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WetShaving
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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.
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Be Respectful. Do not bully, flame, or harass others.
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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
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founded 2 years ago
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Just had this 7 day set land today. Very minor rust on the tangs, otherwise in great shape. They all have yet to ever be honed.
KOBAR was a brand belonging to Friedrich Emde (as was the trademark Kiebitz). The company changed name to Gebrüder Emde and later EMDE. They produced razors between 1902 and 1939.
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I little while ago I bought a Christy razor. It’s a fun and interesting razor, fairly unique compared to modern razor. And, as I mentioned, you can’t get blades any more, as the Christy blade (which existed in a couple of variations) went out of production sometime in the late 30’s.
Some of you wondered if I couldn’t get another blade to fit.. and the answer; no, not really. And this is why:
First off, apologies for the glare in some of these pictures – taking photos of shiny blades can be difficult.
From the top: Common DE, GEM, Injector, and Christy blades.
No other blades are a good match – or even a partial match, for the Christy. It’s not just a matter of width and thickness, but more importantly of the inclined blade alignment cut-outs on the sides of the Christy.
The Christy compared to a common double edged blade.
You could trim a DE to match part of the outline of the Christy. However the slot means you can’t replicate the top part of the alignment cut-outs. And the cut-outs are also the blade stops, so there would be nothing keeping the blade in place. Nor would anything stop it from sliding too far forward.
The Christy compared to a GEM blade.
The GEM is the best candidate for conversion. But you’ll have to despine it, trim some of the top, do some very careful trimming of the length, and nibble a little for the shape of the alignment cut-outs. And even so the alignment won’t work, as the cut-outs on the GEM are too deep.
The Christy comparted to an injector blade
The injector blade seems to be a no-go from the start. Yes, you could trim a little to match the bottom of the alignment cut-outs, since the length is a good fit. But since the cut-outs are also the blade stops, you’ll have the same problems as you would with a DE.
So the question still remains; Where can I get a Christy blade today? I have this interesting old razor, and I can’t shave with it.
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A little while ago I bought a Valet Autostrop, almost by accident.
Unlike some vintage razors, you can still get blades for the Valet. And since I consider myself a shaver and not a collector, I got some blades and gave the Valet a spin to see if it belongs in my rotation.
The jury is still out on that though. Yes, I have shaved with it for a week, but a few shaves isn’t enough to show me just how good the Valet is.
Of how bad, for that matter.
The Valet Autostrop in question
It is – mechanically speaking – a very interesting razor. The way it secures the blade is different. The way it aligns the blade is different – yet similar. And the blade itself is different too.
Then you have the whole “push lever to release blade holder so it swings freely”. It is there so you could strop the blade – hence the name Autostrop. The strop actually goes through the razor, and the blade swung in the right direction as you pulled the razor along the strop. The whole thing was highlighted in advertisements and animatronic displays.
Historically it is also an interesting razor. You could consider it an also-ran when compared to Gillette – but also compared to the GEMs and even Schick’s Injectors. It is more complicated than most other razors. The construction is mostly sheet metal. It requires it’s own blades. And yet it survived, unlike other also-rans like the Christy or the CURBO.
As mentioned, blades are still made for it – although you have a lot less choice in blades than you do for a DE or even an Injector blade. Some report using a de-spined GEM-blade in their Valets – I can see that in the early A, B, and VC1 perhaps… but in the VC2 and later you have to work around the alignment bumps. Bumps which, by the way, different between various models of the razor – but always lined up with part of the VALET name cut out in the blade.
A week of shaves with the Valet Autostrop VC2
As far as the shave goes… the Valet Autostrop VC2 is pretty middle of the road.
It is not great, but not terrible.
It don’t nip or scrape, but it is a bit on the mild side of things. Getting the angle right was a little tricky, until I realised that like my GEM razors you can simply place the top cap flat against the face. The left side blade stop has a small burr on it I probably ought to take a small file to. People tell me the FHS-10 blade dulls quickly, but I didn’t notice much degradation over the course of a week.
Will the Valet VC2 make it into my permanent rotation? How long will the blade last me? I don’t know.
I don’t know yet, that is. I’m heading into the second week of shaving with it. There might be a third.
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I just had this land, but moments ago, in from Spain. Managed to snag this NOS Iberia 14 Doble Temple. I'm looking forward to giving this thing its first edge.
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We know how it goes. Peacefully puttering around on the internet, and boom: You accidentally bought two vintage razors. Earlier this week we looked at one of them, and today we’ll have a peek at the other. The other being a Christy razor.
Christy, like the CURBO, Diamond Edge, and others, were aiming for the low end of the shaving marked. Whereas Gillette and others were offering affordable razors, Christy’s razors were cheap or even free.
The seller had mislabelled this in their classified ad; the seller had it listed as an Gillette. It came in the original box, with a couple of spare blades.
My Christy is a very neat little razor. It is sleek and lightweight, and has a couple of interesting features.
The blade has a unique shape, as can be seen in the pictures. The shape of the blade can be traced to US patent 1,563,724, filed in 1921. The rest of the razor don’t match that patent though, but rather partly matches a 1927 advertisement for the Christy with a ‘massage bar‘. Apart from lacking the massage bar, that is.
The ears and angled cut-outs on the blades matches to bumps on the bottom plate. These bumps acts as both alignment guides and blade stops. Two raised ears on the bottom plate helps guide the plate onto the top cap. The top cap has a tab that is wrapped under it, which both hold the handle and – more importantly – presses the bottom plate up against the top cap. This locks the razor together securely.
The razor also came with two spare blades, wrapped in an old Gillette blade wrapper.
My best guess is that this Christy dates from between 1921 and 1927. But that is mostly based on the patent and the advertisement, so it’s a tenuis guess at best.
While there is nothing wrong with the razor itself – at least nothing that some soap and TLC can’t fix – I’m stuck as far as blades goes. To the best of my knowledge, no one makes Christy blades no more. Nor have I had much luck finding a guide on how to modify other blades to fit.
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