Van der Hagen specs

[know1special]

Greetings B&B crew,

Would one of you razor engineers mind giving me the technical breakdown on the Van der Hagen (Weishi 9306) TTO?

For example...blade gap, relative amount of exposure, etc. Also, is this unit truly an exact copy of one of the old SuperSpeeds? If so, which one? Or, at least which one is closest? Just curious.

I keep one of these in my travel kit, mostly because it's cheap and easily replaced but also cuz it's a reliable and dead simple shave. Especially with a sharp blade.

Obviously, the result is no match for the RR Mentor I use daily at home or the Lupo .95 I bust out for special occasions. But, I don't need it to be. It's really good at what it does and will probably be the razor I teach my son to use when it's time.

 

[StewB]

I don't know the specs, but to me the VDH provides a shave that's indistinguishable from a 1960s-1970s era Super Speed.

 

[know1special]

Right on, thx @StewB. I don't have any vintage gear yet so appreciate the input!

 

[StewB]

Keep in mind that's just my personal and entirely subjective perspective. Others may disagree with my assessment.

 

[know1special]

Lol, yup...i'm sure others will be along shortly to do just that.

 

[RayClem]

I have never seen the specs for a VDH/Weishi TTO. However, it is a great mild razor. I like pairing it with a super sharp razor blade such as Feather, BIC Chrome Platinum, Nacet, PermaSharp Super, or 7 O'Clock Super Platinum black. Mu shaving procedure is unusual in that I tend to do four passes with a different razor/blade combination for each pass. Although I have a variety of razors, I almost always use the VDH TTO for my clean-up pass. With a super-sharp blade, it is ideal for picking up any stray stubble missed by the previous passes.

While I highly recommend the VDH/Weishi TTO, I do NOT recommend the Weishi ajdustable TTO. I purchased on and found that the adjustment mechanism ruined the balance of the razor. Furthermore, the blade gap did not remain uniform side-to-side as the adjustment mechanism attempted to increase the blade gap. The adjustable TTO was a waste of money.

 

[know1special]

I have never seen the specs for a VDH/Weishi TTO. However, it is a great mild razor. I like pairing it with a super sharp razor blade such as Feather, BIC Chrome Platinum, Nacet, PermaSharp Super, or 7 O'Clock Super Platinum black. Mu shaving procedure is unusual in that I tend to do four passes with a different razor/blade combination for each pass. Although I have a variety of razors, I almost always use the VDH TTO for my clean-up pass. With a super-sharp blade, it is ideal for picking up any stray stubble missed by the previous passes.

While I highly recommend the VDH/Weishi TTO, I do NOT recommend the Weishi ajdustable TTO. I purchased on and found that the adjustment mechanism ruined the balance of the razor. Furthermore, the blade gap did not remain uniform side-to-side as the adjustment mechanism attempted to increase the blade gap. The adjustable TTO was a waste of money.

Thanks very much for that input. Obviously, I agree completely. It really is a great little razor that punches well above it's weight esp with a sharp blade in the chamber. I tend to use a Bic CP in mine, great combo.

Not surprised to find that you favor the VDH for clean-up. It is remarkably well-balanced and surprisingly manouverable for a TTO.

Sorry about your Weishi adjustable mis-adventure. I've had similar experiences myself.

With modern adjustable razors there very much seems to be a 'get what you paid for' component at play. While high-quality and very usable three piece units abound at every price point, adjustables appear to be a different matter.

 

[StewB]

Concerning less expensive (< $100 US) modern adjustables: The Merkur Progress, along with the Parker Variant clone, are highly regarded by many.

 

[know1special]

Concerning less expensive (< $100 US) modern adjustables: The Merkur Progress, along with the Parker Variant clone, are highly regarded by many.

I've had my eye on the Variant in particular for a while now. Feeling a bit of RAD itch.

I'll admit that my foray into adjustables has been fairly limited. For the most part, my idea of 'adjustable razor' has been 'go buy all the razors'.

 

[StewB]

The Variant is really, really good. Better than I expected. One of the best values available, IMO.

 

[know1special]

The Variant is really, really good. Better than I expected. One of the best values available, IMO.

Lol, I was just interested. Now, I'm intrigued.

So many razors, only one face...gah!

 

[Juanmosey]

I don't know the specs, but to me the VDH provides a shave that's indistinguishable from a 1960s-1970s era Super Speed.

Just got one on sale from Target here for $14.16. Lot of heft to it. I'm going to pair it with a Derby since I'm having great shaves with the Derby and my 1961 Tech.

 

[RayClem]

The Variant is really, really good. Better than I expected. One of the best values available, IMO.

I have a Parker Variant. I really like the design of the razor. I have not tried the Merkur progress, so I do not know how closely the original was copied by Parker. One thing I like is the shape of the head. I typically like shaving "off the cap" with a shallow angle. The head design makes finding the angle very simple.