Rockwell Model T Adjustable in Gunmetal Finish

Spang · Apr 2, 2019

shaveSymptomatic said:
Not sure, maybe someone else here can comment.

It is primarily zamac; the handle, adjustment dial and a few other parts are plated brass. No SS. And just to be clear, the Model T was never billed as an all-stainless razor. It was originally to be an all-brass (ala vintage Gillette) adjustable. After the strong initial interest in the Model T Rockwell began "exploring" production of an all stainless version, but fairly quickly dropped the idea as too complicated. They never took any pledges or pre-orders for the stainless version.

Meanwhile, the original all-brass Model T (which of course Rockwell did take pledges for, and a lot of them) eventually morphed into a mostly zamac razor. Even after this dumbing down of the manufacturing, Rockwell still hasn't been able to produce this razor at scale; their latest update says they have delivered only a quarter of the reported 8,000 razors that were pledged for or pre-ordered. And this is more than three years after the launch of the campaign.

HomerJay · Apr 3, 2019

This above statement isn't accurate. Having waited 2 years past the originally anticipated ship date, the last update from March 16 stated that, "We’re pleased to announce that we have now shipped the majority of Kickstarter pledge rewards." The gunmetal finish models were the last to ship and I received mine about 3 weeks ago. I still have not used mine as it's still beard season but will likely use it sometime this week.

Also, I believe only the blade tray is zamac which does not make the razor "primarily" zamac. Again, not the all brass that was originally advertised but Rockwell did offer to refund pledges to anyone who had a change of heart after that announcement.

I am not defending Rockwell here because a 2-year delay in delivery is unacceptable in my eyes but I chose to leave my pledge and wait. I just wanted to clarify some of the statements made.

emwolf · Apr 3, 2019

Regardless of what it's made from, it is a fine looking and fine working razor. At the super early bird backer price it is absolutely worth it. The wait? Well, it's not I like I didn't have 90 other razors I could use in the meantime. During the wait time I did pick up a Parthenon, which has to be one of the biggest rip-off razors I've ever purchased. I will never use it again. I should PIF it along with some Graham Fields blades.

Speaking of blades, I've broken into the new Rockwell blades I got with the Model T. I had found little use for the Rockwell blades I received with the 6c, but these are definitely a "cut" above those. I would put them on par with Derby Extra. Not a bad shave.

Spang · Apr 3, 2019

HomerJay said:
This above statement isn't accurate. Having waited 2 years past the originally anticipated ship date, the last update from March 16 stated that, "We’re pleased to announce that we have now shipped the majority of Kickstarter pledge rewards." The gunmetal finish models were the last to ship and I received mine about 3 weeks ago.

Just to clarify: the March 16 update states that Rockwell has shipped the "majority of KICKSTARTER pledge rewards. There were roughly 4k Kickstarter pledges; that means they claim to have shipped something north of 2k razors. The total of KS, IGG and pre-orders, according to Rockwell, was 8k razors. So, they are 1/4 of the way to fulfilling all of the razors that they have promised to folks who either backed through KS, IGG or pre-orders.

nav · Apr 4, 2019

I'm also a patiently waiting pledger and to me the choice is clear, either cancel or wait.

It's not a purchase...it's a pledge into an idea. KS et al make is very clear that it's just a fund raising and there's no guarantee of receiving the final product.

I just don't understand all the negative comments about not receiving the "purchase". It's a pledge with the hope that it works out and we get the final product.

If anything, I commend Rockwell for not giving up on the project because they have every right to do so after 3 years of work.

We knew the materials that would be used so not much point whinging about that either.

*I've wanted to get that off my chest for a long time*

timah083 · Apr 4, 2019

nav said:
I'm also a patiently waiting pledger and to me the choice is clear, either cancel or wait.

It's not a purchase...it's a pledge into an idea. KS et al make is very clear that it's just a fund raising and there's no guarantee of receiving the final product.

I just don't understand all the negative comments about not receiving the "purchase". It's a pledge with the hope that it works out and we get the final product.

If anything, I commend Rockwell for not giving up on the project because they have every right to do so after 3 years of work.

We knew the materials that would be used so not much point whinging about that either.

*I've wanted to get that off my chest for a long time*

So. Much. This. Well said.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

emwolf · Apr 4, 2019

nav said:
I'm also a patiently waiting pledger and to me the choice is clear, either cancel or wait.

It's not a purchase...it's a pledge into an idea. KS et al make is very clear that it's just a fund raising and there's no guarantee of receiving the final product.

I just don't understand all the negative comments about not receiving the "purchase". It's a pledge with the hope that it works out and we get the final product.

If anything, I commend Rockwell for not giving up on the project because they have every right to do so after 3 years of work.

We knew the materials that would be used so not much point whinging about that either.

*I've wanted to get that off my chest for a long time*

I hope you enjoy yours. I've really enjoyed mine. It's my favorite modern adjustable that I own (I liked the Rex better, but that's out of my range for ownership).

nav · Apr 4, 2019

emwolf said:
I hope you enjoy yours. I've really enjoyed mine. It's my favorite modern adjustable that I own (I liked the Rex better, but that's out of my range for ownership).

Given how much I love my 6C and 6S, I'm really looking forward to the model T.

Given they are now actually shipping them out, it's just a matter of when and not if, so I'm not too bothered waiting a little longer.

PatrickA51 · Apr 4, 2019

HomerJay said:
This above statement isn't accurate. Having waited 2 years past the originally anticipated ship date, the last update from March 16 stated that, "We’re pleased to announce that we have now shipped the majority of Kickstarter pledge rewards." The gunmetal finish models were the last to ship and I received mine about 3 weeks ago. I still have not used mine as it's still beard season but will likely use it sometime this week.

Also, I believe only the blade tray is zamac which does not make the razor "primarily" zamac. Again, not the all brass that was originally advertised but Rockwell did offer to refund pledges to anyone who had a change of heart after that announcement.

I am not defending Rockwell here because a 2-year delay in delivery is unacceptable in my eyes but I chose to leave my pledge and wait. I just wanted to clarify some of the statements made.

emwolf said:
Regardless of what it's made from, it is a fine looking and fine working razor. At the super early bird backer price it is absolutely worth it. The wait? Well, it's not I like I didn't have 90 other razors I could use in the meantime. During the wait time I did pick up a Parthenon, which has to be one of the biggest rip-off razors I've ever purchased. I will never use it again. I should PIF it along with some Graham Fields blades.

Speaking of blades, I've broken into the new Rockwell blades I got with the Model T. I had found little use for the Rockwell blades I received with the 6c, but these are definitely a "cut" above those. I would put them on par with Derby Extra. Not a bad shave.

Here are two different points of view. I believe that most of the backers like myself that are not pleased with Rockwell Razors is all of the monthly fairy tail excuses.

Rafa1205 · Apr 8, 2019

My 6C is fantastic. I’m sure the adjustable will be great.

GlazedBoker · Apr 9, 2019

I think the biggest issue and bone to pick with here concerning Rockwell is not the product per say even though there have been quite a fair number of issues that have arisen with how some backers have received razors that one would assume were poorly assembled and just plain lacking in quality control. I'm not going to pound Rockwell over and over as I have already posted my displeasure with Rockwells business practice and operations on more than one forum. They have even blatantly admitted to sending product out knowing that there was a greater chance of product failure (T-Bar assembly, remember?).

Truthfully, I think the biggest thing here was and is their reluctance to take a step back, assess the issues and problems, making the necessary moves and changes and keep everything on the level. Transparency I believe would have been welcome and accepted from the outset even if it meant a complete rehaul of their thought process on how production was going to go forward. Instead, they tried to correct and still continue moving forward while announcing delayed (pushing back) promised dates of delivery like it was handing out free meals at your local soup kitchen. They should have stopped, reorganized and make their announcenent on setbacks and make the necessary corrections in a concise and methodical progression. I think the far majority of backers would have understood and accepted that thought and plan of action. Instead, they created and got "Delivery Gate" on their hands.

A shame, really. Because for what it's worth, I received an excellent looking and working razor that on it's first shave produced excellent results. Precise fitment of the blade in the blade tray with the TTO doors opening and closing smoothly through its range of motion. Nearly perfect blade exposure on both sides regardless of the dial size adjustment I was staged at. The shave was smooth and quite efficient and that was just on 3 & 2 respectively. A DFS finish that was impressive on its maiden shave. It feels good in the hands with nice balance and nice weight. The handle is a bit long and the razor head is a bit larger than I'd like but, it's a fine razor with an excellent white chrome finish. I was waiting for something to fall off or go wrong. It didn't happen. We'll see what a few more shaves will bring the rest of the week.

emwolf · Apr 9, 2019

GlazedBoker said:
Truthfully, I think the biggest thing here was and is their reluctance to take a step back, assess the issues and problems, making the necessary moves and changes and keep everything on the level. Transparency I believe would have been welcome and accepted from the outset even if it meant a complete rehaul of their thought process on how production was going to go forward. Instead, they tried to correct and still continue moving forward while announcing delayed (pushing back) promised dates of delivery like it was handing out free meals at your local soup kitchen. They should have stopped, reorganized and make their announcenent on setbacks and make the necessary corrections in a concise and methodical progression. I think the far majority of backers would have understood and accepted that thought and plan of action. Instead, they created and got "Delivery Gate" on their hands.

View attachment 970686

completely agree that the communication was lacking. I work in the business world and have been to many meetings where department heads constantly "spin" the problems to make it look better than it really is. I detest that practice, but it's American as apple pie. When someone is simple, straightforward and honest I tend to build a sense of trust and be much more willing to suffer through some discomfort if I trust I will receive satisfaction.

branford · Apr 9, 2019

I love my Rockwell 6S that I bought during its Kickstarter, and now want to buy a new and good adjustable.

Should I even bother joining the waitlist for the Model T, or will I need to wait forever for an average or marginal razor?

Will a Model T would offer much more than a Parker Variant or QShave Futur clone beside the TTO?

emwolf · Apr 9, 2019

branford said:
I love my Rockwell 6S that I bought during its Kickstarter, and now want to buy a new and good adjustable.

Should I even bother joining the waitlist for the Model T, or will I need to wait forever for an average or marginal razor?

Will a Model T would offer much more than a Parker Variant or QShave Futur clone beside the TTO?

Boy, that's a good question. I like the Model T a lot more than the Variant, but the Variant is readily available. The Q Shave futur is dirt cheap, but I'm only a moderate fan of Futur design.

Starsky · Apr 9, 2019

I got miffed with the “predictions” and delays. Shipping date after shipping date came and went. I still have my 6C and my 6S.
Finally got tired of the promises and asked for a refund on my order.
To their credit they promptly returned my money. I bought a Karve with two plates and have been really pleased.
I know some don’t like the brass but the shaves are the best I have ever had. I am not knocking Rockwell but I am glad I changed direction. I have a couple of Gillette adjustables if I need a fix.

GlazedBoker · Apr 9, 2019

Got an excellent 2nd shave with the Model T. Went for the max setting @6 and it was on. Fantastically good. Excellent blade feel and very nice smoothness on the first pass. Think R7 or R8 on a 6s if it were available but, almost as smooth as the R6 plate. Very, very nice. One thing though that I did notice on my shave is at the max setting, it feels as if the blade can deflect/skip as the blade is not fully supported and held as rigid. It didn’t happen but, I felt as though it potentially could. I mention it because my hair is not particularly coarse or thick and I just adjusted my speed and pace but, for those that do have denser growth or coarser hairs it could be something to look out for. Nonetheless, it was a fantastic shave with one tiny weeper at the corner of my mouth. Cold water rinse and alum, easy enough. The Gillette Spoiler blade paired perfectly with the Model T. Just a great shave......