Wilkinson cut throat razor - waste of money?

StephenShave

StephenShave

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Was in Boots yesterday and saw a Wilkinson sword 'cut throat' razor, was very surprised that a razor of this nature has made it into a mainstream shop. Priced at £18, on arriving home, I searched online and picked it up at £12 from Wilkinson's own web site (Boots overcharge for everything!). I know it's not a proper cut throat using a split DE blade, but was wondering, will it be good enough to teach me the correct technique?

wilkinson cut throat.jpg
 
It's a shavette ... plain and simple. Yes, there are a lot of Barbers that use these, but that's someone shaving you. Shaving yourself with one of these can work, but the effort involved versus a safety razor versus the risk is simply not worth it in my opinion.

You ask whether it will teach technique ... technique for straight edge? No! Straight edge is a completely different technique which is learned through sense and touch. If anything, this will develop bad technique for straight edge. For a middle-ground, look to Personna type razors that use the long, thicker single edge blades which work particularly well and having shaved with that style a fair bit (as well as straight edge), I'd say it was a much better choice.

Avoid this Wilko shavette for home shaving. It's a novelty thing for folks that don't know better ... or folks that need an exposed edge for beard shaping.
 
www.atgshaving.com

Weck (1909 on)

What makes a shavette a straight razor? It's intention. It's design and designation. While many would categorise these as shavettes due to their removable blades and use of what is now designated a "shaper" blade, do understand that these razors were designed originally as face shavers and...
www.atgshaving.com www.atgshaving.com

Eastern Shavettes

... continuing from my interest in vintage Weck razors (you can look them up, but they're disposable blade frameback razors), I have gained a couple of Eastern shavettes: one Japanese (the Feather) and one Chinese (I suspect a clone, from Gan Village Green on eBay). These shavettes take...
www.theshavingroom.co.uk www.theshavingroom.co.uk

Sally's carry the AMA brand. There's also Kismet widely availble ... and Diane ... and Vincent.
My preference would be vintage Weck with Personna or Diane blades.
 
pjgh said:
It's a shavette ... plain and simple. Yes, there are a lot of Barbers that use these, but that's someone shaving you. Shaving yourself with one of these can work, but the effort involved versus a safety razor versus the risk is simply not worth it in my opinion.

You ask whether it will teach technique ... technique for straight edge? No! Straight edge is a completely different technique which is learned through sense and touch. If anything, this will develop bad technique for straight edge. For a middle-ground, look to Personna type razors that use the long, thicker single edge blades which work particularly well and having shaved with that style a fair bit (as well as straight edge), I'd say it was a much better choice.

Avoid this Wilko shavette for home shaving. It's a novelty thing for folks that don't know better ... or folks that need an exposed edge for beard shaping.
Click to expand...

This

Good for tidying edges and not an awful lot else
 
IMO it will help you learn how to shave with straights. However, a half DE blade is wickedly sharp - much sharper than any straight I've used - and they'll punish every mistake with blood. If you can learn to shave with a half-DE shavette, you can shave with anything.

As mentioned, you might be able to squeeze a better blade in there. I managed to get a 50mm AC blade in a similar shavette. The milder ones like Kai Captain Mild or Schick Proline will be much more forgiving v a DE blade.

A lot of straight razor guys like the Feather AC shavettes. I picked up a cheap clone from Aliexpress. It's astonishingly good. Very efficient and easy to use. I actually prefer it to my straights... but only because I'm still learning to hone. It takes a bit of skill to get a good edge.
 
I picked up one of these WS cut throat jobbies a few weeks back. I consider myself a reasonably accomplished DE shaver and just felt like trying one of these to add to the skill set.
The razor itself is fairly good quality with a wooden handle. It certainly doesn't feel cheap. My first attempt was a bit of a non-event. I managed to do a poor job WTG on my cheeks with a few nicks despite really taking my time and was too scared to attempt anything else.
Second attempt was much better. I managed a 1-pass wtg shave but it wasn't too good. There was sufficient improvement for me to establish that practice makes perfect here and I'm determined to get the hang of it at some stage.
My feeling is that if I break it out every now and then, I'll eventually get the hang of it. I find though that my biggest problem is that my hand often obscures what I'm able to see in the mirror. I have to pull a few Yoga moves to see the blade in certain places.

All part of the fun...
 
I Shave with One Hand with a Straight Razor..You Can Use Both Hands..Its an Individual Thing..The Shavette Type Cut Throats with Western Scales Can Help in a You're Journey with a Traditional Straight Razor..Handling Wise..But..I Found it Ends there..A Traditional SR is a Different Animal & is a Learning Curve in its Own Right..I Found a Shavette Far Easier to Use..By Far..(y)

I Get a Far Closer Shave with a Properly Honed SR.. :cool:

Billy
 
Cloobster said:
I'm only using the right hand but, I'll give the left a go next time I try. It's only blood after all...
Click to expand...

You could try practicing with no blade until you feel like risking it for real.

What I really liked about straights/shavettes is that you learn a lot about shaving. There's nothing between you and the blade any more so you have to develop a feel for the way a sharp edge can just slide across the skin without cutting anything but hair. What you learn helps with DE shaving too.
 
Well, it arrived today (excellent 2 day service from Wilkinson) and on opening it, I was pleasantly surprised at my £12 purchase, (please don't give Boots £18!). It felt nicely weighted with a proper wooden handle and metal shaft. I lathered up the edges of my beard, looked in the mirror, and immediately realised how stupid I was, you can't shape an edge if you can't see it! On looking around for a substitute, I ended up using some 'beard oil' as a lubricant on one half of face, and some bio-oil on other just to see what was better (they were both the same for me).

I am not an 'expert' shaver but have been using a DE razor for over 10 years now, and in the last 9, can't remember the last time I nicked myself. This razor is basically a blade on a stick! I had no issues whatsoever. Was able to accurately guide the blade exactly where I wanted it, and didn't nick myself once.

When I eventually do shave my current beard off, will definitely give a full shave a go. I know for you purists you'll be horrified, but I'm not that prescious, and enjoyed the experience... :D
 
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