Epic shave den DE showdown!

[kingfisher]

For a while now I have been thinking abo the simplifying my den and becoming at least a bit more minimalist. So I went through my razors to see what I had, and in the process, I thought 'what could be an easier way to pare down the den than to pit them against each other? '
I listed 8 modern safety bar razors, 4 vintage safety bar razors, and 4 open comb razors. I also have two dual combs.

I'm starring with the modern safety bar razors. I gave them a seeding, like the NCAA basketball tournament, 1-8, based on which ones I thought I like best. Then I drew up brackets and pitted 1 v 8, 2 v 7, and so forth. Winners will then be paired off and do battle. The goal is not to get a single winner, but to get two; to figure out which two of my modern safety bar razors I like best. Then, maybe, get rid of the rest and, since I took the time to go through this process, not have to wonder if I sold my favorite razor.

Tonight was the first battle of the 1 seed, the Chiseled Face Legacy, against the 8 seed, the Stirling ST. I put brand new Astra stainless blades from the same pack into each razor. I used the Stirling on its handle, but I substituted an ikon handle for the CF one, because I want this to be a battle of the razor heads, so I tried to get the weight as close as possible to the same.

For lather I used Stone Cottage cream in the Bay Lime scent. I shaved the left side with the Legacy and the right side with the Stirling.

These razors are very different. The only thing they really have in common is a huge blade gap. But the exposure on the Stirling is extreme, making it a very aggressive razor, whereas the CF is neutral to negative, making it much smoother feeling on the face.

Stubble reduction after the first lass was slightly better on the Stirling side above the jaw, but seemed pretty equal on the neck. After the second pass there wasn't much difference; the Stirling felt a little scary on the XTG pass, but seemed to work ok. After a quick and light third pass, I rinsed and checked the result. It seemed essentially the same.

I used alcohol-based aftershave and there were small areas of sting on both sides, but the most sting came from a small area on the low anterior neck on the Stirling side. I thought I could feel a bit of blade chatter on the second pass in that area. There one a tiny area of sting on the CF side, too, just under the back of the jaw on the left, but it was smaller and the sting was less.

Overall, although I was pleasantly surprised by how well the Stirling razor behaved, the victory goes to the CF Legacy tonight. I will do at least one more shave with these two switching sides, before I move one of them forward in the bracket.

 

[StewB]

I'll be watching this tournament with interest. Thanks for sharing!

 

[Guido75]

This is going on my watchlist, Randall (and I have a feeling that it will be quite a number of posts)! Excellent idea!

So the first order 1-8 is then determined on first preference? So you like the CF the most of your modern razors and therefore it was placed #1? (I am trying to understand the process of the seeding).

Will there be crossovers too as in modern versus vintage in the end? Winner against winner for the ultimate win?

Enjoy your process!!

Guido

 

[Dave himself]

I'm also following this with interest.

 

[kingfisher]

This is going on my watchlist, Randall (and I have a feeling that it will be quite a number of posts)! Excellent idea!

So the first order 1-8 is then determined on first preference? So you like the CF the most of your modern razors and therefore it was placed #1? (I am trying to understand the process of the seeding).

Will there be crossovers too as in modern versus vintage in the end? Winner against winner for the ultimate win?

Enjoy your process!!

Guido

Yes, you have described the seeding process perfectly. The CF is my current favorite.

I don't know whether there will be upsets, though.

As far as crossover battles, if I do them at all it will be only for amusement, as I have no intention of whittling my razor stash all the way down to just one. If I keep two winners in the modern safety bar razors and one of each of the other three categories, I will end up with a modest stash of five razors total.

 

[Guido75]

I don't know whether there will be upsets, though.

Would it matter? You’re doing it for you and we are just here to enjoy it vicariously. It has at least inspired me to think about something similar.

 

[kingfisher]

Would it matter? You’re doing it for you and we are just here to enjoy it vicariously. It has at least inspired me to think about something similar.

No, not at all. All I'm saying is that I will make an effort to be objective about the shaves. Since I seeded the razors prior to even the first shave-off, I have to be careful not to just make this an exercise in confirmation bias. That's all I meant. Just trying to find out if the razors I think I like best actually are the razors I like best. They might be just the ones I use most frequently.

 

[kingfisher]

Second shave in the books last night. Switched the blades and switched sides or my face. Used Truefitt and Hill West Indian Limes.

Started with the Stirling on the left side. First pass as expected. Lots of blade feel with the Stirling; feels almost scary and almost uncomfortable, but something about the shape and feel of the scalloped head gives it just enough smoothness to overcome it.

On the right side the Legacy just felt smooth and carefree, by comparison. If you ro too steep with it, though, or push too hard, you can get some unexpected blade feel.

After one lass reduction was similar. The second pass went well on both sides, although it felt threatening with the Stirling. I did a light third touch-up pass, then rinsed.

Good shave with no weepers or nicks. Quite close on both sides. The Stirling side was slightly smoother, especially on the cheeks. Virtually no sting with the aftershave, which was surprising given how the Stirling feels on the face.

The verdict? The shave was actually a little bit better on the Stirling side, but it was close. And I enjoyed shaving with the Legacy so much more, because for me the Stirling has too much blade feel.

I think the Stirling ST is actually a dog whose bark is much worse than its bite. It actually shaves really well. This would be a great razor for somebody who just wants to do one or two passes every 2-3 days and get it over with. But that is not me.

So, even though it won the battle, the Stirling lost the war. The CF Legacy moves to the next round.

Next up is Occam's DE against the Karve C, on the other side of the bracket.

 

[kingfisher]

This morning was shave one of the second battle, pitting the second seeded Occam's DE (my favorite of the baseplates included in the set) vs a Karve C plate in aluminum. I put stainless steel handles of approximately the same size and weight on both razors. Lather was Wickham's Club Cola. Left side with the Occam's, right with the Karve.

After the first couple of strokes on the left cheek, my first thought was 'Yes! This razor is the one. Why do even shave with other razors?' I remembered, also, that the very first time I used this razor it just seemed to fit me like a glove. Just felt right out of the box. There is very little blade feel. It just glides along. Aural feedback is good.

On the right side, the Karve, even though it is only a C plate, immediately felt like it had a fair bit more blade feel. Not at all like the Stirling, but definitely more than the Occam's, but it wasn't uncomfortable. The C plate, especially in aluminum, has a reputation of being mild or perhaps somewhat inefficient. I can say that in the denser growth areas near and on the chin, I had to push harder and/or go over the area more to get it through.

So I was surprised to find that after the first pass, reduction on the cheek was actually slightly better with the Karve.

After the second pass it was about even. The Karve felt a lot smoother on the second pass, too. I'm not sure if that was because it had less to mow through or because I was getting the angle locked in better.

i did some touch-up, a quasi third pass, really, and checked... no real difference between the two sides. Very little to no sting with the aftershave splash. Overall, a very nice DFS without muss or fuss.

Also without a clear winner. At the beginning I thought this would be a slam dunk for the Occam's. I had only used the Karve C a few times; I hadn't been that impressed with it. But it did a great job and held its own. We will see, on Sunday morning, how it fares on 2-day growth (this morning it was 36 hours).

 

[BigJ]

GREAT CONTEST!!

 

[gdawg55]

This will be a great thread to follow. I’m expecting one of those 500+ comments on this puppy.

 

[kingfisher]

Shave two of Occam's versus Karve C is in the books. On Sundays, I always use Bergamotto from Ethos.
Since it uses bergamot oil imported from Italy, for today's pic I included two more things from Italy, my Locman watch on the left (made on the island of Etna) and a Stipula limited edition pen in Sasso Green (made in Firenze). Che bello!

I made a wonderful lather with the Ethos and set to work. I realized that although I tried to make both razor handles have the same weight for the first battle, because the Karve head is aluminum the razor's weights were still not well balanced. So for this shave I switched to a titanium handle for the Occam's, which balanced the two razors a lot better.

I used the Karve C on the left side and the Occam's on the right. As before, the Occam's felt a but smoother on the face. But the after the first pass I found that reduction was actually better on the Karve side.

It was fairly even after the second lass, although the Karve side was still a bit better. After touch-ups it was a tie. No cuts or weepers. Virtually no sting from the aftershave on either side.

Tough one, but I have to call the upset today. The Karve C wins this one.

I have to decide who to move into the next round. Right now I'm not sure...

 

[APBinNCA]

Sod the razors, look at all the Italian goodness!

 

[huck1680]

I like this...but all I did was find which razors shaved me the best...and got rid of the rest. It's just an intuitive thing for me. Does this feel better? Yes? Then we have a winner. Good luck with the rest of your face offs.

 

[kingfisher]

I declared the Karve C the upset winner over the Occam's. Would the Karve D similarly surprise?

Shave one of what was supposed to be the next double-header took place last night. This one pitted the famous and expensive Pils NE101 (affectionately known as 'The Hammer of Thor') against the Karve D. Pils on the left, Karve D on the right.

What can I say other than this one was a rout. Just when I was beginning to think that all the shave-offs would end up being really close and/or virtually identical, the Pils flexed its muscle and said 'no so fast, pal.'

The Pils is often said to be very mild, but that has never been my experience with it. It doesn't have a lot of blade feel, but it has always been at least of medium efficiency for me. It proved that again in this shave. Compared with the Karve D the Pils was smoother and more comfortable feeling, had a more pleasant sound, and was as efficient. The Karve D, for me, felt quite a bit harsher than the C without any corresponding increase in efficiency. It was like a more annoying sibling. Blade feel was a bit much, and yet it required repeat passes in places of dense stubble. Audible feedback was ok, but tinny and unpleasant compared with that of the Pils.

Bu the time I was ready for a bit of cleanup, I was tempted to do both sides with the Pils. I persisted with the Karve, though, and it was actually better in the cleanup duty. But by then the battle was over.

So, I have decided to not even do the second shave. Pils is the winner. If this were the first game of a planned double-header, the Pils won 9-1.

 

[kingfisher]

The first shave of the fourth and final first round battle of the modern SB razors was just completed. It pitted one of my favorites, the 0.58 Lupo, against a distinct underdog, the Karve E. The Karve C was a pleasant surprise upset winner, but its more aggressive sibling, the D, was rough, with too much blade feel, some tugging, and an overall unpleasant shave; its loss to the Pils was so overwhelming it didn't even get a second shave.

This made me almost want to just advance the Lupo to avoid having to shave with the Karve E, with both a bigger blade gap AND more exposure than the D. But science requires experimentation, so I pressed forward, loading both razors with fresh Gillette blacks, and lathering up some Soapy science in the Doc's Special Blend scent.

I switched it up and used the underdog razor on the left side. Although I expected the Karve E to feel harsh like the D, it actually felt considerably smoother, and, for reasons I can't explain, it seemed to have less blade feel, too. The Lupo is thin and smooth. Blade feel is always present but never menacing. After the first pass, reduction was exactly the same.

The second pass went well, too, except for one small area on the left low neck; a small red spot appeared, but it was not blood, just over exfoliation.

Clean-up was fine, even with the E plate, and in the end, the shave was equivalent. There was a tiny amount of sting with the aftershave on both sides.

Based on the small area that got a bit too close with the Karve, I'm calling this one for the Lupo, but it was much closer than I expected, and the E plate has earned its rematch with the Lupo for my next shave. It surprised me how much better I liked the E plate over the D. It's kind of weird, because I really liked the C, as well, just not the plate in between. Go figure.

Because at least one of you liked the Italian items in my last photo, I have included three Italian pens in tonight's photo; left to right, they are a Visconti Van Gogh in the 'Wheatfield Under Stormclouds' colors, a Nettuno Skipper in a deep marbled blue, and the before-seen Stipula Etruria Magnifica in Gran Sasso green.

 

[DesertIguana]

Interesting contest when final winner is decided after the excitement dust is settled.

Get rid of the looser once and for all they are evil.

 

[APBinNCA]

a Visconti Van Gogh in the 'Wheatfield Under Stormclouds' colors

OoO!
(I am enjoying the razor trial too)

 

[kingfisher]

OoO!
(I am enjoying the razor trial too)

The Visconti is stunning in person. It has 18 facets. Here are a couple more photos.

 

[kingfisher]

Shave two of the Lupo vs the Karve E is done and in the books.

Switched blades and switched handles; switched sides of the face. Started with the Lupo on the left.

It felt smooth and nice on the cheek. I thought the E was done for. But then the E felt great, too. After the first lass, reduction was slightly better on the Karve side.

The Second pass went well on blth sides. The Karve has slightly more blade feel but was not threatening at any time. After two passes the Karve side was very slightly closer.

I did touch up on both sides. Developed a tiny little weeper near the edge of the mustache area, and it was on.... the Lupo side!

Sting from the aftershave was minimal bilaterally, but slightly more on the Lupo side.

Surprisingly, therefore, I have to give the win to the Karve E! Today's win was fairly convincing, too. Enough so that I think I have to give the Karve the overall win over the Lupo and move it into the second round.

I tried very hard to sell my Karve aluminum set a few months ago, butmit garnered no interest whatsoever. Meanwhile I extolled the virtues of the Lupo over and over on the forum. Was like wrong? Not about the Lupo. It is an excellent shaver that I still really like. But I guess I have to admit that I was wrong about the Karve razors that sat, unused, in a drawer for months. And now, with the first round of battles completed and eight razors pared down to four, two of the remaining razors are Karve models!

The other interesting thing is that, based on my prior razor likes and dislikes, if I hadn't got the E as part of a set, I would have dismissed it without even trying it. The specs don't fit my usual likes at all.