Razor Blade Sharpeners...

[Ryan]

This is sort of off topic I guess... But I was browsing Reddit the other day and came across a bunch of vintage razor blade sharpeners. In turn, this lead me to YouTube where I found a video of many in operation. I've been mesmerized ever since and t...


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[WagonHo!]

Pretty nifty, ingenious gadgets invented for razor blade sharpening. Great video.

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

They had a need they made it happen.
Here is a simple machine that captivates a bit: https://www.instagram.com/p/BnjHbKOnuJX/?taken-by=_craftyb_

 

[jessesandy]

Makes me wonder; when was the word "disposable" actually invented ?

 

[gungatim]

disposable blades were invented by Gillette or schick, forget who, saw a documentary on it once. they can't be sharpened. he figured out a way to fuse a hard piece of steel to a soft piece for the main body, the very thin laminated tip holds a fine edge but isn't big enough to be sharpened. revolutionized the industry sometime around the early 1900's IIRC...

edit: looked it up, it was Gillette around 1901...

 

[woody 73]

Ryan good post...

 

[casmurbax]

Makes me wonder; when was the word "disposable" actually invented ?

Depends on what you mean by disposable? Those blades in the video that Ryan posted are disposable. You use them till dull then you dispose of the blade, load a new blade into the handle...

In 1901, the American inventor King Camp Gillette, with the assistance of William Nickerson, patented a new variation of safety razor with disposable blades. Gillette realized that a profit could be made by selling an inexpensive razor with disposable blades.


By 1906 Gillette's design was moving 300,000 units a year. Interestingly, Gillette sold the razors at a loss, but he more than made up for it by selling the blades at a huge profit.

That still happens today!

http://mentalfloss.com/article/22490/brief-history-shaving


Thanks for posting the video, I recall my father using a sharpener back in the day...

or are you talking about the plastic bic shavers?

 

[DougMN]

I can't believe I didn't see any blood.

 

[APEowner]

That's a lot of very clever solutions to a problem I never thought of as existing.

 

[HeelSpur]

I guarantee you more than one finger got cut with this one. Notice how gingerly he moves his hand so it doesn't get cut. Cool link.
DSCF2070 by wvwheaties, on Flickr

 

[Brian_WK]

I'm all on board except for the phallic shaped one I would cut my finger off...

Brian

 

[55glyde]

Tear Jerker!

 

[Lombie]

I’ve been using the same Mach 3 cartridge for well over a year and it’s still going strong.

When it starts to dull, I put an old pair of jeans on my workbench with one of the legs flat and smooth. This is my strop. With the blade attached to the handle, I then push the blade along the pant leg for 50 strokes of about 8” each, holding the jeans down with my other hand to create counter resistance.

The lubricating strip quit working by the time the blade went dull the first time, but the blades sharpen as good as new time after time after time.

 

[lilredex]

My father used to strop his disposable blades on his forearm to rejuvenate them. That's back when Gillette "blue" blades were the norm.

 

[gahrajmahal]

Anytime you renovate an old bathroom you find lots of old blades in the wall. There is a slot in the old medicine chests to dispose of the blades that deposits them in the wall cavity.

The video brings to life tools usually on display in a museum setting. Yes, mesmerizing!

 

[ckucia]

Anytime you renovate an old bathroom you find lots of old blades in the wall. There is a slot in the old medicine chests to dispose of the blades that deposits them in the wall cavity.

The video brings to life tools usually on display in a museum setting. Yes, mesmerizing!

I did that once. Tore the wall out in the stairwell behind the bathroom medicine cabinet. Being halfway down the stairwell put the cabinet about eye level when a waterfall of used double-sided razor blades cascaded down onto my forearms.

Somehow I didn't end up with any of them impaled in my skin. It does make you freeze in your tracks when you realize what just happened.

5-10 years ago, I ended up switching to those blades. Got myself a 50's butterfly razor off ebay. About every two years I spend $25 on a pack of 100 Feather blades on Amazon. Go through one a week more or less. I find I enjoy using a metal razor that's the same type my dad or grandfather would have used back in the day. A razor is a tool, after all.

Takes a bit more attention than the plastic gizmo razors, but it's really not bad and it's a heckuva lot cheaper. Something about having to slow down a bit in the morning while getting ready makes it easier to jump start the day. I'd never go back to the plastic ones, but I'm not sure I'm ready to try sharpening the blades either, although it's nice to know I could if I had to.

Although if I can't afford or can't get double-sided razor blades anymore, I suspect there'll be much bigger things to worry about than whether or not I shave in the morning.

 

[elidas]

I use an old Gillette also. Probably thirties. I tried one of those as seen on tv razors that turned out to be ****. I had an old Gillette I got in a tag sale pile. Cleaned it up and have been using it for a couple of years now. There are several sites online to get double edge blades. The sample pack could last for years!

 

[Bighead38]

Switched to a double edge myself. Eliminated the terrible razor burn I used to get and a closer smoother shave. Win win.

 

[oberst]

Hah. Never even knew those little machines existed, and a cursory check on e-bay shows dozens on offer.

Fun thread.

 

[Jim C.]

Cool little gizmos! A lot of thought went into some of those.

Jim C.

 

[Low50s]

Switched to a double edge myself. Eliminated the terrible razor burn I used to get and a closer smoother shave. Win win.

I am the same way I have had a beard for past 2 years but before that I used double edge way better on my skin !

 

[Toolman12]

Thanks for posting this. It reminds me of Steampunk.

 

[ransil]

Switched to a double edge myself. Eliminated the terrible razor burn I used to get and a closer smoother shave. Win win.

Me too , i went to buy refills for my regular razor one dsy , wife usually handled that, could not handle the price so went on amazon and got a razor and a sample pack, sample pack might last me 5 more years already 2 in, im cheap i use the way longer than i should.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

 

[PelicanPines]

I actually sharpen utility blades BEFORE THEIR FIRST usage. Amazed at how many have burrs and dull spots right out of the package...

 

[Mr. T]

When it starts to dull, I put an old pair of jeans on my workbench with one of the legs flat and smooth. This is my strop. With the blade attached to the handle, I then push the blade along the pant leg for 50 strokes of about 8” each, holding the jeans down with my other hand to create counter resistance.

I honesty can’t tell if you are extremely dedicated to craftsmanship or extremely cheap.

Either way, it’s truly impressive.

 

[Brad54]

I bought a nice hand-made double-edge safety razor from a guy in Ashville, NC. Dark black ebony handle, chrome-plated head and accents. The handle unscrews from the two-piece head, which then comes apart and you access the blade.
I just shave with water, no shaving cream. Always have done it that way.

Every morning I use it, I disassemble it, rinse and dry the pieces and re-assemble.
Drying your blades on a towel, even the cheap disposable multi-blade Bics, keeps the blades sharp for a very long time.

I get about 6-9 months out a blade, just by drying it after every use.
Don't dry it just once, and it's dull and pulls.

It's really remarkable.

-Brad

 

[rmalkow2]

Interesting video for sure. It strikes me that the same level of creativity, problem solving and inventiveness that we now put into software and electronics existed just as much back in the mechanical revolution days. Same type of smart people just different applications.

 

[RStewart]

Cool stuff. All I see are my ****** fingertips haha. I too have an old school razor and my sleeve of Feather blades lasts a year or more. It’s just automatic Christmas morning a new sleeve is in my stocking.

 

[Nivekdodge]

I’m in different body shops all day long. When I see the shop helper cutting up cardboard with a single edge blade, I run it up a peice of 6 or 800 grit paper. I always get a happy response when they cut again

 

[pendragon1998]

A couple of those sharpeners were terrifying. They had your fingers way too close to the blade.

You'd be surprised just how sharp you can get a blade (read: polished) with just a little stropping on a piece of leather charged with green compound.

 

[garymtx]

Cool post and video!!! Never knew they existed!!

 

[Dumber than lumber]

I’ve been using the same Mach 3 cartridge for well over a year and it’s still going strong.

When it starts to dull, I put an old pair of jeans on my workbench with one of the legs flat and smooth. This is my strop. With the blade attached to the handle, I then push the blade along the pant leg for 50 strokes of about 8” each, holding the jeans down with my other hand to create counter resistance.

The lubricating strip quit working by the time the blade went dull the first time, but the blades sharpen as good as new time after time after time.

I need to try this.
I just love to find ways to save a buck (so I can spend it on .................... beer).

 

[bargainhuntingking]

Had to add this:

https://i.imgur.com/eyZmgMN.gifv

 

[macgee]

For the ones who did not read the other thread by Ryan,

Check out this YouTube video that he posted of a collector showing several different antique razor blade sharpeners being used and the different ways they go about it. It's a good video, slightly hypnotic and a bunch of pretty impressive contraptions.

PS> The post above by bargain, just a heads up Imgur and GJ are not simpatico

 

[marinusdees]

The Gillette company has an unfailable marketing plan. They come out with a new razor every five years. When they introduce a new one, they already have the next one ready. They can give the handles away given the cost of blades. Sometimes they do. Seven blades are better than six.