Apollo Stainless Steel razor by Smart Helix in Ukraine. Unboxing and test.

[HDSledge]

I saw this razor in a thread here on the forum and was intrigued by the design. The website showed that all options were out of stock but I was able to order by contacting the maker via email to arrange a pre-order. I pre-ordered on December 25 and mine arrived today. It would have arrived sooner but I missed the first emailed payment request. They are made to order, individually serial numbered and come with a lifetime guarantee.

The packaging was the neatest I have ever encountered, perfectly wrapped, no tape except on the outside shipping box. The cool dovetailed wooden box is built to lock the razor in place so it can't move. The quality of the workmanship is very good, box and razor.

The base can be reversed for an aggressive or mild shave. I shaved yesterday so will wait a day or 2 before trying it out. It is a very nice set so I hope the quality of the shave matches the quality of the workmanship.

 

[FarmerTan]

Wow. That is very impressive.

Engineering and design like that box impresses me, let alone that razor!

 

[Ron R]

I saw this razor in a thread here on the forum and was intrigued by the design. The website showed that all options were out of stock but I was able to order by contacting the maker via email to arrange a pre-order. I pre-ordered on December 25 and mine arrived today. It would have arrived sooner but I missed the first emailed payment request. They are made to order, individually serial numbered and come with a lifetime guarantee.

The packaging was the neatest I have ever encountered, perfectly wrapped, no tape except on the outside shipping box. The cool dovetailed wooden box is built to lock the razor in place so it can't move. The quality of the workmanship is very good, box and razor.

The base can be reversed for an aggressive or mild shave. I shaved yesterday so will wait a day or 2 before trying it out. It is a very nice set so I hope the quality of the shave matches the quality of the workmanship.
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Looks like a nice quality machined razor, handle looks like it has good grip and looks longer than average length to me.

 

[Iridian]

Congrats! Also special kudos that the wooden box made it all the way to the USA in one piece. Given how careful shipment companies work these days, the praise is rather for the packaging skills of Smart Helix!

I went with the Apollo Light, it's basically this plate sawed in half. I am not a fan of blade flipping and guessed I would prefer the aggressive version. And I like it a lot!

IIRC you have one or two Rocnels, so you probably won't mind the bulk of the head. It is also quite light compared to them. I very much like the pin stand.

 

[ClumsyBull]

Congratulations on a most excellent shaving razor. This is one of the best razors on the market available today with a very enjoyable shaving experience. Certainly one of the highest on my rotation.

 

[HDSledge]

Shave Report:
Very comfortable and efficient job on a 3 day beard by the mild side of the baseplate. Good heft and balance. I use oil as a base layer for the lather but noticed no tendency to clog. The knurling is superbly executed with very fine details. Workmanship overall is top notch.

I will try the aggressive side in a few days but I will probably stick with the mild side. I am curious how much more aggressive the other side is though.

 

[HDSledge]

Some background and the mission statement of Smart Helix in Ukraine. Although current events (Kharkiv is under attack) have most likely negatively affected production, I hope they will persevere and continue to produce high quality shaving products in the future. Their Apollo razor is a fine piece of shaving gear.

From their website:

SMART HELIX is a small group of creative engineers from Kharkiv, the leading scientific and technological center of Ukraine. What keeps us together is our passion for traditional wet shaving and desire to create new and original products. Any really high-quality product should be on the edge of new designer and unusual engineering decisions. It’s the only case when using of a technically flawless device gives aesthetic pleasure. This is exactly what was used as an approach in the development of new SMART HELIX safety razors. Each of us has invested a lot of effort, time and experience in this project. We genuinely hope, that our ideas represented by the new products will be highly appreciated by proponents of shaving with classic T-shaped razors. "APOLLO" is the name of our first stainless steel safety razor project, that was originated in our small workshop.