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Bohin Adjustable - first shave and impressions (pic heavy)

I have been eyeing the French Bohin razor for a while. Gorgeous art deco look, a reversable baseplate allowing for 2 settings in aggressiveness, based on a patent I believe from 1936.

Getting your hands on one however is not easy as many folks desire it, biddings go high and I too have been sniped many a time when trying to obtain a specimen.

But last week I got lucky. Right after loosing another Bohin bay bidding war I trawled the whole internet and stumbled upon another one - a fine condition example offered for sale by our honorable French B&B member @Cha-wing!! - a connosieur and expert of French vintage razors. I am really in this hobby for the shaving, and thus not looking for sets, but this one was offered with the cool bakelite round case, a bit battered but still usable.

On a sidenote @Cha-wing!! right now is very busy working to start up the famed Darwin shaving/razor brand again - I wish him all the best with this, it would be really cool to see Darwin out there again!

The razor
In real life this razor is even more pretty, the engravings/cut-outs in the handle are really deep, the thick teeth look like nothing I ever saw before. The razor is plated brass and weighs in at 63 grams, mainly because of the heavy baseplate (23 grams) which also makes the razor slightly top heavy. Overall, it feels sturdy and built like a tank.

The baseplate itself is a work of engineering art and very cool looking with the engraved French text for each side’s level of aggressiveness: Do you want your shave ‘pret’ (close) or ‘tres pres’ (very close). The handle look is a lot like the British Shavex Zeekol (pic below) - just wonderful art deco art.

The loading of the blade was a bit tricky, at least the first time, I fumbled a bit to get it settled and aligned before tightning it up. But loaded up with my beloved Feather blade it feels ready to go, the blade gap is very small and inviting.

The shave
Suffice to say, this is a fine mild razor. I chose the mild side for this first shave, as I prefer milder razors and wanted to start up easy, this being a brand new razor to me.

I am always anxious during the first strokes with a new razor but this one felt safe and easy from the very first go. I just shaved away, the thick teeth actually makes it feel a lot like a solid bar razor (which I prefer) and it quickly dawned on me that this razor’s feel on the skin really feels a lot like the Eclipse Red Ring!

The Eclipse also has a kind of dual solid bar/open comb setup which makes the razor feel on the skin very unique (pic below). But I guess, not more unique than sharing it’s caractericstics with this gorgeous French cousin from the same era.

This puppy is a definite keeper.

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Eclipse Red Ring for comparison - solid bar/open comb ‘combo’:
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Shavex Zeekol. Handle is kind of the same art deco style:
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I'll be jumping in with some reviews in about a week once I get a chance to shave with mine. I am still in the process of evaluating some razors I have to determine if I am going to keep them or not.
 
Neat. Love the looks of the Bohins. On a adjustable Gillette scale, how would you rate the razor to?

I’d say the Bohin mild side (‘pres’) matches around 3-4 for my Gillette adjustables. I’ve just finished my 2nd shave (still on the mild baseplate) and it was even closer and more comfortable. And when I compare the ‘pres’ blade gap to the ‘tres pres’ gap I don’t think there’ll be much difference. That’s also what I read earlier in another review.

I'll be jumping in with some reviews in about a week once I get a chance to shave with mine. I am still in the process of evaluating some razors I have to determine if I am going to keep them or not.

Great! I really look forward to learn what you think :thumbup1:
 
Wilkinson has been produced in China for Indian distribution though vendors typically don't distinguish between those and the Indian production.

I haven't heard PRC referred to as Communist China in a few decades. You must be as old as I am. Yes Gillette and Wilkinson branded blades are both manufactured there.
I'd love to score a Barbaros !!..Never knew Wilkinson is produced in Communist China !
 
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Wilkinson has been produced in China for Indian distribution though vendors typically don't distinguish between those and the Indian production.

I haven't heard PRC referred to as Communist China in a few decades. You must be as old as I am. Yes Gillette and Wilkinson branded blades are both manufactured there.
I've used the Indian Wilkinson's , not bad, the Brazilian Wilkinson's are much smoother though..
 
After shaving with my Bohin for 2 weeks straight now in different configurations it is time for the review. First some pictures.
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First picture is one side of the base plate, second is the other. Not only is the plate reversible but each side is different from the other.

Third picture shows the side view. If you look carefully you can see the shoulders are not perpendicular to the base plate also the left side the comb is more round while the right is more of an oval.


Because the of the shoulder if you set the blade to most blade exposure for each side the one where the shoulder and is greater than 90 degrees will be the less aggressive for each side. I found the side with the slots in the shoulder in the first picture to be the more aggressive side.

I did at least 3 shaves with each side with the blade set at max exposure or set symmetrical for both sides, 5 pass shaves each time using a Bic Chrome Platinum blade.

Overall on either side of slotted shoulder side the shaves were pretty even as close to BBS as one could get with just a tiny bit of sandpaper feel under the chin with max blade exposure. If you shave with a lite touch and short choppy strokes until the blade stops crunching that is the optimal way to shave this razor on each pass. The optimal angle would also change depending how set the blade exposure. When set symmetrical the shave left a little more under the chin but as smooth as one can get. If you are not careful this razor will cut you pretty good which I caught myself a few times in the beginning. The more aggressive the side and setting the more irritation during the shave but afterwards it is fine depending. I splash with vinegar which takes out the lingering burn and soothes that irritation afterwards.

The non slotted side was similar except almost no irritation on the symmetrical blade exposure. I found my best shaves came on the more aggressive side on this one than the when the plate was flipped over. I got perfect BBS shaves on 2 of the 3 times with that edge and max blade exposure.

One other configuration is I shaved the most aggressive edge with the min blade exposure the shave was equivalent to a Gillette tech with no irritation and almost an effortless shave only thing is you have to shave it at a very shallow angle to find the optimal angle of attack to do so.

Overall this razor is up there with one of best shavers I've ever used and with being able to go from mild to wild is an added bonus. A really unique take on adjustable razors.
 
That is a great review! I had no idea there were actually 4 different "settings" on this razor. I always thought it was only 2. I will be saving this thread for the next time I pull mine out to use. Thanks!
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That is a great review! I had no idea there were actually 4 different "settings" on this razor. I always thought it was only 2. I will be saving this thread for the next time I pull mine out to use. Thanks!
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More than 4 since you can set the blade exposure.
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The left most is with even blade exposure for edges of the base plate.

The middle the right edge is at max blade exposure, left edge is at min.

The right most the left edge is at max blade exposure, right edge at min.

Since the base plate is reversible that is 4x3 or 12 different settings.
 
I think I know the razor that is at least partially the inspiration for the Bohin. The Bohin shaves like it on the least or second least aggressive edge and side if the exposure is set in the middle. It is not a how aggressive or mild thing but the Bohin has a very unique way it shaves from the sound to how it cuts hair and how to best wield it. The razor is a US Gillette Goodwill 160. Unless I am mistaken the Goodwills were made well before the first Bohin was made. Not only is the way it shaves similar but because of how the cap works on that one it also has the same variable exposure though the Goodwill with the 160 cap is a pain to line a blade up. If you want to get the Bohin shave experience without dropping 2 bills or more then get a Goodwill 160. The other Goodwill models I can't vouch for will be the same not having shaved with them yet.
 
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