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This pairing continues to surprise me. It is between a Gillette New LC and a Durham Duplex (I have a second one listed in the auction; wink wink, nudge nudge.) and I really expected the Gillette to absolutely be a run away winner; 73-0 US Football match.
'taint gonna happen.
The Gillette New stumbled right out of the gate (let's see how many sports references I can mix) and never came out of its corner for the second round. It was a total wipe out and I even had some coral scraps to show for it.
The Durham Duplex shouldn't have had a chance. It is super light, likely aluminum handle and both top and base plate just stamped metal. It's two full lanes wide and needs warning flags and police escort to be legal on most city streets. (Let's abuse meta4s equally). There was no way something even wider than an AC format razor was gonna work.
But it did.
It took me part of the first pass to figure out that you shave with this just like it was a Single Edge razor, head flat on your face and super light hand. By the start of the second pass I had the technique down and whiskers just seemed to disappear. It was smooth, effortless, efficient, comfortable; kinda cool.
Getting the hard to mow little spots took some effort so I went ahead and did an Alum rub down to help stretch the skin and touchup became fun.
What I learned:
The cream today was Tabac in the Heather n fern shaving mug with another old brush I found online. This one is a "Nobility" brand and almost certainly started life in a PX after WWII and before the early 1970s.
The key things that lead me to that conclusion is that the label is an export type label, written in English but US as opposed to British English (sterilized with a "z") and "Made in Germany" not "W. Germany". From the division of Germany after the war until the early 1970s neither West Germany nor it's allies recognized East Germany as a legitimate State. For Nations outside the Soviet Bloc there was only Germany and "Occupied Germany".
Putting it all together points to a German made boar shaving brush meant to be sold to US English speaking customers and the most likely route through a PX.
The brush did great by the way but did shed about three bristles, one obviously broken.
'taint gonna happen.
The Gillette New stumbled right out of the gate (let's see how many sports references I can mix) and never came out of its corner for the second round. It was a total wipe out and I even had some coral scraps to show for it.
The Durham Duplex shouldn't have had a chance. It is super light, likely aluminum handle and both top and base plate just stamped metal. It's two full lanes wide and needs warning flags and police escort to be legal on most city streets. (Let's abuse meta4s equally). There was no way something even wider than an AC format razor was gonna work.
But it did.
It took me part of the first pass to figure out that you shave with this just like it was a Single Edge razor, head flat on your face and super light hand. By the start of the second pass I had the technique down and whiskers just seemed to disappear. It was smooth, effortless, efficient, comfortable; kinda cool.
Getting the hard to mow little spots took some effort so I went ahead and did an Alum rub down to help stretch the skin and touchup became fun.
What I learned:
- Head flat on face.
- No pressure.
- To load the blade, first put the blade on the base plate, then the top cap on the base/blade assembly.
- Take extra time around nose, lips, chin and try to match strokes to the contour. More up and down then ear to nose.
The cream today was Tabac in the Heather n fern shaving mug with another old brush I found online. This one is a "Nobility" brand and almost certainly started life in a PX after WWII and before the early 1970s.
The key things that lead me to that conclusion is that the label is an export type label, written in English but US as opposed to British English (sterilized with a "z") and "Made in Germany" not "W. Germany". From the division of Germany after the war until the early 1970s neither West Germany nor it's allies recognized East Germany as a legitimate State. For Nations outside the Soviet Bloc there was only Germany and "Occupied Germany".
Putting it all together points to a German made boar shaving brush meant to be sold to US English speaking customers and the most likely route through a PX.
The brush did great by the way but did shed about three bristles, one obviously broken.
To be vintage it must be older than me!
The last razor I bought was the next to last razor I will ever buy!
The last razor I bought was the next to last razor I will ever buy!
Member
Las Vegas, NV, USA
(10-21-2017, 02:51 PM)jar Wrote: The Durham Duplex shouldn't have had a chance. It is super light, likely aluminum handle and both top and base plate just stamped metal. It's two full lanes wide and needs warning flags and police escort to be legal on most city streets. (Let's abuse meta4s equally). There was no way something even wider than an AC format razor was gonna work.Since I first saw one, I’ve always thought the Duplex looks very cool, but also a little formidable. Glad to hear you had a good shave with one. Which blade(s) did you use?
But it did.
It took me part of the first pass to figure out that you shave with this just like it was a Single Edge razor, head flat on your face and super light hand. By the start of the second pass I had the technique down and whiskers just seemed to disappear. It was smooth, effortless, efficient, comfortable; kinda cool.
Also, very interesting background about the brush you used.
Whenever I go to shave, I assume there’s someone else on the planet shaving, so I say “I’m gonna go shave, too.”
– Mitch Hedberg
– Mitch Hedberg
![[Image: g8RAxOF.jpg]](https://i.imgur.com/g8RAxOF.jpg)
![[Image: 2hVlAeI.jpg]](https://i.imgur.com/2hVlAeI.jpg)
Member
(10-21-2017, 05:52 PM)Matsilainen Wrote:(10-21-2017, 02:51 PM)jar Wrote: The Durham Duplex shouldn't have had a chance. It is super light, likely aluminum handle and both top and base plate just stamped metal. It's two full lanes wide and needs warning flags and police escort to be legal on most city streets. (Let's abuse meta4s equally). There was no way something even wider than an AC format razor was gonna work.Since I first saw one, I’ve always thought the Duplex looks very cool, but also a little formidable. Glad to hear you had a good shave with one. Which blade(s) did you use?
But it did.
It took me part of the first pass to figure out that you shave with this just like it was a Single Edge razor, head flat on your face and super light hand. By the start of the second pass I had the technique down and whiskers just seemed to disappear. It was smooth, effortless, efficient, comfortable; kinda cool.
Also, very interesting background about the brush you used.
I've actually tried two blades, one a NOS Durham Duplex from an unopened box of blades and the other a new compatible blade from Try-a-Blade. The first was the compatible but it was going so well I decided to try a NOS to see if it worked since I have several boxes of NOS Durham Duplex Blades. Some of the blades showed visible degradation but only the ones on the outside of the fold and only at the ends of the blade so I picked one that looked good and it was good. If I ever put it in regular rotation I'll likely used the new blades only.
To be vintage it must be older than me!
The last razor I bought was the next to last razor I will ever buy!
The last razor I bought was the next to last razor I will ever buy!
Member
Las Vegas, NV, USA
(10-21-2017, 07:21 PM)jar Wrote: If I ever put it in regular rotation I'll likely used the new blades only.It’s good to hear that there are still new blades available for that razor. (And that they work well.)
Whenever I go to shave, I assume there’s someone else on the planet shaving, so I say “I’m gonna go shave, too.”
– Mitch Hedberg
– Mitch Hedberg
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