Has anyone here ever tried a really old straight razor? (Or know someone that did)? People must have been using straight razors for hundreds of years - maybe even in the time of Romans or before then. I wonder what a razor from the 1700s, 1200s (medieval period), and possibly even during the Roman era would have been like? The metal quality may have been rough, with a lot of carbon and impurities mixed in the iron. Did they have their own sharpening stones, stops, pastes, etc? Or did they just try and sharpen their razors on some sandstone and hope for the best? And what did they use for shaving cream? No wonder so many people wore beards in the past.
They used oil and fats for shaving cream. Metal quality was fine, since they used bronze for the blades, and sometimes used iron for the handles. Razors from the 1700's shave fine, though wedge grind was the rule. Hollow ground razors didn't make an appearance until the 1800's. There is a thread here about a razor that was captured in the battle of Selma during the American Civil War. Wade & Butcher straight razors from the 1700's are quite the collector's item and shave well. Early frameback french razors are also popular. Edit: here https://theshaveden.com/forums/threads/civil-war-era-rebel-razor.43727/ Also, shaving was never 'mainstream' until WWI. The use of poison gas and the introduction of gas masks required people to shave in order to get a good seal. Edit #2: You also need to remember that hot and cold running water on demand is a fairly recent innovation. In the 1800's, if you wanted to shave, you had to pump water, feed some wood into the stove, boil the water, pour it into a wash basin, shave, then carry the wash basin outside to empty it.
I have restored quite a few pre 1830's razors over the years, I make sure to explain to the owners that shaving with these older tools should be about the "Experience" because although they are very comfortable shavers, they are not known to be "Hair Lasers" They take more care in prep and technique to get the best from them
Here is a thread of a class of SR called stub tails. From late 1700’s to early 1800’s. They can and are excellent razors. https://theshaveden.com/forums/threads/stub-tail-razors-stub-tail-club.54714/ One of my favorites is a W&B from 1830-37. Can be precise with date due to Royal Cypher of King William. A fabulous shave
