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Artist Club vs Gem Micromatic

Hello,

I am thinking of a Feather Artist Club Shavette.

I get great BBS shaves with my Gem Micromatic Open Comb.

Is it worth the change regarding shaving closeness if the money is not a concern?

THanks.
 
Regarding shaving closeness, no. MMOC is arguably the best razor ever invented and it truly doesn't get much better than that. I would know, since I own both MMOC and a Feather AC shavette. It's great to have a Feather, since it is so well made, a joy to use, and it's a nice change of pace. But does it actually shave better than GEM? No way. I actually just shaved with a MMOC this morning. It was a perfect shave in every way. If I had to pick just one safety razor to use for the rest of my life, that would be it.

24K gold Micromatic + Zenith Butterscotch Chubby boar = match made in heaven. :)
 
@karacha,

Hole in one!!!

Now everything is clear to me. About closeness, I should stick to my MMOC, but for the pleasure of shaving, for the experience, I might try the Feather.

As stated, I have only three MMOCs. That is all.

Thanks a lot.
 

Ron R

I survived a lathey foreman
I have a nice collection of ASR razors and mostly Gem Brand. I personally enjoy them and for a change up went into AC 50mm shavette folding razor and as long as I used the Kai protouch blade with it I was OK and received good shaves.
Then recently bought a Yaqi 50mm Excalibur V1&V2 and really like those SE razors. Are they better than a MMOC I don't think so but they will give any razor a run for the money. Gem Personna SS PTFE blades are better than a lot of SE blades but they do not sell the guarded type blades yet. The Yaqi Excalibur would be a good entry point razor possible to test the AC waters, You can just buy the head and install your own handle to see if you like it. They are a tame mid range razor and very enjoyable with a Feather pro blade + a great daily driver for most folks.
Razorock has a nice selection of AC razors with Hawk V3 stainless steel the most recent one and also there is the Blackland Vector.
Cost per shave Gem blades blows the doors off the AC style razor blades in my opinion because the AC blades are pricy where Gem Personna blades (100pcs) are very cost comparative to a DE blades or around ($.02-.04 per Gem shave and that is awesome.) AC blades your looking at around $.15-.20 per AC shave in that range for my beard type shave IMO.
Regardless SE shaving is a great experience and give a great post shave feel.
 
Comparing an apple to an orange. They provide very different experiences. I find the Feather Artist Club to be smoother and more comfortable. This also depends on which Feather you get (SS, SR or DC), too.

I have both and love both. You should get both...
 
FWIW, I love my Feather shavettes!
But, TBCH, I'm not familiar with the Gem MMOC's.
Advantage of the Feathers, is that they can use the Feather ProGuard and SoftGuard blades!
For me, amazingly smooth as well as sharp!
Definitely my favorite disposable-blade combo!

feather proguard-4990-Edit.jpg
 

garyg

B&B membership has its percs
I've both and don't find myself reaching for the AC shavette (mine's the SS version) as often as the MMOC. But they really are two different experiences, though value wise you can probably get a half dozen perfect MMOCs for the asking price of the Feather AC's. I have one safety style razor using the AC format as well as the pseudo straight, but it doesn't fare much better in the battle for face time here.

To answer the OP's question, with my stiff beard the AC fails to achieve any closer of a shave, in fact it may be less so ..
 

Old Hippie

Somewhere between 61 and dead
Hello,

I am thinking of a Feather Artist Club Shavette.

I get great BBS shaves with my Gem Micromatic Open Comb.

Is it worth the change regarding shaving closeness if the money is not a concern?

If money is no concern, sure. You won't know 'til you try. You can always pif it, trade it or sell it and get at least some money back.

If money is a concern, however, then I'd say think it over for about another three months. If it still seems like something you want to do, you will have had time to set aside the price of a decent AC razor. Which isn't all that much, really -- the RazoRock Hawk V3 stainless razors are super affordable and now offer a diversity of plates to suit your taste. Mine is an SB; had the OC but it wasn't good for me.

Having used both Gem and AC, I find that for head shaving I like Gem a bit better. The reason is that the blade edge is not so long -- and heads are both hard and curvy so really there's only a little tiny patch of the blade that does any work in most places. The problem with that is that the little tiny patch usually falls right in the centre of the blade, which means once that little tiny patch is dulled by use, the rest of the blade is pretty much done. Gem blades are cheaper than AC blades, so for me it's also an economic decision.

There are some nice AC razors out there -- including the ATT X1 which is an AC slant. It's a little milder than the ATT SE1, and I find the X1 quite congenial. In spite of my feelings about AC blades and head shaving, I love that razor. I also use AC shavettes and 1/2DE shavettes to shave my head but I prefer a safety razor most of the time. AC shavettes range from "cheap and pretty good" to "I sold your car, Dear." I have Feather and Kai clones as well as a Feather SR kamisori and a Kasho (Kai) Woody. All are pretty good but that Feather SR kamisori is really good. I've discovered I like kamisori style over western style for head shaving; less time spent changing grips to get into areas I want to clean off.

Another good shavette is the Focus Slim Al. It's a 1/2DE shavette so the edge is about as wide as a Gem. That can be a problem with a DE blade that's a lot more flexible than a Gem -- but the razor holds it well.

Both my favourite AC safety razors are SB: RR Hawk V3SB and ATT X1. I really like OC razors, so I'm hoping to see an X2 eventually. I find them smoother than my MMOC, but the Gem beats them for blade price. I also used to have an ATT SE2, which I found I could only tame by using at a steep angle. THAT killed the blade in three uses, compared to getting 5-6 great shaves from a Gem blade.

Most expensive blades I buy, can't get them in any stores here, done in three? Sorry, man, not my thing, you know?

O.H.
 
If you want a Feather Artist Club, get one. There's no way to compare the two razors you mentioned. You will however, probably love the Feather. I own three of them, as well as several other AC razors and they are very enjoyable. I don't reach for the MMOCs in my collection (of which I also have many) because I don't care much for the blades and I enjoy the 1912 more than the MMOC anyway. If you have the money, buy what you want, use it, and report back with photos. BUT DON'T FORGET THE PHOTOS :)
 
Comparing an apple to an orange. They provide very different experiences. I find the Feather Artist Club to be smoother and more comfortable. This also depends on which Feather you get (SS, SR or DC), too.

I have both and love both. You should get both...
@SterFry I am afraid that I will not resist the temptation. I do not mind investing money on this, but I do not want a sleeping never-used razor.

Thanks.
 
If money is no concern, sure. You won't know 'til you try. You can always pif it, trade it or sell it and get at least some money back.

If money is a concern, however, then I'd say think it over for about another three months. If it still seems like something you want to do, you will have had time to set aside the price of a decent AC razor. Which isn't all that much, really -- the RazoRock Hawk V3 stainless razors are super affordable and now offer a diversity of plates to suit your taste. Mine is an SB; had the OC but it wasn't good for me.

Having used both Gem and AC, I find that for head shaving I like Gem a bit better. The reason is that the blade edge is not so long -- and heads are both hard and curvy so really there's only a little tiny patch of the blade that does any work in most places. The problem with that is that the little tiny patch usually falls right in the centre of the blade, which means once that little tiny patch is dulled by use, the rest of the blade is pretty much done. Gem blades are cheaper than AC blades, so for me it's also an economic decision.

There are some nice AC razors out there -- including the ATT X1 which is an AC slant. It's a little milder than the ATT SE1, and I find the X1 quite congenial. In spite of my feelings about AC blades and head shaving, I love that razor. I also use AC shavettes and 1/2DE shavettes to shave my head but I prefer a safety razor most of the time. AC shavettes range from "cheap and pretty good" to "I sold your car, Dear." I have Feather and Kai clones as well as a Feather SR kamisori and a Kasho (Kai) Woody. All are pretty good but that Feather SR kamisori is really good. I've discovered I like kamisori style over western style for head shaving; less time spent changing grips to get into areas I want to clean off.

Another good shavette is the Focus Slim Al. It's a 1/2DE shavette so the edge is about as wide as a Gem. That can be a problem with a DE blade that's a lot more flexible than a Gem -- but the razor holds it well.

Both my favourite AC safety razors are SB: RR Hawk V3SB and ATT X1. I really like OC razors, so I'm hoping to see an X2 eventually. I find them smoother than my MMOC, but the Gem beats them for blade price. I also used to have an ATT SE2, which I found I could only tame by using at a steep angle. THAT killed the blade in three uses, compared to getting 5-6 great shaves from a Gem blade.

Most expensive blades I buy, can't get them in any stores here, done in three? Sorry, man, not my thing, you know?

O.H.
@old Hippie;

thanks for your extensive, though really well-detailed explanation.

After this, I can put in perspective the whys, pros, and cons.

Be well.
 
I’m an avid MMOC MAN!

Ok, now that that’s out of the way…YES!

Yes, you should definitely get an AC shavette razor to try.

Will it shaver closer than a MMOC… maybe.

My guess: the shave will be different not necessarily better. And that’s why I think it’s worth trying.

Go shopping…we’ll wait. LOL 😆
 
the ACs are like shaving with a straight. they actually demand slightly better technique than a real straight, which are more forgiving because the ACs don't flex in the least. so there's a learning curve to getting the most out of them. and I'd recommend a wetter lather than you'd use with a DE/SE.

I tend to prefer a 1912 with a new blade for a few shaves then move it over to the MMOC.

but probably 98% of my shaves are with straights. the upside of a feather is, once you're happy with the technique the transition to straights will be simple.
 
Yeah and you don't have to dive in with a Feather Artist Club There are decent Chinese made feather clones for 10-20 dollars that are good enough to form an evaluation on whether they're for you. CJBs are, what, $25 USD and l fairly high quality.
Or you can take the buy once cry once approach and just get a Artist Club which will easily last your entire life is taken care of.
 
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