The Safety Bar

[Jay21]

I got one of the more recent R41s - the stainless steel version - and I find it quite a comfortable razor. There’s blade feel but not excessive, and the head feels pretty good over my skin.

I have new one in zamac and chrome. I think it's the blade angle that gets me. No matter which angle I try, the blade is still too steep for me and it essentially scrapes along my skin. I have the same problem with the Henson--more scraping, less slicing. I need more practice, but I don't use it enough each month to really get in good quality reps.

 

[Calyshaver]

No, I’m not opening a bar. Sorry if the thread title misled some of you.

I was thinking what a great name for a watering hole when I read the title, and it does not apply only to razors.

As for the safety bar, I know nothing about razor design, but it seems to me it would have the effect of stretching the skin before the blade scrapes through the whiskers above whereas with the open combs the whiskers are popped up in between the teeth?

 

[JimmyJoeMeeker]

The hair on my neck grows almost parallel to my skin. This makes the safety bar less efficient by default at cutting the hair. No change in angle or extreme sharpness can ever overcome the physical obstacle of the bar. Now that my technique has advanced enough to not bleed out, I’m going to explore open comb designs.

I know your frustration. I'd say a quarter of my facial hair does this, including large parts of my neck and most of my mustache. Combine that with being seriously coarse, and getting an even shave without irritation is a feat to be celebrated.

 

[ivan_101]

The progress and timeless, for instance are radiused and scalloped. Do you have an example of sharp scalloped edges?

The Progress is not scalloped. I know on many photos they look like scallops. But they are tiny notches with the space between them slightly slanted. Compare to 34C and DE89 which are scalloped.

 

[Mr. Shavington]

The Progress is not scalloped. I know on many photos they look like scallops. But they are tiny notches with the space between them slightly slanted. Compare to 34C and DE89 which are scalloped.

Yeah. Similar effect to scalloping, though, I imagine.

 

[Cal]

I’m feeling like the importance of safety bar design is underestimated generally. Do any of you think there’s something to this?

Yes, I do.

Do you have razors with safety bars that you think have a big effect on the shave, one way or the other?

Yes. (Let's call them guards.) I like 1; solid safety bars, 2; closed combs, and 3; open combs (I'm not keen on scalloped safety bars).

I have a favorite in each of the three classifications above, which are:

1940s Gillette Flat Bottom Tech, 1947 Knockout (made in Sheffield), 1939 Gillette NEW Raised Flat Bottom.

I find the guards on all three above to be smooth and comfortable. The safety bar on the Flat Bottom Tech is smooth between the non-skid tread and the bottom of the bar, whereas the standard Tech has a groove between the non-skid tread and the bottom of the bar (which I don't like [it makes it less smooth during the shave]).

I can easily get a good close shave (usually BBS) with all three, whether it's a daily shave or a seven day shave (and I have coarse, thick, and fast growing whiskers).

 

[ivan_101]

Yes, I do.

Yes. (Let's call them guards.) I like 1; solid safety bars, 2; closed combs, and 3; open combs (I'm not keen on scalloped safety bars).

I have a favorite in each of the three classifications above, which are:
View attachment 1654031
1940s Gillette Flat Bottom Tech, 1947 Knockout (made in Sheffield), 1939 Gillette NEW Raised Flat Bottom.

I find the guards on all three above to be smooth and comfortable. The safety bar on the Flat Bottom Tech is smooth between the non-skid tread and the bottom of the bar, whereas the standard Tech has a groove between the non-skid tread and the bottom of the bar (which I don't like [it makes it less smooth during the shave]).

I can easily get a good close shave (usually BBS) with all three, whether it's a daily shave or a seven day shave (and I have coarse, thick, and fast growing whiskers).

Of all the types scalloped is my favourite. But not the Merkurs and the Edwin Jaggers as they are so mild I can never get BBS with them. The Parkers and the Yaqi scalloped heads are excellent for me. Same for the Lupo 95 SB. I get a closer shave with it compared to the Lupo 95OC.

Windsor Pro also comes to mind. And of course the Goodfellas Styletto ALU, which has 3 very wide "scallops" on the guard to compensate for the very small 0.56mm gap. Works for me wonderfully.

There is nothing wrong with a completely smooth guard of course (like on the Futur for example)

 

[Mr. Shavington]

Of all the types scalloped is my favourite. But not the Merkurs and the Edwin Jaggers as they are so mild I can never get BBS with them. The Parkers and the Yaqi scalloped heads are excellent for me. Same for the Lupo 95 SB. I get a closer shave with it compared to the Lupo 95OC.

Windsor Pro also comes to mind. And of course the Goodfellas Styletto ALU, which has 3 very wide "scallops" on the guard to compensate for the very small 0.56mm gap. Works for me wonderfully.

There is nothing wrong with a completely smooth guard of course (like on the Futur for example)

I wonder if there is a benefit when there is less surface area of the safety bar touching your face. Scalloping reduces the contact surface area, and the wide scallops or scoops on the Goodfellas’ Styletto Aluminium bar may have a greater effect. I also notice that some of the razors I like have a thin (but not sharp) safety bar - the Blutt BR-1 is a good example.

I guess, though, there’s some degree of offsetting effect because less bar surface area would also mean the bar presses harder onto the skin. Pressure = Force / Area. So applying less pressure when shaving may become a bit more important with a scalloped or thin safety bar.

 

[ivan_101]

I wonder if there is a benefit when there is less surface area of the safety bar touching your face. Scalloping reduces the contact surface area, and the wide scallops or scoops on the Goodfellas’ Styletto Aluminium bar may have a greater effect. I also notice that some of the razors I like have a thin (but not sharp) safety bar - the Blutt BR-1 is a good example.

I guess, though, there’s some degree of offsetting effect because less bar surface area would also mean the bar presses harder onto the skin. Pressure = Force / Area. So applying less pressure when shaving may become a bit more important with a scalloped or thin safety bar.

I think scallops just allow my skin to get inside them. That means also the blade digs deeper resulting in a closer shave.

 

[Jbird45]

No, I’m not opening a bar. Sorry if the thread title misled some of you.

I have the sense that the safety bar design on a razor has a big effect on how comfortably and smoothly the razor shaves. I’ve used a lot of razors and certain ones stand out as exceptionally smooth feeling considering the aggressiveness of the head design. I think something those razors have in common is a safety bar design and finish that feels smooth and gentle. I even wonder if safety bar design might be the biggest factor in determining how a razor feels.

Wolfman safety bars are very comfortable for me, as an example - they are polished, rounded edges, scalloped so that less of the material touches your face, and the positioning of the safety bar seems ideal. The Atelier Durdan La Faulx SE razor (which I don’t have) gets a lot of positive comments and what is most striking about the design is the rounded, sloping, extended safety bar - I don’t know what it feels like but it just looks like it would be very comfortable.

I don’t think safety bars are discussed very often when we talk about different razors, and there are plenty of razors with safety bars that look rudimentary, as if very little thought has gone into the design. I’m feeling like the importance of safety bar design is underestimated generally. Do any of you think there’s something to this? Do you have razors with safety bars that you think have a big effect on the shave, one way or the other?

I guess those of you who always shave with a shallow angle won’t know what I’m talking about. But you could still chime in about top cap designs instead.

What say you good people?

When Fine accoutrements released the Marvel razor this was the whole basis of it's design and that thing had massive safety bars.

I have one and it's comfortable, but for some reason I gravitate towards straight razors or open combs. I've never been blown away by a shave from a closed head razor. As with anything it seems, YMMV is very true

 

[BigJ]

For me, the Wolfman WR1 SB is about as good as it gets!!

 

[kingfisher]

I have been posting about this in multiple threads over the course of the past year or so, but the never got any traction. I agree entirely that rounding/smoothing/radiusing of the safety bar makes a razor feel exceptionally smooth, and vice versa (sharp safety bars make razors feel more harsh).

I have two razors in my collection that maximize the smooth factor with very rounded safety bars: the iKon Shavecraft 101 and the Stahly. The Stahly safety bar also has shock absorbers (bcs the original razor vibrated). This design is absolutely fantastic. The only trouble with the razor is that it is extremely mild. I have felt for years that somebody needs to make a razor head like the Stahly but slightly more aggressive, including the shock absorbers. Maybe this would be easier said than done.

 

[kingfisher]

Here are some pics to illustrate what I was talking about. This is the Shavecraft 101. Fantastic safety bar design that I wish more razor manufacturers would learn from.

 

[kingfisher]

The Stahly. The connection between the bottom of the baseplate and the safety bars is a stiff 'shock absorber' of sorts. This is an extremely smooth head.