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West Coast Shaving Razors

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Stainless steel razors have been generating a lot of attention in the old school shaving world.  They’re attractive, well-machined, and less prone to degradation than the usual brass/chrome/zamak materials (though not immune to problems!).  The down side is generally the cost.  Although there have been a few lower cost stainless steel razors produced, they are generally at the higher end of the price spectrum.  But West Coast Shaving has introduced a new line of their own razors that include stainless steel versions at a significantly lower cost.

West Coast Shaving’s Stainless Steel Line Of Razors

There are actually two varieties of stainless steel offered in the West Coast Shaving lineup: their “Classic*” style and their “Midnight*” style.  There are six different handle styles, mated to either a scalloped safety bar or open comb head (the heads are zinc alloy, chrome-plated).
The “Classic” style handle is 303 Stainless Steel:
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While the “Midnight” line is 303 stainless steel with a black powder coating:
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I got the “175B*” Midnight handle with both the safety bar and the open comb heads (also in black).  This razor is not only visually stunning to me but massive as well with a four inch handle and a weight of 175 grams!  This guy is a monster.  And the kicker is a price of under $25!

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I find the “fit and finish” excellent (particularly for the price!).  The scalloped safety bar head shaves at about the same aggressiveness as a Merkur 34C* in my opinion.  The open comb, like most open comb heads, is more aggressive.

“Natural” Line

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West Coast Shaving also introduced a “Natural*” line of wood handled razors.  The pricing is also really aggressive for these handles, with prices well under $20.  I went ahead and got a “37ws*” to mate with another head.  It’s made with rosewood and white ash.

West Coast Shaving

West Coast Shaving has been around in its current form for about 10 years now (old-timers may remember it starting as a “back of the garage” set up offering one of the first (if not the first) razor blade sampler packs to the shaving community.  Now they have a store front…
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…and a staff…

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Left to right is Kim, Kevin, Eric, and Christina. There is another Kevin on the CS team that is not in the image. They are all in Chino, CA.

….along with their robust by-mail operation.
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Author

Shave tutor and co-founder of sharpologist. I have been advocating old-school shaving for over 20 years and have been featured in major media outlets including The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and Lifehacker. Also check out my content on Youtube, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!View Author posts

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8 thoughts on “West Coast Shaving Razors”

  1. Steve

    I also wanted to add that the extra handle diameter and knurling is what initially drew me to the razor. With wet and soapy hands I always felt like I was going to drop my Edwin Jagger. I haven’t had that problem with the 175B.

  2. Steve

    I recently received the 175B with the closed head from the Midnight Collection. Your aren’t kidding-this thing is enormous! I’ve been using an Edwin Jagger 89 series for years and this is quite the change. I’ve only shaved twice with the 175B and this thing is intimidating and slightly frustrating. With so much weight in the handle it’s tough to determine the proper angle. I’ve gotten decent shaves but I have to really take my time until I get used to the extra weight. I agree that it’s very well constructed for the price.

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