Alpha Futura

[Iridian]

Alpha Shaving Works on Instagram: "HI - I am called Futura. I am a new razor from Alpha Shavng Works. A very few of me will be on sale in about 2 weeks. Only 5 have been made in this batch #1. I am made of solid C954 bronze. I have a classic handle s

81 likes, 4 comments - alphashaving on April 5, 2024: "HI - I am called Futura. I am a new razor from Alpha Shavng Works. A very few of me will be on sale in about 2 weeks. Only 5 have been ma..."

www.instagram.com

The Alpha Futura seems to use something that looks very much like the Outlaw head but the handle has a strong Lambda Athena x Ares vibe.

Other details I can tell you: -

 

[DesertIguana]

Do we need more Razors, or is someone making a charge into flooded market already. What IMHO is need is a
INVENTOR with a brain to figure out the THREE BEST RAZORS available today.

1 piece TTO, 2 piece, three piece, and look at everything currently available, incorporate good features, don't redo bad, come of with THREE SUPER RAZOR in 100 years of testing, and consumer feed back.

Maybe 100 years is too long, but points is market is flooded, and IMHO is another brand needed?

 

[luvmysuper]

Do we need more Razors, or is someone making a charge into flooded market already. What IMHO is need is a
INVENTOR with a brain to figure out the THREE BEST RAZORS available today.

1 piece TTO, 2 piece, three piece, and look at everything currently available, incorporate good features, don't redo bad, come of with THREE SUPER RAZOR in 100 years of testing, and consumer feed back.

Maybe 100 years is too long, but points is market is flooded, and IMHO is another brand needed?

NEED?
Nope!
WANT?
Different matter entirely!
Having choices, no matter how many other ones there are is what makes this "hobby" fun and exciting.

 

[Iridian]

(...) figure out the THREE BEST RAZORS available today.

1. Tech 2. Yuma 3... maybe this one?

Just to make sure I bought quite a lot of razors, but so far nobody could tell me razor #3.
Maybe it is this one? There is only one way to find out...!

 

[BigJ]

NEED?
Nope!
WANT?
Different matter entirely!
Having choices, no matter how many other ones there are is what makes this "hobby" fun and exciting.

+1! More options is a good thing IMO!!

 

[jesseix]

Do we need more Razors, or is someone making a charge into flooded market already. What IMHO is need is a
INVENTOR with a brain to figure out the THREE BEST RAZORS available today.

1 piece TTO, 2 piece, three piece, and look at everything currently available, incorporate good features, don't redo bad, come of with THREE SUPER RAZOR in 100 years of testing, and consumer feed back.

Maybe 100 years is too long, but points is market is flooded, and IMHO is another brand needed?

They’re not a new brand though, Alpha has been around for a handful of years.

Also I’m not sure how an inventor would figure out the 3 best razors available… the razors they’d be choosing between have already been invented, and whatever that “inventor” might choose as their 3 razors would just be that individual’s opinion.

 

[anoop]

Do we need more Razors, or is someone making a charge into flooded market already. What IMHO is need is a
INVENTOR with a brain to figure out the THREE BEST RAZORS available today.

1 piece TTO, 2 piece, three piece, and look at everything currently available, incorporate good features, don't redo bad, come of with THREE SUPER RAZOR in 100 years of testing, and consumer feed back.

Maybe 100 years is too long, but points is market is flooded, and IMHO is another brand needed?

Best according to who? I couldn't own a razor with e.g. Wolfman Darwin handle or Timeless Crown handle. Yet for many those are a work of art.

Heads are so much more complex. Aside from aesthetics, depending on one's face (skin, jawline, etc.) and technique, different razors produce different results for different people.

Even if we could agree on the 3 best razors, would be able to agree on whether it should be made of brass, copper, bronze, various grades of stainless steel, titanium, aluminum, bakelite?

 

[DesertIguana]

Best according to who? I couldn't own a razor with e.g. Wolfman Darwin handle or Timeless Crown handle. Yet for many those are a work of art.

Heads are so much more complex. Aside from aesthetics, depending on one's face (skin, jawline, etc.) and technique, different razors produce different results for different people.

Even if we could agree on the 3 best razors, would be able to agree on whether it should be made of brass, copper, bronze, various grades of stainless steel, titanium, aluminum, bakelite?

Your points are valid, and the term BEST is subjective, and sometime push by someone to benefit from sales. The old Fast Food Chicken Argument is an example, as many consumer their choice for BEST. You might hear KFC, El Pollo Loco, Churches, Popeyes, Chick-A-Fillet, their choice is about what they like best.

 

[Space_Cadet]

WANT?
Different matter entirely!
Having choices, no matter how many other ones there are is what makes this "hobby" fun and exciting.

"Having choices"?
Too many choices can pose a serious problem.
"what makes this "hobby" fun and exciting"
Where exactly is the subtle difference between having enough choices and hoarding?

 

[luvmysuper]

"Having choices"?
Too many choices can pose a serious problem.

A serious problem for who? Not a serious problem for me!
If it's a serious problem for someone, I strongly suggest they stop reading this forum, or seek professional help in dealing with obsession.

"what makes this "hobby" fun and exciting"
Where exactly is the subtle difference between having enough choices and hoarding?

The difference is between someone who does, and someone who does NOT have any self control.
Having choices is simply that... choices.
If someone is a hoarder, that's a mental condition that needs expert help, and having fewer choices available does not resolve the underlying condition.
There is nothing in the world that can make you buy something if you don't agree to buy it.
Well, except for Health Insurance now.

 

[Space_Cadet]

If someone is a hoarder, that's a mental condition that needs expert help, and having fewer choices available does not resolve the underlying condition.

That means that thousands of people on Badger and Blade are in a mental condition and need expert help.

 

[Iridian]

If someone is a hoarder, that's a mental condition that needs expert help

Thankfully we have an expert forum here.

 

[muzichead]

The Alpha Futura seems to use something that looks very much like the Outlaw head but the handle has a strong Lambda Athena x Ares vibe.

Dare I say, just when I thought the Lambda handle was the ugliest I'd ever seen along come this!! Looking at his Instagram page I see he actually has an Ares so not a surprise here, but am I the only one that thinks this handle might win the award for ugliest handle ever produced?

 

[huck1680]

Need? Yes, absolutely. For me.
Want? Well that goes without saying, especially if you "need" something.
Result? Need+Want= Have to have...at some point.
This of course varies from shaver to shaver. Some prefer one/two razors and using dish soap to lather with. Others like to indulge themselves and still others enjoy the collecting aspect. Nothing wrong in any scenario.

but am I the only one that thinks this handle might win the award for ugliest handle ever produced?

You might be...

 

[Iridian]

Dare I say, just when I thought the Lambda handle was the ugliest I'd ever seen along come this!

Well, must be your personal nightmare, it is the fusion of Ares and Athena!
I am feeling more a deja-vu than disgust, though.

 

[luvmysuper]

That means that thousands of people on Badger and Blade are in a mental condition and need expert help.

Maybe they do, maybe they don't.
But that's each individuals personal issue to deal with.
We each are responsible for our own actions.
Even if every single person was, it still remains each individuals issue to deal with, and having choices isn't the root problem.
There are alcoholics in the world. Reducing the alcohol beverage choices available to people doesn't solve the alcoholics problem.

 

[walpan]

Alpha Shaving Works on Instagram: "HI - I am called Futura. I am a new razor from Alpha Shavng Works. A very few of me will be on sale in about 2 weeks. Only 5 have been made in this batch #1. I am made of solid C954 bronze. I have a classic handle s

81 likes, 4 comments - alphashaving on April 5, 2024: "HI - I am called Futura. I am a new razor from Alpha Shavng Works. A very few of me will be on sale in about 2 weeks. Only 5 have been ma..."

www.instagram.com

The Alpha Futura seems to use something that looks very much like the Outlaw head but the handle has a strong Lambda Athena x Ares vibe.

Other details I can tell you: -

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. This is absolutely a copy of the Athena/Ares razor. Good for Theo at Lambda that others need to copy his original ideas.

 

[AlphaShaving]

I wrote directly to Theo.

Its always easy to snipe from the cheap seats. Howeve, I prefer confronting issues head on. So please read if you have the inclination to do so. There are literally a handful left with that handle than that’s it. I have curtailed my machine shop as much as I can. So - if anyone DOES want this Bastard child of a razor HANDLE - go and get one ordered now. There are only 3 left. The rest of the run is cancelled despite what I said to Theo.

This is my last and ONLY word on this.

Now then guys. I wrote to the owner of lambda. The text of my message to him is below. He has responded and I have agreed to discontinue the Futura HANDLE after the current orders are done. There’s only a handful so lucky you lot who get one. I WILL not be discontinuing the shape of my handle - it’s a classic torpedo design that many others have used. I will no longer offer it in bronze and I will no longer offer it fluted in that way. Many thanks to Theo from Lambda for being an adult about it all. Here is my email to him. His response is his own and will remain private unless he desires to share it.

“Dear Theo,

My name is Steve Tinter, Co-owner and Director of Alpha Shaving Works. We have been designing and making shaving gear since early 2017. Initially starting with shaving brushes, we made our first venture into safety razors in 2018. Recently I released a razor design called “Futura”. It is a torpedo shaped handle with a newly designed razor head. I released it to market and started to get a lot of negative feedback from some people online saying I had “ripped off” your Athena design. I made my razor in the same metal as yours, aluminium-bronze, same as Timeless, Charcoal and others - its the right metal to use. I described it as inspired by a Grecian urn shape with fluted columns. I want to reassure you that I had no intention of making anything that plagiarised your designs. I see how, why some people might think this but it was 100% not my intention. I DO own both your Ares and Athena designs and they are BOTH excellent razors and superbly made. I can only think that somewhere in the depths of my brain that having your excellent razors in my hands influenced me to use a similar description and some design hints. It was not intentional.

I am attaching a photograph of my design and even the design drawings of the handle, not the head, as this is where people seem to think I had an intention to plagiarise your work. As you can see the handle is similar in shape but not the same - not the same dimensions and not the same detailed design like your textured parts and the top part where is attached to the razor head. Looking at it now, I can see how my Futura handle design look like an amalgamation of the flutes on your Ares handle and the overall aesthetic of the Athena handle. I assure you this was not my intent - not at all. I am horrified by this as it is not in my nature to copy the work of others, certainly without asking. I HAD been designing the overall shape for some time along with a wet shaving friend of mine, Martin. He has been urging me to make a torpedo shaped handle for the last 2 years… The addition of the flutes is what I think sealed this as a copied design in the eyes of some Facebook and forum users. This and my stupid use of the description as shaped like a “Grecian urn”.

So, what would you like me to do? If you are so pissed off by this then I will withdraw this handle from sale as soon as I have fulfilled my current orders of 25 pieces. I would still keep the torpedo shaped design as it is a classic in my view - been done many times by many makers and I would add some other adornments to make it unique. I can include a reference to your work in my descriptions if it makes sense to do so?

By the way - the lather ports on Athena. Were these inspired by a razor you saw in the past? I have been working on something with lather channels that go through the whole of the head and not into channels like yours do. This is based on an old Hungarian razor that I have in my collection. Made from Bakelite, it has some rather massive lather channels that go right through the razor head from side to side. A render is attached of my current design on this. I do not want to step further on your toes and get another bashing if this is the case. I had intended to release this sometime next year IF I can get it machined.

Yours sincerely

Steven Tinter
Co-Owner and Director of Alpha Shaving works”.

 

[rusty1]

Steve - love your razors and the great customer service I've always received from Alpha. Whatever happened with the Bandit?

 

[AlphaShaving]

Steve - love your razors and the great customer service I've always received from Alpha. Whatever happened with the Bandit?

Thank you. Bandit kind of on the shelf. One day maybe. I do have a new SE on the blocks though. Prototype shaves like a dream.