Watts safety razor - interesting find but FANTASTIC shaver!

Let's talk about single and double edged razors and the blades that they use.
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andrew_sam3
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Watts safety razor - interesting find but FANTASTIC shaver!

Post by andrew_sam3 »

Hi guys,

Just thought I'd share on an eBay purchase that I bought on a whim but turned out to be an absolte gem.

I managed to get hold of an unusual safety razor made by 'Watts' of Sheffield, England. Pics are below:

http://www.shavemyface.com/gallery/disp ... at=0&pos=0

http://www.shavemyface.com/gallery/disp ... at=0&pos=1

I boiled the razor for 20 minutes, scrubbed it down and it came up like new.

The thing that made this razor interesting was the angle the blade is set at - it's literally at a 15 degree angle to your face. Also note the head assembly - you load a blade into it by turning the knob adjuster and locking the blade on top of it with a wing-nut piece.

There is a spring hinge inside the razors body, so you can literally 'flip' the entire razors head from one side to the other to use both edges of the blade, but the angle is always optimal to the skin. The angle is more akin to that of a a straight razor. The razor also weighs a ton (which I really like), and you can strip the whole razor down to clean it all. All the parts are precision cut steel too so it won't rust.

The razor has fairly agressive looking open combs, but the blade sits recessed into the combs slightly (the comb has a D/E shaped recess to take the blade), meaning it's very hard to cut yourself with it.

The razor was originally designed to use the old fashioned stroppable stainless steel D/E blades. Because I didn't have any other than the blade that came with it (or a suitable stropper for that matter), and I'm notorious for tinkering with things, I sanded down the stainless steel blade about 3mm on each side to remove the edge, and then loaded a standard gillette D/E blade into the razor and placed the cut down (and shorter) steel blade on top of it to add weight. The result - a completely rigid D/E blade surface with a straight razors blade angle, with the blade inside recessed combs for safety.

I've shaved with it 5 times now and it's absolutely fantastic! It's as close or even closer than the injector I use loaded with a feather blade, and due to the comb design and how the blade is recessed in it I can't see how it can cut the skin.

Just thought I'd share this extraordinary find. It constantly amazes me how these 1920-1940's razors are made so well, they put modern manufactured razors to shame.

Regs,
Andy
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Post by themba »

I think I saw that auction for that razor. I wasn't sure if it took a GEM or DE type blade though.
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jvan
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Post by jvan »

Andy,

I also bid on that razor but backed out when I saw that you were bidding. I just wanted it to see if it shaved well and figured if you got it you would answer my question on the forums. I am really glad you like it, it certainly is a cool looking razor and appears to be built like a Bentley.

John
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Pauldog
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Post by Pauldog »

What kind of DE blades are you using?
bernards66
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Post by bernards66 »

Paul, I gather, from his post, that he used one of those Euro Gillette DEs that we have been discussing. Regards, Gordon
JackieMartling

Post by JackieMartling »

Interesting find, Andy. Everybody better hurry up and get theirs now, before another bubble starts on eBay.
andrew_sam3
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Location: UK

Post by andrew_sam3 »

Hi guys,

Yeah it's an interesting item, it took a lot of fiddling to get it set up (grinding down the stainless blade to get the D/E blade to sit underneath it was fun) but it's a very neat shaver that I don't plan on dropping anythime soon. The gillette blades do help a lot however, they tend to smooth things out a little more than the usual merkurs I've been using.

I'm contemplating trying it with a feather D/E blade in it as it's surrounded by the combs for safety, but I have a feeling the gillette blades may be that bit smoother. I'm sure I will though (I can't help it!) so I'll post the results when I get around to it.

There are quite a lot of interesting safetys going on ebay recently, another I've seen is a product called a 'telerazor'. It's basically a battery operated vibrating D/E, made in the 1960's (as opposed to the manual clockwork mechanism of a Stahly razor).

The head design is the same as a merkur HD, with an interesting opening mechanism where the screw mechanism is on the top collar of the razor. I've got some pics somewhere of them so I'll dig them out, but they certainly look interesting. Prices werent too bad, they rarely went over $25 so they may be worth a look.

I've developed a real interest in some of the mad designs manufacturers in the 50's and 60's were producing. I wish some of the bigger companies had their imagination and ingenuity now, but I think mass production limitations and profit margins have hampered it. Shame really.

Regs,
Andy
timbentinck
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Re: Watts safety razor - interesting find but FANTASTIC shav

Post by timbentinck »

I just bought one of these on Ebay, because... I recently discovered that John Robert Watts was my great grandfather!
brothers
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Re: Watts safety razor - interesting find but FANTASTIC shav

Post by brothers »

Thanks for sharing this interesting fact with us, regarding this old razor. Too bad the SMF gallery photos have been lost. Do you happen to have one of these razors, now that you have a family connection?
Gary

SOTD 99%: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, soaps & creams, synthetic / badger brushes, Colonial General razor, Kai & Schick blades, straight razors any time, Superior 70 aftershave splash + menthol + 444
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malocchio
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Re: Watts safety razor - interesting find but FANTASTIC shav

Post by malocchio »

Yes...I would like to see pictures as well,these old pics are defunct.
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