[Mail Call] Kobar 7 Day Set
[Mail Call] Kobar 7 Day Set
Just had this 7 day set land today. Very minor rust on the tangs, otherwise in great shape. They all have yet to ever be honed.
KOBAR was a brand belonging to Friedrich Emde (as was the trademark Kiebitz). The company changed name to Gebrüder Emde and later EMDE. They produced razors between 1902 and 1939.
Pardon my ignorance but why would you need a razor for each day of the week?
No pardon needed! The thought behind the 7 day is to greatly increase the time between honing. As well as a myth behind high carbon steel and that it needs to "rest" between uses. This is only just a myth, however.
Very cool. Where are you getting the history of straight razors? Is there a book I can buy?
Also, I finally found a 6/8 Puma. Not a High Class, though. Still on the hunt for one of those.
Where are you getting the history of straight razors? Is there a book I can buy?
Just from digging around on the internet. I wish had a book that had all this info. I did speak with a gentleman once that had a pretty detailed book. It might have just been for Sheffield razors, though. I'll have to reach back out to him and find out more about it.
I finally found a 6/8 Puma
Oh fantastic! I still think about that 5/8 one from time to time. I still intend to grab another one at some point. I'll be curious to hear how it treats you!
That 5/8 was very nice. I prefer larger razors, though, and there are 6/8 and 7/8 High Class Pumas out there. The one I just bought is a Puma 89. Cream colored scales. You've seen a bunch of them. It hit eBay at a good price, so I bought it. The two Erns that I bought are in better shape than I thought. The 7/8 has some nice spine work. I'm going to sharpen it (for a video), then use it for a bit, then think about what can be done. Other than knowing who Ern was, I don't know how to date or even identify these razors.
Very nice set!
Dang, those are super cool. Neat that you're the first to get a shot at honing them.
Neat that you’re the first to get a shot at honing them
I'm pretty fond of that part myself!
I got one of them straight razors with the disposable blade holders. How do you practice without cutting yourself ? Im okay with double-sided safety razor holders. And I use the Gillete 5-blade razors as well.
The problem is, the Gillete is for certain days when I am in a hurry and I will put up with the micro-cuts that I burn out with alcohol. It burns like hell and numbs for half a day before the itching starts :-(
Safety razor is the best result for me. So what I do is I use my hair-trimmer to get as close to a buzzcut. Then lather shave rinse repeat about 2 or 3 times. Almost never cut myself and rarely happens.
But the straight razor I cut myself the moment I placed the blade on my cheek. I tried different holding angles but it always ends up with several cuts. I dunno I watched a ton of YT videos on this but nothing seems to be working. What do I do for practice to get better ?
Try starting with the razor flat against your skin, then increase the angle (with no pressure!) until the razor starts catching the lather. That's the angle you want to keep. Start on the cheeks - where everything is flat, and only go to more demanding areas once you are comfortable on the cheeks with the grain.
I would recommend starting out just going with the grain on your cheeks. You need only extremely light pressure. Start your downward motion before making contact with your skin, and lift off before stopping. If you're regularly cutting yourself and it's not just the point doing it, you could be coming to a stop on your skin, and even the slightest sideways movement will open you up. Good luck!