So do you like or still like the Piccolo? And do you like the razorock sloc?LOL! Yep! I've got them waiting patiently on a shelf right now. We just have to be patient, too.
Fatip Piccolo (Mk 2): Review, Photos, Measurements, Photo Analysis
- Thread starter ShavingByTheNumbers
- Start date
Maybe you got a bad Piccolo?
I bought the Special Edition set, and the Gentile base sits in a drawer (the SE set is version 2).
The OC base is great with any blade I've tried (including Kai, Feather, any of the St.P blades).
Very smooth and comfortable shave, but my cap too had the dodgy pins so eventually I bunged on a Muhle R89 cap. It's really the same cap, made by a different maker, and made 'better' than the Fatip version. No alignment worries now.
When you say ..."I've always gotten hacked up by the Feather blade"...I wonder why this happens to you.
All blades are sharp (some are sharper for sure). It's not the fault of the Feather but maybe your technique needs a wee bit of tuning?
Not looking to start a fight, so please don't be offended.
I'm coming from the perspective of 50+ years wet shaving.
The irritation you get may be a lack of slip/slide in the soap?
Try doing a one pass shave and maybe just a wee bit of buffing? What I call a WMS (Working Man's Shave).
Lather up, shave, rinse razor, clean face...5 minutes and out the door sort of thing.
Anyway...you did a heck of a lot of work on this project, and both yourself and us other folks on here have probably gained something.
You have certainly shown how much YMMV in this wet shaving arena.
I bought the Special Edition set, and the Gentile base sits in a drawer (the SE set is version 2).
The OC base is great with any blade I've tried (including Kai, Feather, any of the St.P blades).
Very smooth and comfortable shave, but my cap too had the dodgy pins so eventually I bunged on a Muhle R89 cap. It's really the same cap, made by a different maker, and made 'better' than the Fatip version. No alignment worries now.
When you say ..."I've always gotten hacked up by the Feather blade"...I wonder why this happens to you.
All blades are sharp (some are sharper for sure). It's not the fault of the Feather but maybe your technique needs a wee bit of tuning?
Not looking to start a fight, so please don't be offended.
I'm coming from the perspective of 50+ years wet shaving.
The irritation you get may be a lack of slip/slide in the soap?
Try doing a one pass shave and maybe just a wee bit of buffing? What I call a WMS (Working Man's Shave).
Lather up, shave, rinse razor, clean face...5 minutes and out the door sort of thing.
Anyway...you did a heck of a lot of work on this project, and both yourself and us other folks on here have probably gained something.
You have certainly shown how much YMMV in this wet shaving arena.
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- Thread starter
- #23
I'm still using my modified Piccolo, but I really want to move on from it. I haven't tried the RazoRock SLOC.
Thanks for your thoughtful comments. I will eventually move on to a better razor. I've got great AC razors loaned to me by @Chan Eil Whiskers to evaluate. (I haven't forgotten, Jim.) As to Feather blades, maybe I should revisit them again with a WMS. I sometimes do what you call a WMS now and then instead of my standard two-pass shave. I just keep using a Kai blade because of its longevity and performance. Changing the blade with my Piccolo is no fun because of its alignment issue.
Do you know if your modified Piccolo is the version 1 head or version 2. From what I understand they changed their head in 2017?
I did see a while ago about a guy who used epoxy to fill in the 'gap' around the base of the pins.
Just a wee tapered ring of epoxy all around the base.
As the cap tightened down the blade could not slip into the gap and give that wonky alignment problem.
As you have the epoxy maybe try that mod too?
Not too much...just enough to block that gap,and the slight taper helps guide the blade down straight and true.
Just a wee tapered ring of epoxy all around the base.
As the cap tightened down the blade could not slip into the gap and give that wonky alignment problem.
As you have the epoxy maybe try that mod too?
Not too much...just enough to block that gap,and the slight taper helps guide the blade down straight and true.
I find that the easiest way to control the blade exposure. I tend to ride the cap so shave at the shallow blade angle and get great shaves from the Piccolo. Riding the bar would introduce the comb digging in and that, I imagine, would be uncomfortable.
Great analysis @ShavingByTheNumbers
Mine's a version 2 and QC is still poor, although it does shave very well.
But yes, I have read that the early version was very aggressive.
But yes, I have read that the early version was very aggressive.
Did the version 2 at least fix the blade alignment?
I have the early version and the blade exposure is a good deal more (visually speaking) than the MK2 version, which I also own. However, riding the cap (I believe you refer to it as shallow angle) pretty much negates the differences in my opinion. At least as far as 'aggressiveness' goes. At a shallow angle, you're exposed to the same blade edge at the same angle (since you're not depending on the pre-set angle of the razor head shape)
I can shave with a gillette tech without thinking. If I don't control the angle with the MK1, it will give me a lot of irritation. But when I do, it can provide me with as comfortable a shave as a tech.
I really want to like this razor it's probably the best bang for the buck. All brass
I'm guessing the mk2 is the second version of the fatip. Does this version have the blade alignment problem the version 1 had? And would you have to ride the cap on this version 2 as you did with your version 1?
I have both. If I'm not mistaken, I believe the alignment issues on the MK1 are worse than the MK2. The MK2 from what I recall (haven't used it in a while) will more often deal with a difference in exposure between both sides, whereas the MK1 will differ in exposure (a great deal more) between both sides, and crooked alignment.
Don't quote me on that. I have both, so I could easily check if anyone wants me to. I suppose I can even post pictures. But the way I load the blade:
I seldom need to do any adjustments. And if I do, it's not a huge deal. An extra 5-10 seconds won't kill me. But I do understand it annoys some people.
Don't quote me on that. I have both, so I could easily check if anyone wants me to. I suppose I can even post pictures. But the way I load the blade:
- Top cap upside down on the palm of my hand
- drop blade in
- place base plate on top without touch the blade with my hand in any way
- screw in handle
I seldom need to do any adjustments. And if I do, it's not a huge deal. An extra 5-10 seconds won't kill me. But I do understand it annoys some people.
Sure if you can check whenever that would be good. From some reviews it seems like the blade issue was a huge deal. But it could only be the version 1 and not so much with the version two. I guess I would ask was the version 2 a better more forgiving product? That would be the other knock on this razor
Interesting and full report; unfortunately you did not like the REAL fatip oc and then resorted to commit a mortal sin...closing the open teeth. I am a fan of most OC razors, Fatip being one. This week I have been using it's cousin, the Schone and find it the smoothest OC razor after the Karve OC C. I do have Fatips and they are a bit more irritating compared to Schone. Anyway, the shave between R41vsShone....the last won because it was smoother (used a Crystal and Nacet blade). This was OC week for me even the vintage Gillette razors.
You don't HAVE to ride the cap, it's just how I (and a handful of fatip users) choose to use the fatip (regardless of mk1 or mk2), because if I use a steep angle it will leave my face feeling raw. But that's just me.
Don't be afraid to try the fatip. But if you do buy it and decide it's too aggressive, tame it by riding the cap. Start off riding more of the cap. If you do 3 passes, do 3 passes at that same angle. Not close enough? Next shave add a bit of pressure (and I do mean just a tiny tiny bit) at that same angle and perform your 3 passes at the same angle and pressure. Not close enough for you? Okay, go back to no pressure, but this time steepen your angle a tiny bit (ride less of the cap). Do your three passes like this at zero pressure. Not close enough? Now add a tiny bit of pressure again at that same angle for your next shave. Each successive time you will get closer and closer and will eventually reach your sweet spot. And that sweet spot will allow you to shave with it daily, with minimal irritation.
If you don't want to ride the cap then I don't really know any advice because not riding the cap didn't work well for my skin type.
Look at my previous reply for a better description. But I will post a picture of the MK2 misaligned and aligned, so you see how out of alignment it can go. But the alignment issue I believe is blown out of proportion. After getting used to loading the blade (look at my post, 2 replies ago), it has become more difficult to purposely misalign the blade than to just drop the blade in and have it pretty much be aligned.
By the way, don't worry about the MK1, I don't think those are even available unless it's secondhand. So I won't bother posting that beast lol.
I have a v2 Fatip Grande that seems pretty well made for the money. Alignment is fine, as long as you change blades the way @Rontu describes. I could force it out of aligment, if I really tried. This issue is totally overblown. Maybe the v1s were worse, but that was a long time ago.
If you wanted to, you could substitute a cap from a Muhle R89 which has the same dimensions. Put on a handle of your choice. That also works, though you could argue it's not a Fatip any more.
If you wanted to, you could substitute a cap from a Muhle R89 which has the same dimensions. Put on a handle of your choice. That also works, though you could argue it's not a Fatip any more.
So the version 2 is not as aggressive as a merkur r41 right? Would you rate it 5/10 or more?
It's really a whole different design from the R41. I personally like the Fatip OC much more. I think the Fatip OC resembles the Gillette New in many ways. There is basically zero blade gap, and the blade is clamped firmly close to the edge. There is a pretty wide range of effective angles with the Fatip. The effect is the Fatip feels very smooth and efficient once you adjust to it. With the R41, for me it feels like you can never let your guard down, it is not very comfortable to use.
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