I am a proud owner of a Wade & Butcher straight razor from Whipped Dog. It's not the prettiest razor, but it sure gave me a great shave. I have no idea how to measure the dimensions of the blade though. It looks ancient. The end of the blade farthest away from the hinge sort of forms a "C." Any idea what that type of point is called? I shaved with it tonight and got great results. I just shaved my cheeks, mustache area, and other flat parts of my face without getting too cocky.
You know, I'm not sure. What are some key things I should look for? I'm pretty ignorant about straight razors.
The notch in the very end is called a Barber's point. There's been a lot of discussion as to a definitive use for this feature, but most believe that it allowed the barbar to open it single-handedly. I've heard wonderful things about his razors, I'm sure it gave you a good shave, and glad you enjoyed it. Warning, once you start down this road it can be hard to find your way home again. Congratulations!
Just a very quick, basics thing; not really qualified to go into detail, although many on the board are. Straight blades are classified in many ways. Material – could be stainless or some alloy of carbon steel Toe end – can be rounded at the toe, squared off, the toe extends slightly, etc. Grind – Look at the blade from the toe look at the shape of the sides. A wedge makes a straight line from the edge to the spine. If the sides aren’t straight, you’re dealing with degrees of grind. From a straight wedge (rare), to a quarter grind (slightly concave), to half ground, etc are all ‘more’ hollow ground. This progresses all the way up to full grind and beyond. A full hollow grind brings the cutting edge down to a fine piece of metal, quite concave nearer the spine. An extra hollow has a sharper angle where the thin metal protrudes further to the point. Size – most straights are measure by the ‘height’ of the blade, measured usually in eighths of an inch, from 4/8 (half an inch) all the way up to 7/8’s and beyond.
The brush is pretty sweet. It's a boss at lathering. I got good results on the first try. I might be a reborn badger man!
Way to go Ryan, I am enjoying learning to use my Hamburg Ring, and getting more confident with every shave, it does take time to get used to it, I shave my cheeks, top lip, jawline, and only recently have felt confident enough to attempt the neck area, stick with it you'll get there!!!
Congrats! Welcome to the club. What does it sound like when you shave? If you don't know what the grinds are, the sound can be of insight. Oscar11 always has the prettiest straights. I'm pretty sure he's the only one besides me that uses a straight every day. You'll get it, its not a race.
Congratulations. You done good with a W&B from Larry. I'm just pickin a bit of fly poop out of the pepper, but the proper name for your razor is a "hollow point". Most every body calls it a barber's notch and there's nothing wrong with that either. The blades are measured from top ( spine ) to the edge and generally classified by eighth inches. A blade a half inch wide would be a 4/8 while a blade one inch wide would be an 8/8. Actual measurement will sometimes get into sixteenths of an inch. I suspect it is a "heavier" grind than a full hollow. Most all the W&B's had closer to half hollows even though they called it a hollow ground usually with the word CELEBRATED thrown in there somewhere. I've got several W&B's. Here's an old 7/8 that looks awful but it shaves nicely. Here's a 6/8 that needs some TLC before it goes on the hones. Got a few more laying around here and there. They're great shavers. ENJOY!!
Congratulations on that W&B hollow Ryan...you're a lucky man....Have you heard it sing yet...they are quite the singers you know.....
Wullie, I've got one of those old W&B 7/8s! They're works of art. Such beautiful lines and good steel; great shaves. Ryan, excellent choice.
