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WECK Hair Shaper used for shaving?

Slash McCoy

I freehand dog rockets
Any issues with shaving with the hair shaper as opposed to the sextoblade? Is there any difference other than the scales?
 

Mike H

Instagram Famous
As long as it is the same size as the Sextoblade you are good to go. There is a smaller hair shaper that takes the small blades.
 

Slash McCoy

I freehand dog rockets
Ok thanks. Just won a couple on a certain auction site but I won't be able to try them until I get home in a couple of months.
 
The hair shapers take the exact same blade as the sextoblades. They are overall a bit shorter, but not in the blade. The Weck Bantam was made for shaving and is the exact same size as the hair shaper. I use a Weck hair shaper all the time in my travel kit/gym bag.
 
For more information just check the thread by TheVez2 all about SABRE. I'm kinda wondering about the hair shaper as a shaver. If one cut themselves with that much thin blade could the whole blade just sink in the skin? I used half a DE in my CJB and it cut me DEEP. 1st and only time I'll try that out. I'll stick with Feathers and Kai MILDS
 
If one cut themselves with that much thin blade could the whole blade just sink in the skin? I used half a DE in my CJB and it cut me DEEP. 1st and only time I'll try that out.
The weck is no different from a real straight in that regard. A DE will cut into your skin easier than a hair shaper blade becase the DE is much thinner.
 
I have shaved with one. I use it when I travel sometimes. It does seem a bit short, but do not have a sextoblade to compare it to. After I muted the tips on both sides of the blade it worked fine, but it had nothing to do with the holder, just the persona blade.
 
I use one regularly - I have a sextoblade too. Both work great, no difference except - as noted already - size/weight.
 
I have a modern Hair Shaper and a vintage Bantam- I have yet to figure out any noticeable differences. It works just fine for me, especially with 48 hours growth.
 
Size and shape comparison

Front: Fromm Hair Shaper (with blade guard attached), identical to the Weck Hair Shaper.
Middle: Weck Sextoblade (no blade guard)
Back: Hess Ezy Shave

All three razors are loaded with identical Personna Hair Shaper blades. Of the three, I find the Hess Ezy Shave most closely approximates the size, shape, and feel of a traditional straight razor.

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I have a Fromm hair shaper, a Weck medical sextoblade, and two Wecks that I haven't tried to identify that have scales shaped like a regular straight's scale rather than the common hair shaper scale. Except for the medical when its guard is installed, they all shave pretty much the same...there are probably differences in balance and weight that I'm not tuned to detect.
 
Can these Fromm or Weck razors, can they be used without the guard? Is the blade held tight/secure without the guard?

Edit:
i guess i'll find out, i just pulled the trigger on a Weck hair shaper. It looks to be in awesome condition. Can't wait! I was going to buy a newer shavette and start there towards my straight razor journey, but i figured a vintage one will be a bit better.
 
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Yes of course they can. I prefer them without the guard. And many times when you find them, the guard has been lost.
 
No difference whatsoever ... they take the same blades. It's the guard which is different: the Sextoblade doesn't cover the blade edge, the shaper one does. If you want to use the guard, clamp the teeth in a vice and just bend it over. That, or use it guardless, which is my preference.

Shapers tend to be a little smaller, the same size as the Bantam ... which became the Shaper, but I had a blue scaled example which was the same length as the Sextoblade, in fact identical in ever way to a red lucite scaled Sextoblade except for the words "Hair Shaper" on the blade holder.

Slow and steady, it'll become probably the best razor you have. Enjoy!
 
Can these Fromm or Weck razors, can they be used without the guard? Is the blade held tight/secure without the guard?

Edit:
i guess i'll find out, i just pulled the trigger on a Weck hair shaper. It looks to be in awesome condition. Can't wait! I was going to buy a newer shavette and start there towards my straight razor journey, but i figured a vintage one will be a bit better.

As far as I can tell, I am the only person on the whole internet who likes and uses a guard with a Weck.

No difference whatsoever ... they take the same blades. It's the guard which is different: the Sextoblade doesn't cover the blade edge, the shaper one does. If you want to use the guard, clamp the teeth in a vice and just bend it over.

If people are bending a hair shaping guard in a vise, no wonder everybody hates shaving with a guard...I can't imagine I'd have any luck making a decent shaving guard out of a hair shaping guard, and that would make me not want anything to do with guards.
 
It makes it EXACTLY the same as the guard on the Bantam, a face shaver; vice versa the Bantam guard was re-purposed as a hair shaper guard by bending it over the blade. You're still best off without it, whatever the original purpose the guard ...
 
I'm not familiar with the Bantam guard, but I simply cannot imagine bending a hair shaping guard in a vise in any accurate way, let alone a plan to convert a guard using better equipment. What does the Bantam's guard look like? The Medical's guard looks like a common DE safety bar.

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... like a Shaper guard, but the teeth pointing the other way.

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... and another model:

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Compare with the Shaper:

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Here's one I bent earlier ... on a clone:

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In the end, it's only like one half of a Durham Duplex.
 
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