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*Fatip Slant*

SOTD - 26 JAN 2021

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Amazing shave with beautiful scents. Took out the FOCS with Personna LB (4) and it felt great throughout the shave. The key for me is steep angle with less pressure/gentle touch. I notice that the slant cuts a little easier in some areas compared to normal razors. Result was a close DFS with no irritations.
 
I'm also interested in the Golden Fatips. Anyone have any issues with the plating over time?
I haven't had mine long enough to say how well it will hold up, but the gold finish is a very thin layer. I know this because I discovered some staining on the base plate from the blade. I attempted to clean it off with some metal polish, and it quickly removed the gold finish. Fortunately, it is not visible when the razor is assembled, but it does indicate that the gold finish may not hold up well over the long haul.
 
My FOCS does the same thing; one side of the corner has about 0.3mm gap (Estimating) while the other corner meets the plate. What this leads to is the "good" side and the "not-good" side and more blade exposure on one side compared to the other. I get more blade feel on one side compared to the other but it's not a huge difference. As I go through the shave, I get adjusted to it and I still end up with a good shave.

I think some slant razors struggle with this problem because unless the alignment is 100% correct, the slant torque will lead to some difference in each side. Regardless, I've had good shaves so I'm willing to just pass it by.

Awesome, good to know! Same here, regarding having good shaves and letting some imperfections go. There's a lot to like about this razor. Sometimes I wonder which Fatip I would try next.
 
My FOCS Piccolo is finally going to arrive from Spain on Friday according to the USPS! I am looking forward to this.

One question I wanted to ask people. Do you think it makes any sense to get a Schone open comb if you have the FOCS? I actually ordered a Schone from Amazon, but they sent me the wrong item so it will be returned. Some joker switched the handle on the razor I got so it was a Schone with a Fatip Piccolo handle! And it was sold to me as new! I hope it wasn't anybody on this forum that pulled that trick, they are going to be receiving some bad Karma! Not worth it just to get that fancy Schone handle! You are going to be cutting yourself for the rest of your life!
 

Fred D

Member of The Illiterati
My FOCS Piccolo is finally going to arrive from Spain on Friday according to the USPS! I am looking forward to this.

One question I wanted to ask people. Do you think it makes any sense to get a Schone open comb if you have the FOCS? I actually ordered a Schone from Amazon, but they sent me the wrong item so it will be returned. Some joker switched the handle on the razor I got so it was a Schone with a Fatip Piccolo handle! And it was sold to me as new! I hope it wasn't anybody on this forum that pulled that trick, they are going to be receiving some bad Karma! Not worth it just to get that fancy Schone handle! You are going to be cutting yourself for the rest of your life!
Same happened to me with both Schones ordered from amazon.
I first thought the same as you, that someone switched out the handles, but I then ordered another one because I really wanted the correct Schone handle and got another piccolo handle. I think this also happened to another forum member, so I think it's the vendor (Alrosa), just dumping what they have left.
 
I would agree with you that your FOCS is defective. I also purchased a gold FOCS from Connaught, but my results were the polar opposite of yours. Mine is the best Fatip I've owned. Blades fit perfectly with no need for adjustment, the cap and base plate fit together without precision and the shaves are wonderfully smooth. I wondered if Fatip had improved ther QC or if I just got lucky. It sounds as if it's the latter.

I've generally had good results dealing with Connaught; I'm hoping to hear that they stand behind their merchandise and send you a replacement or refund.
I could send it back and they would replace it w new / checked out one. By then I would have spent more money in shipping than the cost of the razor. Frustrating.... maybe I should consider this lost $ and not waste more. Maybe in the future get one form Maggards.......
 

Rosseforp

I think this fits, Gents
This new golden FOCS is defective. Blades barely fit, then pushing the top cap into the head meets resistance (even worse to take apart). Either one of the blade poles is off (more distant) or the center screw is off.......then the whole geometry is crewed and the product is horrible shaves...... GSB today and the prize: 3 bleeding spots (I never get those.....well very seldom like once a year).
Wrote to the seller......

I'm going to guess......I lost 28 BP.

I do have 3 other Fatip Slants that are OK and probably another 12 Fatips, all handles, colors, etc.... But this, the one I had more expectation.....might have been the very last. BTW Schone still is in my top 3 razors.

I have read so many negative posts regarding Fatip here and many other sites.....and thought it was inaccurate.....till it hits you in the face....and makes you bleed.
Welcome to the club, my first FOCS was also defective, the cost of sending it back not really worth it as I do like the handle and it can be used on my other Fatip razors, I have 9. My second FOCS the fit is fine, but I guess I am just not a fan of slants. I also profess a love for my Schöne :barbershop_quartet_
 

Chan Eil Whiskers

Fumbling about.
Both of my FOCS razors came from Connaught. I'm still evaluating my gold FOCS as it compares with my first FOCS, in chrome. I'm not sure it's perfectly the same as the chrome FOCS, but I am sure both shave perfectly well.

I had problems with a Schöne, but not with its replacement (Amazon vendor). I've had no issues with any of the seven or so other Fatips I've purchased.

QC could be better, but these are extremely good all metal razors especially considering what they cost.

Happy shaves,

Jim
 
Looks like the fatip lottery is back in play. It's the damn QC that's holding me back from getting it. Otherwise, I would have gotten one a long time ago.
 
So how do you tell if it is defective? My FOCS is very uncomfortable, and doesn't shave as close as I would like to boot. For reference, I use the Slim on 6 (on 7 this morning) and have recently started using a Game Changer 0.84. Both are great razors for me, and comfortable. Is something up with the FOCS? I got it based on the near universal praise I saw.
 

Chan Eil Whiskers

Fumbling about.
So how do you tell if it is defective? My FOCS is very uncomfortable, and doesn't shave as close as I would like to boot. For reference, I use the Slim on 6 (on 7 this morning) and have recently started using a Game Changer 0.84. Both are great razors for me, and comfortable. Is something up with the FOCS? I got it based on the near universal praise I saw.

I'm not sure I can answer your question very well. I had a defective Schöne which had wonky threads and also wouldn't align properly. If you're not used to slants it's not so easy to know how they align. The alignment of the blade of the Fatip slants is not parallel with the cap, but rather is parallel with the baseplate, and funny looking relative to the cap.

My Fatip slants are very easy to load. I place the cap on a towel, drop the blade on the cap, add the baseplate, and screw the razor together. I've never had to fiddle with the alignment, but I always glance at it to make sure it looks as it usually (always so far) does.


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I use the razor at a steep angle for most all of my shave, using average pressure. I find it exceedingly comfortable compared with most razors. I use a shallow angle while buffing my soul patch area.

I hardly notice the blade. I think I have a pretty much average group of whiskers; with a Gillette Fatboy or Executive or Slim I usually use a setting of #5 and get a good shave. With about the same amount of work I get about the same sort of shave with the FOCS that I'd get with the Executive. I think the shaves are more or less equally comfortable (the Executive and the FOCS) during the shave and immediately post shave, but over the hours I notice perhaps a bit more discomfort post shave with the Executive (not much) compared with the FOCS.

The FOCS has a very small gap and very small guard span compared with almost any DE razor including the Slim at #7. You might be someone who likes or needs gap. I am not. I don't generally like much gap at all (although I can certainly shave with high gap razors).

In what way is yours uncomfortable?

Perhaps other guys can offer better help here.

Happy shaves,

Jim
 
So how do you tell if it is defective? My FOCS is very uncomfortable, and doesn't shave as close as I would like to boot. For reference, I use the Slim on 6 (on 7 this morning) and have recently started using a Game Changer 0.84. Both are great razors for me, and comfortable. Is something up with the FOCS? I got it based on the near universal praise I saw.
I will guess it's the razor. My bad one: head and top cap has very tight fitting and it's hard getting them un attached w a blade in. I might take some calipers to check and compare, but I bet it's the blade holder rods and screw that are screwed and ruin then whole dynamics. I decided I will not spend another dime on this, I guess I have a new expensive handle....
 
So how do you tell if it is defective? My FOCS is very uncomfortable, and doesn't shave as close as I would like to boot. For reference, I use the Slim on 6 (on 7 this morning) and have recently started using a Game Changer 0.84. Both are great razors for me, and comfortable. Is something up with the FOCS? I got it based on the near universal praise I saw.
I can tell for mine because one side has more blade exposure/gap than the other and I can feel the difference. That said, it still gives me a good shave so I'm not too concerned about it. I did get some rough shaves early on but using a steeper angle and more gentle touch with the razor helped improve the shave. It's not the smoothest razor out there for me but it can give me a great shave if I pay attention and hone down my technique.

If I'm aiming for an auto-pilot kind of shave, I think the Slim or GC84 will win that category. FOCS is more fun to shave with though because it is more challenging to use while being very efficient.
 

Chan Eil Whiskers

Fumbling about.
One thing I like about my FOCSs is how easy they are to shave with. That's as opposed to the previous poster, @Timeclo, whose razor is wonky (defective but not to the degree he doesn't use it). Either that, or my technique is a lot better which is highly doubtful.

Happy shaves,

Jim
 
FOCS is my daily driver. Switched to a 3$ tech clone this week for a blade duration (3) and even if it's not an agressive razor, it was less smooth than the FOCS. Only realized yesterday when I got back to the FOCS that it's really an auto-pilot and I dont have to worry about my technique. If you guys get harsh or irritation from it it's cleary defective (or the blade is). What ever the blade I use I get good results with the FOCS. If I had to describe the FOCS in one word it would be : Smooth
Only have the original chrome FOCS so can't compare with other versions.
 
I tried it again this morning, paying attention to use a steep angle and a light touch. Still the same - too much blade feel, more irritated after the shave. Blade alignment looks ok to me as far as I can tell, more or less even on each side and more or less parallel with the comb. Maybe not perfect, but with the slant it is hard to tell. I guess it is not for me. Six shaves with it so far, and none of them as pleasant as I would like, certainly not auto-pilot like a number of other razors I have.
 
I tried it again this morning, paying attention to use a steep angle and a light touch. Still the same - too much blade feel, more irritated after the shave. Blade alignment looks ok to me as far as I can tell, more or less even on each side and more or less parallel with the comb. Maybe not perfect, but with the slant it is hard to tell. I guess it is not for me. Six shaves with it so far, and none of them as pleasant as I would like, certainly not auto-pilot like a number of other razors I have.
I get bladefeel with some blades and none with others so I would suggest to test it with your favorites. In my limited view I would say that it works well wit 3 out of 4 blades. So in this regard it’s not finicky but some choices are better than others.

what works for me:
Gillette Perma-Sharp
Personna Platinum
Gillette Silver Blue
Gillette Platinum (dark blue, white, silver)
Polsilver

not so:
Gillette Wilkinson Saloon India
Gillette Nacet
 

Raven Koenes

My precious!
I think the vast majority of issues related to the Fatip Slant are mind over matter: If you don't mind it doesn't matter. Then there are issues like the blade getting stuck on the cap, or more blade exposure on one side no matter how hard you try to tweek it. Those are issues. Curiously, my FOCS had more blade exposure on one side, but if I turned the cap around it's perfect. I could tweek the side that's off and it aligned, but it was easier just to turn the cap around. That issue has curiously cleared up over use. Now it doesn't matter, it aligns either which way. Almost like it got broken in the more I used it. Then there is the pin ring on the top of some caps, or a little lift on one of the corners of the blade and baseplate. Those don't affect my shave, so that's mind over matter part with Fatips. I'm batting a hundred having well over 30 Fatips. Some have there own individual little quirks, but they all will align and shave wonderfully. It certainly sucks to buy one that is seriously flawed.
 
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