page_title: Straight razor
section_title: Modern use
hierarchical_section_title: Straight razor / Modern use
caption_attribution_description: Dziewiętnastowieczne narzędzie od ostrzenia brzytwy.
context_page_description: A straight razor is a razor with a blade that can fold into its handle. They are also called open razors and cut-throat razors. The predecessors of the modern straight razors include bronze razors, with cutting edges and fixed handles, produced by craftsmen from Ancient Egypt during the New Kingdom. Solid gold and copper razors were also found in Ancient Egyptian tombs dating back to the 4th millennium BC.
  The first steel-edged cutthroat razors were manufactured in Sheffield in 1680. By the late 1680s, early 1690s, razors with silver-covered handles along with other Sheffield-made products known as "Sheffield wares" were being exported to ports in the Gulf of Finland, approximately 1200 miles from Sheffield. From there, these goods were probably sent to Finland and even Russia. By 1740, Benjamin Huntsman was making straight razors complete with decorated handles and hollow-ground blades made from cast steel, using a process he invented. Huntsman's process was adopted by the French sometime later, albeit reluctantly at first due to nationalist considerations.
context_section_description: Straight razors are still manufactured. DOVO, of Solingen, Germany, and Thiers Issard of France are two of the best-known European manufacturers. Boeker of Solingen is yet another cutlery manufacturer known for their straight razors. Wusthof and Henckels are two prominent knife manufacturers in Solingen who also produced straight razors. Thiers Issard and Hart Steel are famous for their decorated blades and their Damascus steel. Feather Safety Razor Co. Ltd. of Osaka, Japan, makes a razor with the same form as a traditional straight, but featuring a disposable blade that can be installed through an injector-type system. Artisans also make handcrafted custom straight razors based on their own designs, the designs of their customers, or by finishing old blanks of blades.
  Modern straight-razor users are known to favor them for a variety of reasons. Some are attracted to the nostalgia of using old and traditional methods of shaving. Others wish to avoid the waste of disposable blades.
  Still others argue that straight razors provide a superior shave through a larger blade and greater control of the blade, including the blade angle. Straight razors cover a much greater area per shaving stroke, because their cutting edge is much longer than any of the multi-blade razors.
  They also do not have to be rinsed as often, because their blade acts like a scoop and carries the lather on it during multiple shaving strokes, while the multi-blade razors  are not nearly as efficient at such a task because of their considerably smaller blade geometry.
  Straight razors are also much easier to clean and can handle tougher shaving tasks, such as longer facial hair, than modern multi-blade razors, which tend to trap shaving debris between their tightly packed blades and are easily clogged, even with relatively short stubble.
  In addition, multi-edge razors can irritate the skin due to their multi-blade action, and this can lead to a condition known as pseudofolliculitis barbae, colloquially known as razor bumps. One of the recommended actions for those so affected is to switch to single blade use. 
  Others simply like the good results and the satisfaction of maintaining the blade themselves. Yet others cite aesthetic reasons in addition to the practical ones. A well-made blade, in a nice handle with a well-crafted etching and decorated shank, carries a sense of craftsmanship and ownership difficult to associate with a disposable blade cartridge.
  Finally, a well-kept razor can last for decades, and can become a family heirloom that can be passed from parent to child. For all of these reasons, devotees of the straight razor make for an active market.
  Owing to health concerns, some areas require barbers who provide straight-razor shaving to use a version that employs a disposable or changeable blade system. In this type of straight razor the razor blade is changed and disposed of after each service.  In places such as Turkey, Australia, New Zealand, Ontario, Pennsylvania, Denver, Boston, Texas and San Diego, however, the professional use of straight razors in barber shops is legal.
  The 2012 James Bond film, Skyfall, has renewed interest in straight razors due to a scene when the agent shaves with one and his co-star Naomie Harris helps him finish shaving while remarking that  “sometimes the old ways are the best”. Online straight razor retailers have reported increased sales ranging from 50% to over 400% due to the exposure generated by the film.
  The increase in sales is part of an overall growth in demand for straight razors, since about 2008, which has also seen an increase in the number of barbers offering straight razor shaves. The phenomenon seems to be driven by renewed nostalgia for things retro such as the straight razor which evokes simpler notions of the past such as the "macho" image associated with its use and also the skill required to shave with it which can be a source of pride.
caption: Antique leather barber's strop. It is best for sturdy wedge type blades. Hollow ground blades should be stropped on a hanging strop, since it provides a more flexible support for the blade.[5]
exif: {"Image Make": "EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY", "Image Model": "KODAK LS753 ZOOM DIGITAL CAMERA", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "230", "Image YResolution": "230", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "Image ExifOffset": "180", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "2510", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "3467", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/45", "EXIF FNumber": "3", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0221", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2004:01:13 06:33:25", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2004:01:13 06:33:25", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "11/2", "EXIF ApertureValue": "16/5", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "1/2", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "16/5", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF LightSource": "Unknown", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "6", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "2560", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1920", "Interoperability InteroperabilityIndex": "R98", "Interoperability InteroperabilityVersion": "[48, 49, 48, 48]", "EXIF InteroperabilityOffset": "2374", "EXIF ExposureIndex": "80", "EXIF SensingMethod": "One-chip color area", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF SceneType": "Directly Photographed", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF DigitalZoomRatio": "0", "EXIF FocalLengthIn35mmFilm": "36", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF GainControl": "None", "EXIF Contrast": "Normal", "EXIF Saturation": "Normal", "EXIF Sharpness": "Normal", "EXIF SubjectDistanceRange": "0"}