Thread: Are we too obsessive?

Yes -and no.

Yes, we go intimidatingly far in writing about how and when and with what to shave and how and when and with what to maintain our gear, where to buy it etcetera. We sometimes make this look like an exact and advanced science, or an art that needs years and years of apprenticeship before any noteworthy proficiency in it may be expected. Especially where we chill newcomers' cold feet a bit further.

No, there can be no end to our strife for an ever better shave and ever better understanding of it - and ever more joy in the process.


That said, I think we must be careful in our assertions of how our edges compare to those of years yonder. Yes, we may have easy access to more and more expensive and more advanced tools, and we talk and write about it a great deal more, and quantify and standardize. But that doesn't mean our edges are sharper.

Never underestimate the skills of oldfashioned craftsmen. Someone who learned by doing as a years long apprentice, and then spent years using one razor, one stone, and one strop (or just few of each) on a semi-daily basis, under close scrutiny from demanding customers, surely, surely had a far better understanding of that razor and the sharpness of its edge than the vast majority of us could ever hope to acquire of one of his?

I agree with that, my grandfather, his brothers and their father were all barbers. From what i understand, when my great-grandfather was working, most people went to the barber for a shave, or sent their razor to a barber to be honed. I found some of my grandfathers razors and a couple of them were scary sharp and i have yet to do anything except touch them up. I found an old two sided no-name barber hone and thats pretty much all i use to keep all of my blades serviceable. I have more respect for people doing this 100 years ago with limited tools and only firsthand knowledge, and i try to keep my sharpening methods as traditional as possible because one of my favorite parts of straight shaving is the anachronism and stepping back 100 years while still getting a better shave than 99.9% of people.

Originally Posted by Oldengaerde

Yes -and no.
...

I vividly remember comparing Grandpa's 4 razors to a Gillette blue blade (over 50 years ago). They were all, usually, at least as sharp as the Gillette; and the blue blade would pass the HHT easily.

Too obsessive about shaving? On a personal level I'm not so sure. We all have to go to certain lengths to take care of our individual faces and skin types. You can't go wrong there.

Where it becomes obsessive is when we get into ****ing contests with other members about the latest and greatest gear. "So-and so got the latest J-nat, so now I have to".... "He got a Livi/Williams Custom so now I have to"... "He's got 20 shaving brushes, I should have 21....". Let's be honest, most, if not all, of us have felt the pressure at some point or another. And most of us have far surpassed the "bare essential" straight shaving kit that might have got you interested to begin with.

BTW - I do like the term "shaving enthusiast"......

Are we too obsessive? I say embrase the shaving related OCD. I have.

obsessive, i dont believe that is what i would call it. on a personal level, i do believe, that as i learn more, and enjoy it more, i find myself digging deeper into the mechanics of the entire process. The more i shave, the more i want to learn. Using that logic, learning to hone a razor to that crisp, absolutely stupid sharp edge, is only part of the learning curve. From where i stand, it falls in line with the mechanics of the shave. Over the past few months, all the reading i have done on the forums, just picking up a razor, and shaving with it, only scratches the top of the iceburg when it comes to the whole process. If i were to just stop there, i might as well go back to shaveing with my se schick, and some good soap, because i personally would just consider it a passing hobby, something i could say that i enjoyed for a while and grew out of. I enjoy the zen factor that goes part and parcel with shaveing with a str8, but i feel i have only just begun the journey, and i have a long trip ahead of me.

Originally Posted by khaos

Okay first off the answer is no because for many of us this is only a hobby.

But the fact that I tolerate an edge that some don't even consider shave ready (and have no problem with it) and the facts about shaving in say, 1850, are we too obsessive? I mean, out of 100 blades that people shaved with say, 50 years ago, how many could pass the HHT? How many were honed on stones lapped to within .0001" of flatness (Shaptons...)?

Yes I do appreciate the advances, and I notice the difference between a sharp shaver and a SHARP shaver (shaveable vs. gold-standard) and I can see that some people might need a little extra, but aren't we overkilling?

Maybe some. Sprays and dusts seem over the top to me.

Most of my blades still retain the aged patina earned from years of use/misuse/only God knows.

I've always been a minimalist, though. The thought of having one blade and one stone for a lifetime of shaving appeals to me ... always did.

I guess that's why I have 7 hones (haha)...

I'm just looking for the right hone, that's all.

For me ... obsessive? Nope.

Lustful? You bet !

One of these days the honeymoon will wear off and I will look around and wonder how I came to possess half of these items. It's been almost two years now and there seems to be no end in sight *sigh*.

If I would have to pigeon-hole myself, I would say I am at the level of enthusiast.

I do think that the proverbial shave quality achievement 'bar' has been set by disposable razors.

There is no such thing as overkill. My shave can never be too comfortable.

Another reason we get obsessive about hobbies like shaving is that compared to our forbears, most of us have much more time on our hands.
Certainly for my grandparents bringing up families and working took up the majority of their time. Work was six days a week, for many leisure on Sundays revolved around the church. I'm not sure if my grandfathers both wore moustaches because it was the fashion, or because it was the most difficult part of the face to shave. My grandfathers would have been shaving before Gillette patented his Safety Razor.

Well maybe I am a little overkill. After I shave I wipe the razor dry and strop it and then wipe it with a lightly oiled cloth. I have a Q tip that I have flattened with a hammer and lightly oiled. I run that inside of the tang of the razor where the cloth won't reach. Then store it in my cabinet. I'm sure my grandpa did not do all of that. However, that is why most of the razors I see are rusty.