You are going to get this really nice rugged hygiene kit. It's custom made in America for BOG by Tactical Tailor. It's going to come with a place for your pre-shave, after shave, beard oil, and a couple of different types of pre-shave and after-shave. You're going to get a BOG shaving brush, black, and a little carrying case. The BOG Napalm Shave soap, a really great smelling, really nice, a very slick shave soap, you get a five pack of feather, double edge blades that you can use and the Shavette. That's basically what your barber uses to trim up your lines and do fades. You'll get the BOG Sentinel safety razor. These blades, these double edge blades will work in there. You're also going to get the BOG black AF straight razor. It'll come shave ready and ready for shaving. You'll also get a synthetic strop for maintaining the straight razors edge, keeping a keen edge. It's a really great travel kit.
You can also get a little beard oil from Manner. And then the different pre-shave from Black Ops Grooming and aftershaves. This one's, you'll get Stealth and then Napalm pre-shave and after shave. So Stealth is like if you're out hunting or anything like that, you don't want scent. This is a great product for any outdoorsman. And the Napalm is just great for going out or being around the house. It's got a great scent. So that's really the products and the load out here.
I'm sure you're going to enjoy it. It's one of our, it's honestly an awesome set. It's our best set we've ever put together. Think it's going to get years of use, longevity. It's super rugged and tough. We're also doing a, we're going to be tossing on some Velcro patches for everybody and yeah, so they're all going to be different, a little bit different. And we're going to get a custom one made for it in the future, but right now you're going to get these kind of more generic custom patches. All right, thanks everybody. Take care.
Here is link to a Video Review of The BOG MOASK Hygiene Kit:
]]>What's up everybody? I'm Brad and today we're going to learn how to build a lather. So before we build a lather let's go over everything we need. You need a shaving brush, some soap from classicshaving.com, a bowl to build your lather in, and last but not least, water.
Before I start building a lather I like to fill this scuttle that I usually call a bowl with hot water for about five minutes and let my brush soak beforehand. After the water's dumped out, this does a couple things to benefit you. It gets your brush very wet and it also creates a layer of water throughout the bowl, this is probably all the water you're going to need in order to build your lather.
Now I'll load the brush. You want to get a good amount of soap onto your brush that you can transfer back to your lather bowl. So once you feel like you have obtained a good amount of soap on the brush, you can move it back to your lather bowl and we can start building a lather.
So when you start, start with small clockwise circles in your lather bowl, I switch to counter clockwise every now and then. You can also apply pressure down on the brush to speed up the process. If you feel like you need to add water go ahead and do that. You can put some water on your fingers and then drip some drops into the bowl, you can also put the bowl under a dripping facet just do it very quickly, you certainly don't need that much water. If you see a lot of little bubbles in your lather, that means you added to much water but you also don't want your lather to be dry like a paste, what you're looking for is a rich, thick lather.
This process is certainly going to take you a minute or two. The more you mix the thicker it will get and the larger it will also get. After a minute or two you're good to go. All right everybody, thanks for watching, I hope you learned something. Let me know if you have any questions and I'll see you next time.
]]>What's up everybody? I'm Brad, and today we're going to talk about the anatomy of a straight razor.
All right, so we all know that this is a straight razor. Let's learn about all the different parts of it. All right, so we have the toe of the blade, the heel of the blade, the spine, the cutting edge, the tang or the shank. I'll be calling it the tang, the pivot, the tail, and the scale of the straight razor. So now that we know a little bit about the anatomy of a blade, let's talk about the different profiles from blade to blade. So here are three examples of the most common types of toes on straight razors, square, round, and barber's notch. Of course, there are other styles you may come across than the three we just looked, styles such as Spanish, French, or Irish.
Another part of the blade profile are the sizes of the blade. How a straight razor is measured is from the top of the grind near the spine to the cutting edge of the blade. Here we have examples of a 5/8ths, a 6/8ths, a 7/8ths, and a 8/8ths. The way the blade is ground will determine its profile and how it shaves as well. A couple of the most common styles are full hollow, quarter hollow, and near wedge. As you can see, there are several other styles as well. We have two examples here. You'll be able to notice that the full hollow is going to be a much thinner blade versus the quarter.
The last thing we're going to talk about regarding the profile of the blade is the actual cutting edge. We have two examples here. The cutting edge of your blade can be straight or it can have a slight curve that we call a smile. All right, we learned a lot about straight razors today, including the basic anatomy, the profile of the blades, the sizes and the grinds. We're going to have a lot more videos coming. See you guys later.
What's up, everybody? I'm Brad, and today we're talking strops and how to use them.
I'm really excited for our video today. Before we go over everything you need to know about strops, and even a surprise field trip at the end of the video outside of the studio, let's go over the three example strops that I have here today. This is a three-inch synthetic practice strop. You have your hook on the end, with fabric on the other side. This is good for beginners because they can buy this and learn on it without risking cutting a real leather strop. Remember, instead of buying a practice strop, you can also buy a practice razor that has a blunt edge, and then you can learn on a real leather strop without damaging it as well.
This is a leather strop from Classic Shaving. You have your hook on that end with D rings on the other. This is a double strop which means it has a second nylon strop on the bottom in addition to the leather one. This is a box strop, four 2 inch strops. You have two rough sides of leather. One side of tanned leather for fine stropping and one side of premium leather for finish stropping. This strop also comes with a razor storage which is a very cool feature.
So what is stropping? Stropping polishes the edge of the blade and realigns it at the correct angle for effective shaving. A strop is a necessary purchase if you wish to keep your razor sharp. I cannot stress how important it is to keep your strop tight and not let it bend while stropping. You should strop your razor approximately 40 times before you shave. You can re-strop afterwards if you choose to. Here's a couple things to remember while stropping.
After hanging your strop on the hook, always keep it pulled tight, never let it bend. Always move the razor towards the back of the blade, never the cutting edge. When you reach the end of the strop, roll the blade over the back of the razor and push it back towards the hook. During the whole stropping process, the back of the blade should never leave the belt, always roll it over.
Now, let's take a quick trip outside of the studio to see some high level stropping in action. Notice how the spine of the razor never leaves the strop. When you get to the end of the strop, you roll it over the spine and push away from the cutting edge.
All right, that was pretty fun, right? I had fun. Anyway, last thing I'm going to talk about today are a couple compounds you can add to your strop to help you get even closer to that perfect shave and two tips on strop maintenance.
All right, first two things you should know about, chromium oxide and iron oxide. These are honing compounds that can be used on leather, wood or synthetic strops. They add a very precise abrasive to your strop that helps you get an even more perfect shave. Next thing, you do not want your strop to crack. Don't keep it in a drawer or ever fold it up when not in use. Keep it hanging up I suggest in your closet. Next thing, get yourself a strop conditioner or paste. You can use a clean 100% cotton cloth, take some paste out, apply it to your strop in circular motions covering the whole entire strop. After 15 minutes, take another clean cloth, a different cloth and wipe off the paste. This is going to help you so much in preventing cracks from your leather strop.
All right, that's it for today. I hope you learned something about stropping. I know that I did. Pick up a practice strop and learn on one of these guys before you damage a very, very nice one. Thanks guys, I'll see you next time.
About Shaving Cream
In high school, most shavers start shaving with a gel or foam out of an aerosol can. This type of shaving cream contains excess chemicals and numbing agents that can be very harmful to the skin. Although they are widely available and inexpensive, long-term use of these products can cause severe drying and premature aging. Men who use these products are usually easily identified by rough, irritated skin on their faces and necks.
Proponents of traditional shaving will stay far, far away from any shaving cream that comes from a can. Instead, we choose shaving creams from notable vendors, such as Geo. F. Trumper, D.R. Harris, and Taylor of Old Bond Street. These shaving creams are soft and easy to lather. They can be used with any shaving brush, or even without a brush. They comprise moisturizing properties to create cushioning lubrication so that the razor gently glides over the skin while shaving. The high glycerine content provides a protective barrier and gives some men a little extra protection from nicks.
Shaving creams tend to be heavily scented. Some men enjoy the strong fragrance, while those with sensitive skin may have difficulty with it. An average tub of quality cream ranges from $15-$35 depending on the brand, and will last for approximately two months of daily use.
About Shaving Soap
Shaving soap offers a rich and stable lather against the skin, but it is sometimes difficult for a beginner to lather. Triple-milled soaps that offer the best shave have a very hard texture that requires more work from the shaving brush to generate lather suitable for shaving. Shaving soaps work best with brushes with that are more densely filled with badger hair that have a stiffer feel to them. Lathering technique varies from soap to soap, so a shaver has to experiment to get the right lather; however, once you achieve a proper lather from the soap it could give you better cushion than a shaving cream. It is for this reason that many straight-razor users prefer soaps over creams.
Because they are more subtly scented, shaving soaps may be a better choice for people with sensitive skin. However, a shaver with dry skin may have to experiment with different brands to find the right one. Many men like the lighter fragrance so that it doesn't interfere with their aftershaves or colognes.
Shaving soaps are available in a wide range of prices. Less expensive glycerine-based soaps (approx $5) provide decent quality, but hard-milled soaps (approx $30-40) smell better, better lather, and come in wooden bowls, which allow you to create lather in the bowl, store your soaps, and serve as attractive showpieces among your accessories. If you prefer, you can usually buy the puck without the bowl for approx $20. Daily use of a puck of quality shaving soap can easily last over three months of daily use.
Which to Choose?
Both shaving creams and shaving soaps are fine choices for traditional wet shavers. Much of the decision in which to choose depends on your own preference and style of shaving, as well as your skin type. Typically soaps offer a little more cushion and slickness, which many straight razor shavers prefer, while creams offer a little more protection, which is preferred those who use safety razors. Creams offer the benefit of being easier to use, while soaps can have a learning curve. Most new shavers start with creams until they are comfortable with using a brush and lather, and then move into using shaving soaps as well. You can use a soap or cream with any shave method.
If your brush collection has large, soft shaving brushes, such as Vulfix or Kent, shaving creams make an excellent choice, since those brushes hold a lot of water and do a great job at generating lather with a cream. If you have denser shaving brushes, such as Rooney or Simpsons, those really excel at efficiently building lather off a puck of soap. It is best to convince your wife that your brush collection needs to be comprehensive enough to include all sizes and densities so that you can enjoy both soaps and creams.
]]>Mild Safety Razor
A mild safety razor has a cutting head that is designed to limit the amount of force that is transferred to the blade’s edge. Usually this includes a smaller blade gap that exposes a small amount of the double-edge blade. In addition, the design of the safety bar is a wider angle to allow the blade to cut beard growth without making significant contact with the surface of the skin.
Many men find these razors very comfortable and less likely to cause irritation or nicks during shaving. Mild razors are preferable for many men with very sensitive skin or men with lighter texture beard hair that can easily fit through the small blade gap. Men with thicker beard stubble may dislike a mild razor because they know when they can’t feel the blade against their skin that the razor is not cutting enough hair and they may have to go over the same spots many times in order to get a clean shave. In addition, thicker beard growth may clog the small blade gap and take longer to shave.
Good examples of a mild safety razors is the Feather All Stainless. This razor is designed to be very gentle on the skin and provide mild shaves.
Medium Aggressive Razor
Medium aggressive safety razors have an average blade gap and expose a reasonable amount of blade edge. A medium aggressive razor provides the shaver a good balance between mild and aggressive, allowing the razor to cut efficiently without causing excessive irritation or increased probability of cuts and nicks. Medium aggressive regulars typically utilize a standard safety bar design that allows the blade to cut the beard hair cleanly while disallowing the cutting edge to make more contact with the surface of the skin than necessary.
Many of the most popular razors on the market today fall into this category because most wet shavers benefit from a good quality medium aggressive safety razor. Beginners should start with a medium aggressive razor to become accustomed to using a safety razor and shaving at the proper angle. By starting here, a beginner will get an idea of what works best for his skin type and then can experiment with other razors to tailor the results.
Examples include the Parker 99R and Old World Razor "Shadow". These are excellent razors that cut well enough for tough beards without being overly harsh on the skin.
Aggressive Safety Razor
An aggressive razor is one that has a larger gap and more blade exposure, which allows more hair to enter between the razor’s edge and the safety bar, so it cuts through the beard quickly and with fewer strokes. Because more blade is exposed, these razors are harsher on the skin and can have a distinctive scratchy feeling, particularly during finishing passes when the length of stubble is very short and the blade makes closer contact with the skin. These razors are usually favored by men with very thick beard stubble that have a difficult time getting a close shave without having to do a number of passes and touchups. While aggressive razors do a great job of eliminating stubble quickly, some men can have issues with nicks and irritation on more sensitive areas of their faces, such as the lower neck. The increased gap and blade angle allows the cutting edge more contact to the surface of the skin during the shave. However, many men with sensitive skin get very good shaves from aggressive razors because they benefit from fewer passes across the skin.
An example is the Merkur Slant Bar, which is intentionally modified to have a more aggressive cutting action. Open-comb razors are also considered to be more aggressive because the comb guard allows the blade to make closer contact with the skin when cutting.
Final Thoughts
Although a razor may technically fall into the mild, medium, or aggressive classification, this still may not predict how the razor will perform for each individual. The choice of blades is a key part of the shave and significantly affects the speed and comfort of the shave. In addition, the technique of the shaver (i.e., holding the safety razor, cutting angle, and amount of pressure applied) can affect the aggressiveness as well.
Some men have found the perfect razor and blade combination that work for them every day. I have a variety of razors to choose from that range from the Occam's, which I hardly feel the blade, to the Merkur Slant, which cuts down weekend shagginess in one pass. To determine which razor I choose depends on how much beard growth I have and how my skin feels on any particular morning. If I am shaving 24 hours’ growth and just need a mild and comfortable shave or if I am shaving off a few days’ worth of stubble determines which razor I may choose. The design of the razor’s cutting head is just another choice for the wetshaver among the lineup of decisions: Soap or cream? Fragrance? Blade? Pre-shave? Aftershave? Straight or DE? Mild or aggressive? All of these choices affect the feeling and performance of your shave and combine to give you a unique experience each morning.
]]>NOTE: Multiple razors will be added in future updates so you can customize your experience.
Just a little April Fools fun, from the team here at ClassicShaving.com.
Text Version
As many things have evolved over the decades, so have the tools man has shaved with. Specifically, the designs of Straight Razors have changed quite drastically, and have become much more efficient than in “the beginning” …
In and before the 1800’s, the blade and handle started out as wedge, without a “tang” and often without the monkey tail. The scales (then referred to as the “handle”), were made of wood, horn, bone, ivory and tortoise…over the next 30 years, the straight razor advancements included, blades started to be “hollow ground”, a start of a “shoulder” appeared, the handles became slightly curved, flutting (AKA jimping) was first seen. But perhaps the coolest change, was the introduction of the “Monarch”. The Monarch was an identifying mark, kind of link putting your name on a paper. This Monarch included a few letters and symbols that identified exactly who’s razor it was. An example would be G (picture of a crown) R = This Monarch indicated this was King George lll’s razor.
1830-1880
Up to this point, Straight Razors were mainly made from “Cast Steel”. But that was now being replaced by Silver Steel (known as “the new steel”). Tang’s started to elongate. Barber notches, photo etchings, artwork on the spine, and Company Branding started showing the pride of these units.
1870-1900
As the straight razor continued to evolve, they were now mainly “hollow ground” , displacing the earlier “wedge” styles. Processes of “photo etching” on the blade face and scales became popular, manufactures now creating “works of art”, quite beautiful – appeasing this new found love of the straight razor.
1900-
Straight razors became so popular, that many Knife Manufactures added them to their product lines. Seemingly becoming a status symbol of fine art, many US manufactures lost out to the Europeans due to the beauty of design. Buyers felt the fancier, the better. As a side note: this is also about the time replaceable razors came onto the scene…
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Chris Rico Ramirez, barber/owner of barbersocialclub is the artist in the above video. Based in Houston, TX, he is @BSC_Houston on Twitter and @hou_barber on Instagram.
Drew Hernandez was active duty from 2006 to 2011, which also included tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. When he was contracted in Iraq during 2015, he started his Facebook page, A Combat Veteran, this is his story.
]]>For the past few years there has been a non-debatable resurgence in the traditional shaving world, with advancements in products, and the easily accessible information about benefits, the demand grows every day. When it comes to something like a safety razor, I will tell you tons of reasons that explain why every man, and woman, is capable of switching from their current shaving setup.
You won’t miss a single thing about your disposable razors and you will be switching a better, cheaper, healthier, and environmentally friendly shave. The fact is that it’s better for your skin to use less blades, and you can’t use less than 1. By running a razor over your skin that has 5 blades, and going over one part of your face multiple times, is far too much exposure and unnecessarily beating up your face.
By switching to a double edge safety razor, you will avoid things like razor bumps, irritation and ingrown hairs.
Men are spending more and more on grooming, we are recognizing that our image is something to be upheld and proud of. The United States is a large contributor to this idea, with more and more YouTube channels, blogs, websites, and influencers consistently informing men about the benefits of grooming, and wet shaving. Also, the wet shaving market for women is growing as well, with the average woman spending roughly $10,000 in her lifetime on shaving products, and 11% of women shaving daily, they are realizing that they can reap the benefits from wet shaving as well. Benefits such as cost savings and skin health, the market for women is only going to raise. Western Europe historically, and currently, has always been the leader as far as the percentage of wet shaving enthusiasts, but Asia is rising fast with no sign of stopping. A trend of clean shaving in the corporate environment amongst the younger generation is helping the men’s grooming market grow 8% per year with projections to hit $11.5 billion dollars spent annually in 2020.
While people are enjoying being clean shaven, for me it’s all about the process of getting to that point. Just like anything, the journey to get the destination should be as enjoyable as possible. Demolishing your skin to shave in 60 seconds and get out the door is not the route I will ever be taking again. There are 1,440 minutes in a day, and I’m willing to spend 10 of those on shaving and upgrading my appearance. This will make the other 1,430 minutes more enjoyable! For me it is worth it, and what draws me in even more, is the money saving.
I am not sure what your current budget is for shaving but I am sure that a safety razor will cost you less. There are so many examples you can find online about people saving up to 90% by switching to wet shaving. Imagine getting a 100 pack of Astra DE blades for 10 dollars, a HUNDRED BLADES. That is going to last you so long! So much less money than buying disposable razors every weekend at the grocery store. Now imagine cutting your costs 90% AND gaining all the benefits we talked about, if you haven’t switched yet, what the heck are you waiting for?
Also by using a safety razor you will not have to invest in a strop, for straight razor shavers a strop is a joy but if we are thinking about money, its one less thing you will have to invest in. All you need is a razor, blades, soap and a brush.
Personal grooming is important, it will provide you an advantage when it comes to your professional life and personal life. Job opportunities and relationship possibilities are both significantly connected to the way you present yourself to those around you. The time and effort put into your image will bring you positive return on your investment. Hair, nails, skin, teeth and clothing are just 5 areas to focus on when it comes to grooming. Maintaining these areas will affect the way you think, feel, act and how others will respond to you. The impact will communicate positively to you and to others, we can all continue to learn about how our appearance communicates to ourselves, and to those around us.
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I don't think anyone who is reading this wakes up in the morning and says to themselves, "My goal today is to create ingrown hairs on my face", I know I don’t. So, when you look in the mirror and notice that you have an ingrown hair, it can be very disappointing, especially since It can be avoided. You're in luck because I am going to explain to you exactly how to prevent ingrown hairs.
What is an ingrown hair? How the heck did one appear on MY body? An ingrown hair is a hair that has curled back into the skin and grown into the skin rather than away from it. Due to inflammation of the skin rejecting the hair growing into it, this now appears red and can cause discomfort, it also can look like acne and be embarrassing. In addition to looking bad, ingrown hairs can lead to scarring and infection. People with coarse, curly hair are much more likely to get ingrown hairs. So many things about the wet shaving world help us boost our confidence and our appearance, ingrown hairs don’t support anything about that mission.
Using a sharp, single blade will work wonders when it comes to preventing ingrown hairs. If you are not already wet shaving with a straight razor or safety razor, learning to use one may be a good idea. By using an inexpensive disposable razor that becomes dull quickly, you are at a higher risk of getting ingrown hairs. These razors usually have 3 or 4 little blades, one blade to cut the tip of a hair and make it sharp, and the other 3 blades to bend this back into your skin. By using a sharp single blade, this is avoided.
Preparation is always where the majority of success stems from. Before you shave, it is EXTREMELY important to shower or use a wet, warm washcloth to soften your hair. Your razor is going to thank you for doing this. This will help you prevent ingrown hairs by not only making your hairs easier to cut, but you are cleaning off any debris and dirt at the same time.
By using pre shave oil, you are softening the skin even more. Pre shave oil also protects your skin against the razor blade. It also provides a slick coat of oil for your razor to glide across. This oil, along with using a warm washcloth (or showering) will lead to maximum hydration of the skin. And improve your chances of preventing ingrown hairs immensely.
Some extra tips for success, always shave in the direction your hair grows. Use as few passes of your razor as possible. Also, take your washcloth and soak it with cold water, and apply to your face after shaving to greatly reduce skin irritation. I hope this helps! I hope you learned something, and that by a couple simple changes you will be able to reduce, or rid completely, any ingrown hairs you are experiencing.
- Brad
A beautiful design with unmatched functionality. In this video, everything you need to know about your new Occam's Razor is explained. We cover anatomy, benefits, features, different blades, changing blades, and the ProGuard blade packs.
Grab your Occam's Razor here: https://www.classicshaving.com/products/occams-razor
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Today we are gonna learn how to build a lather. Before we begin lets go over everything we need, you need a shaving brush, some soap from classicshaving.com, a bowl to build your lather in and last but not least, water. Before I start building a lather, I like to fill my scuttle that I usually call a bowl with hot water for about 5 minutes and let my brush soak. After the water has been dumped out, this step will benefit you in two ways, it gets your brush very wet and also creates a layer of water throughout the bowl. This is probably all the water you're gonna need in order to build you lather. Now I will load the brush, you want to get a good amount of soap onto your brush that you can transfer back to your lather bowl. So once you feel like you have obtained a good amount of soap on the brush you can move it back to your lather bowl, and we can start building a lather.
So when you start, start with small clockwise circles, I switch to counter clockwise every now and then, you can also apply pressure down on the brush to speed up the process. If you feel like you need to add water go ahead and do that. You can put some water on your fingers and drop it into your bowl, you put it under a dripping faucet quickly, a little water goes a long way. If you see a lot of little bubbles in your lather that means you added too much water, but you also don't your lather to be dry like a paste. What you are looking for is a rich, thick lather. This process is certainly going to take you a minute or two, the more you mix the lather the thicker it will get and the larger it will get. Mix until you have the consistency and amount desired! Thanks everyone, let me know if you have any questions and I will see you next time.
- Brad
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If you watch the video above, we discuss what strops are, how to use them, and a few tips on strop maintenance.
Today we are talking strops and how to use them. I am really excited for this video, before we go over everything you need to know about strops, and even a surprise field trip at the end of the video, lets go over the three example strops I have here today. This is a 3 inch synthetic practice strop, you have your hook on the end with fabric on the other side, this is good for beginners because they can learn on it without risking cutting a real leather strop. Remember instead of buying a practice strop you can buy a practice razor that has a blunt edge, then you can use a real leather strop and not cut it at all. Next is a leather strop from Classic Shaving, there is a hook on one end with D-rings on the other, this is a double strop which means it a has a second nylon strop on the bottom in addition to the leather one. This is a box strop, 4 two inch strops in total, two sides are a rough leather, one is tanned leather for fine stropping, and the last is a premium leather for finish stropping.
So what is stropping? Stropping polishes the edge of the blade and realigns it at the correct angle for an effective shave. A strop is a necessary purchase if you wish to keep your razor sharp. I cannot stress how important it is to keep your strop tight and not let it bend while stropping. You should strop your razor approximately 40 laps before you shave, you can also strop after shaving if you wish. Here's a couple of things to remember while stropping, always hang your strop when not in use, don't bend it or cram it in a drawer. When stropping always move the razor towards the back of the of the blade never toward the cutting edge. When you reach the end of the strop, roll the blade over the back of the razor and push it back towards the hook end of the strop. During the whole stropping process the back of the blade should never leave the belt, always roll it over.
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If you watch the video above, we broke down the anatomy of a safety razor and everything that makes up the razors profile. We discussed its anatomy, all the different styles, and closed comb vs open comb.
Today we're gonna learn about the anatomy of safety razors. This is going to be a little different then the anatomy of a straight razor. There are several different styles of safety razors, this first one we are going to talk about is a single edge. This is a King Cobra Classic, its a single edge safety razor, you can open it up to swap out your blades. This style of safety razor is actually the oldest style.
Next is the three piece double edge safety razor, this style of safety razor can be broken down into three parts. This is necessary to do when swapping out blades. The three pieces are called the top, the base, and the handle. The fact that it can be broken down into three parts also helps very much when cleaning your safety razor.
Our next style is a twist to open (TTO), also known as butterfly. This razor uses a twist mechanism to open the top of the razor to change blades. It is one piece instead of two or three.
Next will be a two piece safety razor. With this razor, by twisting the knob at the bottom of the handle, the top disconnects and you can swap out blades. A lot of people prefer this because they say it's easier to change blades.
Our last style we're going to talk about today is the adjustable design. With this razor, there is a mechanism at the bottom of the handle and by turning it you can increase or decrease the space between the safety bar, this adjusts how aggressive your shave will be.
We are almost done! The last thing we're going to talk about is the difference between closed comb and open comb, we have examples of both. With the closed comb, there is a solid piece of metal on each side, this is more of a daily razor that should be used for a 5 o clock shadow or small amounts of hair. The open comb razor has open teeth on each side, this will provide a much more aggressive shave for larger amounts of hair.
Thank you everyone!
If you watch the video above, we broke down the anatomy of a straight razor and everything that makes up the razors profile. We discussed its anatomy, blade sizes and how they are measured, styles of blade toes, and the different types of grinds you will come across.
I'm Brad and today we're going to talk about the anatomy of a straight razor. Let's learn about all the different parts, the toe, the heel, the spine, the cutting edge, the tang, the pivot, the tail and the scale. We will then cover what makes up the blade profile. With the toe, we have a round toe, square toe, and barbers notch. As you can see below there are other styles as well.
Another part of the blade profile is the size of the blade. A straight razor is measured from the top of the grind below the spine, to the cutting edge. The video shows examples of a 5/8. 6/8, 7/8, and 8/8 blade. The way the blade is ground will determine its profile and how it shaves. The most common styles are quarter hollow, full hollow and near wedge. As you can see below there are several different styles as well. The video shows two examples, one of a quarter hollow and the other of a full hollow.
The last thing to discuss is the changes in the cutting edge of the blade. It can be straight, or have a slight curve that we call a smile. Today we covered the anatomy of a straight razor, and a blades profile such as the sizes and the grind.
#1 Classic Deluxe Vintage Safety Razor
Our Classic Chrome Closed-Comb Double-Edged Safety razor was designed to satisfy admirers of Merkur's 38c Hefty Long-Handled Classic "The Barber Pole" razor. Weighing in at a hefty 2.6 oz. and with an overall length of 4.25 inches, this is a razor that feels solid and sturdy in your hand. The blade-gap in the closed-comb head has been engineered to be especially non-aggressive and will give you a close, comfortable shave.
#2 The King Cobra Classic
The result is a razor that keeps everything we loved about the Cobra Classic and makes some major improvements. It's longer, heavier, and its flared base allows this razor to stand on its own. The biggest change is evident in the handle - less chrome, more grip, both in texture and ergonomic shape. The razor is a beast. The Cobra is a replaceable-blade safety razor which uses Feather blades from Japan. Feather's Professional and Pro-Guard blades have become wildly popular in the global shaving market for use with replaceable-blade straight razors. The King Cobra uses either of these superior blades in a more familiar shaving style to us here in the states.
#3 Parker 22R Gun Metal Butterfly Safety Razor
This double-edge safety razor's all-metal construction is built to last a very long time. It has the weight needed to provide a close, clean shave without the need to press it close to your face which can often cause razor burn and skin irritation. In addition, its extra-long, non-slip handle makes it a joy to use. This traditional shaver was designed for the price-conscious, well-groomed gentleman.
#4 Classic "Super Knurl" Safety Razor
Designed to satisfy the most discriminating of double edge safety razor shavers. Weighing in at a hefty 3 oz. and with an overall length of 4.25 inches, this is a razor that feels solid and sturdy in your hand. The blade-gap in the closed-comb head has been engineered to be especially non-aggressive and will give you a close, comfortable shave.
#5 BOG Safety Razor
For this price, the BOG safety razor is the best deal you can find. Having personally used this razor multiple times, the quality level is extremely high. This razor gets right to the point. It features a superb grip, and has a great blade angle for the perfect shave. It also includes a simple no-nonsense black water resistant carry case, with a 5 pack of feather razor blades.
]]>Our Classic Brand Shaving Soap's are one of our top selling items. With dozens of popular scents to choose from you will be sure to find a shave soap that is perfect for you.
These soaps build a rich lather with little work. I have been shaving with them for over a year and am always happy with the way my skin feels during the shave and after. I use the 3" pucks but you can get them in 2.5" puck and a 2.5" scuttle puck (rounded bottom).
All of our Classic Brand soaps are handmade right here in The USA.
These soaps are an excellent and affordable alternative to the much more expensive "luxury" shave soap's currently on the market. I love Bay Rum, Sandalwood and Lime & Coconut. We will be providing additional follow up blog posts on how to form a lather, how to apply shaving soap with a brush and shaving with a soap and brush.
But don't just take our word for it... We have thousands of very satisfied customers that have been using our soaps for many years. You can read those reviews on the product page listed below...
A month has gone by since I first shaved with a straight razor and started messing around with wet shaving products and accessories. I have not used shaving cream yet and that may be coming in the near future, when I shaved with a straight razor and safety razor I used the same Smolder soap each time. It is in a gold tin with a screw on top and I would build the lather right in that tin. This way worked for me each time but I don’t think it is the absolute best way. Classicshaving.com has a section on their website titled "shaving mugs and bowls" and a friend inspired me to give those a try.
Before we attempt to build a lather in one of these and add a shave scent, I want to say some things about wet shaving. There is something to be said for finding a new world of art, products, and techniques surrounding something like wet shaving. I rent my home, it has one bathroom with a sink that doesn’t have much room around it to keep shaving products. All the products I have currently are set out in my living room on my desk, basically on display. I can dream about the day I own my home and have a huge counter-top surrounding my bathroom sink and all the wet shaving products can be displayed in there. I can buy a stand for my badass straight razor, have some aftershaves, soaps, strops and shaving mugs, maybe a shaving towel as well. I'm sure I will have a dinner party someday and someone will ask to use my bathroom, or I will make dinner for the person I am dating and they use the bathroom. They walk in and see those products displayed when they turn the light on, and they think "whoa, this guy is the real deal." When they come back to the dinner table they will immediately ask me about wet shaving and I can start telling them all about it and share my expertise. I enjoy learning and diving into new worlds in my life like drumming, investing, fitness, and wet shaving.
So! Let's get into it, I have a 2.5 inch Unscented shaving soap, a "Vanilla" bottle of shaving scent, and a Classic Brand Beehive Shaving Bowl.
I believe the concept is to purchase a couple different shaving scents, so that you can buy an Unscented soap and mix and match your scent every time you shave. So, I held my soap in my hand (not sure if this is the right or wrong way), got my Satin Tip brush wet and started rubbing it clockwise on the unscented soap. I would periodically transfer all the lather over to the shaving bowl. This continued for a minute or two, until I had a bunch of lather in my shaving bowl, you can then set the soap down by the sink and it will be fine. There was enough lather in the bowl to cover my face so I opened up the Vanilla shave scent, this is the only scent I have smelled but I think it's my favorite, it smells very sweet and clean. I have smelled some bad Vanilla candles and car scents (the little trees on your rearview mirror) and this smells so much better. I put 4 drops into my lather and mixed it up more, after smelling it and applying to my face, I don’t think I would apply any more drops to the lather.
I Used my BOG safety razor again, its becoming my personal favorite.
In my opinion, this was a much more fun system then mixing a soap in a tin, I suppose that if I had just got a Vanilla soap it might have been the same. However, I think I am a fan of buying shave scents and then buying unscented soap. In life I am a fan of options, maybe one day I am feeling Vanilla and another day, Smolder. Using the bowl is the way to go, another new technique added to my skill set of wet shaving.
- Brad
Well, here we are again, it has been about 3 weeks since my first time shaving with a straight razor and now it's time for another new experience, the Black Ops Grooming Safety Razor. I know a few people in my life that actually prefer a safety razor over everything else. I went into this experience with much more confidence then when I was shaking and nervous the first time I used a straight razor. Along with the BOG safety razor I also have a 5 pack of Feather stainless double edge blades.
I unscrewed the top of the safety razor and gently placed one of the double edge blades between the top and the lower piece of the razor. For this shaving session, I will be reusing my smolder soap from last time, as well as my smolder aftershave and satin brush.
I like the way the BOG safety razor looks better than all the other safety razors I have seen online. It has a matte black coating all over and the handle has a nice weight which makes it feel really nice when you pick it up. It seems pretty durable, like I could throw it in my backpack, take it camping, keep it in my work truck, toss it around and not worry about dropping it. So once again, I build my lather inside my blades grim tin with smolder soap, I rub my facial hair with a hot towel, I have my BOG safety razor and I am ready to go.
With all the confidence in the world now that I am a straight razor expert (not really, just did it once) I start shaving my face with this badass safety razor. Just like with a straight razor, once you feel it on your face and it starts working correctly, the rest is a breeze. I have the water running in the sink and periodically run the razor under the water to wash off the hair. After about 30 seconds of shaving, I thought to myself "this is so easy", and it honestly is ridiculously easy. With a disposable razor, it is actually really difficult to get the hair out, I always end up slamming my disposable razor on the side of the sink or using a towel to wipe the hair off onto. With this razor, I experienced none of that. When I ran it under the water for 2 seconds, I looked at the razor and it was perfectly clean and ready for more shaving. I'm not sure if you are supposed to keep switching from side to side with the razor but that is how I was using it. Using one side of the blade then the other. Here is another big benefit, the double edge razors cost very little, the razors I am using cost about $2.99 on the classic shaving site, and these 5 will last me awhile. I will literally never need to buy another safety razor. The BOG safety razor will be around after an asteroid hits us.
It took less time for me to shave with this razor then the Gold Dollar straight razor. I applied my Smolder aftershave to my freshly shaven skin, and felt another wave of fulfillment, 3 weeks ago I had never used a straight razor or safety razor. I have now used both, and not just some random safety razor you find in your grandpa's garage, but the Black Ops Grooming safety razor in all its glory. I think this razor is overall less expensive, just as easy, and is built better than a disposable razor. Until next time, thank you for reading my articles and please go check out all my others on the site!
- Brad
You know that old guy you work with that smells funky, either his breath or his body odor, so you avoid talking to him just because of that. I don't want to smell bad, I get paranoid about my breath, feet, clothing... etc. So I brush my teeth, chew gum, shower regularly, make sure my shoes don’t smell terrible, and wear deodorant and cologne. When I was 16 I purchased some Old Spice cologne, it did the job. Since then I've owned Adidas cologne, Drakkar Noir (yes, in 2012 I believe, crazy), and some cheap stuff from Walmart that has lasted forever. This past week I got my hands on some Smolder cologne from The Blades Grim and I am going to tell you all my thoughts on the experience.
When my buddy handed me the bottle of Smolder cologne the first thing I said was, "whoa it's white", which is different because in my cologne experience, they were all clear. But hey, what's wrong with being different right? If you are thinking that this white coloring will show up on your skin or clothing, do not worry, it won't. I sprayed it directly on a black shirt and it leaves no white residue.
After my experience using smolder beard oil and then shaving with a straight razor (both articles are on classicshaving.com if you care to read), I came to the realization that I am a fan of the "smolder" scent. So I was excited for this cologne and had my eye on it for a long time. I did not think I would be disappointed, unless of course it was too strong, too weak, or damaged my clothing or skin somehow. When you are in a department store looking at cologne or perfume and you are attracted to a specific bottle, you pick it up, take the cap off, spray it in the air in front of you, then smell the air. As I typed that routine out, it sounds completely insane. But this seems to be the general routine of any man, woman, or child that is testing a cologne or perfume. When the bottle of Smolder cologne was placed in my hand, after commenting on the color, I sprayed it in the air and then smelled the air.
It smells great, it smells like Smolder, and very clean, fresh, and warm. I feel like one spray is enough, and in the Amazon description for this product it says that each spray is very subtle and not overpowering so that you can have more control over the scents strength. In my opinion, one spray is perfect, as you can still smell it on you for hours after. If anyone gives you a hug, or you get close and personal with your lover, the Smolder cologne will be there subtly waiting to greet them.
As soon as my beard grows back, I plan on using the Smolder Beard Oil daily in order to arrange the mess of hair on my face and for the awesome, clean smell. If I use a couple drops of that, and a spray of this cologne, I will be perfect for the whole day. I was excited for this new product, and I wasn’t let down.
- Brad
Never in my life did I think that I would be using beard oil, and up until about a year ago I didn’t even know what it was. I remember one day at work during the summer of 2016 when I heard one of my friends say to another friend "Yeah I put beard oil in it". That’s strange, I thought, why would you want your beard covered in oil and look wet and greasy? About a month later I made a decision to stop shaving regularly and see what happened, it's something I had never done before, I was very used to being clean shaved so it was a big decision.
A year later, I possess a decent amount of facial hair. It's not a perfect, thick, well-groomed beard like Zach Galifianakis or even something that would ever receive a "nice beard" compliment, but it covers most of my face and I like it. It grew outward and was dry and uneven, I have kept it for a year and trimmed it back every couple weeks. So, out of nowhere I find myself with a bottle of "Smolder" beard oil from The Blades Grim and, keeping my same mindset, thought that its strange to put oil in your beard.
When I open the small 1 oz bottle my immediate instinct is to smell the scent through the opening in the top, and I loved the smell so much!
I know there are a lot of scents available but honestly just based off this one bottle I think "Smolder" is my favorite. So now I want this smell on me, all other pros or cons aside, this scent will only improve my below average beard. I then walk from my kitchen to my bathroom so that I have a mirror available to apply my new favorite scent to my face. If you turn the bottle upside down it will very, very, slowly drip out, which is good, mainly because the oil is so potent, you don’t want to get carried away with how much you use. Also because this way it can't spill accidentally, and it will help the bottle last longer. So I turn it straight upside down and let about 3 drops drop onto my fingers, which I then applied to my beard. I won't lie, applying this oil felt really good. Along with the captivating "Smolder" scent, it was a very calming 15-20 seconds. I then put another 2 drops on my fingers to apply to the moustache that didn’t connect to the rest of my beard. I was not able to necessarily rub my fingers through my beard, so it was more of just rubbing the oil on my beard with my flat palm.
I could already see the progress, my dry beard that stuck out in every direction looking fuzzy like I just got out of bed looked groomed and managed. After using a comb and spending less then 2 minutes making the mess on my face look like I did actually care about my appearance, I now knew why people use beard oil. Not to mention all the benefits it provides to your skin, hydrating your skin helps prevent flaking, dandruff and skin dryness.
Throughout the rest of the day I noticed everything else, my beard didn’t itch at all, I smelled good, I looked better, I felt confident. I liked this product, and I don’t see myself ever going on a date, a job interview, dinner with family, or outside of my house into the actual world without this beard oil. I wash my hair every day (yes honestly I do), I put deodorant on every day (I'm still not lying), and I don’t want to look bad to other people or most importantly, myself. The use of this beard oil needs to be added to my regiment. I need things in my life that boost my self-esteem and my confidence, and this is one of them that takes 2 minutes to apply which is a huge win in my book.
- Brad
I imagine there are some people out there that you could hand a strop and a straight razor to and they would know exactly how to use them, but I am not one of them. So when I obtained a blunt Practice Straight Razor and a Beginners Strop from the Classic Shaving website I had to resort to YouTube for instructions from a pro. If I hadn't done this, or if I had used a sharp straight razor, I would have damaged my strop, I am sure of it. Thankfully from my brief research online I learned that you keep the spine of the razor (the thick metal part opposite the razors edge) against the strop at all times, and that you don’t bring the razor all the way to the end because you will contact the metal or leather at the end of the strop when you flip the razor.
So, I have a small metal rack on wheels in my bathroom to hold towels and a small Bluetooth speaker that provides music for my daily shower. This metal rack provided the perfect location to clip my Beginners Strop to. Before I attached the strop to the rack I looked it over, I had just removed it from the plastic packaging that it came in, and it had that luxurious new strop smell. This is only listed for $15.99 on the Classic Shaving website and it feels very high quality and well-made when I examined it before use. The side where it attaches to a hook or rack has a large metal piece about 2 inches long which I could tell would be the main thing on this strop I wouldn’t want to hit with my razor. I can't recommend how happy I am that I am learning this skill with a blunt razor and a beginner strop.
So I clip the strop to my metal towel/music rack, and open up my Practice Straight Razor to start my learning experience. I checked the sharpness of the blade with my finger so that I could track my sharpening progress along the way. I then grab the strop handle, pull it tight (important) and place my razor on it. The blade is pointing to me and I am not pushing down on the strop with it very hard, just resting it on the strop. I then push it away from me down the strop and perform the flip that I had seen on YouTube, the spine of the razor stays on the strop and the sharp edge flips around to then face away from me. This is not the motion that my hands naturally wanted to make, I wanted to bring the spine up and slide the edge of the blade against the strop, and if I had a very sharp razor I could this damaging the strop and/or the razor.
I slowly keep stropping, not trying to increase my speed. I will confess to you that play the drums in my spare time, I take lessons, and while I was learning the basics of drumming I learned that going slow is perfectly ok. This is better than trying to go fast, cutting my strop and launching my razor across my bathroom and sending my dog running scared. After about 15 "laps" on my strop I check my razors edge to see my progress and I could start to feel the progress already! If I can do this then anyone can. It will take some time to pick up speed, and it wont be long before I will want to upgrades strops. I need to get the muscle memory down so it's not a conscious decision to keep the spine on the strop and not the razors edge.
Up until yesterday the only type of shaving I had ever done was disposable shaving. I didn’t realize that I had been robbing myself of the best shave of my life. So I got my hands on a Gold Dollar straight razor, "smolder" shaving soap, a Satin Tip synthetic brush, "smolder" aftershave and "cinder" pre-shave, all from the Classic Shaving website. I was very nervous to do this, my heart was beating fast and I didn’t want to cut myself repeatedly. However, if the shaving started going bad then I could always stop and switch right back to my disposable razor. I was aware of the fact that wet shaving will take longer than the alternative, which means that if it doesn't provide more benefits than I can't afford to use a straight razor regularly.
There are a couple ways to soften your beard before you wet shave. You can use a hot towel to prep your face or simply take a hot shower. I took a hot shower as I usually do at the end of the day and contemplated the task that lay ahead of me.
I got out, got dressed, and placed all my wet shaving products around the sink in front of me. My facial hair was still soft from the shower, so I picked up the "cinder" preshave (which smells incredible) and started dropping the oil onto my hand.
I applied the preshave liberally to all the hair on my face that I was planning to shave and I could see why a preshave is so helpful. It makes the surface of the skin slick and easy to run a blade across. If your skin is not wet and prepped you are risking cutting yourself.
Next, I opened up my "smolder" luxury shaving soap and grabbed my Satin Tip brush.
I filled the sink with water and dipped my brush into it, and then placed that into my soap tin and started rubbing the brush around in small circles quickly. After doing that for about ten seconds, I dipped the brush again and continued. It didn’t take long to build a lather up in the tin, and then I started using the brush on my face and covering all my facial hair with soap.
I was still very nervous, but it was time to shave. I opened my Gold Dollar razor and decided I would start on the right side of my face. In my opinion the 3 most important things regarding wet shaving are prepping your face, the angle of the razor, and making sure the skin you are shaving is stretched. This involves lots of moving of the mouth and some help from your free hand.
So as I began on the upper part of my beard on the right side of my face, my left arm stretched over my head to help stretch the skin on the part I was focusing on. The razor needs to be at about a 30 degree angle, and once you finally start shaving it gets a lot easier. I ran into difficulty on my upper lip, and on my sideburns. The sideburns were the most problematic. My nervousness went away very quickly and I started enjoying this new experience. Small strokes with the razor, and periodically dipping the razor into the sink. Two very tiny little cuts were the only collateral damaged that I suffered in my first time wet shaving, and after I was done and had wiped my face clean with a towel, the cuts weren't visible. I was also left with zero in-grown hairs.
We are all familiar with the Macaulay Culkin scene from Home Alone with the aftershave on his face. This is exactly what I expected when I was opening my "smolder" aftershave bottle.
So after spreading a thin layer of the aftershave on my hand I quickly tapped my cheek to prepare for the burn, and felt almost nothing. I proceeded to cover my face with the aftershave which smelled great and felt great. This is some nice aftershave.
One big benefit of wet shaving is a reduced risk of in-grown hairs, far less irritation to your skin, and the cost. It cost significantly less to wet shave. My first experience wet shaving took about 25 minutes, and it's not a race. The final product was so beneficial, my skin isn't dry or razor burnt, it looks great and feels AMAZING. I can't imagine going on a date, a job interview, or anywhere that I need to look sharp without wet shaving before. Totally worth the 25 minutes, and not as hard as I imagined. The result is a much better shave then any electric, cartridge, or disposable razor can provide.
- Brad
Here is what you need to know before you use your Blade’s Grim Pre-Shave Oil. It’s necessary to test products on your skin to see how it may react. When using pre-shave oil, you may have to use more or less of it based on your skin type. Most natural oils in your skin will react well to pre-shave oil and will help protect your skin while shaving. However, if your skin is naturally oily, adding additional oil may block pores and cause break outs. It is always a good idea to test how much you think you will need on a small area of skin before starting your shaving process.
The purpose of using pre-shave oil is to help soften and enrich facial hair, and create a protective layer between your skin and the razor. This layer will prevent any razor burn, bumps, nicks or cuts.
Use pre-shave oil before starting your shaving process. Pre-shave oil is especially helpful for those who have dry skin, thick hair, and sensitive skin. The oil will help soften the hair and create a smooth glide for an effortless shave.
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This is another industry first from Classic Shaving and The Grooming Network
]]>This is another industry first from Classic Shaving and The Grooming Network (TGN) OK so its nothing earth shattering but it is pretty cool and a very practical addition to straight razor wet shaving.
TacticTail can be added to all of our production razors. Just click the box on the Razor options as shown below and select your color. Black is the default color:
Additionally if you have an old razor that you would like to have our TacticTail application applied we offer that under services.
Enjoy and thank you.
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