thumb|upright=1.3|Thiers Issard Le Thiernois Sheffield silver steel, mirror-finished, singing, 5/8 inch blade, fully hollow ground, round-nose razor with decorated 24k gold-inlaid blade, fluted shank, double stabiliser, and double-pin, blonde horn scales
A straight razor is a razor with a blade that can fold into its handle. They are also called open razors and cut-throat razors. The predecessors of the modern straight razors include bronze razors, with cutting edges and fixed handles, produced by craftsmen from Ancient Egypt during the New Kingdom (1569 — 1081 BC). Solid gold and copper razors were also found in Ancient Egyptian tombs dating back to the 4th millennium BC.
The first steel-edged cutthroat razors were manufactured in Sheffield in 1680. By the late 1680s, early 1690s, razors with silver-covered handles along with other Sheffield-made products known as "Sheffield wares" were being exported to ports in the Gulf of Finland, approximately 1200 miles (1931 km) from Sheffield. From there, these goods were probably sent to Finland and even Russia. By 1740, Benjamin Huntsman was making straight razors complete with decorated handles and hollow-ground blades made from cast steel, using a process he invented. Huntsman's process was adopted by the French sometime later, albeit reluctantly at first due to nationalist considerations. In England, razor manufacturers were even more reluctant than the French to adopt Huntsman's steel-making process and only did so after they saw its success in France.
After their introduction in 1680, straight razors became the principal method of manual shaving for more than two hundred years, and remained in common use until the mid-20th century.
Since 2012, production of straight razors has increased multifold. Straight razor sales are increasing globally and manufacturers have difficulty satisfying demand. Sales started increasing since the product was featured in the 2012 James Bond film Skyfall and have remained high since. Straight razors are also perceived as a better value and a more sustainable and efficient product. Dovo in Germany reports that since a production low of less than 8,000 units per year in 2006, the company sells 3,000 units per month, and has 110,000 orders with production lead time of three years. Straight razor design and use was once a major portion of the curriculum in barber colleges.
The first narrow-bladed folding straight razors were listed by a Sheffield, England manufacturer in 1680. By the late 1680s, early 1690s, razors with silver-covered handles along with other Sheffield-made products known as "Sheffield wares" were being exported by John Spencer (1655–1729) of Cannon Hall, a wealthy landowner and industrialist, to ports in the Gulf of Finland, approximately 1200 miles (1931 km) from Sheffield. From there, these goods were probably sent to Finland and even Russia.
Straight razors eventually fell out of fashion. Their first challenger was manufactured by King C. Gillette: a double-edged safety razor with replaceable blades. These new safety razors did not require any serious tutelage to use. Despite its long-term advantages, the straight razor lost significant market share. As shaving became less intimidating and men began to shave themselves more, the demand for barbers providing straight razor shaves decreased.
Blades are usually categorised by grind, size, and blade shape.
Sizing of a standard straight razor is usually close to 3 inches of blade length, but this does vary. Blades are described by the depth from spine to edge, measured in eights of an inch. 3/8 is a very narrow razor mostly used for detail work, with 5/8 and 6/8 being the most commonly seen sizes. It is very rare to see old razors bigger than 8/8 however there are some out there at 10/8 or larger.
The other major factor is the point shape. The most common is the round or Dutch point, with the French point being fairly common. The square point is also known as an American point, and is more common on razors from the USA. There is also the Spanish point, Spike point, and Barber's Notch.
Inexperienced users should use either the round point, or a razor with a muted toe (the very tip of the edge rounded slightly) as an unmuted square or spike is prone to nicking the skin of an Inexperienced shaver.
The "handle" on a straight razor is not a handle at all, but a protector to prevent the delicate edge being damaged when not in use, and to prevent accidental cuts from the sharp blade.
Construction is in the form of two scales, held by the pivot pin through the tang, and pinned through a wedge at the other end. Scales are thin, as they must be flexible. Typical scales are 2–3mm thick and usually made from some form of synthetic (nowadays usually acrylic, but on older razors celluloid, Bakelite, xylonite, and others are common), bone, horn, or ivory on older razors. Some cheaper razors had compressed leather scales, and a few are found with thin metal scales or wooden scales.
The blade material is usually high carbon steel or stainless steel. Traditionally, carbon steel was used, but stainless steel blades have become popular in modern times because they are easier to maintain.
Parts description
right|thumb|Parts of a razor
The parts of a straight razor and their function are described as follows:
the narrow end of the blade rotates on a pin called the pivot, between two protective pieces called the scales or handle. The upward curved metal end of the narrow part of the blade beyond the pivot is called the tang and acts as a lever to help raise the blade from the handle. One or two fingers resting on the tang also help stabilize the blade while shaving. The narrow support piece between the tang and the main blade is called the shank, The point where the shoulder joins the cutting edge is called the heel. single, or can be absent in some razor models. The first stabiliser is usually very narrow and thicker and runs at the shank-to-blade junction, covering the shank and just spilling over to the shoulder. The second stabiliser can be distinguished since it is considerably wider, thinner, and longer, appearing after the first stabiliser and running lower toward the heel.
There are usually two, but sometimes three, pins in the handle. The middle pin, if present, is plastic coated and is called the centre plug. Its function is to stabilise the sides of the handle so that they cannot be squeezed in the middle and acts as a bridge between them. When folded into the scales, the blade is protected from accidental damage, and the user is protected from accidental injury. During folding, the back of the blade, being thick and normally with a curved cross-section, acts as a natural stopper and prevents further rotation of the blade out of the handle from the other side. The frictional force between the scales and the tang applied about the pivot is called the tension and it determines how freely the blade rotates about the point of rotation. A proper amount of tension should be present, for safety reasons, to ensure that the blade does not spin freely when opening or closing. Cheap stainless steel straight razors from Asia and more expensive stainless steel and carbon steel razors from Europe are available.
A razor blade starts as a shape called the blank supplied by the steel manufacturer. Nickel-plated blades are very difficult to hone repeatedly and are made for mainly aesthetic reasons though lacking functionality.
Handle materials and their properties
thumb|Fox and Rooster Thiers-Issard straight razor with two-pin handle
Handle scales are made of various materials, including mother-of-pearl, Bakelite, celluloid, bone, plastic, wood, horn, acrylic, ivory and tortoise shell. Celluloid can spontaneously combust at elevated temperatures. Buffalo horn tends to deform with time and it possesses form memory so it tends to warp. Mother of pearl is a brittle material and can exhibit cracks after some use. is also suitable for long term and intensive use.
The mechanical properties of bone make it a good handle material.
Blade geometry and characteristics
The geometry of the blade can be categorised according to three factors: the blade width and weight, the shape of the profile of the point of the razor, and the type of grinding method used for the blade (as grinding method determines the degree of and therefore hollowness, or of the sides of the cross section of the blade).
- Square, spike or sharp point, so-called because the blade profile is straight and terminates at a very sharp point at the toe, perpendicular to the cutting edge of the razor. This type of blade is used for precise shaving in small areas but, at the risk of pinching the skin, it requires some experience in handling. Spike point differs from square point as the angle at the edge of the blade is less than 90 degrees. resulting in a blade profile which appears slanted backwards at the toe. The spike end point of the profile at the toe may be ground by the user to make it rounder, but that may indicate a lack of skill in handling the razor.]]
The second category refers to the type of grinding method used and, since it affects the curvature of the blade cross section, includes the following two main types of blade grinds:
- Hollow grind, indicating that the sides of the blade cross section are concave.
- Flat or straight grind, indicating that the sides of the blade cross section are linear. This cross section most closely resembles a wedge and therefore this blade is sometimes called the wedge. Hollow-ground blades are preferred by most barbers and some high-end razor manufacturers limit their production exclusively to hollow ground razors.
Blade width
[[File:The several sizes of blades.jpg|thumb|Four common width sizes of blades. The sizes vary from up to , rarely .
Length, stability, and balance
The degree of hollowness and thus the cross sectional area (thickness) of the blade vary depending on the grinding method used. Higher degree of hollowness in the blade implies a thinner cross section and this affects the stability (bending or buckling properties) of the blade; the thinner the blade the more flexible it is. The length and weight of the blade and handle and their relation to each other determines the balance of the straight razor. A 1979 comparative study of straight and electric razors, performed by Dutch researchers, found that straight razors shave hair approximately 2/1000 in. (0.05mm) shorter than electrics.
thumb|left|During stropping, the strop hangs from the ring and is pulled from the rectangular loop giving it a proper tension
The stropping process involves sliding the razor blade flat on the strop; upon reaching the end of the cloth or leather near the suspension ring, the blade is turned about its back (clockwise for a right-handed barber; counter-clockwise for a left-handed one) until the cutting edge touches the strop. It is then pulled toward the rectangular handle of the strop with back and cutting edge flat on the strop as before. The blade is moved in a slightly diagonal direction so to give every point of the edge a chance to touch the strop, without applying too much pressure. This process aligns the cutting edge properly with the back of the blade, avoiding "bumps" on the cutting edge. Rotating the blade on the strop about the cutting edge can damage it because such use will impact the micro-alignment of the edge. Depending on use and condition, the blade can be sharpened occasionally by using a razor hone. Strops prepared with pastes containing fine grit are also used for honing but are not recommended for the inexperienced user, as they can easily rake off the edge if they apply the wrong amount or exert too much pressure.
Some strops have a linen or canvas back.
Shaving soap in a cup is traditionally lathered and applied using a rotating in-and-out motion of a shaving brush, usually made of boar or badger bristles.
In the heyday of straight razor shaving, wealthy users maintained a weekly "rotation" of seven razors to reduce wear on any one piece. Straight razors were often sold in special boxes of seven labelled for the days of the week.
Modern use
thumb|189px|Antique leather barber's strop. It is best for sturdy wedge type blades. Hollow ground blades should be stropped on a hanging strop, since it provides a more flexible support for the blade. Wusthof and Henckels are two prominent knife manufacturers in Solingen who also produced straight razors. Thiers Issard and Hart Steel are famous for their decorated blades and their [[Damascus steel.
Modern straight-razor users are known to favor them for a variety of reasons. Some are attracted to the nostalgia of using old and traditional methods of shaving. Others wish to avoid the waste of disposable blades.
Still others argue that straight razors provide a superior shave through a larger blade and greater control of the blade, including the blade angle. Straight razors cover a much greater area per shaving stroke, because their cutting edge is much longer than any of the multi-blade razors.
They also do not have to be rinsed as often, because their blade acts like a scoop and carries the lather on it during multiple shaving strokes, while the multi-blade razors are not nearly as efficient at such a task because of their considerably smaller blade geometry.
In addition, multi-edge razors can irritate the skin due to their multi-blade action, and this can lead to a condition known as pseudofolliculitis barbae, colloquially known as razor bumps. One of the recommended actions for those so affected is to switch to single blade use.
Others simply like the good results and the satisfaction of maintaining the blade themselves. For all of these reasons, devotees of the straight razor make for an active market.
thumb|Shavette
Owing to health concerns, some areas require barbers who provide straight-razor shaving to use a version that employs a disposable or changeable blade system, called a shavette. In this type of straight razor the razor blade is changed and disposed of after each service. Various jurisdictions in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Turkey and the United States, however, permit the professional use of straight razors.
The 2012 James Bond film, Skyfall, has renewed interest in straight razors due to a scene when the agent shaves with one and his co-star Naomie Harris helps him finish shaving while remarking that “sometimes the old ways are the best”. Online straight razor retailers have reported increased sales ranging from 50% to over 400% due to the exposure generated by the film.
Environment
Straight razors are more environmentally friendly than other types of razors since the latter come with packaging that may have to be thrown away along with the razors, and, in the case of electric razors, batteries that are typically disposed of after they expire.
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