About Thomas Hargrove
I still remember the morning it all started. I was eighteen years old, and my father handed me a small, weathered razor with a gold-toned handle and a diamond-shaped head. “This is a Gillette Tech,” he said. “Your grandfather used it. Learn to use it right.” That single moment, standing at a bathroom sink in Nashville, Tennessee, changed the way I’d shave for the rest of my life.
That was twenty-two years ago. I never went back to cartridges.
22 Years Behind the Blade
What started as curiosity turned into an obsession — the good kind. Over the past two decades I’ve personally tested more than 300 safety razors, straight razors, double-edge blades, shaving soaps, and creams. Not in a lab. At my bathroom sink, every single morning, with real stubble and real results.
I’ve worked through vintage Gillette Adjustables and modern German engineered heads. I’ve stropped a full hollow-ground straight razor at 5 a.m. and lived to tell about it. I’ve burned through blade sampler packs from Derby to Feather to Personna and mapped out exactly which blade pairs best with which razor for which skin type. This site exists because that knowledge shouldn’t sit in my head — it should be in yours.
Community Roots
I’ve been an active member of r/wicked_edge for over ten years. If you’ve spent any time in that community, you know it’s where a lot of men take their first serious step away from the drugstore shave aisle. I’ve answered thousands of questions there — from “what razor should I start with?” to “why is my straight razor skipping?” — and those conversations shaped how I think about explaining wet shaving to newcomers.
I also moderate a wet shaving Discord server with more than 3,000 members. Every day in that community I see the same transformation: someone comes in frustrated and over-spending, and within a few weeks they’ve found a razor they love, a soap that works for their skin, and a morning ritual they actually look forward to. That’s the whole point.
What You’ll Find on ClassicBlade.com
This site covers the full landscape of traditional wet shaving:
- Safety razor reviews — honest assessments of aggression, balance, blade gap, and build quality
- Blade reviews — because the blade matters as much as the razor
- Shaving soap and cream reviews — lather quality, scent, skin feel, value
- Technique guides — angle, pressure, passes, prep — the fundamentals that make everything else work
- Straight razor content — for those ready to go deeper
My mission is simple: help men escape the cartridge razor tax and find a shave they actually enjoy. A quality double-edge razor costs $30–$60 and lasts decades. A hundred blades costs less than a four-pack of cartridges. The math is easy. The shave is better. You just need someone to show you how.
Life Off the Blog
I live in Nashville, Tennessee, where the seasons are varied enough to test how a soap performs in both winter dry air and summer humidity. I collect vintage Gillettes — my personal favorites are a 1959 Fat Boy and a 1965 Slim Adjustable — and I shave every morning with a different razor to keep my testing honest and my reviews fresh. No gear sits on a shelf here; it all goes to work.
I don’t have formal credentials in dermatology or materials science. What I have is 22 years of daily practice, a community that trusts me, and an honest commitment to telling you what actually works — including when something I expected to love turned out to be a disappointment.
Get in Touch
Got a razor question? Trying to decide between two soaps? Not sure if wet shaving is right for you? Reach out — I read every email.
Razor question? [email protected]