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Zamac heads

FarmerTan

"Self appointed king of Arkoland"
I suggest you to start with the most common and more popular models like the different Techs, Old types, Super Speeds/Rockets, NEWs and adjustables and then after a few more years you can try the Aristocrats series both from US and England or perhaps a Toggle?
*(siren sounds) ENABLEMENT ALERT! PROCEED WITH EXTREME CAUTION*
 

Dave himself

Wee Words of Wisdom
I put myself at a category 3 I've only been wet shaving for around a year now and I've 12 razors 5 brushes 10 soap's 10 balms and 22 aftershave splashes and colognes is that ok ?. I like splashes and colognes ;) I think its time for more razors, oh and I have about 10 different types of blades but most of those are just sample pack so they don't count. I'm not bragging i just wanted to know if I'm in the category
 
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Dave himself

Wee Words of Wisdom
I suggest you to start with the most common and more popular models like the different Techs, Old types, Super Speeds/Rockets, NEWs and adjustables and then after a few more years you can try the Aristocrats series both from US and England or perhaps a Toggle?
Thank you for advice its much appreciated I'll be sure to follow it so I dont end getting ahead of myself and don't know what I'm buying
 
I put myself at a category 3 I've only been wet shaving for around a year now and I've 12 razors 5 brushes 10 soap's 10 balms and 22 aftershave splashes and colognes is that ok ?. I like splashes and colognes ;) I think its time for more razors, oh and I have about 10 different types of blades but most of those are just sample pack so they don't count. I'm not bragging i just wanted to know if I'm in the category
:laugh: You're definitely a Category 3, Dave. But bear in mind that many BOSC members are minimalists... they may have a tiny amount of "gear" but love doing crazy (read "stupid") experiments, etc. :wink2:
 

Dave himself

Wee Words of Wisdom
:laugh: You're definitely a Category 3, Dave. But bear in mind that many BOSC members are minimalists... they may have a tiny amount of "gear" but love doing crazy (read "stupid") experiments, etc. :wink2:
Glad to hear i got it right :D ill read through the threads tomorrow but for now its bedtime sleep well brother's 😴
 
I literally used a merkur 33c everday for like 3 years. When I clean it up and get it spotless you would be hard pressed to figure out if it had ever been used. No cosmetic marks, no damage, no wear of the plating. Its a razor, not a tennis ball. Treat it as such and it will be fine. As you yourself said, there are people here who shave daily with razors older than them.
 
I’ve had rot on threads but not on other areas of top caps and I have never had an issue on baseplates. I’ve known a few persons personally that have had rot in those other areas on modern razors. My wedding day DE89 has rotted threads but the rest of the head looks brand new (Over a decade old now). I’m just going to replace the cap with a Mühle R89 with brass threads.

As long as you have non zamack threads in that cap or a TTO/TTO adjustable, most of us would be fine with zamack I think as long as the finish holds up.

I think zamack used in decades past was of better quality also. I’ve seen sixties era zamack caps that appear to have lost their finishes decades ago that did not rot on the Bay. Not sure if this is anecdotal or not but just something I’ve noticed.
 
In my limited experience with Zamak razors drying the thread is most important. I usually put a very small amount of grease on the thread once in a while. It’s the area most likely to loose some plating due to metal-metal abrasion. Once the Zn alloy is exposed, galvanic action will cause corrosion of the threads. This is exacerbated if a wet thread is in contact with say a brass or steel handle with moisture trapped in the gaps. Once corrosion starts it will work its way under the plating. You often see a rosette of corrosion where the thread stub joins the head. If it gets bad then the weakened thread is more likely to break off. All this said, I’ve had quite old Zamak razors such as Apollos in excellent condition. Almost all slants are cast since it’s a hard shape to machine. There’s no reason why they won’t last a long time with some care.
 

FarmerTan

"Self appointed king of Arkoland"
I put myself at a category 3 I've only been wet shaving for around a year now and I've 12 razors 5 brushes 10 soap's 10 balms and 22 aftershave splashes and colognes is that ok ?. I like splashes and colognes ;) I think its time for more razors, oh and I have about 10 different types of blades but most of those are just sample pack so they don't count. I'm not bragging i just wanted to know if I'm in the category
What is it with guys named Dave? Are we cursed to be hoarders, um, I mean, collectors?
 
How long a razor can be used depends on a lot of factors. You might want to see

My personal experience with Zamak razors is worse than other respondents'. I don't like buying non-disposables with the intention that I will have to throw it away sooner or later and alas Zamak is one kind of material which has exactly that property. My personal opinion: if you want to wet shave, buy something made to last in wet environments (not only its outermost layer/coating). I hope you will be one of the lucky forum members to enjoy your razor and not need to replace it because of faults.
 

Old Hippie

Somewhere between 61 and dead
Following on @Scaramouche I believe the purer the zinc in the alloy, the better the alloy will fare. I'd have to do some looking around to figure out the market price for various grades of zinc at the moment, but in general purer grades of anything cost more. From a manufacturing standpoint they don't really care if they're making razors or beer coasters -- as long as they can source a "good enough" grade of materials to allow them to hit their desired price point. It's easy to hate that attitude but it's really just one way of doing business successfully.

Older Zamak razors may or may not be made with quality alloy. I have one all-Zamak razor (Fasan Double Slant) that had lost over 90 per cent of its plating by the time I got it. I had it coated in CeraKote to protect and conserve it as long as possible. I also have a Merkur "Super Slant" which I still get a real charge from saying. :) It has a bit of rot under the cap, but not too concerning. My suspicion is that the Fasan is slightly older and was made just before WW2 when sourcing clean alloy may have been easier. The Merkur was likely made just after the war, when although there was a lot of aluminum, magnesium, copper and other metals lying out on the ground waiting to be picked up the manufacturing base was pretty well bombed flat.

Modern Zamak, of course, benefits from all the understanding about how to keep the alloy in good shape but also has the deficit of being a very price-conscious market with very little margin. I found it a bit amusing that Zamak is often used to make moulds for plastic injection moulding. Inexpensive, easy to cast and machine.

As long as you stay inside the limits imposed by the material it's pretty good. I find other metals more congenial to my taste in razors, but the Zamak razors I have are good. It's too bad that it's got that reputation of being used in cheap razors. I mean, sure it is because it's cost-effective. But cheap razors used to be stamped out of brass, and we have guys on here fighting each other to get them. :)

O.H.
 

Dave himself

Wee Words of Wisdom
How long a razor can be used depends on a lot of factors. You might want to see

My personal experience with Zamak razors is worse than other respondents'. I don't like buying non-disposables with the intention that I will have to throw it away sooner or later and alas Zamak is one kind of material which has exactly that property. My personal opinion: if you want to wet shave, buy something made to last in wet environments (not only its outermost layer/coating). I hope you will be one of the lucky forum members to enjoy your razor and not need to replace it because of faults.
I only got round to reading the threads you included in your reply very interesting reading thanks for your time replying
 

Dave himself

Wee Words of Wisdom
How long a razor can be used depends on a lot of factors. You might want to see

My personal experience with Zamak razors is worse than other respondents'. I don't like buying non-disposables with the intention that I will have to throw it away sooner or later and alas Zamak is one kind of material which has exactly that property. My personal opinion: if you want to wet shave, buy something made to last in wet environments (not only its outermost layer/coating). I hope you will be one of the lucky forum members to enjoy your razor and not need to replace it because of faults.
Inbound Fatip piccolo on route and thank you for the advice much appreciated
 
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