JTSpartan
Shave Member
Your mention of Tungsten steel is very interesting. People see to swear that they can get a ridiculous number of shaves from a Personna Tungsten vintage blade.
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Natterings of a Nasal Barbarian
- Thread starter jgreenepa
- Start date
primotenore
Shave Member
True dat.
jgreenepa
TSC's "Velveteen Shaver"
That’s true, Jason! Suneko came out with a tungsten coated blade well over a year ago and shortly thereafter withdrew them from the market. I bought a fair number and have only used two from the first tuck. I got well over twenty shaves from each. I just don’t find them as sharp as my preferred Feather brand! Their advertising certainly seemed to support your assertion and my experience with the razor.
jgreenepa
TSC's "Velveteen Shaver"
SOTD WEDNESDAY MORNING, NOVEMBER 3, 2021
I had a very enjoyable lavender shave a few days ago. Since SWMBO left early this morning for the office, I decided to repeat the experience in the newly cleared migraine-free zone. I retrieved my tub of Mike’s Hungarian Lavender from our condo last weekend, and decided to pair it this morning with Chatillon Lux Lavender Toner. The soap, probably because it was stored for well over a year, maintained only a faint lavender scent. Two drops of lavender essential oil restored the scent nicely.
The mug shave featured my second shave with the new Gipson Katsumi 14/13. It is a beautifully crafted homage to the Saito SK series of Japanese razors by the extremely talented Andrey Shpakovskiy of Gipson razor. Andrey is a star seller on Etsy which means he possesses only 5 star ratings. And there’s a reason for that. This razorsmith from Kiev builds superb shaving tools.
The Katsumi is the latest and largest new artisan razor in my den; it is so well balanced in hand that it is a joy to shave with. After this purchase, a number of friends have bought from Andrey as well and the response is uniformly positive. He goes out of his way to ensure that his customers are happy with their purchase. He now has a second example of this beautiful razor for sale. My two and a half pass mug shave with mine this morning checked all the boxes.
The dome shave that followed featured my favorite adjustable razor. The Rex Ambassador on 6 for my first ATG pass is a straight shaver’s ideal safety razor. The blade feel is amazing. It feels almost like a straight, and needs to be treated with focused respect as the gap feels even wider than my Karve G plate. My second pass at 4 put the baby to bed and left your very happy narrator porcelain smooth from the top of my noggin to the bottom of my neck. The Chatillon Lux Lavender Toner was the icing on the cake.
RAZOR: Gipson Katsumi 14/13 (Mug), Rex Ambassador (Dome)
BLADE: Feather DE
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub with Argan Oil
BRUSH: Kent Infinity Synth
SOAP: Mike’s Hungarian Lavender
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by a rinse with Thayers WH. Finished with Chatillon Lux Lavender Toner.
OpusX
TSC’s Master of Warp Cores, Alchemy, Ale, & Cider
My Shumate Peacemaker is one of my most keen and smooth blades. They made quite fine steel for sure.
jgreenepa
TSC's "Velveteen Shaver"
My Shumate edge has lasted well over a year without any touch ups!
jgreenepa
TSC's "Velveteen Shaver"
Thanks, Chris, it was! Enjoy your day as well!
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JTSpartan
Shave Member
Congrats on the razor, Jeff. That big smiler is a beaut!
Great shave and awesome looking razor! You’re more man than me - I’d be too intimidated to use that!
jgreenepa
TSC's "Velveteen Shaver"
Thanks, Jason! It’s the widest blade in my collection! No plans to go wider! I bought it when Andrey offered it because I enjoyed my Saito SK3 so much. See below!
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jgreenepa
TSC's "Velveteen Shaver"
Actually it only looks that way! It’s so well-balanced that it’s easy to shave with, Brian!
Thanks, Clint! I’ve had it about two months, but suffer from the same issue as you, too many great shaving razors!
jgreenepa
TSC's "Velveteen Shaver"
SOTD THURSDAY MORNING, NOVEMBER 4, 2021
My shave this morning included two of my favorite modern artisan shaving tools. My oldest son is an amateur bladesmith who first made me aware of the work of Colorado’s Victor Creazzi. Vic builds two kinds of razors, monosteel and what he calls “fancy”. His monosteel razors are crafted from 1095 carbon steel, although lately he seems to be working with another steel. His fancy razors are made via a modified SanMai method and are composed of a pattern-welded body with a forge-welded monosteel edge.
When I first visited his site, I was bowled over by a razor he named “Bone Mosaic”. Victor names his creations. All his razors have a slightly smiling blade and are honed to perfection. They come with a lifetime’s (Vic’s) worth of honing, if the purchaser so desires. Bone Mosaic features include a slightly smiling, bellied full hollow grind and bone scales. It really belts out the buttering toast song during the mug shave as it did this morning. Two and a half passes left me oh-so-smooth.
My dome shave featured my first modern artisan DE safety razor acquisition, the Feather AS-D2. The razor was made by the Feather Company, started in 1932 and housed in the city of Seki in the Gifu Prefecture of the Chubu region of central Japan. Seki as a city is renounced worldwide for blade manufacturing and is the area where the famous samurai swords and knives were made. Feather also makes the acknowledged sharpest DE blades as well as the SS, SR, and DX models of replaceable AC blade barber’s razors, both western folding and kamisori style.
Both the AS-D2 and it’s predecessor, the AS-D1 were the first modern safety razors to be crafted via modern CNC manufacturing methods from 316L marine grade stainless steel and preceded all current CNC produced steel safety razors. When it first appeared it was four to five times more expensive than it’s chrome plated pot metal competition. Many who tried it passed it off as too “mild” a shaver, never realizing that its purposefully crafted narrow sweet spot designed for the Feather DE blade required a learning curve.
This razor was designed to tame the ultra sharp Feather DE blade by confining its cutting exposure to a very narrow band to protect the user. Once the sweet spot is discovered there isn’t a more efficient safety razor on the planet. Yours truly has a relatively heavy Mediterranean beard I attribute to the Italian heritage on my mother’s side, requiring a daily shave. This morning this sweet little razor tore through my noggin stubble like the Romans through the Sabine women leaving me velveteen smooth and smelling of lime from noggin to shoulders.
RAZOR: Victor Creazzi’s Bone Mosaic 7/8 (Mug), Feather AS-D2 (Dome)
BLADE: Feather DE
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub with Argan Oil
BRUSH: JT Sapele/Resin Handled Omega Pro48 Boar Knot
CREAM: Castle Forbes Lime
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by a rinse with Humphreys Lilac WH. Finished with Royall Lime AS/Cologne.
Sweet shave - live the Lime! I think if a vote was taken the Feather AS-D2 would rank extremely high in the cadre!
jgreenepa
TSC's "Velveteen Shaver"
It’s a magnificently designed safety razor, Brian! Once it’s dialed in it’s incredibly efficient, and virtually impossible to cut oneself!
jgreenepa
TSC's "Velveteen Shaver"
SOTD FRIDAY MORNING, NOVEMBER 5, 2021
Edgar Allan Poe was a wastrel, a substance abuser and an incredible burden to his stepfather, John Allan, a Scotsman, of the Richmond, Va. Import/Export Mercantile Firm of Ellis and Allan, established in 1800, who became a naturalized citizen in 1804. He and his wife took young Poe in following the death of his mother, Olivia Poe, in 1812. She was an opera singer and friend of Allan’s wife. In 1815 Poe accompanied Allan and his wife to England where he managed the export of British products for the firm, returning in 1820 following the Panic of 1819 which eventually led to the failure of Ellis and Allan in 1824.
Nevertheless, this giant stubtail Sheffield blade 8/8 survived from that hallowed firm as an unsharpened blade blank until 2021, when it came under the capable ministrations of Mr. Glen Mercurio (GSSIXGUN), proprietor of the well known Sandpoint ID razor beauty spa. Glen restored, honed and clothed the blade in bone scales using custom period beehive brass washers and pins. It is one big honkin’ chunk of steel, but is incredibly well-balanced in hand, and delivers an excellent mug shave as it did this morning in two and a half passes, leaving yours truly surprisingly smooth.
My friend, David Place, a well-respected collector of vintage shaving arcana and a fine southern gentleman, always had great things to say about his favorite vintage safety razor, the Ronson, after listening to me rant about my beloved Shake Sharps. So I bought one well over a year ago on his recommendation and have not regretted the purchase. Both razors were designed as thrifty, self-sharpening alternatives for the thicker carbon steel DE blades of the 1930s, and both became moot with the advent of thinner, sharper non-proprietary, stainless steel blades. In any case, my two pass ATG dome shave with my Ronson safety razor this morning was terrific and left me velveteen smooth from noggin to shoulders.
RAZOR: Ellis & Allan Stubtail 8/8 (Mug), Ronson Safety Razor (Dome)
BLADE: Schick Proline B-20 Injector (Dome)
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub with Argan Oil
BRUSH: MrEE LE Aluminum Handle SynBad Knot #005
SOAP: Mitchell’s Wool Fat
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by a rinse with Humphreys Lilac WH. Finished with Williams Aqua Velva (Spanish Version).
jgreenepa
TSC's "Velveteen Shaver"
Thanks, Clint! It’s a lot of fun for me!