As I mentioned a couple of days ago, I found and ordered my Holy Grail Razor. It has now arrived, and it is a beauty. And it is, I strongly suspect, virtually unused. The magazine was full of vintage blades1 as well as a brass blade dummy.
Continue readingRazor: GEM Micromatic Clug Pruf
Blade: GEM Single Edge Stainless
Brush: Vie-Long #12705B
Pre-Shave: O Way Softening Shaving Cream
Lather: Asylum Shave Works Frankincense & Myrrh
Aftershave: Asylum Shave Works Frankincense & Myrrh
Additional Care: Alum Block
A smooth shave on a wet Wednesday.
In 1932 Mr Robert John filed a patent for a double blade safety razor. That is, he patented a razor that used two blades. Although, in hindsight, what he really patented was a unique blade design.
Doubling up the blade edges is a recurring idea. We looked at a few before, like Janos Oscar Plesch’s double double edged blade, Staats-Oels’ two blade double edged slant, a double double edged cartridge razor, and most recently Gillette’s disposable blade unit. So John wasn’t breaking new ground, although the way he wasn’t was novel.
Continue readingRazor: GEM Micromatic Clug Pruf
Blade: GEM Single Edge Stainless
Brush: Vie-Long #14033
Pre-Shave: O Way Softening Shaving Cream
Lather: Taylor of Old Bond Street Peppermint
Aftershave: Barber No3 Marmara
Additional Care: Alum Block
A minty fresh Monday shave.
Razor: GEM Heavy Flat Top
Blade: GEM Single Edge Stainless
Brush: Wilkinson Sword Badger
Pre-Shave: O Way Softening Shaving Cream
Lather: Brutalt Bra TSN LE / Norwegian Wood
Aftershave: Epsilon for Men Scottish Spirit
Additional Care: Alum Block
A fine Friday shave after an hour and a half of pushing a snow blower around in the dark night…
We all have a “holy grail razor” – that one razor we would be willing to kill1 for. For me, one of those razors have been a Schick Repeater.
For those less familiar with Schicks, the Schick Repeater is the precursor to the more modern Schick Injectors.2 In the modern day and age, the original Schick repeaters are known as the Type A, B, and C.3
Continue readingRazor: GEM Heavy Flat Top
Blade: GEM Single Edge Stainless
Brush: Vie-Long #13051M
Pre-Shave: O Way Softening Shaving Cream
Lather: Pereira Shavery Baron’s Choice
Aftershave: Barber No3 Marmara
Additional Care: Alum Block
A short, sweet, and safe humpday shave.
Back in 1974 – when cartridges and disposables were starting to be a thing – Gillette patented a disposable blade unit for traditional razors.
In other words, they invented a new blade for a double edge razors. And by invented, I mean combined the inventions of Georg Friedrich Hofmann and Janos Oscar Plesch.
The main problem the patent was meant to solve? Most likely the problem that customers gave their money to people who wasn’t Gillette. But you can’t write that in a patent, so the abstract is a bit more verbose:
Continue readingRazor: GEM Heavy Flat Top
Blade: GEM Single Edge Stainless Brush: Omega #10048
Pre-Shave: O Way Softening Shaving Cream
Lather: Jabonman Mediterráno L.E. BullGoose
Aftershave: Barber No3 Marmara
Additional Care: Alum Block
First shave of a whole new year. May this year be as peaceful and quiet as this shave was.
Razor: Schick E2
Blade: Schick Injector
Brush: Semogue TSN LE 2012
Pre-Shave: O Way Softening Shaving Cream
Lather: Asylum Shave Works Flying Mango
Aftershave: Barber No3 Marmara
Additional Care: Alum Block
A fine Friday shave on the penultimate day of 2022. My next shave will be the first shave of a new year. See y’all in 2023!