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Parker Variant

Pros: heavy, great adjustability
Cons: alignment issues, finish issues
I ordered one of the first of the Variants in black. Two things struck me. The exposure was uneven and after a few uses the black finish began to flake off. Kudos to Super Safety Razors for doing a full replacement with the new black finish (which is more of a gunmetal than a black). Blade exposure and finish fixed, but I would think the blade exposure issue might be something to look out for when purchasing one of these. The adjustment is solid, a big improvement over the loose adjustment for the Progress, the Variants older brother. I also like the weight and length of the Variant as compared to the short handled Progress I have. I have heard of some switch the Progress top cap onto the Variant for a better shave. My experience was it was not a good fit. Of the new adjustables I've tried, the Variant comes in a distant third to the Rex Ambassador and the Rockwell Model T. I'm not including the Rockwell 6 series since it cannot be adjusted while shaving.
Grip
5.00 star(s)
Price
4.00 star(s)
Balance
4.00 star(s)
Quality
3.00 star(s)
Adjustability
4.00 star(s)
User Friendly
4.00 star(s)
Aggressiveness
4.00 star(s)
Ease of Blade Replacement
3.00 star(s)
Pros: Nice solid feel when shaving. Adjustments very easy to do and consistent.
Cons: Very slight difference in projection of each side.
I've been using this razor as a DE newbie for about 2 weeks. I find the 5 setting about right for a first pass WTG, 3 for XTG and 2 for ATG with a new Astra SP Platinum. This is comfortable for 2 shaves and I can tolerate a 3rd shave. I tried a fourth today and if I was penny-pinching, I would be able to do this but at <7 cents a shave, why bother! I would give this razor a 6 if I could. I wake up every day excited to shave, who'd have believed that!
Grip
5.00 star(s)
Price
4.00 star(s)
Balance
5.00 star(s)
Quality
5.00 star(s)
Adjustability
5.00 star(s)
User Friendly
5.00 star(s)
Aggressiveness
5.00 star(s)
Ease of Blade Replacement
5.00 star(s)
Pros: Obviously adjustable so no matter how many days or even hours growth it will work.
Great weight for 'letting the razor do the work'
Really nice slip proof grip
handle neither too short nor too long
Cons: Only remembering to line up the head with the notch on the baseplate
Had this for a couple of months now, wish I'd got it sooner, I had been contemplating it for months and months prior. I wish I had taken the plunge at the outset. Of all my razors, this is the only one where it doesn't matter which blade I use in it, I invariably get a good shave with it. The fact that you can 'dial in' settings mid shave by just turning the dial and without switching plates makes this the most flexible razor I have to date. you don't even have to loosen the head.
Grip
5.00 star(s)
Price
5.00 star(s)
Balance
4.00 star(s)
Quality
4.00 star(s)
Adjustability
5.00 star(s)
User Friendly
5.00 star(s)
Aggressiveness
5.00 star(s)
Ease of Blade Replacement
4.00 star(s)
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Reactions: Crazy Chester
Pros: Close, reliable, irritation free shave
Cons: None so far.
Having used this razor for a few weeks now, I am amazed at just how great of a shave it provides. I've been on a fast paced project with a tight schedule for the past two weeks, and very little time in the morning, so I am shaving as fast as possible with little time to experiment, done in 7 minutes. Among all of my razors, Parker Variant set to 3.5, coupled with Astra SP, provides the best, repeatable and reliable, irritation free shave with least fuss and minimal touch up. The trick was finding the right angle (it likes to be held with the handle a bit closer to the face than some of my other razors).
Grip
5.00 star(s)
Price
4.00 star(s)
Balance
4.00 star(s)
Quality
5.00 star(s)
Adjustability
4.00 star(s)
User Friendly
5.00 star(s)
Aggressiveness
3.00 star(s)
Ease of Blade Replacement
5.00 star(s)
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