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It is happening, first real straight!

You beat me to it! I have a Rosette 40 that is a fantastic shaver. The weight, balance and grind are just exceptional! Here is some great history on the Rosette 40 and 80:

“R. Saito was a famous hairdresser in Japan in the 50’s/60’s. He was the founder
of a hairdressing school with many campuses for hairdressers and barbers.
Since his name was synonymous with the Japanese fashion world, his designs
were highly prized as was his name. He designed razors which were built by big companies with his name upon them, razors such as this were made by Kikuboshi, Diamond Hayashi, and other makers. It is said that the Ribbon/ Rosette 40 and 80 were designed by Saito for students of Japanese barber/hairdressing schools, made
by Diamond Hayashi, and held a monopoly for this purpose.
It was designed to be the easiest razor to use.”

I found my Rosette in mint condition (NOS) for $69 on Etsy. I don't think the vendor knew the value of what he had. I snapped it up the moment I saw it. Again, I would have bought the 80, but you beat me to it. Happy shaving!

rosette 2.jpg
 
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You beat me to it! I have a Rosette 40 that is a fantastic shaver. The weight, balance and grind are just exceptional! Here is some great history on the Rosette 40 and 80:
Thanks for the amazing history of these. I had no idea what I was getting, obviously a student razor! 🤪

Obviously that wouldn’t have suited you, good thing I took one for the team. 😁
 

Phoenixkh

I shaved a fortune
I'm almost afraid to ask..... You all know who is selling the restored razors depicted in this thread.. I'm a newbie here and have no clue to whom you are referring.... Griffith... Matt????? Google turned up Griffithshavinggoods.com... yes?
 

rbscebu

Girls call me Makaluod
I'm almost afraid to ask..... You all know who is selling the restored razors depicted in this thread.. I'm a newbie here and have no clue to whom you are referring.... Griffith... Matt????? Google turned up Griffithshavinggoods.com... yes?
Yes. That's the place. Highly recommended.

Never be afraid to ask on B&B. No question is considered stupid or trivial. We are here to help, guide and learn.
 
Well I didn't even last 24hrs. Time to spill some beans...

I was specifically looking for a Japanese straight because of the shorter blade, found a few on the bay that would fit the bill. Problem is shipping from Japan is ridiculous and the thing still has to go off to a honer. As I said before, I contacted Griffith and he sent me this picture:

View attachment 1430056

I HAD TO HAVE IT, it was way over my budget. Buy once, cry once. It is ordered, no more straights for at least 6 months. 😬😏:ihih:

Oh, the TM strop is ordered of course. Guess it is all coming at once. 🥳
OUTSTANDING!! That is beautiful. Congratulations. I've always been a proponent of the cry once mentality. It's much cheaper that way.

Is that a 6/8 full hollow grind?
 
OUTSTANDING!! That is beautiful. Congratulations. I've always been a proponent of the cry once mentality. It's much cheaper that way.

Is that a 6/8 full hollow grind?
Thanks man! I have been waiting all weekend to see if you are still alive. There is a nice pic of the original brochure on page two. It is a 7/8 double hollow! I am going to need my big boy pants when this gets here!
 
I just contacted Griffith on a whim to ask for advice on some of their vintage restorations and Matt got back to me in minutes. On a Saturday. As a few people have heard, I have been using a Feather DX with Super blades for about 6 months, and a half blade shavette well before that, and I really wanted a real straight. The problem for me is the blade length. After several threads here and seeing several people jumping into straights, I am jumping on the band wagon. He is going to find me one with a shorter blade, should have a couple choices. Plus the Tony Miller strop that will be coming next week, this is all happening too fast!
:badger:

Unless one of you figures out which razors I am eyeballing and grabs them before me, then I will have to wait until the next one. He has several in cue for restoration work.
I just contacted Griffith on a whim to ask for advice on some of their vintage restorations and Matt got back to me in minutes. On a Saturday. As a few people have heard, I have been using a Feather DX with Super blades for about 6 months, and a half blade shavette well before that, and I really wanted a real straight. The problem for me is the blade length. After several threads here and seeing several people jumping into straights, I am jumping on the band wagon. He is going to find me one with a shorter blade, should have a couple choices. Plus the Tony Miller strop that will be coming next week, this is all happening too fast!
:badger:

Unless one of you figures out which razors I am eyeballing and grabs them before me, then I will have to wait until the next one. He has several in cue for restoration work.
I recommend starting out with a simple gold dollar. I also started out with those scissor style Shavettes. And I have to say it made the transition a lot more easier than someone just coming from safety razors. Using Shavettes, and the kamasori’s using the Artist club blades is a lot harder than traditional straights. I’m telling you right now, and I’m sure you heard that traditional straight razors are a lot more forgiving. Compared to Shavettes,

Also when it comes to just straight razors the thicker the grind the more comfortable it’s going to be. As the extra hollow ones are a lot “louder” they are sometimes referred to as “singing hollows” and as you would expect… they are a little less forgiving. Still…. A lot smoother compared to Shavette style straights.

You don’t have to get whetstones right away but personally, after my first straight razor shave, I knew I wanted to jump right into it. I recommend getting the NANIWA super stones if you are going to get a set of stones. Stay clear from the natural stones because they are really for experienced honers, and they don’t have a proper grit grading system compared to synthetics, but that’s for another discussion. Plus J-NATS are like a sub genre, they have their own little community. Synthetics are the most popular though and the most trustworthy, dependent, and very consistent 👌🏻
 
I recommend starting out with a simple gold dollar. I also started out with those scissor style Shavettes. And I have to say it made the transition a lot more easier than someone just coming from safety razors. Using Shavettes, and the kamasori’s using the Artist club blades is a lot harder than traditional straights. I’m telling you right now, and I’m sure you heard that traditional straight razors are a lot more forgiving. Compared to Shavettes,

Also when it comes to just straight razors the thicker the grind the more comfortable it’s going to be. As the extra hollow ones are a lot “louder” they are sometimes referred to as “singing hollows” and as you would expect… they are a little less forgiving. Still…. A lot smoother compared to Shavette style straights.

You don’t have to get whetstones right away but personally, after my first straight razor shave, I knew I wanted to jump right into it. I recommend getting the NANIWA super stones if you are going to get a set of stones. Stay clear from the natural stones because they are really for experienced honers, and they don’t have a proper grit grading system compared to synthetics, but that’s for another discussion. Plus J-NATS are like a sub genre, they have their own little community. Synthetics are the most popular though and the most trustworthy, dependent, and very consistent 👌🏻
Wow, less than 2 months! You wouldn't believe how much expense fun I have got myself into. Sorry about the shavette post, I am having a rough day and went into auto-helpful mode. Thanks!
 

Phoenixkh

I shaved a fortune
Wow, less than 2 months! You wouldn't believe how much expense fun I have got myself into. Sorry about the shavette post, I am having a rough day and went into auto-helpful mode. Thanks!
It's been fun reading the beginnings of your journey up until now.... and I know what "fun" here means. <eg>
 

Slash McCoy

I freehand dog rockets
I recommend starting out with a simple gold dollar. I also started out with those scissor style Shavettes. And I have to say it made the transition a lot more easier than someone just coming from safety razors. Using Shavettes, and the kamasori’s using the Artist club blades is a lot harder than traditional straights. I’m telling you right now, and I’m sure you heard that traditional straight razors are a lot more forgiving. Compared to Shavettes,

Also when it comes to just straight razors the thicker the grind the more comfortable it’s going to be. As the extra hollow ones are a lot “louder” they are sometimes referred to as “singing hollows” and as you would expect… they are a little less forgiving. Still…. A lot smoother compared to Shavette style straights.

You don’t have to get whetstones right away but personally, after my first straight razor shave, I knew I wanted to jump right into it. I recommend getting the NANIWA super stones if you are going to get a set of stones. Stay clear from the natural stones because they are really for experienced honers, and they don’t have a proper grit grading system compared to synthetics, but that’s for another discussion. Plus J-NATS are like a sub genre, they have their own little community. Synthetics are the most popular though and the most trustworthy, dependent, and very consistent 👌🏻
I would further recommend starting the honing journey with only a finisher, such as the Naniwa 12k, or else 1µ lapping film and acrylic as per the lapping film thread. If you start out with a shave ready razor, there should never be any need to dip down into coarser grits, and retouching a tired edge is a very good and practical introduction to honing in general. The coarser grits can come later.
 
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