Anyone Use Old School Single/Double Edged Safety Razors?

So, blades can either be softer(derby) or more sharper (like feather). On top of that, the razors themselves can be mild or aggressive.

I like Gillette 7 O'clock Black from India and the

RazoRock Game Changer .84-P .​


Popular blades are Derby, Shark, Personna, Feather, and Gillette 7 O Clock yellow or black.
 
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WeepingAngel said:
Blade quality varies wildly between products but not necessarily within products (i.e. product A and B are different quality, but multiples of product A tend to be the same).

I use Feather. Expensive, but worth it.
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Those are my go-to as well. "Expensive" being $0.25 ish per blade. I can get a month out of a blade easy.

My preference for the razor itself is a stubbier. I've been using a Merkur Mk34c that I bought 17 years ago.
 
I have about 5-6 old Gillette razors, but I switched back to modern disposable. One of the Gillette Fat Boy was made in the first quarter of 1960 so it's as old as I am. give or take a month. (There's a manfacturer date code on the razor's head.)
 
Some of these are ā€˜Above The Tieā€™ razors, the others are from the same machine and machinist.

 
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Get Off My Lawn said:
Are any of the replacement blades much better than another?
I just got these four new stainless razors to try out. Two put a slight twist on the blade to stiffen it up, another takes a longer single edge. The machining is impressive.
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Yes I have been old schooling my whole life. I use shaving creme from Italy (Poraso) that comes in a tube. It surprises me how many do not know the difference in shaving creme and shaving foam. I use a tripe blade razor that has refills that come from double edge shaving blades. I have a heated shaving scuttle that is hollow and you fill with boiling water. I have a display case in my master bath with a couple of dozen of old valuable razors. I have a ladies razor from the 1930s called a Curve. It actually has a curved head and used curved blades. The problem being you cannot find the blades for it. If anyone has any interest I will post pictures of that. I use Shark blades in my razor. Funny thing is I used old fashioned bladed in a modern razor. I use a razor called the Leaf. It's a triple blade that uses single edge shaving blades. It's the best razor I have ever used and it should be for 85 bucks.
 
Justin Case said:
I have about 5-6 old Gillette razors, but I switched back to modern disposable. One of the Gillette Fat Boy was made in the first quarter of 1960 so it's as old as I am. give or take a month. (There's a manfacturer date code on the razor's head.)
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The Fat Boy is one of the most popular collector razors out there. They made a Fat Boy and a Slim Boy. I have a good hardly used Slim Boy but have never ran across that perfect deal on a Fat Boy.
 
WeepingAngel said:
I use Feather. Expensive, but worth it.
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I realized that I could have been more specific and more useful -- while I don't remember exact numbers, I bought about $50 worth of Feather blades back in mid-2020 and I'm about halfway through them.
Les White said:
Those are my go-to as well. "Expensive" being $0.25 ish per blade. I can get a month out of a blade easy.

My preference for the razor itself is a stubbier. I've been using a Merkur Mk34c that I bought 17 years ago.
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Same here. I may switch to a holy black sr71 but the 34c does everything I need.
 
yes, but not all the time.
used a double-edge this morning.
the blades will stay sharp a looong time
if i just remember to rinse and dry them
completely. they must be out-of-the-box dry.

does anyone else remember houses built with slots
in the bathroom wall for disposing double-edge blades?
 
turkeydance said:
yes, but not all the time.
used a double-edge this morning.
the blades will stay sharp a looong time
if i just remember to rinse and dry them
completely. they must be out-of-the-box dry.

does anyone else remember houses built with slots
in the bathroom wall for disposing double-edge blades?
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Yes I have one of those blade houses, an antique mind you. When it gets full I put the blades in an old medicine bottle and write SHARPS on them.
 
regarding shave cream/foam/oil/etc.....
i use CHEAP hair conditioner.
leave it on for a NY minute
and whisk away the whiskers.
 
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turkeydance said:
regarding shave cream/foam/oil/etc.....
i use CHEAP hair conditioner.
leave it on for a few minutes
and whisk away the whiskers.
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On old school trick is to wet your face with water as hot as you can tolerate. Daub it lightly to remove excess water and then use Noxema Skin Creme as a preshave. Put your regular lather right on top of it. Yeah it smells like an old lady but it washes off when done shaving and a good aftershave takes away the Noxema smell. It makes a razor glide even if its dull and reduces cuts almost entirely. It's also cheap. Poraso which you can buy on Amazon makes a preshave creme but I have found Noxema works just as well. Poraso has several scents which I like. Menthol and mint is my favorite but Sandalwood is nice too. They also make a mild preshave for allergic prone skin. A good preshave really makes for a closer and more comfortable shave.
 
Iā€™ve never used a safety razor, but Harryā€™s wasnā€™t going to get any more of my money.
I shave in the shower because I bleed easy, and the running water keeps me from getting scabs. Iā€™m sure this will be a bloody adventure.
 
Get Off My Lawn said:
Iā€™ve never used a safety razor, but Harryā€™s wasnā€™t going to get any more of my money.
I shave in the shower because I bleed easy, and the running water keeps me from getting scabs. Iā€™m sure this will be a bloody adventure.
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I cannot recommend a Leaf Razor enough. You can have up to 3 blades or you can have one or two. You use what works for you. The price is awesome too. I just ordered 100 double edge blades. I break them in half meaning I use 1.5 blades per week. So I have over 1 year of blades here. My Amazon cost for 100 Shark blades was 8 bucks. There is no cheaper way to get a good close comfortable shave. Also a Leaf Razor has a lifetime guarantee. Mine was two years old and the clamp knob stripped out. I called Leaf and they sent me a new one free. There was no charge for shipping and It was at my door in 2 days. Their customer service is better than anyone could expect.
 
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Here is one of my razor display boxes. In the middle row center you can see the Curve razor. If I could find blades for it I would have a few bucks there in value. Bottom right are two of my Gillette. I believe bottom right second from corner is the Slim Boy which I am seeking a Fat Boy to accompany it. There are some valuable razors in there all of which I have picked up mostly from Ebay and Flea Markets.

razors.jpg
 
Get Off My Lawn said:
Iā€™ve never used a safety razor, but Harryā€™s wasnā€™t going to get any more of my money.
I shave in the shower because I bleed easy, and the running water keeps me from getting scabs. Iā€™m sure this will be a bloody adventure.
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Two words - alum block. They work like magic.
 
OneBlade Hybrid razor
Feather blades
Shade Tree Farms shave soap
Antique Badger brush
DIY face oil and Duke Cannon Menthol aftershave
 
Get Off My Lawn said:
Iā€™ve never used a safety razor, but Harryā€™s wasnā€™t going to get any more of my money.
I shave in the shower because I bleed easy, and the running water keeps me from getting scabs. Iā€™m sure this will be a bloody adventure.
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When you cut yourself with a feather it doesn't hurt right away because it's so sharp. But damn it bleeds like hell for a long time.
 
If we're talking about full shave.
I like Stirling Piacenza/Razorrock Xxx (the same scent, a clone of Acua di Parma Colonia) shaving soap
+
Cremo unscented liquid shave cream
+
2 tsp glycerin
= Uber lather

I like to make it in a warmed scuttle using a plissoft (synthetic) brush(I think synthetic is better than badger brushes now).

Razorrock Xxx aftershave.
Very relaxing way to start the day.
 
Been using Merkur mk34c and Merkur blades for several years now. Just ordered some Feather blades to give em a ahot.
 
You know why we have disposable razors now? The double edged safety razor was one of the best shaving systems ever created. The problem is nobody held the patent for the razor blades. Anybody could produce and sell them. The double edged safety razor itself was generally so well made that it lasted a lifetime which meant a company could only hope to sell one per man. So they introduced the disposable razor to create buyer comeback. That's why in the disposable razor heads aren't interchangeable so you can't use a competitors blades. The Gillette mach 3 was considered the best for a great while but price increases made them hugely unappealing to most people. If I have to go get a store lackey to unlock a case to buy a product, I'm not buying that product there. In the double edge safety razor world you can shave for an entire year and not approach the cost of a single Gillette mach three refill. The cost of a double edge safety razor, blades, a bowl, a brush, and a stand can be recouped in about two years over disposable razors. And I don't think there is any disputing that it's a better shave overall.
 
Les White said:
You know why we have disposable razors now? The double edged safety razor was one of the best shaving systems ever created. The problem is nobody held the patent for the razor blades. Anybody could produce and sell them. The double edged safety razor itself was generally so well made that it lasted a lifetime which meant a company could only hope to sell one per man. So they introduced the disposable razor to create buyer comeback. That's why in the disposable razor heads aren't interchangeable so you can't use a competitors blades. The Gillette mach 3 was considered the best for a great while but price increases made them hugely unappealing to most people. If I have to go get a store lackey to unlock a case to buy a product, I'm not buying that product there. In the double edge safety razor world you can shave for an entire year and not approach the cost of a single Gillette mach three refill. The cost of a double edge safety razor, blades, a bowl, a brush, and a stand can be recouped in about two years over disposable razors. And I don't think there is any disputing that it's a better shave overall.
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Exactly. I have shared these facts with several friends and gotten them introduced to old technology.
 
I have the badger brush and various soap blocks; I find the shave secret oil gives me a better shave.

I used to bounce back and forth between clean-shaven and bearded. Going from full beard to shaved could be problematic. In my experience the shave secret gave by far the best shave with the least skin irritation. A bottle lasts for a couple of months; even longer now that I just use it to trim occasionally.
 
I used one because my dad used one, till I abandoned the old school double edged razors maybe forty years ago. I have a very heavy beard, and a lot of crevices, with a cleft (dimple) in my chin. I just got tired of bleeding.
 
Men shave? I've heard about it but allways thought it had to be a myth šŸ¤£ I do have several old double blade razors that belonged to my great grandpa. I don't know anything about them except that there old. If I can remember where there stashed I'll take some picks maybe you shavers can tell me about them. There's a couple silvery ones and I remember one of them being kinda gold color.
 
If you guys are sitting on unused antique/vintage double edge safety razors there is a HUGE market for them. The old adage "they don't make them like they used to" holds more true here than ever.
 
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