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Help With Choosing a New Razor

Hello all. I want a new razor and possibly narrowed it down to Timeless, Blackbird or Krave. I would like to try the .95 blade gap but afraid I may not like it, that’s why the Krave is on the list since their plates are the least expensive. I am open to other suggestions. I was very close to a Rockwell but I flinched on the purchase when I found this forum and other options. Heck I may even have a larger blade gap without even knowing it.

What’s in the arsenal:

Fatip Piccolo open comb. I like the shave, it feels a little rough and I can hear the shave (not sure if that’s good) but it does leave a smooth shave. I do have to work on my technique with this razor.

Mercur 34c. Love the shave, but it feels like I still have stubble or a 5 o’clock shadow right after.

RaoRock German 37 slant. My favorite of the 3. Seems the smoothest/effortless.

Razors in the rotation, Kai, Feather, Wilkinson, Astra, Shark, Dorco and Dorco platinum. No real favorite as I rotate through them as I go.

I may not even know what I really want out of it at this point, just a want versus a need. I’m hoping for a smooth, close, easy shave, this may fall under the “pick two of the three” any advice is much appreciated.
 
Hello all. I want a new razor and possibly narrowed it down to Timeless, Blackbird or Krave. I would like to try the .95 blade gap but afraid I may not like it, that’s why the Krave is on the list since their plates are the least expensive. I am open to other suggestions. I was very close to a Rockwell but I flinched on the purchase when I found this forum and other options. Heck I may even have a larger blade gap without even knowing it.

What’s in the arsenal:

Fatip Piccolo open comb. I like the shave, it feels a little rough and I can hear the shave (not sure if that’s good) but it does leave a smooth shave. I do have to work on my technique with this razor.

Mercur 34c. Love the shave, but it feels like I still have stubble or a 5 o’clock shadow right after.

RaoRock German 37 slant. My favorite of the 3. Seems the smoothest/effortless.

Razors in the rotation, Kai, Feather, Wilkinson, Astra, Shark, Dorco and Dorco platinum. No real favorite as I rotate through them as I go.

I may not even know what I really want out of it at this point, just a want versus a need. I’m hoping for a smooth, close, easy shave, this may fall under the “pick two of the three” any advice is much appreciated.
How long have you been DE shaving?

The more information you can provide, if you have mapped your beard growth, if you have figured out razor angle, soap/cream, general shaving shaving routine etc etc, the more colleagues can zone in to where you are at the moment.

I would drop the Feather and Kai.

Oh and Welcome!
 
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lasta

Blade Biter
Pick the shinest one. Timeless offers polished razors, Blackland did/maybe still do. Though both of these are on the pricy end.

Karve are very well made razors, in fact I would say fit and finish are above Blackland (IMO), but even a Tech outshines it.

BTW, you don't have Techs.
 
I would keep the Feathers, and drop the Shark/Dorcos.

But blades are YMMV, TIWAGOS, YATBSOYF...
The blade eating crocodile/hippopotamus Gentleman is correct there. Your milage may indeed vary.

However I would suggest a medium sharp but smooth blade. The Gillette Platinum, Silver Blue, and the excellent and reasonably priced and almost feather-sharp but smoother and longer lasting Nacets are good choices with the razors you mention.

With the 34C just steepen the angle. A higher blade gap is not a panacea for overcoming a developing but still lacking technique. A Tech will shave just as well when you figure out your technique fully.

With the Piccolo in your arsenal, you can deal with pretty much any beard growth. I would work on perfecting your Piccolo technique initially. It will bring you great joy, paired with the blades mentioned above.
 
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Something you could experiment with to get a feel for a larger blade gap like the .95 you are wondering about --- take a couple of old blades and make shims by cutting off the shaving edge with a pair of scissors. Each shim is about .1mm and your stock Merkur 34c is about .70mm or so blade gap.

So adding one shim underneath the blade will make your 34c about .80 blade gap and adding two shims will make it about .90 blade gap. There are lots of threads and youtube videos that show how to cut an old blade to make a shim. See the picture below there is the cap with a new, sharp blade and then a shim (an old blade with the sharpened edges cut off).

1676868975328.png
 
How long have you been DE shaving?

The more information you can provide, if you have mapped your beard growth, if you have figured out razor angle, soap/cream, general shaving shaving routine etc etc, the more colleagues can zone in to where you are at the moment.

I would drop the Feather and Kai.

Oh and Welcome!
Thank you for the welcome. I’ve been DE shaving for probably 10years now. I have mapped my beard growth, the smoothest direction are, sideburns, cheeks, chin grown down. Jaw line, under jaw grow left to right. I shave with the grain sideburns, cheek and chin. I always shave neck to chin. Second pass across the grain but still the neck to chin.

My nightly routine, shave after a shower, base of jack black beard lube. Soaps range from, A&E, Sterling and the sadly my last so Central Texas Soap. Blade angle, yes and no, some days are better than others. Cold towel after, alum/crystal stick across the face (wipe it off with a wet towel after cleaning my gear) A&E after shave, Sterling balm and A&E rice water before bead. Sometimes I may skip a night of shaving.
 
Thank you for the welcome. I’ve been DE shaving for probably 10years now. I have mapped my beard growth, the smoothest direction are, sideburns, cheeks, chin grown down. Jaw line, under jaw grow left to right. I shave with the grain sideburns, cheek and chin. I always shave neck to chin. Second pass across the grain but still the neck to chin.

My nightly routine, shave after a shower, base of jack black beard lube. Soaps range from, A&E, Sterling and the sadly my last so Central Texas Soap. Blade angle, yes and no, some days are better than others. Cold towel after, alum/crystal stick across the face (wipe it off with a wet towel after cleaning my gear) A&E after shave, Sterling balm and A&E rice water before bead. Sometimes I may skip a night of shaving.
Sounds like you know the game @bonjing!

I would work on the lovely little Piccolo, she's an easy OC but is heavy at 70gm so a no pressure razor. Gives superb results.

You might like an adjustable. The Yaqi Adjustable is an excellent Gibbs 'homage' and gets excellent reviews here and is well liked, at a very good price. That might cover all your bases.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003811756988.html?pdp_npi=2@dis!GBP!£25.18!£21.75!!!!!@211b443e16768706752024531edcbd!12000027249218754!btf&_t=pvid:65c19b34-272f-4121-8621-64f836816c60&afTraceInfo=1005003811756988__pc__pcBridgePPC__xxxxxx__1676870675&spm=a2g0o.ppclist.product.mainProduct

Here are the many B&B reviews of it in this thread. A long but interesting read!

Yaqi adjustable razor - https://www.badgerandblade.com/forum/threads/yaqi-adjustable-razor.604432/

Its currently selling for $28.60 with free shipping.
 
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I have been thinking about dropping the feather in favor of the Kai. The Kai feels as sharp but smoother just about every time. The others I like, surprisingly the shark is starting to fall out of favor with me but time will tell
Pick the shinest one. Timeless offers polished razors, Blackland did/maybe still do. Though both of these are on the pricy end.

Karve are very well made razors, in fact I would say fit and finish are above Blackland (IMO), but even a Tech outshines it.

BTW, you don't have Techs.
That’s also the problem, I like shiny things, but with the Timeless I was going to go matte. I know these are expensive tools so I’m hoping to buy once cry once. I am not in a hurry and November will be here before I know it and hopefully some nice sales can be had this year.
 
Oh by the way, I try to use one side of the razor on the first pass, opposite second. No matter the blade I seem to toss it around the third or halfway into the third shave. It feels like it pulls the hairs versus shaving.
 
Go with the Karve OverLander. I had the OC and found the OverLander to be a superior shave and the ATG is amazing.
Oh yeah...welcome aboard.
 
In my opinion gap is one if not the most overrated measures of the efficiency of a razor. My Timeless SS and Ti .95 OC razors are the smoothest along with being pretty efficient of any of the razors I own. I think the blade exposure is .05 mm. Now to compare my Blackbird SS both SB and OC the gap is only .58 mm with an exposure of .10 or .15 mm (I can’t remember which). I don’t find the Blackbird as smooth as the Timeless, but it is more efficient.

I would suggest buying the Karve (brass is the least expensive). With the Karve as you go from AA to G plates the gaps increase as does the exposure. Overall it is a very smooth and efficient razor that will help you understand how gap and exposure relates to your requirements for skin, beard and technique.

If you do decide to go with the Karve, I would suggest starting with the SB plate in either C or D considering the razors you currently use. I would also suggest when buying additional more efficient plates don’t go up by one letter (C to D or D to E) but go up by two letters ( C to E or E to G).

I would also suggest trying Karve‘s open comb plates. They are very smooth and I find them to be very enjoyable to use.

Hope this helps you a little.
 

Phoenixkh

I shaved a fortune
I haven't been at this very long, so that is always a factor. I was fortunate to have a decent shaving slush fund so I could acquire several semi-expensive razors after using an Executive Shaving Company Claymore Evolution AC razor for ~ 5 1/2 months. The first one I got that amazed me and was a half step up in efficiency from the Claymore Evo was the Blutt BR-1 1.20. It's worth a look, I think. It still sits comfortably on my top 6 razor list and is a joy to use.
 
Welcome! Enjoy your stay! The correct B&B answer would be to get them all!!

But kidding aside, your current collection has a number of true staples when it comes to shaving. The Fatip Piccolo is a landmark irrespective of alignment or not. And if you can shave with an open comb Piccolo you can get good shaves with the other razors mentioned as well.

I consider myself very fortunate in owning and frequently using a Ti95SCL and it is an amazing razor!! By far the finest piece of equipment in my den. Smooth and comfortable and as mentioned before the gap size is only part of the story and the Ti95 has positive blade exposure (so does Karve by the way).

But yes there is an investment to be made. If you look at only the shave quality and only that - there are alternatives already in your possession that will give you similar or equal results. The Ti95 just brings the whole shave to another level for me in terms of results AND experience. And in full disclosure: mine was a gift - so easy for me to say what you should do. I do know that having the Ti95 brought down my RAD or acquisition disorders significantly!

Another alternative might be the Green Cult Razor? Choice of baseplates with different gaps and exposure. All stainless and at the moment doesn’t break the bank (well at least not in one go!). And let’s not forget the R41 stainless. Magnificent razor too!

Enjoy your shaves!

Guido
 

Phoenixkh

I shaved a fortune
Welcome! Enjoy your stay! The correct B&B answer would be to get them all!!

But kidding aside, your current collection has a number of true staples when it comes to shaving. The Fatip Piccolo is a landmark irrespective of alignment or not. And if you can shave with an open comb Piccolo you can get good shaves with the other razors mentioned as well.

I consider myself very fortunate in owning and frequently using a Ti95SCL and it is an amazing razor!! By far the finest piece of equipment in my den. Smooth and comfortable and as mentioned before the gap size is only part of the story and the Ti95 has positive blade exposure (so does Karve by the way).

But yes there is an investment to be made. If you look at only the shave quality and only that - there are alternatives already in your possession that will give you similar or equal results. The Ti95 just brings the whole shave to another level for me in terms of results AND experience. And in full disclosure: mine was a gift - so easy for me to say what you should do. I do know that having the Ti95 brought down my RAD or acquisition disorders significantly!

Another alternative might be the Green Cult Razor? Choice of baseplates with different gaps and exposure. All stainless and at the moment doesn’t break the bank (well at least not in one go!). And let’s not forget the R41 stainless. Magnificent razor too!

Enjoy your shaves!

Guido
I was tempted to add the Green Cult 2.0 for consideration as well. I didn't want to overwhelm the OP. I've never shaved with a Timeless but as you know, I just love their Titanium Crown handles. ;)
 
Something you could experiment with to get a feel for a larger blade gap like the .95 you are wondering about --- take a couple of old blades and make shims by cutting off the shaving edge with a pair of scissors. Each shim is about .1mm and your stock Merkur 34c is about .70mm or so blade gap.

So adding one shim underneath the blade will make your 34c about .80 blade gap and adding two shims will make it about .90 blade gap. There are lots of threads and youtube videos that show how to cut an old blade to make a shim. See the picture below there is the cap with a new, sharp blade and then a shim (an old blade with the sharpened edges cut off).

View attachment 1608882
Gave this a try this morning! Wow what a shave, used Dorco platinums. Cutting the blades was easier than I thought, but make sure you can find those slivers. The cut shims weren’t perfect but shave was very smooth, easy and face fells great. Did my normal post shave, and face feels nice and tight, almost like I did a straight razor. I use a Feather Artist Club maybe a few times a year.
 
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