Old Type Problem

I have three open comb old types all with heads that show the same amount of blade "frowning" (the blade curves downward at the edges). Is this normal for old types? My initial thought is that the head caps are bent to the same degree that the blades exhibit frowning. I have shaved with all three and they seem fine, but I would be more comfortable knowing from an expert.

Sorry, no macro setup to post pics.

Bump! No one can answer this question?

You may have better luck posting this in the Safety Razors thread: http://badgerandblade.com/vb/forumdisplay.php?f=33

The design of the blade holder or bottom portion of the head being concave, forces the blade to bend in that fashion. The Old style originally used thicker blades than we comonly use today, I believe. Some folks suggest using a shim. Gillette realized this and designed the New Improved in about 1921. The new Improved has a flat blade bed. I personally have 2 olds and a New improved and like the New Improved shave a little better. See a description of the 3 piece Gillettes here:http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?p=1490636#post1490636

mkevenson said:

The design of the blade holder or bottom portion of the head being concave, forces the blade to bend in that fashion. The Old style originally used thicker blades than we comonly use today, I believe. Some folks suggest using a shim.

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Thats what I thought too, but a shim does nothing to help the bend, just the gap. Also, when I look at pictures of old types the heads look to fit flush to the comb with no blade inserted. Mine all show a gap in the middle between the comb and cap. I'm convinced mine are bent, but to have three, all of which show the same bend? That's why I am asking. If mine are indeed defective, I would like to find one that does not exhibit this problem.

perhaps if we could see some pics it would help in evaluating your olds.

I'm not sure i can answer your question but here is an observation as a relatively new user to DE shaving, in the two attached photo's, i have taken shots of my 1906 single ring old style Gillete and my 1930's 'New' style Gillette razor.

I actually enjoy shaving with both but note the 1906 is more aggressive, the 30's blade is more forgiving and i think looking at the photos the angle and size of the tooth comb could be a factor in this regard.

I also noticed the bend you are describing in my Old Type, which I purchased earlier this month. However, when I tighten the head very firmly on the handle, the top piece becomes flush with the comb. BE WARNED however that my Old Type has a ball-end Tech handle, so I'm not worried about it cracking. Original Old Type handles are notorious for cracking so be careful when over-tightening.

Cheers,
Brennan

SpeedyB said:

I also noticed the bend you are describing in my Old Type, which I purchased earlier this month. However, when I tighten the head very firmly on the handle, the top piece becomes flush with the comb. BE WARNED however that my Old Type has a ball-end Tech handle, so I'm not worried about it cracking. Original Old Type handles are notorious for cracking so be careful when over-tightening.

Cheers,
Brennan

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Brennan, after reading your post, I thought that perhaps my problem is that I am not tightening my old enough. As my shaving old's handle has been epoxied securely to prevent further cracks, I tried tightening it about a quarter turn past what I usually do with my other razors. This solved it! Now the blade sits flat in relation to the comb guard. The question I have then is, does anyone else have to tighten theirs more?

I also don't buy the whole shim thing with these heads. I know the heads were designed to work with thicker blades, but look at a Merkur OC head, it's nearly identical to these old heads.

Glad I could help! Let us know if the Old Type shaves better when tightened further. Relatedly, I had one of the best DE shaves this afternoon with my Old Type & a Feather.

Cheers,
Brennan

I tighten fully without problem. I also use no shim.

drewmac said:

I also don't buy the whole shim thing with these heads. I know the heads were designed to work with thicker blades, but look at a Merkur OC head, it's nearly identical to these old heads.

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I agree that shimming a blade in an old type is not absolutely necessary. The theory is that with the thicker old blades, the blade's honed edge set higher off the comb. Placing a thin shim beneath a modern blade will raise the edge off the comb, increasing the gap between the blade and comb. I've never had an old three hole blade to use to see if its edge sets that much higher off the comb.

-Clarke

hrmm, i've never had a problem with my old type. Yes, its curved a bit, but its supposed to curve the blade right? that's why the whole head is curved...

Maul555 said:

hrmm, i've never had a problem with my old type. Yes, its curved a bit, but its supposed to curve the blade right? that's why the whole head is curved...

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Wrong direction of the curve. The curve makes the blade frown from edge to edge on both sides of the blade.

drewmac said:

Wrong direction of the curve. The curve makes the blade frown from edge to edge on both sides of the blade.

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I know, its a bad example, but my DSLR just won't show the details of the blade. I hijacked a wiki picture and drew what I see on my olds, albeit a little exaggerated (obviously). The blue "line" is the blade as I see it from really close-up when tightened.

oh, yeah, mine doesn't do that...