I shed some light on the feather AS enigma

[Predict]

I know that a lot of people have had trouble gettin the feather as to cut their stubble. I have always been mystified by this as my feather was an excellent shaver. Yes, it required a different technique and is very mild but I had no trouble getting bbs with my feather and I have a very course thick beard. Well I ended up selling my feather because I wanted to thin out the herd and I just used my joris and mergress much more. I instantly regretted selling my feather and picked up another on bst. I cannot get a good shave with this thing! It won't cut! I'm talking 8 passes and I still have stubble! That's with a fresh feather blade. There has got to be a manufacturing tolerance at play here. The two feathers are like night and day. So, anybody want to buy my feather AS?

 

[Triad]

Thats something ive never thought about too much. I sold my Tradere oc and just bought another mayby this one will be better than the first one!! I have had 3 Joris the first two were just pop the blade in and they were aligned perfect everytime and the last one i bought takes several tries to get it to align but the shaves are the same

 

[celestino]

Phil, i tried two Feather AS-D1s and i have the same problem you are having now. It could be it, but i have never heard of such a thing. Good luck, my friend. i won't go back for a third, though. Hee hee.

Toby, i doubt you will find that with the Tradere. They are quite aggressive.

 

[mspk1111]

I was the one that ended up with predict's feather and I have to say he is spot on. The feather he sold me is a champ, I'm not having any of the issues of a mild shave like other people complain of. It just seems odd that the difference is so big, thats a bummer for such an expensive razor.

 

[Copierguy]

I picked up one and after a couples shaves it was all love......so much so that I picked up a second on BST. I am batting 1000% though cause both of mine will knock out a 12 hr. shave. I guess I am blessed with with good Feather karma. Sorry to hear of your experience Phil, but it does explain a lot about the contrasting results some folks are reporting.

 

[JeffOlson]

Aren't the Feather cap and base plate cast rather than machined? That might explain the apparent differences between two Feather razors. (In contrast, I believe the Tradere is all machined.)

 

[CHSeifert]

I sold my Feather to a fellow BB'er from just across the pond in Sweden. He tried it and had identical results as I did. Utter useless - 1111 passes and still not 50% BSS/BBS.

FEATHER has a SERIOUS quality problem, must I conclude !

 

[Rivendell]

I too have owned 2. They both shaved the same, though - extremely mild/ineffective. The blade gap is just too small (or at least it was on mine). The quality of the finish was impeccable but that counts for nought if it doesn't shave well. I have subsequently bought a Weber DLC - a more workmanlike finish but boy does it mow the whiskers.

 

[vsingh]

I love my Feather too. Takes awhile to get the angle right and then it's heaven!!

Smooth as and looks and feels great. 90 grams of sheer beauty.

 

[Predict]

I love my Feather too. Takes awhile to get the angle right and then it's heaven!!

Smooth as and looks and feels great. 90 grams of sheer beauty.

That's the experience I had with my first feather. Now I guess I'll start the search for another "good" one. When they're good they're great but this last one is completely useless.

 

[bastimret]

hmm, interesting. Wish we could get the two you had together to do a macro comparison.

 

[xillion]

Predict,

Have you emailed Feather? From what I've read here, they are very good at responding to quality control issues. Perhaps they could shed more light on the variance between razors or replace you razor.

I bought a Feather AS when they first came out and have been using it in my rotation since. It took a few tries to find the right angle but once I did it was smooth shaving. Hope you find another good one.

 

[bakerbarber]

I just used one for the first time today and was appalled.

I thought it might make me late for work.

Four passes and still stubble. I couldn't believe it.

I've never used a razor so mild before. It's like running a razor without a blade in it across my face.

Maybe they have different molds and some caps and guards get matched up wrong? It looks great, but I don't think after 100 passes it would take off enough stubble.

I'll give it a few more days and maybe try a Feather blade in it.

I was sure I would be able to find the sweet spot since I use a different razor a couple of times a week. Short of pressing on my face I just couldn't do it. The first pass literally just smeared the lather around. The thought of nicking myself never even crossed my mind.

It's been one of the most surprising and frustrating experiences since taking the DE plunge for sure.

 

[JeffOlson]

Here are two tricks to make your Feather AS-D1 more aggressive:

1. Use a fresh Feather blade, and

2. Add a shim or two (or three) beneath the cutting blade to open up the blade exposure. Currently, I am using two shims.

 

[mspk1111]

Here are two tricks to make your Feather AS-D1 more aggressive:

1. Use a fresh Feather blade, and

2. Add a shim or two (or three) beneath the cutting blade to open up the blade exposure. Currently, I am using two shims.

That is another thing I have noticed, shims are very popular with the feathers. I think this may be due to the issue phil is talking about. The one I have works extremely well and I usually like aggressive razors. Perhaps the shims trend is so big with the feathers because there is a certain percentage out there that for some reason or another is not able to get a give a good shave and you are essentially compensating for the error in manufacturing by the use of shims. Just my 2 cents, I could be completely wrong on this point.

 

[Predict]

That is another thing I have noticed, shims are very popular with the feathers. I think this may be due to the issue phil is talking about. The one I have works extremely well and I usually like aggressive razors. Perhaps the shims trend is so big with the feathers because there is a certain percentage out there that for some reason or another is not able to get a give a good shave and you are essentially compensating for the error in manufacturing by the use of shims. Just my 2 cents, I could be completely wrong on this point.

I think you are spot on. I will try shimming my razor to see if it delivers the same shave as my old one. Still, its just wrong to have to shim a $189 razor.

 

[jva59]

Are the shims mentioned above things one improvises at home, or something one can buy? I'm basically happy with my Feather shaves, but sometimes I would like just a little more exposure and don't trust myself to contrive good shims of such a tiny size.

 

[bastimret]

I agreed...till I shimmed it. Then I got the efficiency I had been craving with the super smooth cutting action that tis razor provides. Yea, it seems weird to have to shim such a fine razor, but to me it's well worth it as even with the shims I still have never used a razor that cuts as smoothly as this guy does.

 

[bastimret]

Are the shims mentioned above things one improvises at home, or something one can buy? I'm basically happy with my Feather shaves, but sometimes I would like just a little more exposure and don't trust myself to contrive good shims of such a tiny size.

Take a used blade and a sharp pair of scissors. Trim off the outer mm or two from both edges. Basically you just want to trim off enough of the blade to remove the sharp edge and properly expose the sharp edge of blade on top of it when they are stacked on top of each other.

 

[bakerbarber]

I was looking at the bottom plate on mine and it's obviously ground flat. I wonder if in trying to grind this flat they remove too much material. Which is why a shim works to improve the performance..

Something this expensive shouldn't need a modification to just work.

I'll try a shim but at this point I would rather not have to mess around with it. I shouldn't have to.

I've seen vintage shims in some sets here and there. Like specifically made to shim a blade. Maybe I can cut one out of a piece of scrap or a spare part.

Cutting old blades seems like a short term thing. An old cut blade will rust out and need replaced eventually.

What's a better option for a shim than cutting an old blade?