This article focuses on how to load a cut throat razor for guys who just received their cut throat razor but might not understand how all the parts work yet. Granted, this process looks a bit tricky, but once you understand it, you’ll see it’s easy as pie. The razor I’m using to demonstrate this process is the Dreadnought cut throat razor. Furthermore, for the purposes of this demonstration, I’ll refer to the following part of the razor: the latch (photo top), the shavette (photo middle–two halves), and the blade (photo bottom).
1. Open the razor up
Since everything is attached to the handle, all you need to do is pull the latch away from the shavette, and then move the two halves of the shavette apart. You might need to pull the pieces apart in order to open it like a Swiss Army knife, so don’t be shy about it.
2. Break a razor in half
Your cut throat razor uses half of a double-edge blade. Therefore, you’ll need to break one in half. Take a blade out of the package, and with the wax envelope on the blade (seriously, keep it on so you don’t cut yourself), bend the blade so it breaks on the small end. It should gently snap in half without issue, regardless of the blade you use. When this happens, take out one half and keep it close.
3. Place the halved blade onto the bumpy side of the shavette
The blade will have some grooves that you should match up on the side of the shavette which has the bumps. The other half of the shavette will have the holes (as shown) that will eventually close on the bumps. To place the blade, line up the small edge of the blade with the tip of the shavette, as shown. Once you’ve done that, hold it steady and prevent the blade from moving while you go to step 4.
4. Close the other half of the shavette on top of the blade
This is the most frustrating step of the process, and it will take some finesse to get it just right. It’s easier if you pull the other half away, and then place it downwards onto the other half of the shavette, rather than making a sliding motion. If you slide it, the blade will probably fall off. You want to put the holed side of the shavette down on the bumpy side like a sandwich. Once you get the two sides connected, the sharp end of the blade should poke out just a little, as shown. If you see this, move on to the last step.
5. Close the latch onto the shavette
Gently grab the “working end” of the shavette to hold all the pieces together, and then close the latch down. This will pinch the “sandwich” together and hold everything in place. Double-check the blade after you snap the latch down, because sometimes it will move during this step. If the blade looks the same as it did in step 4, everything is good to go!
Cut throat razors have a bit more work to them than, say, cartridge razors, but it doesn’t exactly take a mechanical engineer. Once you’ve completed the process once, it will be like riding a bike.
