WetShaving
This is a community of enthusiasts, hobbyists and artisans who enjoy a traditional wet shave: brush, soap, and safety or straight razor. We are a part of the WetShaving community found on Reddit, Discord, and IRC.
New subscribers welcome!
Please visit our wiki, which is always and forever a work in progress.
Check out these alternative front-ends for this server:
https://gem.wetshaving.social - a nice modern interface
https://old.wetshaving.social - designed to look like old.reddit.com
Our sister Mastodon instance is https://wetshaving.social.
Community Rules
Rule 1 - Behaviour and Etiquette
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Be Respectful. Do not bully, flame, or harass others.
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Malicious comments are not allowed but heated discussion and salty banter is okay.
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Low effort replies and complaints about content will be removed.
Rule 2 - Content Guidelines
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Mail Calls, Simple Questions, and SOTD posts belong in the recurring weekly threads.
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Posts must have sufficient content to generate a meaningful discussion.
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Images, links, or videos must include additional text that summarizes the topic.
Rule 3 - Reviews and Disclosure
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Use [First Impressions] in the title if your experience with the product is limited.
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Use the [Review] in the title if you can provide comprehensive details with enough familiarity to answer follow-up questions.
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Disclose how the product being reviewed was acquired (e.g., PIF, loan, or purchase). If the product was provided to you directly by the maker or vendor free of charge or at a discount, you must disclose this fact even if the item will later be returned to the maker or vendor.
Rule 4 - Advertising
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Vendors are to keep marketing within the biweekly Deals/New Products threads.
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Non-vendors may post topics about products if it will foster a compelling discussion.
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Do not solicit donations or share fundraisers without mod approval.
Rule 5 - Inappropriate Content
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All NSFW/L content must request mod approval and be flaired appropriately.
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Non-shaving related NSFW/L content is not allowed.
Rule 10 - Moderator Discretion
- The rules may not apply perfectly to every situation. The mods have final discretion.
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Fourteenth Day of TabOKtoberfest - Belgian Travel Season Finale
I've channeled my inner SHAVE⭐DANDY in this first shave with yesterday's acquisition, the white Thiers Issard "Le Dandy". It was a nice experience to go to a real brick and mortar wetshaving store, even if their straight razor offering only includes Dovo and Thiers Issard. This dandy came in a simple cardboard box and flapless leather pouch.
I now have one more data point to add to yesterday's discussion of relative quality w.r.t. other manufacturers of Thiers Issard razors: The factory edge on this Thiers Issard is not great, certainly nowhere near what I got on my Ralf Aust razors. But you get what you pay for, I guess, and this razor wasn't pricey. I have to believe that it's a bad strategy to sell entry-price straight razors with anything other than a stellar edge, but I'm no business person. On the other hand, I really enjoy the whole maintenance aspect of using straight razors, so I'm looking forward to getting this edge to sing.
The geometry of the blade and point reminds me of a scaled-down version of the Koraat Sparschweinchen including the sharp corner in the point. It's a geometry I'm well familiar with, and I felt right at home. Good shave, albeit a tad tuggy. I think I will enjoy this razor quite a bit after I've given it a good edge.
Now I'm sitting in the Paris-bound high-speed train to meet up with @PorkButtsNTaters666. We have never met before, but I went extra heavy on the Glorious Old Man Stank® (++), so he shouldn't have any trouble finding me in the crowd 😊
Stank ++;
Curious to hear how the honing goes, some say the steel is noticeably different and I've seen a fair few pictures with crazy looking bevels that imply a challenging geometry. My only TIs have been vintage and fairly straight so I've yet to explore these.
Oh the Kismet blades arrived, thanks again! Recently did a control shave with what I had in there and will try it next.
Brad Maggard mentioned that about the modern Thiers Issard production.
I'll report back here how it goes with this particular one.
Glad you finally got them! It took long enough 😅
I'm glad to hear you caved and went into the store 😀
😊
I didn't stand a chance
I also can't understand why some manufacturers sell straight razors with anything less than a perfect edge. It'd certainly detract beginners from ever shaving with one again. Compared to DE razors, where you just pop in a blade and you're good to go, most people (myself included) lack the proper skills, time and funds to get straight razor honing right. I think that's why Böker offers a honing service for their straight razors.
Dovo had that, too, but they take it one step further, and in the first year after buying one, you can send in your razor for a free honing
My TI was used, and came with a good enough edge.
By the way, now I can't post with Jerboa m, but Voyager seems to work.
Congrats on the TI! Though I would have been surprised if you didn’t buy a razor at that store :)
The geometry on my two TIs has not been an issue. I had both of my razors honed by their respective sellers because I wanted to get experience of edges done by someone other than me. So no experience with a TI factory edge. That said, the only factory edge I have liked so far is Koraat’s.
Yeah, same 😅
That's reassuring to hear!
The only other factory edges I've tried were on my two Ralf Austs, and those were great. Did you not like yours?
I know that Brad Maggard hones Böker razors before he sells them, but not Ralf Aust, which leads me to suspect that Böker factory edges might also not be great.
I did not give my Aust edge much of a chance because I bought that razor about a month after buying my high-powered microscope. I had already honed my TI Le Grelot when I received my Aust and its factory edge was not as clean as what I could produce. At that time I was relying far too much on visual results and had far less experience interpreting edge condition at very high magnification.
I'm still using the factory edge on mine. They're really good!
Time to get serious and use an AFM to take 3d measurements 😅
I’ve considered this (as you might have guessed) :)