Ming Shi

I got a Ming Shi (Shaving Factory) razor as a prize recently in the Carnival of Smiles.

I have used it for about a week, and thought I would offer up my review.

This is attempting to be a Superspeed clone, and does a fairly good job of it. Build quality is not quite up to par with that of a vintage Superspeed, but that's to be expected. Specifically one of the silo doors sits a little higher when closed than the other.

The razor does rattle a little when in the open position.

The razor is fairly lightweight, and fairly mild on the aggressiveness scale.

In terms of grip, the handle is almost entirely smooth except for a couple of flutes. I could see the possibility of dropping it if you have wet hands.

Considering the price (around $15) this is a very good razor for a newbie, who likes the TTO mechanism of a Superspeed, but wants a new razor.

I wonder about it durability long term, but it seems to shave just fine, and gives me a very nice quality shave.

I just bought the ming shi along with Derby blades too, and I just had my first shave today. It took about 5 passes or so, but I got a pretty good shave, almost as close as my mach 3. No burn, no nicks.

The only thing I would complain about is the handle: it did get a little slippery and I had to keep wiping it off.

The Superspeed was Gilettes non-adjustable twist-to-open razor, made from the 1940's on through the 1970's or so.

I'm new to DE shaving, (have used disposables), so forgive me if this question sounds dimb . . but you used the term "super speed".. What is a "super speed" razor? Thanks.

Picked this one up from Shavingfactory as well. I really liked the little box it comes with, the grip is good, blade replacement a cake and Balance is good, too. For around $15 you get a shaving tool with no thrills but also without big flaws. Or so i thought.

I use a Merkur#39C Slant razor and this is only my second DE razor. Well, needless to say, after the first shave i was a little disappointed with the actual shaving performance of this shaver. It's aggressiveness is non existent compared to the Merkur Slant. I realize that the Slant is a very aggressive razor but i honestly didn't expect this little aggressiveness from the Ming Shi. I can't imagine using this razor except maybe with a Feather blade and then only as my vacation razor. BBS with this razor seems like a fairy tale.

Other than the lack of aggressiveness, this is one bargain and well priced razor that you literally can't cut yourself with unless you really really try. A great razor for the DE Beginner but every beginner should know that your shaves probably won't be as close as even with your old cartridge razor. For BBS shaves, this isn't the tool!

<EDIT> i used a feather blade for the first time in this razor yesterday. The aggressiveness was still extremely tame but it got somewhat better as opposed to the shave with a Personna Blade. I upgraded the aggressiveness score to a "4" from my previous "2" since i got a decent shave out of this razor now but it took quite some effort and pressure. This razor sure puts the "safety" in safety razor since i don't think even with a feather blade i could cut myself unintentionally.

It looks good, and i like the box too!

I picked up this razor at ShavingFactory for $16.99. For the price you can't beat it, I also used derby blades with the razor. It's lightweight so it may take a few shaves to get used to if you use a heavy razor. Being lightweight you have to apply a little bit of pressure but nothing too serious. The material in the razor is somewhat cheap but works fine. The TTO (twist to open) feature is great for loading blades. For a beginner this razor is perfect. If you don't want to buy a used razor, this is a good option for just about anyone.

I picked this up last week from the Shaving Factory. If not for the B&B discount (input B&B as a discount code at checkout) and the free shipping I'm not so sure this razor is a particularly good value at $16.99 plus shipping. However, with the current discounts and free shipping it comes in at under $14 shipped.

To me the quality is fare but about what you would expect in today's market. They just don't build things as nice and heavy as they did back in the '60s. This is an extremely light razor. About the same weight as my Blue Tip Super Speed with the aluminum handle although. The head is very similar to a Super Speed but the handle is much longer than even a Slim. It's about as tame or tamer than a Super Speed as well.

Overall, this is a fairly nice Twist To Open razor. If you''re squeamish about a used razor but want to try a Super Speed this might be a reasonable options

To start with, I should admit that this is the first DE razor I've shaved with so take my review with a grain of salt.

Fit and finish was much better then I expected, rattled a little open but it didn't make a sound when it was closed.

Seems to be a very forgiving razor, I discovered a few small cuts after my shave but nothing deep. I would say it's a great razor for a noob (me)

All in all, I'd say this razor is a good value, easy to use, and it gave me a very nice close shave.