Shaving with an SE Wedge Blade

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Stop the world I want to get off. Mr FergieBilly take a bow. I had the maiden voyage with my Heljestrand SE combined with a freshly honed Heljestrand wedge this evening. Holy mackerel batman it was like nothing I've ever experienced before. Went with my trusted pre shave and post shave routine and my trusted Fitjar Calmomilla soap. Muhle 70th anniversary STF brush helped complete the hardware line up. I had 7 days growth. YES 7 DAYS GROWTH. It completely mowed it down with the first pass. That would have left me with a DFS. But no I was enjoying myself so much I went for another pass and hey presto. Finished with a beautiful BSS. Warm rinse, cold rinse, a splash of Thayers witch hazel followed by some organic Aloe vera. Certainly one of the best and smoothest shaves I have EVER experienced in my entire life. The entire household had to get a feel of my super smooth face. Hurry up and grow stubble!! Hurry up!!!
 
Stop the world I want to get off. Mr FergieBilly take a bow. I had the maiden voyage with my Heljestrand SE combined with a freshly honed Heljestrand wedge this evening. Holy mackerel batman it was like nothing I've ever experienced before. Went with my trusted pre shave and post shave routine and my trusted Fitjar Calmomilla soap. Muhle 70th anniversary STF brush helped complete the hardware line up. I had 7 days growth. YES 7 DAYS GROWTH. It completely mowed it down with the first pass. That would have left me with a DFS. But no I was enjoying myself so much I went for another pass and hey presto. Finished with a beautiful BSS. Warm rinse, cold rinse, a splash of Thayers witch hazel followed by some organic Aloe vera. Certainly one of the best and smoothest shaves I have EVER experienced in my entire life. The entire household had to get a feel of my super smooth face. Hurry up and grow stubble!! Hurry up!!!

Did you find that the blades sit squarely in the lather catcher? When I was honing them, it looked as though they were slightly off in terms of shape i.e. Spine to edge was narrower at one end - I didn't measure them but the pictures seem to show a slight distortions. However, as long as they sit square in the guard bar they are fine. Glad you enjoyed the shave.
 
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Stop the world I want to get off. Mr FergieBilly take a bow. I had the maiden voyage with my Heljestrand SE combined with a freshly honed Heljestrand wedge this evening. Holy mackerel batman it was like nothing I've ever experienced before. Went with my trusted pre shave and post shave routine and my trusted Fitjar Calmomilla soap. Muhle 70th anniversary STF brush helped complete the hardware line up. I had 7 days growth. YES 7 DAYS GROWTH. It completely mowed it down with the first pass. That would have left me with a DFS. But no I was enjoying myself so much I went for another pass and hey presto. Finished with a beautiful BSS. Warm rinse, cold rinse, a splash of Thayers witch hazel followed by some organic Aloe vera. Certainly one of the best and smoothest shaves I have EVER experienced in my entire life. The entire household had to get a feel of my super smooth face. Hurry up and grow stubble!! Hurry up!!!
Well well...I knew you would be blown away by the Nordic Prince..Awesome aint they..I have always said that the knowledge is experiential & belongs to the Beholder...What else can one say..This Beauty Blows just about every SE Right out the Water..There is No current blade on the Planet that is as comfortable as a correctly sharpened Hollow Ground.. These Nordic Jobs are worth a 100 SEs with a current blade...Sheesh !...No matter we have one..I am so glad you like it my Friend..The light just distorts the angle of the blade here as I have noticed that my pics don't reflect what is True in Reality either..o_O

Hail the Almighty C.V Heljestrand...:D:p:D

Billy
 
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Absolutely fantastic razor...I honestly can't wait to shave again. Without a doubt the best shave I have had from any SE razor. I think you may be right Billy. Maybe the shading in the picture doesn't do the blade angle any justice but I certainly had no issues during a very very pleasant shave. I'm glad I took your advice and invested in a Heljestrand. Even more fulfilling is being able to use this razor as was always intended with a Wedge blade.
 
Absolutely fantastic razor...I honestly can't wait to shave again. Without a doubt the best shave I have had from any SE razor. I think you may be right Billy. Maybe the shading in the picture doesn't do the blade angle any justice but I certainly had no issues during a very very pleasant shave. I'm glad I took your advice and invested in a Heljestrand. Even more fulfilling is being able to use this razor as was always intended with a Wedge blade.
Yeah..They are Mind Blowers for Sure..Most Folks just wouldn't believe it an all..Very Exciting to Boot..I am sure John Wayne used One..Certainly as big as his Six Shooters that's for sure..:eek:

Billy
 
RAPIDE..:p
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Another shot..:)
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Three Shaving Pass Routine..:cool:

Hot Water prep & massage with Coconut Oil
German Rapide
Heljestrand Hollow ground blade
Hans Baier Silver Tip Badger
Vitos Tallow Soap (Italy)
Logona Mann Aftershave splash

I had my first shave with my German made Rapide with a Hollow ground blade..I have used this turn of the 19th Century SE with a Gem blade but this was a different experience altogether..I had to adjust the 2 small screws that you can see to get the Hollow ground to seat in the stops...The adjustments screws are there to take up any wear on the blade through honing & small difference's in blades ...Its a wee bit tedious but I got there in the end...I would say that the Rapide is just about centre right on the Aggression scale..Not as aggressive as the CV Heljestrand but a lot more so than the French L " Essor...The Rapide is a surprisingly very forgiving razor for all its Big lookin Jaws..These were mass produced in large numbers & were Cloned by many Companies including the more up market Henckels variation...:)

I ended up with a BBS Dolphin Smooth Finish after touching up under my nose with an Injector..I just couldn't get under my nose with the Rapide...All in all a real comfortable shave is to be had with this Old 1889 design I think it was..Here again I have been spoiled with the Swedish CV Heljestrand ...The Nordic Beauty is just leaps & bound ahead of any other Hollow Ground SE ...That said I enjoyed my shave with the Rapide & its simple robust design was away ahead of it time for sure..Its built like a Panzer Tank & no doubt will be cutting around for another Century or Two...In my humble opinion a Good Tallow Soap is almost a must with these Hollow Ground SEs.. Not a single cut, weeper or nick..Good Karma..:p

Billy
 
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Got this razor in Rapide, Henckels and Mutz, and one incomplete. The simplicity of the design amazes me.
Handling is pretty ok, it, as well as the design, reminds me somewhat of a Rollsrazor, except this has this baleen-contraption underneath the blade.
 
Rolls Razor..:p
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Two Pass Shaving Routine...:cool:

Hot Water prep & massage with Coconut Oil
Rolls Razor
Wedge Hollow Ground Blade
Hans Baier Silver Tip Badger
French Monsovan Bol Tallow soap
Thayers Original Witch Hazel

I had a lovely Two Pass Shave today with my Rolls Razor..The blade was very sharp indeed..I got a hold of some Red Honing Paste & Honed the blade within the Rolls System for 40 laps & another 40 Stropping laps a side..I finished the blade off on a leather strop outwith the Rolls System as you can see on the 2nd photo above..The Rolls wedge blade wont fit a standard stropping handle so I just use some tape to get a good handle on it..The blade is very sharp indeed..I didn't use the safety bar whilst shaving...The safety bar is to stop the blade getting damaged whilst its flipping over whilst honing & stropping within the Rolls System..It doesn't serve any other purpose really except to further protect the blade when you sit the razor down of course..:)

I have got to say this in all earnest ..The Rolls Razor is the next best thing to the CV Heljestrand without a doubt..I have used just about every Lather Catcher & French Hoe with a Hollow Ground Blade & they don't look near the Rolls with the exception of the CV Heljestrand of course..There is a lot of loose talk in Forums about shaving with a straight edge blade on a stick..I am guilty of this myself..As you can see in the photo above the Rolls is probably the only one that is truly a straight edge blade on a stick..:eek:

The Rolls is just so easy to use to those that have ever used a traditional straight razor..Its the exact same shaving angle and principle..The most dangerous part is handling these Hollow Ground Blades or having an accident them rather than cutting yourself whilst shaving...These blades are lethal & would make a wonderful weapon for self defence..No bones about that..One WTG Pass & One ATG Pass & ended up with a mixed BBS & DFS Result..I am finding it difficult now to shave with any Gem blade SE these days..I still love my Injectors of course ..Bit of a pardox I know but that's just the natural laws of Yin & Yang in my Nature..:p:D:p

Billy
 
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Rolls Razor..:p
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Two Pass Shaving Routine...:cool:

Hot Water prep & massage with Coconut Oil
Rolls Razor
Wedge Hollow Ground Blade
Hans Baier Silver Tip Badger
French Monsovan Bol Tallow soap
Thayers Original Witch Hazel

I had a lovely Two Pass Shave today with my Rolls Razor..The blade was very sharp indeed..I got a hold of some Red Honing Paste & Honed the blade within the Rolls System for 40 laps & another 40 Stropping laps a side..I finished the blade off on a leather strop outwith the Rolls System as you can see on the 2nd photo above..The Rolls wedge blade wont fit a standard stropping handle so I just use some tape to get a good handle on it..The blade is very sharp indeed..I didn't use the safety bar whilst shaving...The safety bar is to stop the blade getting damaged whilst its flipping over whilst honing & stropping within the Rolls System..It doesn't serve any other purpose really except to further protect the blade when you sit the razor down of course..:)

I have got to say this in all earnest ..The Rolls Razor is the next best thing to the CV Heljestrand without a doubt..I have used just about every Lather Catcher & French Hoe with a Hollow Ground Blade & they don't look near the Rolls with the exception of the CV Heljestrand of course..There is a lot of loose talk in Forums about shaving with a straight edge blade on a stick..I am guilty of this myself..As you can see in the photo above the Rolls is probably the only one that is truly a straight edge blade on a stick..:eek:

The Rolls is just so easy to use to those that have ever used a traditional straight razor..Its the exact same shaving angle and principle..The most dangerous part is handling these Hollow Ground Blades or having an accident them rather than cutting yourself whilst shaving...These blades are lethal & would make a wonderful weapon for self defence..No bones about that..One WTG Pass & One ATG Pass & ended up with a mixed BBS & DFS Result..I am finding it difficult now to shave with any Gem blade SE these days..I still love my Injectors of course ..Bit of a pardox I know but that's just the natural laws of Yin & Yang in my Nature..:p:D:p

Billy
Nice review billy.

I am working on getting my Rolls shave ready. I too just received some red honing paste.

It is getting closer. It is removing arm hairs now. I figure several more cycles on the hone and strop. Then i will give it a test run. It will be my first wedge shave.

Tom
 
Nice review billy.

I am working on getting my Rolls shave ready. I too just received some red honing paste.

It is getting closer. It is removing arm hairs now. I figure several more cycles on the hone and strop. Then i will give it a test run. It will be my first wedge shave.

Tom
Its well worth the effort Tom..Its so rewarding to shave with natural steel on your face rather than coated stainless blades an All..The only thing is that more often than not the blades need their bevel set by honing it outwith the Rolls System to get it up & running..I was fortunate that the blade I am using was NOS & well greased from the factory in an airtight container..:)

Billy
 
Its well worth the effort Tom..Its so rewarding to shave with natural steel on your face rather than coated stainless blades an All..The only thing is that more often than not the blades need their bevel set by honing it outwith the Rolls System to get it up & running..I was fortunate that the blade I am using was NOS & well greased from the factory in an airtight container..:)

Billy
I did take it out and honed it on some wet dry sand paper. Up to 2000 grit. Shimmed the back of the blade to approximate the angle in the Rolls.
When i first got the razor it would not cut any hair on my arm. Now it is cutting a dozen on a short stroke 1/2". So I think a few more on the hone and strop will get me to the point of trying it out on my face. [emoji3]
Tom
 
I did take it out and honed it on some wet dry sand paper. Up to 2000 grit. Shimmed the back of the blade to approximate the angle in the Rolls.
When i first got the razor it would not cut any hair on my arm. Now it is cutting a dozen on a short stroke 1/2". So I think a few more on the hone and strop will get me to the point of trying it out on my face. [emoji3]
Tom
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Not sure if this picture is clear enough. Was wondering how that edge compares to a shave ready wedge. There seems to be some slight waviness. Is that to be expected?

Thanks
Tom
 
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Not sure if this picture is clear enough. Was wondering how that edge compares to a shave ready wedge. There seems to be some slight waviness. Is that to be expected?

Thanks
Tom
That doesn't look right to me Tom..That looks to me as the bevel is off set..I heard you earlier saying you used a shim to set the bevel..The blade should just be laid naturally flat on either side when honing to set the bevel..o_O

Billy
 
That doesn't look right to me Tom..That looks to me as the bevel is off set..I heard you earlier saying you used a shim to set the bevel..The blade should just be laid naturally flat on either side when honing to set the bevel..o_O

Billy
Billy
Thanks. So I am actually looking to have 2 angles per side? The first bevel done outside of the Rolls. Then hone and strop the final cutting edge?

Tom
 
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