Baffling PAL adjustable Disappointment

[Chester]

I managed to pick up a PAL adjustable on the 'bay, and it showed up last night.

So I gave it about 20 minutes in the ultrasonic cleaner, and a good scrubbing with the bubbles.

It had a blade in it, which I tried to replace with a fresh chinese schick, and the schick blade didn't slide in evenly -- it sort of went in askew. Oh well, I figured, plenty of blades to spare, so I pushed that one out and sent another in, and this one, too, went in all wonky. Tried a third time and it seemed like I had a blade in-place. I tried the little adjustment knob on the back and could not perceive any change in the blade gap, but I figured that my eyes were tired and it would reveal itself in the morning.

Got up today, lathered up, and did my wtg pass. It sounded like I was cutting whiskers, but when I went to rinse, there was much more stubble on my face than normal -- that is, normal for either of the other 2 injectors I have (type M and eversharp). Then lathered up for my ATG pass and while I got pretty good coverage on my neck, the sides of my face and my chin and my moustache were just not getting cut -- there was a lot of resistance, and it felt like the blade was just skipping across the tops of the whiskers. I was baffled, but lacking time to contemplate the situation, I lathered up a bit more, picked up the type M (with the P74 blade) and finished the job very nicely and very quickly.

So I'm a bit baffled by how bad the experience was. It wasn't bloody or uncomfortable, so much as it was ineffective. The reviews I've read have been generally positive. The razor had good heft and it seems easy to handle and control, which are both very positive attributes, but I'm stumped to find any kind of difference in the L---H settings, and loading a blade is a finicky process that I don't care to monkey around with.

Is there some adaptation to the angle that I need to develop, or techniques for loading it that will give better results than my possibly ham-fisted first attempts? Is there any diagnostic pattern I can use to assess the adjustment knob and/or fix that part?

Altogether disappointed. Put it on the display rack, likely never to use it again.
-- Chet

 

[ras120]

I had a similar problem, but nobody had an answer for me.

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/236307-Problem-Loading-Injector?highlight=

 

[eastomjac]

i wouldnt give up on untill i looked very closely,there might be a small problem in the track where the blade inserts,or mite be in the way the razor holds the blade,it sure sounds to me like bad blade angle,somethings out of kilter somewhere,just need to find where.detailed pics would help us see if your missing something.granny always said four eyes are better than two:}ps hoosier trooper will know more,he seems to be the resident se expert

 

[bakerbarber]

I have a Schick Adjustable that is finicky. It needs to be dialed all the way open to give a good shave.

You should be able to see something moving when you adjust it I would think. Something might be stuck.

I don''t own a PAL adjustable though. I'm not sure if they are similar in function.

 

[themba]

The adjustment knob on the Pal pushes the guard bar forward, or allows it to retract unlike Schick adjustable injectors which seem to allow the guard bar to drop down as well. As a result you may not visible notice much as you adjust the razor.

If main spring assembly is loose then the adjustment knob does not seem to do much as it has little impact on the loose spring assembly. There is no easy way to fix this since Pal adjustable injectors have heads that are riveted together. (Springs on injectors usually end up bent from improper use of the loading cartridge.) There is also a tension spring under the blade. It looks like one end of it is broken off, but that is the way it is supposed to look. If you blades do not load evenly and there is nothing (gunk etc) in the head, chances are you have a damaged razor. Pals are built tough so I would say that the main spring assembly is probably out of shape.

ras120 wrote:

I had a similar problem, but nobody had an answer for me.

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthr...tor?highlight=

Looks like you might have dull your blades. When loading injectors, if the blade rubs on the blade stops at anytime, chances are that the blade will no longer be fit for shaving. Cutting paper and cutting whiskers are two different things.

 

[ras120]

Issues like this are probably why Injectors took a back seat to DE razors even though they are far more intuitive to use. I really don't believe that I (or anybody else) is constantly dulling the blades when loading, and if we are, then it's defect in the design of the razor and not user error. There's only one way to load a blade. You stick the key in to open the spring, and inject the blade. If the blade is rubbing on the stops or going in crooked, how would one go about correcting the problem?

By the way, I've experienced this same "not cutting" issue with my Type D when i have hand loaded the blades. Injectors seem to be finicky about taking a blade sometimes.

 

[themba]

You have to remember most of these razors are very old and many were may not have been treated properly. I can't count how many TTO DE razors I have come across that have been damaged. (Doors not closing properly, etc) This does not mean that they are bad designs. The fact that some Injectors/DE/SE hold up as well as they did says a lot about how they were designed and made, as opposed to what is offered these days. Many of these razors were made in the 50s or 60s, some older, some newer. You are using a product that is at least half a century old and used at that, one must expect these kind of things to possibly occur when user damage them.

If an injector is damaged, then when you load a blade the head will not open enough and the blade will slide along the blade stops. If the spring is bent the head may not hold the blade properly. These are not design defects, but damaged razors.