I’m a shave nerd, I admit it. It’s not the first time I’ve shaved with a DE (double edge) razor. About thirty years ago, I used to collect DE razors. My Grandfather used to use them and I thought they were cool. I found them in antique stores while looking for collectible bamboo fly rods and reels. It wasn’t a big deal to find razors with butterfly doors or those window scraper razors that were single edge, I found and bought them. I would take them home and scrub them clean with Comet, rinse them good then boil them. After that I would use them. Back then I used Wilkinson blades that slid out of a holder. When you were done, you would slide them in a slot in the back.
My buddy and I go fishing, fly fishing to be more exact. I am a writer and maintained a huge forum on a type of Japanese style fly fishing. We all geeked out on the forum I maintained. It was funny, we watched it grow and life was good.
He told me about shaving forums and I thought to myself, “Now that’s pretty funny.”
“What kind of razor do you use?”
“All kinds”
“Well I think I have a bag of razors in the bottom drawer in my bathroom, you are welcome to have them.”
“Really.”
We had moved a few times since my old fashioned shaving days. I had amassed quite a few razors, heck, only a few bucks each and so many different kinds. Last time I moved I purged the bag but I kept the cool one in the plastic box it came in.
Next time we went fishing, I grabbed the bag and gave it to him.
He looked at me out of the corner of his eye, his lips curling and the corner of his mouth turning up, sort of like the Grinch.
“You sure?”
“Yeah, what’s wrong with you.”
“Oh nothing. This one is a Fat Boy”
“Yeah, so am I, wtf?”
We finished the drive, got out and got our gear together, and hiked up the stream, fishing the best spots.
I’m a photographer and I shoot film. I also shoot digital but this day, I was dropping off some film at Wilson Camera, just down the road from Razor Emporium.
“Hey, let’s stop at the Razor Emporium on the way.”
I had my old Nikon FE2 with its corresponding motor drive. We flipped a youee and pulled up to the shop. I grabbed my camera and followed my friend in. Immediately I felt comfortable like I had been here before. There were shave things everywhere. New and old, brand new styles of soaps, aftershave, new old stocks of razors, everything you want and need. I found out what my Fat Boy was worth that day and I also ended up purchasing a reworked and Rhodium plated Fat Boy of my own nearly seventy five times more than the one that I gave my friend…
I started firing away with the 50mm f1.4 AI-S on Ektar film. The proprietor recognized my enthusiasm and lead me back to the shop where I photographed the stations for machining and plating the razors. Very cool, super enjoyable time we spent discussing shaving and film photography. What you see here is the pictures that I took with that lens on my Nikon FE2.
Now I go there on my own, but I prefer to go with my friend.
The Shave forum, I do on my own.
My name is Adam Trahan and I’m a shave nerd.
Great article about the rabbit hole this hobby is! The pictures are great as is the writing! Shave on Nerd Brother!
ReplyDeleteThank you! I’ve got another entry of the shave soap shop in Tempe coming up soon!
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