so there goes your 10 years. We did just replace the AC because the compressor shorted and it was an R22 system which has been phased out for supposedly environmental reasons but the fact is that carrier created a new refrigerant and had legislators on their side. Yes I had to spend $5k on a new system and I would be remiss to say that PLANNED OBSOLESCENCE was not a thing. However by the middle of next year I will have made that back in the savings in my electric bill. Why? Because THEY ARE MADE BETTER TODAY THAN EVER.

Just because things don't get repaired doesn't mean they can't be repaired and just because they can be repaired doesn't mean they should be repaired. The premise that things are not made as well today based on these anecdotal snippets is just fallacious.

I take great pride in my work. I see work by others every day also that was quite well done. I think implying that craftsmanship is dead is also not only untrue but insulting.

As far as razors go, I can say that any of us who have had very many Sheffield blades know that they were as wonky as anything you could expect today. Warped spines, wide and uneven bevels, uneven grinds, cracks hidden inside the blades, all can be often found in many of the Sheffield makers. Why do we throw new makers under the bus but give a pass to vintage makers? Again I think it is largely sentimentalism.