- Thread starter
- #21
Chandu
I Waxed The Badger.
Here are my thoughts after owning it since around Thanksgiving.
It's a nicely built razor. I like the form factor over the Karve I had quite a bit. Karve's heads are bigger and clunkier looking. I have the one with the Titanium handle. I like the weight, looks and feel in the hand very much. I don't think I'd care for the stainless handled models as they look uncomfortable to hold. Looks matter, but if I don't like the shave they don't.
I have a Feather AS-D2, Schone open comb, and the Carbon CX. Man I wanted to like the CX. It's made in the USA, better yet, my home state. I think the maker is working their backside off trying to make good razors.
How's it shave? Well, know this about me. I like milder razors with little blade feel when it comes to DE razors and I like razors that clamp those floppy blades super tight because I like to shave ATG. I go WTG and then ATG, for me, no sense in wasting time on XTG.
Also know this I will always do a WTG and ATG pass because i don't like the punji stick stubble that an only WTG shave leaves me. If I could live with a 1 pass WTG shave, then a more aggressive razor would probably suit me. One and done. But I need to go ATG, so then blade stiffness becomes a factor. That's one reason I like SE a little better than DE. In my opinion those of you that notice huge differences from DE blade to DE blade, take that as a sign that your razor either doesn't clamp the blade all that tightly or it has a larger blade exposure.
So I figured the Carbon CX would be similar to the Feather AS-D2. I believe the Carbon has a .68 blade gap, very similar to the Feather AS-D2. The razors in use are night and day. The Feather has a negative blade exposure, whereas the Carbon is positive, I can't measure either effectively I'm reporting what I've read elsewhere. Due to that there is a lot of blade feel with the CX. I'm not a real fan of that. My Schone (Fatip under the covers) has a lot of blade feel too, but it clamps the blade more rigidly than the CX so presents a smoother shave with a wider range of blades than the CX. The CX is happiest with sharp blades, Astra, Polsilver, Feather and similar. Derby, and Timor are to be avoided. Both work excellently in my Feather AS-D2 and Schone. To me that says the Carbon is not clamping the blade close enough to the edge. It's tight but further away from the edge of the blade than the Schone.
In use the WTG pass is fine and a bit closer than the Feather AS-D2, but the ATG pass is when the truth comes out. The Feather goes ATG with ease, the Schone with a bit of care and the Carbon CX only grudgingly The test grounds for me are the upper lip. That area is the most difficult ATG pass my face offers. As I said earlier I desire to go ATG so I don't end up with sharpened stubble.
It's a nice razor but one that is not for me. For someone that wants an efficient one pass razor it is good. For someone that desires to go ATG, the Feather AS-D2 beats it easily. The Karve is also a better razor for me. I had the straight bar with the E plate and it could easily go WTG and ATG. It was closer than the Feather was and the same closeness as the Carbon CX. If I ever acquire the Karve again it will probably be a C plate straight bar, but the Feather is much better for me anyway. If one wants a very efficient razor the Schone and Fatip are much better values though you will likely have to fuss a bit with blade alignment. In short, I wish Carbon offered a milder razor. To me that would be a razor with the same blade gap but less exposure and clamped closer to the edge of the blade.
It's a very nice razor, but one that is not for me.
Postscript: If some of you wish you could afford an AS-D2, but can't, I recently used a Game Changer .68. That razor shaves very very similar and it much lower cost to acquire. It's not finished as nice or as sleek, but for the money, I don't think there is a better razor of you are after something similar to an AS-D2.
Last edited:
