I posted one on the board a week ago, trying to find out more about the brush.
On Shaving: Minor Musings of an Eternal Beginner
- Thread starter Goblin
- Start date
It is cool looking...
- Thread starter
- #1,003
Ergonomically it is probably quite good...but it does look odd.
Another Overlander shave today. We are definitely getting somewhere in terms of working out what the correct angle on this razor feels like, and it ain't what I had been doing before!
It was the 3rd use of a Feather and it did seem to be giving up a little. That made the shave a bit more difficult on the tough stuff and I gave up pushing for BBS on the sideburns, but still a DFS+ was achieved without too much fuss or facial impact. When I first started with DE I had almost no gray and could use a Feather blade for 4 or 5 shaves, but no longer. How the years have taken their toll!
Something else I noticed today was that, this being about 30hrs since my last shave, I do find slightly longer growth easier to deal with. I sometimes see other folks saying this but I never really noticed it before - my 48hr shave routine was more about giving my skin a break. It seems to me like maybe longer whiskers take up moisture more easily so they soften up better. When the growth is <≈1mm it seems to remain stiffer even after a solid hot water prep. Today, I was actually impressed by how the Overlander dealt with that - even though the whiskers seemed a bit hard and spikey, the low reveal on the Overlander meant there was no risk of chatter. As a razor for daily shavers that don't chase BBS I am starting to see why it has such a following.
Another Overlander shave today. We are definitely getting somewhere in terms of working out what the correct angle on this razor feels like, and it ain't what I had been doing before!
It was the 3rd use of a Feather and it did seem to be giving up a little. That made the shave a bit more difficult on the tough stuff and I gave up pushing for BBS on the sideburns, but still a DFS+ was achieved without too much fuss or facial impact. When I first started with DE I had almost no gray and could use a Feather blade for 4 or 5 shaves, but no longer. How the years have taken their toll!
Something else I noticed today was that, this being about 30hrs since my last shave, I do find slightly longer growth easier to deal with. I sometimes see other folks saying this but I never really noticed it before - my 48hr shave routine was more about giving my skin a break. It seems to me like maybe longer whiskers take up moisture more easily so they soften up better. When the growth is <≈1mm it seems to remain stiffer even after a solid hot water prep. Today, I was actually impressed by how the Overlander dealt with that - even though the whiskers seemed a bit hard and spikey, the low reveal on the Overlander meant there was no risk of chatter. As a razor for daily shavers that don't chase BBS I am starting to see why it has such a following.
Goblin, would love to hear why you are are not more "in" to vintage razors, or if you are just hiding it for us ?
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- #1,005
Vintage razors I have owned:
Flat Bottom Techs x 2
Spiral Techs x 2
Ball End Tech (alu)
Ball End Tech (brass)
Old Type
NEW x 2
Flare-tip
All were "user grade". The flare tip was something I bought very early on in my wet-shaving journey and I didn't get on with it at all. It seemed super chattery and aggressive and put me off TTO razors for good. Looking back, I wonder if there was actually something wrong with it for it to be so badly behaved.
I sold a bunch of razors in January and all I have now is a single NEW, which I like. I do plan to add some vintage razors again in the future, but I will try to get ones in nice condition or which have been replated from the USA. The shipping costs tend to wipe out the savings, but generally there is much more variety in better condition and lower prices than in the UK. An example of that is some stripped and polished NEWs I was looking at. There was a guy in the UK selling one and asking £90 ($112) whereas there is a guy in the USA with several to choose from around the $45 mark. It is crazy how expensive everything is here and that is one reason I haven't gotten more into vintages before - in the local market, anything in good condition just seems over-priced to me. I know some folks still manage to snag bargains, but I never seem lucky enough to find them myself!
I believe these brushes are German made. Likely Hans Baier or Thäter - mid 1980s.
Happens less these days in my experience. I certainly have had some lucky strikes, but also some unfortunate big sums - simply because I wanted the razor in question. They were in very decent shape when that happened so I am not really complaining.
- Thread starter
- #1,009
Honest!
All the other vintages have been sold.
I broke my Overlander run today to shave with a Permasharp in a Masadachi. Why? I know I said I would stick with the Overlander, but it was time for a fresh blade and I thought I would try something different then see if I could still pick up the Overlander again without losing what I learned.
I have only used this cap / plate combo once before back around Christmas and then I used a Feather. I thought the Permasharp might not cope in something mild like this, but in fact it was just fine. I am not sure whether it will last as long for me as in razors with lower reveal - that kind of plays into my idea that if the blade rigidity is very high, you can get away with a milder blade. When there is more scope for flex / chatter, it means a blade that has lost a bit of sharpness is more likely to deflect and lead to the shaver (i.e. me) thinking that it is done - in fact, it might not be done and the life could be extended by switching to something with lower blade reveal.
With that in mind, I am going to use the Permasharp / Masadachi combo for my shave on Saturday, then next week I will load a fresh Permasharp in both the Masadachi and the Overlander and compare them.
I know in the past I felt like anything less than a Feather just didn't cut it in the Overlander, but I hope now I understand that razor better, the Permasharp will do okay. I also theorise that I might get more shaves out of the Overlander due to the greater rigidity. That said, I do find the greater angle leeway on the Masadachi makes my life much easier, plus it is naturally what we might call a shallow angle razor, which suits my tastes. In theory the Masadachi should be less agressive than the Overlander - similar gaps and -0.03 vs +0.06 exposure. In practice, the Masadachi seems to be positive when measured from inside the generous safety bar scallops, and it certainly feels significantly more efficient than the Overlander - it's still mild, but fewer repeat strokes or touch ups are needed, which meant the facial impact today was basically zero.
So no more certain Swedish razor anymore as well then?
This is where I am at. Different razors, but the direction is similar: finding a razor that works and then seeing if it works across blades as well. Hopefully by the end of this year Ik will have a good handle on what works and what doesn’t. Early May my database will have 1,000 shaves registered and by the end of the year that should be a little north of 1,200 - plenty of data to appraise best combos. In 2026 I am looking forward to shaving with those combos!
- Thread starter
- #1,012
Oh, I forgot about the Swing!
My mind was on a Gillette track.
I would not part with the Swing. It is excellent - still my favourite safety bar. Swing + BIC is one of my perfect combos.
I did not mean to cause alarm!
Edit: in my brain the Swing isn't vintage. The design of that razor is up there with the fanciest modern razors in terms of geometry imo.
You had me scared there for a moment
as I indeed recall you really liked the shaves with the Swing.So two vintage razors? Sounds about just right for Vintage April if you ask me!!
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- #1,014
I would never part with my motherland razors the Swing and the Matador. Both are excellent! If I now could find an Aeterna razor. They are not easy to find.
Enjoy your weekend, James.
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- #1,018
Hello, Eric. I have been wondering where you have been - seem to have been quiet the last couple of weeks, or maybe it is just me not looking in the right threads. Hope is all is well with you.
Have a good weekend too.
I was down with a wee bit of depression, my friend. It doesn't happen often but sometimes it creeps up on me. Doing better now.
Thanks for your kind words, sir.
- Thread starter
- #1,020
I am glad to hear you are feeling better. The absence of the journal nomad does not pass unnoticed! 
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