Homelike TAIGA Adjustable Razor
- Thread starter GVG
- Start date
- Status
I know this has been covered but can a current Ti owner chime in with what is the max you can open this
razor up to....how many revolutions from the 1 mark?
razor up to....how many revolutions from the 1 mark?
On my SS Taiga it's a whole turn +2 or 2 1/2. I think it's the same for the Ti version as well. I'm pretty sure @Shavemd mentioned something around there as well on his Ti Taiga.
Hopefully he chimes in to confirm or give a more accurate description......
Received today in the mail (total transit time 8 days from order):
Titanium, and to respond to the question it goes through 2.5 total revolutions past the initial "1" mark (I'll probably never get past 4 on the first turn
- I like my razors mild, not wild). Very impressed with the polish on this, as noted by @Tester28. Looks like engraved/filled letters and marks, a la Gillette, but no defects that I can tell, and my vintage Gillettes are still pretty immaculate after 50+ years. It seems there are a number of variations on this with Homelike - laser engraved, engraved and engraved and filled, and I'm just as happy with this one. One thing my OCD kicks up with is that it doesn't index perfectly with the "1," but that leaves some room for a bit of wear with use, so probably eventually. I was surprised how easy it is to disassemble, so cleaning should be a snap. Fit and finish are excellent, and the Titanium is perfectly balanced for me. Proof is in the shave, so tomorrow is the ultimate test, but so far pretty impressed....Received today in the mail (total transit time 8 days from order):
View attachment 1297141
Titanium, and to respond to the question it goes through 2.5 total revolutions past the initial "1" mark (I'll probably never get past 4 on the first turn
Wow! 2.5 complete revolutions? They made modifications from the original release to give it some extra adjustments. Nice & congrats....
Mine goes around twice and back to 3 with the handle fully tightened. The most I have shaved with is twice around, so roughly a level 10.
Really? I must be doing something wrong or not paying attention to the turns I'm doing....
Last edited:
Don’t forget Gus my current Taiga is the original Titanium, I sold my original SS, with both baseplates, when I got the Ti.Really? I must be doing something wrong or not paying attention the turns I'm doing....
I'm an idiot. You have to turn down the handle some to get the extra gap adjustment. I knew I was missing something. Duh.....
I'm an idiot. You have to turn down the handle some to get the extra gap adjustment. I knew I was missing something. Duh.....
I did notice that adjustment is easier with the locking knob loosened a bit (sort of like a Slim or Fat Boy) - completely tightened down, you can't get back to that "zero" on 1....
Are you referring to loosening the knob at the bottom of the razor, or the midsection. barrel that attaches
to the adjuster knob?
Ive been having some conversations with HLS about the spring inside the razor.
I had asked them to send an additional spring but that didn't happen. He however did provide some
useful insight (that I wasn't aware of)...I'll paste it below in case it helps anyone:
"In fact, there are a lot of options, knowing the size of the spring (by measuring it - D10mm, L11mm, Thickness:1mm).
Of course, each working spring has a wear time, but in such a process as shaving it is measured for years I think .
The only thing for which you can buy an additional one is to increase the stiffness and just in case a spare in case
of loss. We believe that the spring is structurally optimal in terms of its stiffness, but we do not prohibit experimenting
with stiffer ones. Gently, without scratching, you can get it out of the razor, for example, with a toothpick
"
This is an active link to where such springs can be ordered (hope it works for you):
AliExpress
I had asked them to send an additional spring but that didn't happen. He however did provide some
useful insight (that I wasn't aware of)...I'll paste it below in case it helps anyone:
"In fact, there are a lot of options, knowing the size of the spring (by measuring it - D10mm, L11mm, Thickness:1mm).
Of course, each working spring has a wear time, but in such a process as shaving it is measured for years I think .
The only thing for which you can buy an additional one is to increase the stiffness and just in case a spare in case
of loss. We believe that the spring is structurally optimal in terms of its stiffness, but we do not prohibit experimenting
with stiffer ones. Gently, without scratching, you can get it out of the razor, for example, with a toothpick
"This is an active link to where such springs can be ordered (hope it works for you):
AliExpress
With the original SS Taiga the adjustment knob went around once plus a little more, if you loosened the handle you could rotate it further and then re lock down the handle.
Locking knob at the bottom of the razor. It's really a dolled-up Gibbs design, so very dependable, but on mine I find it easier to adjust with a slight loosening of the knob before adjusting to get the full range, then re-tightening. You can get more range on the higher end by loosening the handle as well I suspect, since the handle locks the travel of the adjustment ring.
First shave under the belt, with my standard new Astra SP blade that I use for all new razors, SW Tres Matres, soap & AS. TLDR: This is an amazing razor, fit, finish and function.
I can't remember when I've been this impressed with a first shave. Absolutely smooth, effortless, irritation-free BBS, three passes. I've been shaving with the Muramasa on setting 3: 0.75 blade gap, 0 exposure. Started the Taiga on 1, "just to see," and I suspect this is a negative blade exposure, probably roughly equivalent to the Muramasa on 1: 0.6 blade gap, - 0.17 exposure. AS-D2 territory, or even milder. Quickly cranked up to 2, which "feels" similar to the Muramasa 3, but I have no idea what the actual measurements are. Finished throughout on 2 just to get familiar, which gave me perfect results, but may hike it up to 3 as my standard and use 4 or 5 for touch-up, and I'm not one who will use multiple turns of the dial - I'm not an R42 shaver, or even close.
The most remarkable thing about this razor is the blade feel - there is none. Like others, I had to check to see if there was a blade edge peeking out. The polished Titanium cap provided a glide that I've never achieved with any other razor - even polished SS. The weight (61g compared to 105g for the Muramasa) contributes to the easy maneuverability, and blade tabs are covered like the Muramasa. Both exceptional razors, and I'm really liking this one.
That said, minor quibbles comparing the two. The dimpled grip on the Muramasa is above average (not as slippery as the Asylum Evo, not as grippy as the Rex) - and the matte finish helps. Slightly shorter than the Taiga (maybe 1/4"), with a rounded base, you can get a fairly good purchase with wet hands. The knurling on the Taiga and the high polish almost require dry hands to get a positive grip, and the adjustment dial on the Taiga is smooth but VERY easy to move – not a problem for me because I grip down the handle, but I can see it getting moved during a shave if you grip up. The Taiga is also not as robust as the Muramasa, not just the weight, but the thickness of the various parts - this is not necessarily a negative, because the Taiga is certainly robust enough, and this contributes to the lighter heft, which I like, and Titanium doesn't need the same thickness as steel for equivalent strength. But it feels less beefy. And finally, very minor, you need to correctly orient the head on the Taiga when reassembling, and the smaller, lighter parts seem easier to lose or damage when complete broken down. The Muramasa is a tank, the Taiga is a light halftrack.
As far as the shave and which I prefer, the jury's still out, but the defense is leaning toward the Taiga - it's lighter, easier to swing around, and provides a fabulous shave without actually paying much attention. For looks, definitely the Taiga (to me). For performance, close, but the nimbleness and high polish of the Taiga give it an advantage. For overall design, quality and construction, maybe the Muramasa by a hair, but you are comparing Ferrari and Lamborghini. It's a quandary, but I'll definitely pick up one or the other for any particular morning shave. Until I get my Rocnel!
I can't remember when I've been this impressed with a first shave. Absolutely smooth, effortless, irritation-free BBS, three passes. I've been shaving with the Muramasa on setting 3: 0.75 blade gap, 0 exposure. Started the Taiga on 1, "just to see," and I suspect this is a negative blade exposure, probably roughly equivalent to the Muramasa on 1: 0.6 blade gap, - 0.17 exposure. AS-D2 territory, or even milder. Quickly cranked up to 2, which "feels" similar to the Muramasa 3, but I have no idea what the actual measurements are. Finished throughout on 2 just to get familiar, which gave me perfect results, but may hike it up to 3 as my standard and use 4 or 5 for touch-up, and I'm not one who will use multiple turns of the dial - I'm not an R42 shaver, or even close.
The most remarkable thing about this razor is the blade feel - there is none. Like others, I had to check to see if there was a blade edge peeking out. The polished Titanium cap provided a glide that I've never achieved with any other razor - even polished SS. The weight (61g compared to 105g for the Muramasa) contributes to the easy maneuverability, and blade tabs are covered like the Muramasa. Both exceptional razors, and I'm really liking this one.
That said, minor quibbles comparing the two. The dimpled grip on the Muramasa is above average (not as slippery as the Asylum Evo, not as grippy as the Rex) - and the matte finish helps. Slightly shorter than the Taiga (maybe 1/4"), with a rounded base, you can get a fairly good purchase with wet hands. The knurling on the Taiga and the high polish almost require dry hands to get a positive grip, and the adjustment dial on the Taiga is smooth but VERY easy to move – not a problem for me because I grip down the handle, but I can see it getting moved during a shave if you grip up. The Taiga is also not as robust as the Muramasa, not just the weight, but the thickness of the various parts - this is not necessarily a negative, because the Taiga is certainly robust enough, and this contributes to the lighter heft, which I like, and Titanium doesn't need the same thickness as steel for equivalent strength. But it feels less beefy. And finally, very minor, you need to correctly orient the head on the Taiga when reassembling, and the smaller, lighter parts seem easier to lose or damage when complete broken down. The Muramasa is a tank, the Taiga is a light halftrack.
As far as the shave and which I prefer, the jury's still out, but the defense is leaning toward the Taiga - it's lighter, easier to swing around, and provides a fabulous shave without actually paying much attention. For looks, definitely the Taiga (to me). For performance, close, but the nimbleness and high polish of the Taiga give it an advantage. For overall design, quality and construction, maybe the Muramasa by a hair, but you are comparing Ferrari and Lamborghini. It's a quandary, but I'll definitely pick up one or the other for any particular morning shave. Until I get my Rocnel!
A compression spring is a just a standard mechanical component, you should be able to get some for free at your local hardware store / mechanical auto parts shop / whatever.
The spring constant, k, is a measure of the stiffness of the spring.
But "Stiffness" is not a proper way to describe the characteristics of a spring. You are probably looking to increase F (Spring force in Newtons at the loaded length L). This is easily acomplished by decreasing L (ie increasing Δ x=L0-L) rather than finding a spring with another constant k in the equation F=k Δ x. Just add a shim or get a slightly longer spring to increase the perceived "stiffness".
Last edited:
Nerd Alert [emoji38]
JK… you’re correct. Thanks for the scientific explanation. I did love physics [emoji2369]
Physics lab was the best!!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I did exactly that - 11mm length springs seem to be MIA in the real world, so ordered 15mm springs to try out. We shall see....
So - one of the things I noticed in the Taiga was that when you adjust it, sometimes the baseplate is not perfectly parallel to the top cap assembly (holding the blade) - first photo, closer on the left side viewing. I assume because of the spring arrangement in the center of the head (a la Gibbs), sort of a seesaw arrangement. You can tweak it after tightening the blade (at settings above 1 the head assembly is somewhat flexible), but it seems to happen fairly regularly. Enter the 15mm spring! I did try the 15mm spring vs the 11mm original (2nd photo), and by golly it seems to reduce the frequency of misalignment, as well as adding some needed stiffness to the adjustment. The only downside I could see would be additional stress (minimal IMO - it is titanium) to the threads of the handle and adjustment, but the longer spring to me makes the razor just about perfect. Continuing the experiment to see if there's any noticeable difference in the shave, but at least it locks in the setting fairly firmly now. The other caveat is that the new spring had squared-off, sharp cut ends, and the old spring had the ends polished relatively flush and smooth, but 5 minutes with a Dremel corrected.
Chan Eil Whiskers
Fumbling about.
Happy shaves,
Jim
- Status
