Weck Wednesdays

[Old Hippie]

This might get an answer over in the SABRE sub, but I'll try here first; the choir's in this pew.

Two questions:

1. What is the usual material for the black scaled Sextoblade scales? I've got one on the way that will probably need some gentle polishing, so I'd like to know if it's something I can polish.

2. I'm on the hunt for an Orderly/military medic version. I understand the old Weck "Bantam" became the "Nurse's Weck" became the "Hair Shaper" -- soooo does that mean the Hair Shaper with metal handle is A) stainless steel and B) a nice thick steel? My Fromm hair shaper ("made in Pakistan from Japanese steel!") has quite thin metal. Feels inexpensive. Anyhow, I'm looking for the medical version Sextoblade and also thinking about the Hair Shaper, which, if it is as I would like, would be an upgrade from this Fromm.

At least the Fromm is fun. I'll have to seek out some Kismet blades; for the moment I'm sticking to Personna and hoping my local Sally gets in a few Fromm blades to try. I think I can also get Feather Cut blades there, but it's not so much of a priority for me.

Cheers lads,

O.H.

 

[Dave himself]

This might get an answer over in the SABRE sub, but I'll try here first; the choir's in this pew.

Two questions:

1. What is the usual material for the black scaled Sextoblade scales? I've got one on the way that will probably need some gentle polishing, so I'd like to know if it's something I can polish.

2. I'm on the hunt for an Orderly/military medic version. I understand the old Weck "Bantam" became the "Nurse's Weck" became the "Hair Shaper" -- soooo does that mean the Hair Shaper with metal handle is A) stainless steel and B) a nice thick steel? My Fromm hair shaper ("made in Pakistan from Japanese steel!") has quite thin metal. Feels inexpensive. Anyhow, I'm looking for the medical version Sextoblade and also thinking about the Hair Shaper, which, if it is as I would like, would be an upgrade from this Fromm.

At least the Fromm is fun. I'll have to seek out some Kismet blades; for the moment I'm sticking to Personna and hoping my local Sally gets in a few Fromm blades to try. I think I can also get Feather Cut blades there, but it's not so much of a priority for me.

Cheers lads,

O.H.

I can only speak of the Wecks I have but I hope this helps you some.

1. The scales on my black Weck is made from plastic but it still doesn't feel cheap. I think it's because the arm that holds the blade is possibly made from steal. The red scales on my other Weck are also plastic.

2. The Orderly (medical Wecks) are made from stainless steel and are the same size as the Sextoblades.

3. The Hair shaper are just like a mini Orderly. They are made from steel but weather it's stainless or not I don't know for sure.

Here's a photo of the different Wecks for a size comparison, from top to bottom.

Top. Sextoblade
Middle. Orderly
Bottom. Hair Shaper

Sorry I couldn't be of more help.

 

[Old Hippie]

I can only speak of the Wecks I have but I hope this helps you some.

Fantastic! Thanks for sorting that out for me.

The Sextoblade I have coming looks a little rugged but that may be mostly cosmetic. It wasn't very expensive, so I'll take what I get and work with it.

I'm finding, as I thought I would, that the available hand space on the Fromm hair shaper is almost-but-not-quite-enough. I'll be interested to see if the Weck Hair Shaper is any different (though I don't really expect so; we'll see). If the one I'm getting is good I may chase a metal version too. Otherwise I'll redirect toward an all-metal Sextoblade if that's more congenial.

Aside from keeping an eye on the Great Internet Bizarre Bazaar I'm in waiting mode on new razors, and in practice mode on the one I have.

O.H.

 

[Dave himself]

Weck Whenever.

Razor= Weck Sextoblade
Blade= Kismet Hair shaper
Brush= Yaqi Artic synthetic
Soap= Sterling Electric Sheep
Aftershave GFS Orange Empire

An ok shave this evening.

Not as close as usual, I think the blade is maybe getting a bit dull I'll change it out for a new one next shave and see if that improves any.

 

[DamascusSteel]

My 3rd shave with my Military Weck another complete WTG the pass and a nice XTG pass on the cheeks. Still trying to figure out the up the neck pass but it'll come. I've only shaved with this style 3 times now. The Stirling Oud Sigma gave me a perfect lather and smelt great too. Finished the shave with my trusty EJ 3ONE6

 

[Dave himself]

My 3rd shave with my Military Weck another complete WTG the pass and a nice XTG pass on the cheeks. Still trying to figure out the up the neck pass but it'll come. I've only shaved with this style 3 times now. The Stirling Oud Sigma gave me a perfect lather and smelt great too. Finished the shave with my trusty EJ 3ONE6

I still can't figure out how get the angles for an XTG pass on my neck, so I've just given up and do 2 ATG passes one with normal strokes and another with scything strokes. It doesn't get smooth as the rest of my face but then I never chase a BBS shave.

 

[Dave himself]

Weck Whenever.

Razor= Weck junior
Blade= Kismet #1
Brush= ANBBAS synthetic
Soap= Sterling Mountain Man
Aftershave= Witch Hazel Mentholated (H / M)

Back into my usual very close and comfortable shaves thanks to the new Kismet blade.

 

[EdHeart]

@Old Hippie Please take before and after pics of the polish job and share with us the method/process you used. I'm fascinated with polishing metal. I've also polished out chips in the rims of bar glasses to see if I could without making the glass worse. In every glass adventure I've been very successful. I'm very curious about the plastic scales.

Thanks.

 

[Dave himself]

@Old Hippie Please take before and after pics of the polish job and share with us the method/process you used. I'm fascinated with polishing metal. I've also polished out chips in the rims of bar glasses to see if I could without making the glass worse. In every glass adventure I've been very successful. I'm very curious about the plastic scales.

Thanks.

+1

I don't mind a bit of wear and tear on the blade holder arm. But I would really like to know if there's anyway of polishing the plastic scales. Thanks for bringing up this question @EdHeart.

 

[EdHeart]

I have to believe it would be possible to polish plastic: of decent quality. If I were to guess, and I am, I suspect the materials would have to be very mildly abrasive and wet (paste of some sort.) Plus a whole lot of patience would need to be involved. Given the scales are likely contoured, as in not flat per se, some sort of soft, conforming structured applicator that would hug the scales evenly would also be necessary so as to avoid flattening the scales.

I reiterate, I'm only guessing here. Plastic would take scratching, gouging pretty easily and not damaging it more would be the real key.

 

[Wombat ESQ]

Did someone say Weck?

Stainless Steel:- The ole magnet trick, get a half decent magnet, take the blade out of your Weck to use as a reference. Stick the magnet on the blade, mentally note the force needed to remove said magnet, repeat on the scales, then the spine away from the scales, and the guard.

I did these 3 over, the spines and guards are Non-Magnetic = good stainless steel. The scales are less magnetic than the blade = not quite as good stainless steel. And the plastic is also good plastic, surprisingly, it is also non-magnetic

Polishing plastics? :- I use Autosol, block of foam or cheesecloth and elbow grease, then to buff, the inside fluffy side of tracksuit material liberally laced with talcum powder.
My other option is a low speed buff wheel that is strictly reserved for plastic and Josco multipurpose compound for plastic/silver/gold. The technique is to put you item into/onto the wheel and off the wheel for 10? seconds each, so you do not heat it and makes a smeared mess.

An old toothbrush that I polished, because any modern head or handle will not fit in a 1922 silver travel set toothbrush holder, !

 

[Dave himself]

Thank you to @EdHeart and @Wombat ESQ for the replies. Also @Wombat ESQ that's a nice collection of Wecks.

 

[Dave himself]

Weck Wednesday.

Razor= Weck Orderly
Blade= Kismet Hair shaper #2
Brush= Yaqi Everest synthetic
Soap= Tabac
Aftershave= Witch Hazel with added menthol

Shave tonight.

Was 3 passes with no touch ups no drama and almost BBS. I really like shaving with the Orderly it really fits nicely in the hand and has a good weight to it.

 

[Old Hippie]

I have to believe it would be possible to polish plastic: of decent quality. If I were to guess, and I am, I suspect the materials would have to be very mildly abrasive and wet (paste of some sort.) Plus a whole lot of patience would need to be involved.

I reckon that, too. I'll do some reading and ask a few folks. Seems like @Wombat ESQ has the right stuff! A bit of gentle polish on a damp cloth was what I was imagining.

I don't have the razor in hand yet. It just looked like it was either dirty or scuffed a bit or maybe both.

O.H.

 

[Anchovie666]

Just found this thread - been hanging out over at SABRE. This will fit in nicely for my plans for WECK-vember.
A different Weck Razor/Blade combo for every week in November. Just got in some Fromm & Kismet blades.
And I have a Sextoblade razor on the way. I'm hoping it's a bit bigger than the hair shapers.

 

[Dave himself]

Weck Whenever.

Razor= Weck Sextoblade
Blade= Kismet Hair shaper
Brush= Yaqi Black Marble synthetic
Soap= Sterling Electric Sheep
Aftershave= Witch Hazel Mentholated

Tonight's shave.

Lovely 3 passes and no touch ups or drama. I really like this Electric Sheep soap it's slicker than a eel in a bucket of oil. The only thing is there is a underlying scent with the Lanolin in it, it smells a bit sheepy if that makes sense.

 

[Old Hippie]

Weck Wriday?

SOTD: Friday October 18, 2024 (OBtober 7th/OCtober 7th)
Razor: Weck Hair Shaper/RazoRock Superslant L3++OC on Timeless Ti Crown handle
Blade: Personna Hair Shaper (6)/Dorco Prime (1)
Brush: Omega 10005
Soap: Yardley Oatmeal & Almond

O.H.

 

[DamascusSteel]

Well had my 4th shave with the Weck and it went pretty good until it didn't . Cheeks went great, cheeks are BBS for the first time. I can't figure out how to shave the left side of my neck. I got a really nasty nick probably borderline cut on the left side of my neck. Also got nicked at the corners of my mouth, under my mustache.
Finished the shave with my EJ 3ONE6. Any suggestions to help me a right hander with shaving the left side of my neck?

 

[Old Hippie]

Any suggestions to help me a right hander with shaving the left side of my neck?

There are days when I'm glad I'm essentially ambidextrous, though mostly right handed. I have some troubles with the left hand, but not too bad.

I see two options:

A. Practice using your right hand to shave left going only WTG and then using your bailout razor to do the ATG. I use different holds on the razor WTG vs. ATG, so this way (if you're like me) you're only working on one skillset at a time.

B. Pretty much like A except do the same thing using your left hand.

It is possible to overcome "handedness" to a greater or lesser degree, but it takes time and work. Also patience. I have a feeling you're a better fit with Option A, so breaking things down into smaller pieces to work on will help you get going.

O.H.

 

[JL 52]

Any suggestions to help me a right hander with shaving the left side of my neck?

I personally hold the razor like a bread knife with my right hand for that area . Practice a few different grips and figure out what works best for you. The only “correct” way to hold a razor is whatever works for YOU.