Feather Popular, first impressions

[Cristobal]

Straight from the land of the rising sun, here is the Feather Popular, an entry level razor from Feather brand, with a butterfly opening. It is a cheap razor, which its main interests reside in its exotic nature and its market position in relation to other safety razors: made in Japan, construction of metal and plastic, neither disposable nor really sustainable, and the price.

Pros :
Good value for money;
Exoticism and made ​​in Japan (but hey, this is subjective);
Good travel razor because of its lightness;
Easy to replace if lost or broken;
Ideal for beginners and fun for amateurs.

Cons :
Too mild and not agressive at all ;
The handle made of polymers, which may appear cheap to some;
Lightness.

Price :
The Feather popular is a kind of disposable safety razor or an appealing product and a good start for beginners. Its price is 15 € at Connaught Shaving delivered in a plastic box with 5 Feather blades, while it is 27 € on some French sites ... Honestly at this price, it is better to prefer a EJ DE89 metal purchased on internet in the USA or UK.

Quality :
Despite its composite construction, the Feather popular exudes quality. We have here a very good razor industrially manufactured with high QC standards and no finish defects. In there taking a minimum care, razor could last a few years anyway.

User friendly:
Very user friendly, which is why the popular Feather is ideal for the beginner. It requires no advance preparation and is usable directly out of the box. We put a blade and presto!

Grip:
The polymer handle has a non-slip texture with spikes elongated, relatively acceptable. The risk of slips of the hand on the handle is offset by its length and the little blade exposure. Therefore very little danger.

Blade replacement :
Advantage of the butterfly opening: the blade is inserted and removed without unscrewing or removing the razor.

Aggressiveness:
The opening and blade exposure are very low, thus the Feather Popular is a bit or not aggressive. Advanced users as well as beginners will have no trouble to tame it. Nevertheless, it might disappoint the most demanding users, with stubborn beard. The small aperture and the weight of the razor need to find the right angle and the right mix of pressure.

Adjustment:
None

Balance:
Despite its lightness, the popular Feather has a pretty good balance, mainly due to its long handle which balances the head, partially metal.

 

[michiganlover]

I have owned a couple of Feather Populars. I place it in the same category as the Weishi: too mild to be at all useful. I also greatly disliked the lack of weight.

Both are poor choices for newbies, due to the extremely small range in which the razor will actually cut. The lack of weight will also lead to a use of pressure to compensate.

These usually go for about $20 stateside, and tossing in $5-$10 more will yield you a much more useful razor.

 

[JeffOlson]

I am not certain, but I am guessing that one could add a shim to this razor to increase its aggressiveness.

 

[VerbaVolant]

I tried. It didn't work.

 

[Sledgehammer39]

It's a decent razor which is easily replaceable, and allows you to gauge DE shaving.

 

[gnoils]

It is my first razor and I still have it in my rotation.

 

[HUF]

I find it too mild as well. Sometimes you think there is no blade inside.

 

[mission of burma shave]

great simple razor. i agree it's right for beginners. asking beginners to use an aggressive razor is recipe for you know what. it's designed to work best with the feather blade, which cuts very very well.

 

[bryan1980]

Seems like a vintage flare tip SS or Tech would be a better choice for a beginner, since they're mild, but still effective. I know there are some people who attach a stigma to a used razor, but any thinking person knows that a plated, solid brass razor can be easily sterilized of any remaining cooties (which probably number zero, since most vintage razors found in the wild haven't been used in years).

 

[Maxime D.]

You have a liking for Japan, it seems.

 

[ninjaboy]

well well , Feather Popular - welcome to my shave cabinet!
I like this one - I took delivery because i needed to teach my R41 a lesson (which now lurks in the naughty corner of my shave cabinet).
After discussing with my shave-yoda daughter, we selected this on amazon for £16.

The Popular is light, easy, gets pretty close with seriously low effort - it's in the same ballpark as my 1966 SuperSpeed for closeness, but requires such low effort to get there it really is quite outstanding - it punches above it's weight lol.

But this is one which may encourage you to lapse into poor technique , it gives you a set menu with little incentive to really spend time eaking out that last micron of smoothness or that perfect angle sweet spot... you always seem to get a pretty good shave regardless.

Beginners i can see getting bored quickly, this is a razor with little personality, it is a lightweight mild razor so caters for a clear subsection of the shaving community.

Experienced users will appreciate its technical features like a great shave head angle and uniform blade gap, it's smooth opening and overall precision, and it's closeness without wounding.
It's anodyne, gives a smart shave every time, and when you 'know' that the end result justifies the means, then you 'know' deep down that this razor deserves a second look... J

Judge it on the end result, and i find this to be an excellent razor. Smooth and without irritation or nicks.
Judge it on the 'getting there' and it's ok, nothing special, just reliable and easy... you wont get into trouble with this razor.

I put it joint #2 in my cabinet behind the EJ DE89.

Will it replace my R41? NO WAY - thats the wrecking ball for when i have to take out a week old beard in one pass!

All the best

 

[Taborcarn]

Don't try to teach the R41 a lesson... You'll only make it angry!

 

[Eeyore]

I have a Feather Popular in my rotation, and I think it is a very good razor. It is mild and light indeed, but still is capable of delivering a good shave.

 

[Boge]

I bought one of these awhile back and used it a few times and loved it. Recently, I have revisited it a few times having figured out the key: it needs sharp blades. I have used Feather, Super-Max Super Platinum Tiger & Timor blades so far and all for the first shave. With a keen blade I get a very DFS. If there is a smoother DE razor then buy it. Yes, there are DE razors that shave closer, but you must be far more careful and tedious. It's a great everyday shaver for sure.

 

[Eeyore]

It is my travel razor. Indeed with Feather blades.

 

[BSAGuy]

Thanks for the complete review. If I were asked, I would suggest the below to a new shaver. If he didn't like DE shaving, easier to recover the cost of the razor.

Seems like a vintage flare tip SS or Tech would be a better choice for a beginner, since they're mild, but still effective. I know there are some people who attach a stigma to a used razor, but any thinking person knows that a plated, solid brass razor can be easily sterilized of any remaining cooties (which probably number zero, since most vintage razors found in the wild haven't been used in years).

 

[Member357]

It was my first DE and I had no issues getting the correct angle from that first shave. I gave it to a friend a while later as he was interested in trying a DE, and he still uses it to get great shaves every day.

 

[Cash_Stronomer]

All in all to those who've used both, would this be milder and or 'less effective' to say a flair tip Rocket, or a regular Super Speed?

 

[takisg]

well well , Feather Popular - welcome to my shave cabinet!
I like this one - I took delivery because i needed to teach my R41 a lesson (which now lurks in the naughty corner of my shave cabinet).
After discussing with my shave-yoda daughter, we selected this on amazon for £16.

The Popular is light, easy, gets pretty close with seriously low effort - it's in the same ballpark as my 1966 SuperSpeed for closeness, but requires such low effort to get there it really is quite outstanding - it punches above it's weight lol.

But this is one which may encourage you to lapse into poor technique , it gives you a set menu with little incentive to really spend time eaking out that last micron of smoothness or that perfect angle sweet spot... you always seem to get a pretty good shave regardless.

Beginners i can see getting bored quickly, this is a razor with little personality, it is a lightweight mild razor so caters for a clear subsection of the shaving community.

Experienced users will appreciate its technical features like a great shave head angle and uniform blade gap, it's smooth opening and overall precision, and it's closeness without wounding.
It's anodyne, gives a smart shave every time, and when you 'know' that the end result justifies the means, then you 'know' deep down that this razor deserves a second look... J

Judge it on the end result, and i find this to be an excellent razor. Smooth and without irritation or nicks.
Judge it on the 'getting there' and it's ok, nothing special, just reliable and easy... you wont get into trouble with this razor.

I put it joint #2 in my cabinet behind the EJ DE89.

Will it replace my R41? NO WAY - thats the wrecking ball for when i have to take out a week old beard in one pass!

All the best

I couldn't agree more with you... as an every day shaver and also an owner of a 2011, Muhle R41, Edwin Jagger DE 89 L, Feather Popular, and many vintage Gillette safety razors....

 

[Boge]

All in all to those who've used both, would this be milder and or 'less effective' to say a flair tip Rocket, or a regular Super Speed?

I have used both a Gillette Flair Tip & Red Tip. IMO, both are more aggressive than the Feather Popular with the latter of the two being the worst. I did not like the Red Tip = far too aggressive for me.

I shaved again today with the Feather Popular and a brand new Gillette 7 O'Clock Yellow blade(Russia) and man what a winning combo!!! FWIW, I shaved the other half of my face with a Schick Krona using the same blade and these two DE razors are IMO VERYYYYY similar in how they shave. I cannot over-emphasize enough that it is not always the aggression of a DE razor so much as mating it with the right type blade to get a great shave.