Kriss Kross SE Razor
- Thread starter gvw755
- Start date
TobyC's picture of the razor and blade are at the bottom of this page... http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/497802-Kriss-Kross-Stropper . I to will be playing the "Let's see what fits" game with one of these in the next few days . Another option to explore will be the Shavette blades and the "Hair shaper" blades de-spined.... I played with cut down double edge blades in a Keen Kutter with tape, a Kristy with an injector blade , and a cut down double edge in a French Prima single edge razor. The best of the three was the Prima, which took a trim of the blade and two small holes punched with a good leather punch. How they will shave remains to be seen...I'll test them out in the next few days ......
To help you use the sheet well.
The images are of the companion Juan José.
The images are of the companion Juan José.
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- #24
Thanks for the pics. Right now I cut down half DE blades and loaded one half in each razor to try out tonight. My next attempt was similar to your suggestion which was to put a spacer behind the injector blade to prevent it from going backwards. I did cut a Gem blade already, which essentially did the same as your spacer, but thought that I wound not want to do that every time I changed a blade. Your spacer is a one time thing so it might work.
Just so I don't have to do all your work, do you have the approximate dimensions of the spacer?
Just so I don't have to do all your work, do you have the approximate dimensions of the spacer?
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- #25
Okay, made another feeble attempt to get the Kriss Kross working. I already had another idea going when [MENTION=78390]prometeo[/MENTION] came up with his spacer idea. I went the route of cutting a DE in half and then removing the end tabs. I was surprised that the width was very close to being correct and that the springs held the blade in place even though they were a lot thinner than what I imagine the original blades would be.
Because I had some time before my shave, I also did a quick construction of the spacer idea and tried to fit it in. For some reason, the injector blade was not secure on one side and so I decided to apply electrical tape to secure it to the spacer and to add a little more thickness to the back side of the blade. I will try out that idea in a couple of days.
For the shave, I used the newer version of the Kriss Kross for my WTG pass, the older version (on the left) for my ATG pass, and back to the new version for my touch up. The blades did not shift back like my original shave with the injector without the spacer, however there was significant blade flexing probably because it was thinner than what the razors were designed to handle. I also found out that with what should be a properly seated blade, you had to use a very shallow angle in order for the razors to shave properly, almost perpendicular to your face (like in TobyC's instruction book). Anyway, after two passes and touch up, the razor still did not produce a DFS. I am not sure if it is needing a thicker blade or if the razor is just not capable of doing this. I will try again with the injector blade taped to the plastic spacer. If that don't work well, look for it on next year's Saint Sue's Auction.
Because I had some time before my shave, I also did a quick construction of the spacer idea and tried to fit it in. For some reason, the injector blade was not secure on one side and so I decided to apply electrical tape to secure it to the spacer and to add a little more thickness to the back side of the blade. I will try out that idea in a couple of days.
For the shave, I used the newer version of the Kriss Kross for my WTG pass, the older version (on the left) for my ATG pass, and back to the new version for my touch up. The blades did not shift back like my original shave with the injector without the spacer, however there was significant blade flexing probably because it was thinner than what the razors were designed to handle. I also found out that with what should be a properly seated blade, you had to use a very shallow angle in order for the razors to shave properly, almost perpendicular to your face (like in TobyC's instruction book). Anyway, after two passes and touch up, the razor still did not produce a DFS. I am not sure if it is needing a thicker blade or if the razor is just not capable of doing this. I will try again with the injector blade taped to the plastic spacer. If that don't work well, look for it on next year's Saint Sue's Auction.
Love the guarantee.
"If you don't like our stuff, return it, and we will send you more of the same stuff you don't like."
- Thread starter
- #29
This kind of reminds me when I lived in Hawaii. termite damage was a big deal and the termite treatment companies all had a guarantee that if termites hit a home that they treated, they will come out and treat the home again. Never mentioned fixing the damage, just said that the treatment that didn't work the first time will be done a second time.
As for the blades, lifetime guarantees are guaranteed only for the life of the company and not the product or owner. Besides, it's much more fun trying to figure out how to shave with a razor without the original blades. I mean who wants to stick a Gem blade in a MMOC?
As for the blades, lifetime guarantees are guaranteed only for the life of the company and not the product or owner. Besides, it's much more fun trying to figure out how to shave with a razor without the original blades. I mean who wants to stick a Gem blade in a MMOC?
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I find this a very interesting thread. Thanks.
Looking at the picture of the Kriss Kross blade , I am guessing it is a 1/2 inch depth (need to confirm w my razor).
Measuring the correct distance, Placing the single edge blade in a vise , edge side down and tapping it with a hammer should break it off pretty much at the exact length. Maybe you will need to despine it first ...Haven't measured yet myself. You can get fancy and use a good fine file to smooth it out. Don't over-tighten the blade in the vise.... You can sandwich it between two blocks of hard wood also. I have both Brass and hard rubber inserts for my 6 inch vise which is pretty nice for stuff you don't want to mash with serrated jaws...
Measuring the correct distance, Placing the single edge blade in a vise , edge side down and tapping it with a hammer should break it off pretty much at the exact length. Maybe you will need to despine it first ...Haven't measured yet myself. You can get fancy and use a good fine file to smooth it out. Don't over-tighten the blade in the vise.... You can sandwich it between two blocks of hard wood also. I have both Brass and hard rubber inserts for my 6 inch vise which is pretty nice for stuff you don't want to mash with serrated jaws...
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- #33
I went that route with one of my used blades. It was convenient because the area to be cut off was just below the spine and I used the spine as a guide. I think I still had to cut a little off the ends. Worked great, but for that much work to get one blade, I passed on it as an option. It's kind of like the other thread going on about converting Gems for use in OneBlades. Too much work for a shave.
Is the original blade beveled on one side, like a chisel or plane blade? And if so, does the bevel go up or down? How thick is the KK blade?
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- #35
Okay, so nobody ever called me intelligent and was able to get away with it. It all started yesterday when AARP sent me another invitation to join with their preprinted membership card in the envelope. I was going to toss it in the shredder but then remembered @prometeo and his detailed instructions and so decided to follow up on it. I managed to make two plastic spacers (this time relatively straight) and loaded one in each razor. The earlier version with the big curved spring in the back actually held things together better because of the smaller gap and because the tabs that held the blade in the back were wider and took the whole height of the spring. The newer version with just the two dots holding things from shifting backwards was a little trickier and I found myself holding the head at a precise angle to prevent the plastic spacer from going on top of the dots and still being able to load the injector blade. Once done, I did the same as last week, using one razor to do the WTG pass and the other razor to do the ATG and touch up passes.
This was what the razor needed - a very stiff and sharp blade that was held securely in place. I found that with the older razor, the head needed to be almost touching my face and the big curved spring in the back gave it a moderately steep angle. The newer razor had a thinner head and a totally different shave angle. Although it was still relatively steep, it was not as steep as the older razor and the head was pretty well separate from your face.
In the end, it was still not the closest shave I ever had and this time I am more sure that the design of the razor was not that great. I will not be giving up my 1914 any time soon.
This was what the razor needed - a very stiff and sharp blade that was held securely in place. I found that with the older razor, the head needed to be almost touching my face and the big curved spring in the back gave it a moderately steep angle. The newer razor had a thinner head and a totally different shave angle. Although it was still relatively steep, it was not as steep as the older razor and the head was pretty well separate from your face.
In the end, it was still not the closest shave I ever had and this time I am more sure that the design of the razor was not that great. I will not be giving up my 1914 any time soon.
This thread just keeps getting more informative and more interestnig. Thanks.
I just received both versions with the knurled handles. The knurling is very sharp and a bit coarse on both, providing a very aggressive grip surface. The springs on these are not nearly as stiff as on the Gem Zinn razor which uses a similar blade clamp design. No blade shifting on the Zinn with a Schick injector blade when tried out. I think I will try the spacer idea with some brass shim stock I have.
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