Thread: Are we too obsessive?

As far as your comparison to 50 years ago lets be completely honest with ourselves here. Few of us today are half the Man our fathers or ancestors where.

You're talking about men that drank their whiskey straight from the bottle, then broke the bottle over a rock and used the broken glass to shave their face using only man sweat as a lather.

(at least from the stories I've heard it was something like that).

I think the men 50 years ago might say we are being prissy, but I don't know if obsessive was in their vocabulary.

Personally I'm sure I might be obsessive about shaving, but I try not to obsess about things I may be obsessing about.

I think those old-timers would trade in their dull razors for a 21st Century razor honed by Lynn any day.

And as I remember it, Clint Eastwood was nowhere near BBS in the Dollars Trilogy.

Originally Posted by smokelaw1

Yes. And I love it. I'm sure my great grandfather's razor would be sold as "not shave ready" onthis site. He got fine shaves out of it though. If I hone a razor and it doesn't come out super smooth, not anywher NEAR a honemaster level...it still gives a damned fine shave if I do my part.
BUT...when I get a good blade silly, stupid sharp and silly, stupid smooth...(I did it once, I swear!)...man, is that a thing of beauty. I don't know how many folks had those in 1850, though I bet some did...and I bet some even appreciated it!

Since I started shaving with a straight, Dad has started talking about my Grandfather shaving with a straight. One of his recollections is of him plucking a hair from his head and testing the edge after he'd honed. According to Dad, Grandpa used a reddish colored and a grey colored barbers hone. Unfortunately , they , along with his pipe and razor, burned up in a barn fire a few years prior to my getting started with straights.

Back to the original topic. Obsessive? I don't think so, maybe a little picky, but not obsessive.

I think some of us do overcomplicate what is, after all, a fairly simple process. I can see the sense in taking trouble to ensure that my razor is clean and sharp and to use a top quality soap.
Daily life is busy enough, I don't want to add yet another layer of complication. So for me, no microscopes, alternative sharpening systems and soap rotations.
I do confess to owning more than one cutthroat razor.

No different than anything else. You have a car and how do you take care of it? By the book, a cleaning now and then. A true car enthusiuast would keep the car immaculate and running to perfection at all times. This is no different. For most of us who do consider this a hobby we want the best in our razors. For those who only use straights as a shaving implement most would probably be happy with less perfection.

I suspect that back in the day most used razors that were marginal at best but of course you had an easier time getting them professionally honed if you cared and could afford it and there certainly were enthusiasts back then too.

For all we know, they had better edges back then. Chances are the best hones have already been mined, shaped and sold. And it's not as if "flat" is a new concept. I don't know much about historic shaving, but who's to say there weren't barbers, cutlers, or bladesmiths who were even more "obsessed" than we are now. After all, back then, that would have been their life because it would have been their profession. Even with many of those who have RAD or HAD, it's just a hobby.

All in all, you get used to what you have till you find something better...

Okay, so they may have been as sharp- but why do we see all these MUTILATED blades- to the point they are 4/8's at the toe and 6/8s at the heel? Or frowning?

Originally Posted by khaos

Okay, so they may have been as sharp- but why do we see all these MUTILATED blades- to the point they are 4/8's at the toe and 6/8s at the heel? Or frowning?

Today, as ever, there are people who can't hone or care for a razor worth a damn.

I like TBS's car analogy - there are plenty of ruined cars around today, but it's not cause there aren't mechanics/tools to care for/fix them.

Originally Posted by TheBaron

As far as your comparison to 50 years ago lets be completely honest with ourselves here. Few of us today are half the Man our fathers or ancestors where.

You're talking about men that drank their whiskey straight from the bottle, then broke the bottle over a rock and used the broken glass to shave their face using only man sweat as a lather.

(at least from the stories I've heard it was something like that).

I think the men 50 years ago might say we are being prissy, but I don't know if obsessive was in their vocabulary.

Personally I'm sure I might be obsessive about shaving, but I try not to obsess about things I may be obsessing about.

50 years ago was around the time when Elvis came out of the south.

I think we need to go back at least 100 years ago!

We probably are. I personally think in the days of yore that there were a lot of people that could hone with the best but, their tools were different. I would think that the quality of the blades that were being produced matched the quality of the honing that went on. I have a Boker that is about a 100 years old and it is a superb razor by any standard, even today's. The processes that they used to produce a quality razor were nothing short of excellent both in grinding skill and materials used.

Later,
Richard