Feather All Stainless DE razor

[A_jay]

Any of you fine gentlemen own this razor? At $273 it's extremely expensive, but if it shaves as nicely as my Futur then I may consider purchasing it (if the wife doesn't protest too much)

http://www.imaginet-de.com/item/feather01.html

 

[mission of burma shave]

there are many on the used market for much less because it's a polarizing razor. you either love it don't.

 

[A_jay]

Yeah, I've not seen it being sold online apart from Japanese stores. The price is really high... I can't justify spending that much money without knowing what kind of shave you can get.

 

[Mick]

Yes, I own one. It is a very well made razor. It is a very mild razor and would be similar to your Futur if you did not put a blade in the Futur

The Feather AS-D1 and the Muhle R41 (2011 model) are the most frequently resold razors on the BST forum as both are the hardest to master.

Shaving with the Feather is a zen like experience. The blade angle is so narrow that you must have perfect technique otherwise you will think that the razor is awful and you will sell it.

You need to shave like a machine, never varying your blade angle as a couple of degrees too steep or shallow and you will not get the blade on your face.

Mine is a regular in my rotation and I get perfect shaves with it every time but as always YMMV

 

[A_jay]

Thanks for the great reply Turtle. Do you recommend using their plastic DE razor to practice with before thinking about purchasing the All Stainless Feather? Not sure if the blade angle is similar or not. I've been DE shaving for 2 months now. That T&H soap looks great in your pic. I do love my Futur but I'm thinking about giving it to my dad to get him away from cartridge shaving...

 

[Mick]

Thanks for the great reply Turtle. Do you recommend using their plastic DE razor to practice with before thinking about purchasing the All Stainless Feather? Not sure if the blade angle is similar or not. I've been DE shaving for 2 months now. That T&H soap looks great in your pic. I do love my Futur but I'm thinking about giving it to my dad to get him away from cartridge shaving...

The Futur has a lot of blade exposure even at its lowest setting (I also own two Futur razors).

If you want to get a razor similar to the Feather at a lower cost (to see if you will like this mild of a razor) you can look at the Gillette super adjustable (keep it set to the lowest setting), the later versions of the Gillette tech (the ones with the rectangular lather slots not the D slots), or the Merkur Progress set at the lowest setting. Those razors are going to be about as close in shave as the Feather.

Don't get me wrong. The Feather is a fantastic razor. It is just one of the mildest razors made and requires close attention to your shaving technique to give you a good shave. It is not a razor for a novice user as it requires a little too much attention to detail from the user in order to perform to its fullest.

 

[joshgambit]

+1 on what turtle said. It's a very, very mild razor. Technique is everything with this one.

 

[drlvegas]

 

[Mike H]

... It is a very mild razor and would be similar to your Futur if you did not put a blade in the Futur

 

[celestino]

It is a very, very, very mild razor and it may not work for you. There is one on the BST right now, i believe for $150.
i tried it twice, but gave up with my coarse beard; required too many passes to get a DFS; good luck.

 

[Samjax]

I found the Feather to be very much like a Tech (triangle slot) in regards to shaving. Not a bad shave - but a bit underwhelming considering it's price point. You can't argue with the quality of workmanship though.

It's kind of odd really - Feather is known for their wicked sharp DE and Artist Club blades...only to be offset a bit by also being known for one of the mildest DEs in existence.

 

[Valerius]

I have one, which I've bought a year ago, after being in DE wetshaving since mid 1970ies, and having tried lots of different razors/blades combinations. It took me about two months to learn how to use it in the most efficient way. Now I wouldn't even think about selling the razor. oday my most used razors are the Feather, atboyu and Slim Adjustable and an open comb Aristocrat.

 

[dcrls145]

check out on Ebay. There is a Japanese dealer there under the seller name of japannippon and right now he's got some of those super expensive Feather safety razors on sale, I don't think he's got the same one you have on your link but others just as expensive and even some more expensive on 40% off or there abouts.

I hope this helps!

 

[dcrls145]

also check classicshaving.com because I think they have it there for 179 dollars

 

[michiganlover]

also check classicshaving.com because I think they have it there for 179 dollars

It's $179 at West Coast Shaving too. Much better to support vendors who support the board.

 

[shyrlock]

They are very nicely made mild razors.
West Coast Shaving also sells them for around 179.00. I think the big difference in price is for the stand, which is probably worth 20.00. I think I would skip the stand.

 

[A_jay]

Thank you for the brilliant responses. My technique is no where near good at the moment. It took me a month to shave with the futur (feather blades) without any nicks/weepers. I'll give the feather AS a pass until I've improved my ability, I'll keep browsing B&B for further tips on shaving techniques. I haven't adjusted the futur from its 1 setting yet, it gives me bbs shaves already so I'm not sure what effect adjusting it would do.


I guess price doesn't indicate a more aggressive razor. The feather looks beautiful, so I guess that's where the high cost kicks in.

 

[Gordy2]

Like others have said, it's very mild. BUT, it's a lovely well made razor. I use shims in it and it works fine. Without shims it's hard for me to get a DFS with it. The price you quoted is for the razor and stand. The razor alone is quite a bit cheaper. I've seen the razor sell for as low as $135 on the BST, but normally around $150ish.

 

[gus1942]

there are many on the used market for much less because it's a polarizing razor. you either love it don't.

+1. And I don't.

 

[Copierguy]

For me, the Feather is just right. Great 12hr shaves.....worth the effort.