Sorted my cut throat.....

[JonnyP]

Some of you may remember this thread I started about sorting out my cut throat razor, a while ago. http://www.bushcraftuk.com/community/showthread.php?t=9876
Well I finally got around to sorting it....It still needs oiling, I am going to use tung oil for it, I reckon..... I am really pleased with the result. I can't remember what the wood is, I saw a block of it in the timber merchants and liked it, so I bought it for the job. First I had to take the old scales off, then saw down the wood, so it was thin enough, use the old scales as a template, then carve away (used my F1 for the carving, and got on really well with it, the more I use that knife, the more I like it). Then it was a case of loads of sanding...For the pins, I used copper nails (all I had). Anyway, what do you reckon.......

As it was...

As it is now....

 

[wingstoo]

Looks very nice Jon, are you a user of the cut throat?


LS

 

[British Red]

Lovely work Jon. Are you going to make a matching brush? Frist of course catch your badger

Red

 

[fred gordon]

The razor looks great and well worth the wait! The wood, whatever it is. looks as if it would make an interesting knife handle too.

 

[fred gordon]

Lovely work Jon. Are you going to make a matching brush? Frist of course catch your badger

Red

Sad to say that in my part of the world road killed Badgers are all too common

 

[British Red]

Sadly ours too. However I did find a lovely new sett today when bimbling. Huge one too. Lovely to see them, one of my favourite animals

Red

 

[JonnyP]

Cheers guys...LS, I do occasionally use it, when I have a bit of time and fancy pampering myself. Red, I would love to do my brush in the same wood, but the bit I have is too thin to make a handle.....Fred, I have considered making a knife handle with it, its a beautiful wood....

 

[chrisanson]

That’s a nice job m8.When I first started shaving I used a bic type thing and hated it! Went on to an electric one and felt as though I was having my beard ripped out! Then I tried my uncle’s cut throat , I have wanted one ever since but since I have a beard have never got around to it. But after seeing this I might get me one though .
Chris

 

[JonnyP]

That’s a nice job m8.When I first started shaving I used a bic type thing and hated it! Went on to an electric one and felt as though I was having my beard ripped out! Then I tried my uncle’s cut throat , I have wanted one ever since but since I have a beard have never got around to it. But after seeing this I might get me one though .
Chris

Hi Chris, cheers for that....It is interesting shaving with them, but it takes ages and you really need to get your face hot too. Sharpening the things are hard too, I bought a proper leather strop to go with it, but even though it will easily do arm hairs (as a test, I quickly hasten to add), I do struggle to get it sharp enough to do face hair easily.....

 

[beowolf762]

Very nice, the wood is very interesting

 

[chrisanson]

Hi Chris, cheers for that....It is interesting shaving with them, but it takes ages and you really need to get your face hot too. Sharpening the things are hard too, I bought a proper leather strop to go with it, but even though it will easily do arm hairs (as a test, I quickly hasten to add), I do struggle to get it sharp enough to do face hair easily.....

It might be worth a bit of experimentation though. I do some times get a bit fed up with a beard but it is never for very long as I hate shaving with the crap tools I mentioned earlier!!
Chris

 

[jamesoconnor]

Hi Chris, cheers for that....It is interesting shaving with them, but it takes ages and you really need to get your face hot too. Sharpening the things are hard too, I bought a proper leather strop to go with it, but even though it will easily do arm hairs (as a test, I quickly hasten to add), I do struggle to get it sharp enough to do face hair easily.....

I find that every so often you have to sharpen the open razors with a set of stones. I use oil stones with the razor ( I also have japanese water stones for my knife) and gently work the blade in a figure of eight fashion with the stone at 90 degrees to you ( not like longways when sharpening a knife) . I'm a barber to trade and own a few shops and hot towel shaves are my bread and butter so if any of you need to know more about how to give yourself a proper shave Pm me if you fancy. Also I use this site for getting my razors and brushes etc but they also have a section on how to shave and sharpen an open razor ( As usual, I have nothing to do with them etc...)
http://www.gentlemans-shop.com/acatalog/perfect_shave.html

Regards
James

 

[chrisanson]

thanks for that James,
thats a very good site. might be parting with my beard!
chris

 

[JonnyP]

Yeah, cheers for that link James, some great info on shaving there...I did not know about lathering for 3 minutes, and working it in, I usually spend about 20 seconds lathering. Loads of other stuff I didn't know, on there too....

 

[OldJimbo]

Beautiful job, Jon!

 

[addyb]

I can't afford a badget shave brush, so I make do with a decent boar brush.

http://www.sesto-senso.com/omega-shaving-brush2.html

I think it's the best boar brush on the market and suits my DE just fine.

Adam

 

[demographic]

Got to say here that in some cases time marches on...

I detest lecky razors with a passion and use modern(ish) three blade razors allied to a shaving brush and slightly chipped enamel mug (not far off my fathers kit then) to hold the kit in.

Although i think I am fairly good at sharpening plane irons, knives, chisels, even done a tennon saw and all sorts of other crap I still reckon that cut throat razors are a pain in the ****, I have owned two and neither has come close to a gillette sensor excell.

I wont sell out completley and get one of those battery & blade things that are constantly being advertised to catch young lads cash with about 8 blades though cos I have some dignity

 

[OldJimbo]

I have owned two and neither has come close to a gillette sensor excell.

There's a lot involved with using a straight razor, from proper preparation to having a sharp razor and the skill to use it. Really it's all about time.
A year has gone fast in my venture into razors and shaving and while I'm still learning lots, in short form it goes like this..
About 20 years ago, big razor and blade companies found that putting a tiny steep secondary bevel on blades, people could just drag them across their faces and not get cut. Same with poor prep - no problem. All modern blades have that tiny steep bevel.
There is a cheap way into finding about shaving. The first step is to get an old double razor in decent working condition and sterilize it by boiling. Then search out some old non-stainless blades on ebay. All of the old blades are without secondary bevels, so just find some of the cheapest no-collector stuff which can be mailed cheaply.
Prep is important, but as long as the beard is wet for 3 mins, then you'll be OK. Hair conditioner will work as well as many expensive shaving soaps to reduce friction.
Then you have to stretch skin, before running the blade over it. Lack of stretching is bound to lead to cuts.
In the end for a couple of pounds, two things should become clear. The old methods do work a lot better as measured in how many hours the shadow takes to appear. Yep - it's a lot more time consuming and demands more effort. Straight razors will do an even better job - but only after a person has learned how to set them up, and then spent time stropping before the shave. Really in my opinion, even liking them, more is do to with the extra care taken, than any magic, in terms of a close shave.

In my case, even with getting all sorts of razors to see if I could put them into shape, getting old razor blade resharpeners - well it's been cheap fun compared to a years supply of shaving cartridges. I never thought that I'd look forward to shaving - if only to how a new razor or blade worked!
In the end, though, everything comes down to shaving time and the new razors and methods have decreased that. Some of us enjoy slowing things down for an extra five minutes in the morning, but I'd imagine most people don't.

 

[Simon E]

I have a Suzumasa (Tokyo, Japan) one that I used exclusively for the three months I was in Hong Kong. Its a hell of a learning curve and I really gave myself a nasty cut the first time I used it. Funnily enough I never cut myself again after that (Of course it took 3 hours to have a shave )

I found the comments made by OJ to be spot on. You really need to soften up the wiskers first. I found hot water to be fine so I used to shave after a shower. Your skin also starts to look a hell of a lot healthier.

Seriously, they really make you slow down, but I feel we rush too much these days anyway. We should allow time for our own cleaning and preening

 

[OldJimbo]

The Japanese blades such as the Feather seem to have the people in shaving forums in awe. Strangely lots of blades were once produced which are literally beyond any sharpness test for those of us without a scanning electron microscope.

I wish that I could get used to shaving after showering, but a lifetime of habit dies hard..

Of all straight razors to refurbish, the most interesting to me are the British designs with a slightly curved edge. Both edge and spine have a slight curve, so that they can be stropped properly. Of all straight razors, these take the most technique, but provide results to match. Probably because so much care has to be taken at all times! Just how a person can execute the diagonal stroke with a curved edge and not slice off huge chunks is still beyond me.. I have to admit that after an initial bloodbath, I've done very well.