Karve Diem

[Tanuki]

By the way, I'm not sure if your comment was directed at me, but I can assure you I don't require any hand holding, nor am I an uncertain nervous type of person.

In no way directed at you. My apologies, on re-reading that does seem too personal a remark.

I should have been emphasizing that I believe Karve always delivers and focuses on making razors, not attributing faults to imagined customers.

I don't think Karve have a sophisticated information system, are able to do demand projections, or spend much scarce time or money on personal customer service.

Silence is often a warning signal from vendors who are in over their heads or just plain frauds. Conversely, a lot of would-be-vendor chatter on social media doesn't guarantee any results. I don't think either applies to Karve. But a bit of a devil-may-care attitude helps as a Karve customer, ponying up and then waiting without any daily, weekly or even monthly updates.

 

[Basil]

The Christopher Bradley Karve is a 2 men show with more orders that what they can handle.

The razor is amazing, they just don't have the infrastructure to fulfill the orders quickly.

If you don't mind the wait, you get one of the finest razors out there.

QRTAS

Wow that patina. Do anything special to get it like that?

 

[Qrtas]

Thank you!
Yes, I used this product that I purchased on eBay.

QRTAS

 

[Esox]

The Karve is a very well designed and high quality razor. @Rosseforp had his arrive not long ago.

This is actually my 2nd New SC....... Handle? Oh yes, we have a handle.

There was a lot of research and thought that went into the creation and design of the Karve CB.

This, from his AMA on reddit:

"The geometry came from a bunch of research to familiarize myself with how razors are configured and then creating analogies between how a blade is configured and real world applications. The one I'm most proud of (because I saw an immediate improvement), was to support the blade as much as possible as a way of eliminating chatter). All razors support the blade on the top side with the top cap, but chatter comes from cyclical loading...force, no force, force, no force, etc. The unloading comes from loading the blade during cutting, but then something gives (such as the whisker that is being cut) and the blade unloads for a split second. The top cap can only help with the loading, so the baseplate has to work together with it."

I also forced a patina on my made in Canada Gillette Old type. See my post below for the process I used.

Patina may not make much difference to the shave, but it can...

This is my made in Canada Old Type that I first lightly cleaned then polished.

Then I forced a black patina on it.

I let it soak in that solution for 5 or 10 minutes. Took it out, rinsed it and wiped it gently, then back in for another 5-10 minutes, took it out and rinsed it again.

Then I wiped it and buffed it with a soft tissue so the black wouldnt come off on my fingers.

Its been like that ever since.

The thing I noticed instantly with its first shave was how much slipperier the cap is. The patina, whether natural or forced, fills in the pores of the Brass and makes it smoother. That razor glides as smoothly and easily as my gold plated Fatip and theres quite a bit of difference between it and my bare Brass NEW SC.

Forcing a patina on Brass is sort of like using stain on wood. The Brass surface absorbs the chemical used and depending on the chemical and the time of soak, determines the depth of the stain. Also like woodworking, the more you work at the finish, the nicer it comes out.

Depending on the chemicals used and the process and order they're applied in can also dictate the final colour. I believe this whole idea was starting by guys modding Brass and Copper vape tubes like below.

Removing a forced patina is as easy as a quick, but thorough, polishing. Once finished you'll be left with clean bare shiny Brass again.

 

[SillyPancake]

Karve is good. Yes, buying it sucks, you pay everything upfront and then you wait for 3 months, but, IMO, this is a such a nice piece of fully machined brass that it is worth it. And I think the price is more then fair, for what you are getting.
My brass Karve with plate B shaves so good, it is smooth and still nicely efficient, I am using it every day as my only razor.

 

[Fred D]

Maybe they could use an email waiting list type system like Wolfman razors. When they have stock available then contact people to then pay for their razor. Would have a lot less people upset over waiting times after they've already paid.

 

[Qrtas]

I think it is a matter of setting your expectations upfront. If you think you'll get it right away, you'll be frustrated and disappointed. If you know you have to wait a few months and be patient about it. You know you'll get an amazing Shaving tool.

QRTAS

 

[Qrtas]

After waiting about 2 1/2 years for my Rockwell Model T, the wait for the Karve wasn't too bad, just a few months. This could be your very early Christmas shopping for yourself [emoji3]

QRTAS

 

[SCh5]

(...)
I’ve seen two threads lately where people have kept their Gamechanger .84 over their karve. That’s what I did too, before moving to the even better razors mentioned above.
(...)

More expensive (than RR GC 0.84-P) yes ,they are.But no ,
they are not necessarily better
razors.If of course by “better” you mean choice of material,machining tolerances,
head geometry,blade rigidity,
slim design,smoothness and efficiency.After all ,the GC from RR and the Muhle Rocca v4 do changed the game :
They are proof than one
does not have to spend $$$ for a top-quality CNC machined DE safety
razor made of 316L
stainless steel.
Paying hundreds of dollars or
euros for a 303 or 304 ss CNC machined safety razor ,is totally unjustifiable, at least
from where I stand and view the rest of the world around me.


To the OP:
Karve razors offer massive blade rigidity but they “suffer”
from steep blade angle.
They need an “old school” approach. Especially this applies
more to the wide blade gap plates.Riding the cap and keep the handle almost perpendicular to the face skin ,will make the
difference to a more smooth shave.Good machining ,tight
tolerances , a great razor .
Company is small,they really have big trouble handling both with the orders and with customer support.

 

[Mountain Grown]

I glanced at the website for a few minutes. I'll have to look at them more. Tell me about them. How do you guys like them? They look pretty expensive.

I think it is a matter of setting your expectations upfront. If you think you'll get it right away, you'll be frustrated and disappointed. If you know you have to wait a few months and be patient about it. You know you'll get an amazing Shaving tool.

QRTAS

Very much agree on setting your expectations. Almost all of the Hardware shaving items I have purchased over the last couple of years I have had to wait to receive. I was aware of the wait upfront and am perfectly okay with it. My patience has always paid off.

Something I have noticed resoundingly every time Karve comes up in a thread. The dreaded 2-3 month wait is the only negative thing stated about the razor. The approximate wait time is currently published on the website and then again stated when you order. From what I hear and read owners of the razor are in agreement on the quality and smooth characteristics of the razor and thoroughly pleased with their purchase. Check out our BST site, I see more popular razors up for sell frequently, rarely do I see a Karve. I purchased my SS kit at the end of June and probably will not see it until sometime in September..

I put myself on the Wolfman Razor list last week and will not have a finished product until this time next year.

It took me 7 months of tries to finally get a spot on Wolf Whiskers brush wait list, then took an additional 3 months to receive it.

Milton at Turn N shave is opening his wait list this week, If I manage to get on this time around it will take 2-3 months to receive.

I enjoy these long term purchases because I know what I am going to get. Quality, by some of the best tradesman in our small little community of traditional shavers. I really enjoy using items that were turned, machined, hand tied, hand polished for me and my order. They are treasured items that I will have for the rest of my life. Somethings are well worth the wait.

 

[AQU]

I think it is a matter of setting your expectations upfront. If you think you'll get it right away, you'll be frustrated and disappointed. If you know you have to wait a few months and be patient about it. You know you'll get an amazing Shaving tool.

QRTAS

This isn’t a business norm and should not be accepted as such. It’s basically getting a loan, as one other member mentioned.

IF money is accepted, a product or service should be rendered in a reasonable amount of time.

Karve even realizes this with their approach for the titanium razor waitlist and are not accepting $$ until the razor is ready to ship. But in their case, how will customers know if it actually is?

 

[Mountain Grown]

This isn’t a business norm and should not be accepted as such. It’s basically getting a loan, as one other member mentioned.

IF money is accepted, a product or service should be rendered in a reasonable amount of time.

Karve even realizes this with their approach for the titanium razor waitlist and are not accepting $$ until the razor is ready to ship. But in their case, how will customers know if it actually is?

Just to note, if you have paid money for a Karve and have not received it.. You can request a timely refund at anytime. Not pitching the company but if you email their customer service like I have they are very quick to answer any of your questions.

 

[Qrtas]

This isn’t a business norm and should not be accepted as such. It’s basically getting a loan, as one other member mentioned.

IF money is accepted, a product or service should be rendered in a reasonable amount of time.

Karve even realizes this with their approach for the titanium razor waitlist and are not accepting $$ until the razor is ready to ship. But in their case, how will customers know if it actually is?

This is exactly what I mean about setting expectations upfront. As long as you know what you are getting into, it is fine to make the decision if you want to wait or not. Any missive production product you can get right away. There are thousands of perhaps millions of copies available. These type of razors are handmade and produced in very small quantities. I read somewhere that the guy that designed and produces the Karve didn't expect to be so successful in such short time. He thought it was going to take many years for people to get aware of his razors. As I mentioned previously, is is a very small shop that became very successful and unfortunately can't keep up with the high demand.

QRTAS

 

[Rosseforp]

The Karve is a very well designed and high quality razor. @Rosseforp had his arrive not long ago.



There was a lot of research and thought that went into the creation and design of the Karve CB.

This, from his AMA on reddit:



I also forced a patina on my made in Canada Gillette Old type. See my post below for the process I used.



Forcing a patina on Brass is sort of like using stain on wood. The Brass surface absorbs the chemical used and depending on the chemical and the time of soak, determines the depth of the stain. Also like woodworking, the more you work at the finish, the nicer it comes out.

Depending on the chemicals used and the process and order they're applied in can also dictate the final colour. I believe this whole idea was starting by guys modding Brass and Copper vape tubes like below.

View attachment 1145091

Removing a forced patina is as easy as a quick, but thorough, polishing. Once finished you'll be left with clean bare shiny Brass again.

When I ordered my Karve baseplates and cap, I was well aware of the waiting list. As soon as I placed my order Karve responded with an email stating a 3-4 week backlog. Having worked in many a job shop in the past, I totally understood, and prepared to wait 6-8 weeks as the Canadian Mail seems to be on vacation most of the time.
In only 3 1/2 weeks I got an email that my parts were being shipped by DHL and 3 days later the package arrived at my door.

The handle I made myself.

As a machinist, I found the Karve quality and finish to be superb, better than what I paid for.

 

[Ridgeback]

I ordered a Karve SS 4 weeks ago...I got an email saying it was being shipped today...I am not going to complain about that!!!

 

[Mountain Grown]

Yep, this thread must have been great Karma.. I just received my email a few minutes ago, 3 1/2 week lead time for the build and now just ship time..

 

[MTG Jr]

I ordered a Karve SS 4 weeks ago...I got an email saying it was being shipped today...I am not going to complain about that!!!

Yep, this thread must have been great Karma.. I just received my email a few minutes ago, 3 1/2 week lead time for the build and now just ship time..

Was a label created, or did it actually ship? That’s another quirk with Karve. It’s not uncommon for him to create labels for a batch of razors, whereupon customers get “shipping“ notices, and then the batch sits for another week or more before they actually make it to the post office. Check your tracking info for progress. You gotta have lots of patience with Karve!

 

[Qrtas]

Was a label created, or did it actually ship? That’s another quirk with Karve. It’s not uncommon for him to create labels for a batch of razors, whereupon customers get “shipping“ notices, and then the batch sits for another week or more before they actually make it to the post office. Check your tracking info for progress. You gotta have lots of patience with Karve!

Agree. Lower your expectations when it comes to waiting, breath deep, be patient and you'll be happy in the end. What you just mentioned happened to me too. It just took longer than expected, but once I got it and stared using it, all my frustrations magically disappeared.



QRTAS

 

[Esox]

prepared to wait 6-8 weeks as the Canadian Mail seems to be on vacation most of the time.

It might be slow but it'll get there! haha

As a machinist, I found the Karve quality and finish to be superb, better than what I paid for.

Thats the part that surprised me.

 

[Leverspro]

I used a Karve brass today with f plate that I bought a couple years ago when there was no shortage of stock. I've since bought half a dozen other razors, some of which cost multiple times more just because I was curious and was able to. The Karve holds its own with anything I've tried. Too bad they have such supply issues now. The Ti would interest me.