Modern Brass?

[TheChariot]

I'm awaiting the arrival of my 2nd razor to go along with my DE89 and teach me some things, which turned out to be an M1 Slim I recently won on eBay. While I do look forward to the chance to try an adjustable and shave with a piece of history, I more so went that route because of sheer longevity of their build. Being a fledgling DE shaver, I'm just now learning about the Zamak vs SS vs Brass aspect of razors, and I've learned a good bit from scouring B&B. It's going to be a while before I have the experience and knowledge to buy a 3rd razor, because I'm not even sure which direction I want to move in yet (more aggressive, milder, slant, open comb, etc). That being said, it drives me nuts thinking about buying something that could break after something as superficial as plating damage. Seeing as how I'm trying to get many of my friends (all of whom are in their mid 20s) into DE shaving, I don't want any of them to have a bad/brief experience if they happened to buy a lemon razor. And vintage razors aren't for everyone (even though they should be).

What I wasn't able to find is a list of modern razors that are still made in brass. Only 2 manufacturers that I know of so far: Razorock and I believe some of the HTGAM products. I was wondering if y'all could shed some light on modern razors that are made out of brass, and perhaps wisen me up on the entire situation as a whole. i.e. Does the word "brass" today mean the same thing as it did in 1965? Things like that. Razorock seems to talk the right talk when it comes to that issue, but the best purchases I've made have been informed by B&B questioning. So here I am again.

 

[Guru17]

Fatip razors are made of brass.

 

[TheChariot]

Aha! Probably more aggressive than I'll ever need, but good to know nonetheless.

 

[hydro-magic]

I believe the RazoRock and HTGAM razors have zamak heads. Brass handles maybe. I think Fatip might be about it. Maybe Goodfella but that looks like an Old type copy and you might as well just find one of those cheaper.

Too bad there aren't more choices for new razors in brass. It really is about an ideal material for razors. Lots of good vintage choices out there though.

 

[TheChariot]

I believe the RazoRock and HTGAM razors have zamak heads. Brass handles maybe.

Crap, you're right, at least about RazoRock. I did a bit more reading on ItalianBarber:

The new RazoRock Safety Razors come in both a Three-Piece design (TP) and a Twist-to-Open (TTO easy load) design. The Twist-to-Open models are chrome over a brass frame, the way it should be! The Three-Piece models sport a chrome over brass handle with a chrome over zinc alloy head.

Seems a bit counterintuitive to make the head Zinc alloy. I think people would gladly pay a little more for a brass head, especially since the threads are what tend to lose their plating and suffer from oxidation. Perhaps there is a valid reason for this that I'm still ignorant to.

The good part is that the TTO seems to be all brass, although I know very little about that razor. Guess it's time to do a bit o' digging.

 

[hydro-magic]

You're right. I'm not really a fan of TTO's so I just didn't think about them. If you like them, there are some choices there.

 

[ahntu]

I don't think there are any other modern razors other than the Fatip and modern TTO's like the Razorock that are all brass.

For longevity and in a higher price range there's Weber stainless steel and Standard Razor aluminum...and in a completely different price range the Above the Tie and Feather stainless steel razors.

 

[TheChariot]

I did the proper digging and found the link between RazoRock and Cadet. Had no clue. The Cadet path would merely offer a wider variety of handle options, which I suppose is nice.

I'm gonna spend a few weeks shaving with the Slim I just bought and see how I feel about the TTO factor. I'm sure there'll be pros and cons, but I have pretty small hands so I don't suspect that the knob will bug me. Hopefully someone will design a three piece (hell, even a two piece) with all-brass construction one of these days, because I do like having the blade locked into the head in such a way. And, hopefully, it won't cost what a stainless razor costs. IMO there's probably a market for it, and I'd be willing to pay upwards of $40-50 (maybe as high as $60) for such a razor if it offered a shave that agreed with my mug. I feel like it would create a middle ground in quality between today's popular "starter razors" and the stainless models that hover at or above $100.

Thanks for your input, fellas. Definitely increased my shave knowledge today.

 

[allenfamilia]

Now this is the post I've been searching for! Been trying to find a nice razor that will last a generation or two! I'm still in the Newby-ish stage and don't want anything too aggressive, but I'm really wanting Brass or Stainless as my base metals.

 

[TheChariot]

Now this is the post I've been searching for! Been trying to find a nice razor that will last a generation or two! I'm still in the Newby-ish stage and don't want anything too aggressive, but I'm really wanting Brass or Stainless as my base metals.

We're in the exact same spot, my friend. I'm about 6 weeks along, and absolutely certain I'm going to be a DE shaver for life (I'm 27). So the question naturally arose: "Why isn't there a MODERN razor that I'll be able to depend on for the next 40 years?"

No gripe with the vintage market. I've enjoyed geeking out over vintage Gillettes on eBay and BST forum. I just think that there could be a lot more options for modern razors in the (hopefully near) future.

 

[TheChariot]

FWIW, the few reviews I read on the RazoRock TTO were very good and worth digging up. Its aggressiveness was considered to be in the ballpark of the Merkur HD and Gillette Red Tip, which is exactly the step up in aggressiveness that I've been considering. Plus it's $20 and not exactly scarce or precious, so I'd be way more comfortable traveling with it as opposed to a vintage razor. My current travel razor is a Weishi that I got for free, which feels like a toy and is über mild.

 

[jamesspo]

The Razorock/Cadet/Pearl TTOs have brass handles, but some sort of non-brass stamped metal heads. I've confirmed this with a vendor that sells them under the Cadet brand name. Sorry . It may well be better than Zamak, though.

 

[bughat91]

Seems like you guys don't have a problem with vintage so maybe just stick with vintage but make them modern looking? Here's a Fatboy Captain Murphy got done Idk just throwing some ideas out there to help you out.

 

[carbr2]

Parker razors are Chrome over Brass. They don't get mentioned much (one of the reasons I like my 99r is it's different) but I have enjoyed using it very much and the price point is good too.

 

[Harvid]

Is there any link between Parker and Cadet? I believe both are made in India is why I ask.

Personally, I think a Zamak razor is a good option to start with. I would love to see companies like EJ and Merkur do brass, but I imagine the costs of trying to switch over would be quite large. As it stands they are reasonably priced tools that do a job and serve as a great intro to DE shaving. Consider them a gateway drug! And once hooked, razors start to accumulate, as I am now up to 12 DE & SE razors in 2 months (as a physician, I suspect I am suffering from RAD, but am in denial!).

Even if vintage isn't your thing, go stainless or aluminum. While the intial costs are higher, they will be amortized over a long life span (hopefully!), so a small price to pay for good tools that can be passed on....

 

[jamesspo]

Is there any link between Parker and Cadet? I believe both are made in India is why I ask.

Personally, I think a Zamak razor is a good option to start with. I would love to see companies like EJ and Merkur do brass, but I imagine the costs of trying to switch over would be quite large. As it stands they are reasonably priced tools that do a job and serve as a great intro to DE shaving. Consider them a gateway drug! And once hooked, razors start to accumulate, as I am now up to 12 DE & SE razors in 2 months (as a physician, I suspect I am suffering from RAD, but am in denial!).

Even if vintage isn't your thing, go stainless or aluminum. While the intial costs are higher, they will be amortized over a long life span (hopefully!), so a small price to pay for good tools that can be passed on....

I thinks it is likely that Parkers are from the same OEM source, but I'm only basing that on comparing the heads - they look identical to the Cadet/Pearl razors. The wording in the descriptions is also nearly identical, using terms like "brass frame" (shown to refer only to the handle for Cadet/Pearl).

 

[TheChariot]

Seems like you guys don't have a problem with vintage so maybe just stick with vintage but make them modern looking?

VERY VERY cool idea that I hadn't considered. It's not really about that though. More of a big picture type of thing. I don't like that the current industry has this little flaw that people can point to.

"Oh, it's cheaper at first, but then you've gotta buy another $30-$40 razor after 3 years when the plating fails. I've heard of people getting defective razors right off the bat. I might as well keep buying cartridges."

I realize how painfully weak that logic is, but there's people who would think that way despite the vastly superior quality that comes with almost any DE razor vs cartridges. It just bugs me.

Personally, I think a Zamak razor is a good option to start with. I would love to see companies like EJ and Merkur do brass, but I imagine the costs of trying to switch over would be quite large.

I think that costs are essentially the #1 reason they do zamak. I read a few "zamak vs brass" threads where some engineering wizards pointed out how difficult/costly it would be to convert back and forth between the 2 materials. From a marketing standpoint, my sincere hope is that DE razors become so popular that these companies get big enough to open additional manufacturing locations that they can dedicate to higher quality materials; i.e. A brass plant, or a stainless plant. Perhaps the price point and the demand are there.

The current DE89 can become the DE89 Standard, and then you make a DE89 Lifetime out of brass @ about 50% higher price. Again, I would absolutely pay $50-$70 for such a product. $70 takes it into Weber territory, but I think people who are in dedicated to the DE89, 34C, or whatever, would gladly "reinvest". I don't know any of the real facts or figures when it comes to production and sales, but I believe at least 1 company could go out on a limb and make a 100% brass razor. Even the Cadet/Pearl... just make the ENTIRE thing brass and charge an extra $5-10! "100% BRASS" could end up being about 75% of your selling point right off the bat!

 

[ahntu]

I wonder how Fatip can do a brass razor at 25 dollars. You'd think Merkur or Edwin Jagger would be able to as well. Maybe Fatip had everything just fall in their lap and they pressed play. Or maybe Merkur and EJ are so popular they don't care about the hardcore fans who know the difference between zamak and brass. Why spend time and money making something that will last forever when their business model makes it unnecessary? To them it's counterproductive.

 

[billobob]

I imagine fatip uses a factory that has been around for a while (either a repurposed Gillette factory or euro manufacturer). I think this is how many of the brass TTOs are made, in old Gillette etc. factories

 

[jamesspo]

. I think this is how many of the brass TTOs are made, in old Gillette etc. factories

I'm not sure any of the modern TTOs are all brass. I've confirmed with a vendor that the Cadet/Pearl/Razorock line of TTOs are brass handle, but non-brass heads. I'm not sure on Parker - I'm trying to find out from Parker on that. These places could be using Gillette machinery, but no way to really know without taking a factory tour, I guess. It would be cool if they were .