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A possibly unpopular take on Techs

I have been a big ran of Techs over the years and have owned and sold many, including the vaunted hybrid Tech, which l really enjoyed.
Over the past week i have shaved with my two remaining Techs on back-to-back shaves. The two Techs i have remaining are a British flat-bottom Tech (widely regarded as one of the best) and a lowly American post-war model.
After putting them through their paces, i have to say that (and yes, thus is just my opinion) i pre her the gold-plated, simple, humble little American post-war version that i bought for six bucks from an antique store on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. (As an aside, it happened to come from a store that apparently didn't have and share equipment at all. My wife went up and asked the owner of she had any vintage razors and she went into a back room and came but with a small bucket that had three or four that she had not yet put out into the store for sale. But i digress.)
Anyway, i've heard it all about how the post-war Tech is too mild, how you have to do too many passes to get a good shave, etc., but for me it is not true. I have fast-growing, tough whiskers and i shave four times a week. For me it is two full passes and one partial touch-up pass to DFS with this underrated gem, and no irritation. Just a sweet little shaver.
I've said this on this forum many times, b the i sold my Feather AS-D2 after i used its handle on my post-war Tech, then used the Tech handle on the Feather head, and found that i couldn't distinguish a difference between the two razors.

So, in summary, for me the post-war Tech can compete with them all, including much more expensive versions. If you hate the Feather because it is too mild and you can never find the right angle, don't get a post-war Tech. I can guarantee you won't like it. But otherwise, don't necessarily write off the post-war version based on people saying that it is too mild. It works for a lot of us, and it works well. And it is not an expensive proposition to find out for yourself.
 
While I don't own any of the "fancy" Techs, I do own some pre, post, 1932, England, 4 pce travel etc. I don't notice much, if any, difference between their performances.

One of the greatest razors out there, any version. All of mine were local finds, $10 or less.

Nice write up and comparison. Makes me glad I haven't spent too much time or effort into searching out some of the more expensive Techs.
 
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That's a popular opinion around here. Techs appeal to some of the things that got people into traditional wet shaving: they're inexpensive and timeless. They've never been a luxury item, always a useful tool.

Ironically, people get the impression that later Techs must be junk because they're so cheap. But they're so cheap because they're so plentiful and they're so plentiful because they're well-made. No teeth to bend, no end caps to fall off, no adjustment dial to break.

There's an aesthetic that rejects both the pursuit of prized antique vintage items on one end and the cycle of buying everlasting plastics destined for landfills on the other. That's the sweet spot for the $6 razor that will outlive you.
 
I have been a big ran of Techs over the years and have owned and sold many, including the vaunted hybrid Tech, which l really enjoyed.
Over the past week i have shaved with my two remaining Techs on back-to-back shaves. The two Techs i have remaining are a British flat-bottom Tech (widely regarded as one of the best) and a lowly American post-war model.
After putting them through their paces, i have to say that (and yes, thus is just my opinion) i pre her the gold-plated, simple, humble little American post-war version that i bought for six bucks from an antique store on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. (As an aside, it happened to come from a store that apparently didn't have and share equipment at all. My wife went up and asked the owner of she had any vintage razors and she went into a back room and came but with a small bucket that had three or four that she had not yet put out into the store for sale. But i digress.)
Anyway, i've heard it all about how the post-war Tech is too mild, how you have to do too many passes to get a good shave, etc., but for me it is not true. I have fast-growing, tough whiskers and i shave four times a week. For me it is two full passes and one partial touch-up pass to DFS with this underrated gem, and no irritation. Just a sweet little shaver.
I've said this on this forum many times, b the i sold my Feather AS-D2 after i used its handle on my post-war Tech, then used the Tech handle on the Feather head, and found that i couldn't distinguish a difference between the two razors.

So, in summary, for me the post-war Tech can compete with them all, including much more expensive versions. If you hate the Feather because it is too mild and you can never find the right angle, don't get a post-war Tech. I can guarantee you won't like it. But otherwise, don't necessarily write off the post-war version based on people saying that it is too mild. It works for a lot of us, and it works well. And it is not an expensive proposition to find out for yourself.
As I always say, everyone to his taste. The perfect razor, head, handle, blade, shave cream, etc. for one person can be- and usually is- an absolute disaster for another.

Chocolate vs. Vanilla vs. Clichés.

-Z
 
I have been a big ran of Techs over the years and have owned and sold many, including the vaunted hybrid Tech, which l really enjoyed.
Over the past week i have shaved with my two remaining Techs on back-to-back shaves. The two Techs i have remaining are a British flat-bottom Tech (widely regarded as one of the best) and a lowly American post-war model.
After putting them through their paces, i have to say that (and yes, thus is just my opinion) i pre her the gold-plated, simple, humble little American post-war version that i bought for six bucks from an antique store on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. (As an aside, it happened to come from a store that apparently didn't have and share equipment at all. My wife went up and asked the owner of she had any vintage razors and she went into a back room and came but with a small bucket that had three or four that she had not yet put out into the store for sale. But i digress.)
Anyway, i've heard it all about how the post-war Tech is too mild, how you have to do too many passes to get a good shave, etc., but for me it is not true. I have fast-growing, tough whiskers and i shave four times a week. For me it is two full passes and one partial touch-up pass to DFS with this underrated gem, and no irritation. Just a sweet little shaver.
I've said this on this forum many times, b the i sold my Feather AS-D2 after i used its handle on my post-war Tech, then used the Tech handle on the Feather head, and found that i couldn't distinguish a difference between the two razors.

So, in summary, for me the post-war Tech can compete with them all, including much more expensive versions. If you hate the Feather because it is too mild and you can never find the right angle, don't get a post-war Tech. I can guarantee you won't like it. But otherwise, don't necessarily write off the post-war version based on people saying that it is too mild. It works for a lot of us, and it works well. And it is not an expensive proposition to find out for yourself.
I just started shaving with my post war (pre 1951) fat handled Tech and I am getting a great shave with it! I still haven’t had a chance to test it against my similar pre war version, but I am getting a better shave with than I did with my LC Gillette New.
 

nemo

Lunatic Fringe
Staff member
.... in summary, for me the post-war Tech can compete with them all, including much more expensive versions ....
I have to agree 100%. I've tried many Techs and always compare them to a regular 60's zamak cap British Tech I used exclusively for years (long before B&B). They all seem to provide pretty much the same easy, reliable, close shave for me.

The love runs deep.
 
My first DE razor was a NOS British aluminium handle Tech made in 1974. It was a decent shaver and I really liked it back when I first started my DE shaving journey. However, as the time passed and my technique was getting better and better, I wanted to try something else just to see what could possibly another razor bring to the table. After trying a few more razors I've realised what others ment by ''this razor is more efficient than the other one'' and I was getting slightly better results from my Slim, Parat and other razors compared to the Tech.

Since then I've used a few more Techs like the FB, a German made one in 1959, a few others with aluminium handles made in the 70's and my most recent one the Hybrid and I'm waiting for a post-war gold plated ball end Tech to arrive ''soon''.

Techs are fantastic shavers for beginners, although they can still cut themselves pretty bad like my brother did a few months ago when I gave him my 70's Tech to shave for the first time and he didn't pay much attention. They are very mild and comfortable and somewhat efficient.

I've recently had my first shave with the Hybrid and while the shave wasn't bad by any means, it didn't felt absolutely amazing either and I had a bit of stubble on my chin that I couldn't remove and I had to use my Lupo DC to remove it and perform a short clean up pass. I will use a Feather blade in my next shave to see if the extra sharpness can even the odds in my favor.

I suppose if I didn't care that much for getting a BBS or razors in general I would have probably used first Tech untill now as my first and only razor, but I get much better overall shaves with more efficient razors.
 
I have been a big ran of Techs over the years and have owned and sold many, including the vaunted hybrid Tech, which l really enjoyed.
Over the past week i have shaved with my two remaining Techs on back-to-back shaves. The two Techs i have remaining are a British flat-bottom Tech (widely regarded as one of the best) and a lowly American post-war model.
After putting them through their paces, i have to say that (and yes, thus is just my opinion) i pre her the gold-plated, simple, humble little American post-war version that i bought for six bucks from an antique store on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. (As an aside, it happened to come from a store that apparently didn't have and share equipment at all. My wife went up and asked the owner of she had any vintage razors and she went into a back room and came but with a small bucket that had three or four that she had not yet put out into the store for sale. But i digress.)
Anyway, i've heard it all about how the post-war Tech is too mild, how you have to do too many passes to get a good shave, etc., but for me it is not true. I have fast-growing, tough whiskers and i shave four times a week. For me it is two full passes and one partial touch-up pass to DFS with this underrated gem, and no irritation. Just a sweet little shaver.
I've said this on this forum many times, b the i sold my Feather AS-D2 after i used its handle on my post-war Tech, then used the Tech handle on the Feather head, and found that i couldn't distinguish a difference between the two razors.

So, in summary, for me the post-war Tech can compete with them all, including much more expensive versions. If you hate the Feather because it is too mild and you can never find the right angle, don't get a post-war Tech. I can guarantee you won't like it. But otherwise, don't necessarily write off the post-war version based on people saying that it is too mild. It works for a lot of us, and it works well. And it is not an expensive proposition to find out for yourself.

Randall, I absolutely concur!! - My favorite of all is the standard postwar Tech - which is turning into the razor I use 80% of the time.

My Hybrid Tech is slightly smoother, but for daily shaves I prefer the simplicity and lightness of the mass model (oval slots, all brass) :001_wub:
 
I've recently had my first shave with the Hybrid and while the shave wasn't bad by any means, it didn't felt absolutely amazing either and I had a bit of stubble on my chin that I couldn't remove
That's been exactly my experience. The Hybrid seems slightly less effective than every other Tech, including the EFB.
 
The post war is completely fine. I don't care for the zamak capped ones since they can't really be re-plated, but they shave just fine. I still prefer my canadian pre-war or efb, but the post war is completely fine. Yes it takes about 2-3 more minutes but you have a very low risk of cuts or irritation and a BBS is a BBS.
 
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