What's new

JL 52’s 2025 Shave Log - (Recovering From Severe Case of RAD)

JL 52

JL 52

2024 for was a record RAD year for me, which included a few higher end purchases that I surprised even myself with. I decided that I had picked up enough razors to pump the brakes on new purchases for 2025 and to instead focus on rotating through and enjoying my current collection, and I figured I’d start this thread to review and compare the razors in my den as I revisit them throughout 2025.

To start the year, my baseline daily driver is going to be the Ti Blackbird and then I’ll haphazardly cycle through my other razors as curiosity strikes me. So far the Ti Blackbird gives me the best combination of shave closeness while also leaving me with zero post shave irritation, and I think my skin will thank me for prioritizing this razor in particular for the upcoming year.

For additional context, I’m black with thick curly hair and I use all of my DE razors solely for head shaves. All of my razor opinions are based on my head shaves.

Current Collection:

Higher Ends -

Ti Blackland Blackbird (standard and lite plate)
SS Blackland Osprey
Bronze Wolfman Guerrilla (.84SB and .69DC)
Bronze Lambda Athena

Mid Tier -

RazoRock Game Changer (.68OC, .76SB, .84SB)
RazoRock SLOC
King C Gillette

Aluminum -

RazoRock Lupo Al
Timeless Al
RazoRock Cyber Razor Medium
ATT Windsor Pro SB90 Al
Colonial CR7 (1-3 base plates)

Vintage -

Merkur Progress
Gillette Fatboy
Gillette New Long Comb
Schick Krona

Previously Owned -

RazoRock Lupo (.58SB, .72SB, .72OC, .95SB)
Rockwell 6C
Gillette Tech Aluminum
RazoRock Hawk V2
Parker SoloEdge
 
Last edited:
JL 52

JL 52

Entry #1 - 1/1/2025

First shave of 2025 went to the RazoRock Cyber Razor Medium and a second use Gillette 7 O’Clock Black blade. Overall it’s a very solid razor but I’ve got mixed feelings about it. The Cyber Medium is respectably efficient and feels like a safe autopilot option, but I just don’t enjoy using it that much. It’s very light but with the larger head it doesn’t feel all that maneuverable. The biggest issue I have with it is the suction effect that happens due to the flat face of the razor; this is easy enough to work around but it’s still annoying. I never got around to trying a Henson razor because I figured I’d find the fixed angle design boring to use, and unfortunately the Cyber razor is in line with what I was expecting with the Henson.

That said, my ending shave results were decent. No cuts, no nicks, and minimal irritation.

Not my favorite razor but I don’t regret it at all, especially for the $40 it cost. The aluminum super knurl handle it came with is a huge bonus as well; it pairs very well with one of my favorite razors, the Lupo Al.
 

Attachments

  • IMG_8198.jpeg
    IMG_8198.jpeg
    838.4 KB · Views: 12
JL 52

JL 52

I appreciate all of the responses fellas! Starting a journal seemed like a good way to organize my thoughts/opinions and hopefully it'll help anyone who was on the fence about trying one of the razors I have. It'll also help keep me honest to make sure I'm actually cycling through each of them this year.

I already a few true side-by-side comparisons planned for the coming weeks:
Guerrilla .84 vs. Game Changer .84
Merkur Progress vs. Gillette Fatboy
Gillette NEW Long Comb vs. Game Changer .68OC
Open to suggestions as well.
 
JL 52

JL 52

Planning to return to my 2025 baseline razor, the Blackbird Ti for the my second shave of the year later today. The success I have with this razor has helped me further zero in on the type of razor that I think works best for me, higher efficiency and lighter weight. I think I unknowingly stumbled into conclusion through trial and error this past year before the Blackbird Ti.

At least medium to high efficiency feels like a requirement for me as I aim to be done shaving after two passes. Needing to buff or add more passes is frustrating and also increases risk of irritation for me. I moved onto the RazoRock Game Changer .84 from the King C Gillette and Rockwell 6C earlier last year and the extra efficiency is what made that razor such a night and day difference for me. Despite how much I loved the GC .84, I did struggle with irritation when I tried to use it on back to back days. I stumbled into two solutions; one was pairing it with a lighter titanium handle and other was alternating my shaves with the less aggressive .76 version.

On the lighter end of the spectrum, I also had success with the RazoRock Lupo Al early this past year. Until the Blackbird Ti, the Lupo Al was the only razor that left me consistently with ZERO irritation. My sole complaint with the Lupo Al is that it would often struggle to move through my hairs on the first pass due to its light weight. My solution here was to pair it with a sharper blade and to simply not use it when I had too many days of growth.

Long story short, I prefer more efficient razors and then my scalp prefers for them to be lighter.

I don’t have the same lighter weight requirement for adjustables because I can have the all the efficiency I what on the first pass and then I can dial it back on my second pass to minimize irritation. I can also use on a less aggressive setting out the gate if I shave on back-to-back days.

I added two more aluminum razors to my collection right before the end of 2024 that I still need to experiment with; the ATT Windsor Pro SB90 Al and the Colonial CR7 (purchased based on reviews from @LRod and @gdawg55). Aside from adjustables, I see myself gravitating towards aluminum and titanium razors going forward now that I’m realizing how little irritation they cause me.

The Bronze Guerrilla and Lambda Athena are going to be the heaviest razors I use this year, and I won’t swap out the handles for these specific razors. I’ll likely save both of these options for when I have a few days of growth built up.
 
JL 52

JL 52

Entry #3 - 1/5/2025

Had my first shave with the ATT Windsor Pro Aluminum SB90 and was pleasantly surprised. I’ll need to do a true side-by-side comparison but it felt to be a tiny bit more efficient than my Lupo Al. There was noticeable blade feel as well, but the light weight made it feel manageable and non-threatening. I suspect the light weight will cause it to struggle with multiple days of growth but it’s excellent for a quick 1 day shave.
 

Attachments

  • IMG_8223.jpeg
    IMG_8223.jpeg
    879.3 KB · Views: 5
JL 52

JL 52

Entry #4 - 1/6/2025

Returned to the Ti Blackbird to tackle ~24 hours of growth. I opted for the lite plate this go around and was actually disappointed. The lite plate is a bit more comfortable than the standard plate as there’s noticeably less blade feel, but the drop in efficiency was too much for my preference. I’ve had some other mild razors that frustratingly seemed to skip over entire areas and that thankfully wasn’t the case with the lite plate. It didn’t miss a single hair on my first pass but still chopped each of them a bit longer than I like.
I switched back to the standard plate for my second pass and all was good from there. I think my only use case for the lite plate is for when I’m dead tired or in a rush. I ordered the lite along with the standard plate expecting that I’d want to give my skin a break from the standard plate from time to time, but so far that just hasn’t been necessary.

Additionally, the Ti Blackbird has been the first DE razor that I’ve trusted enough to try shaving my lower neck area with. It’s my most sensitive area and I’ve been exclusively using shavettes there to help prevent irritation and ingrowns. I’ll know for sure in a few days if I escaped without irritation, but so far the Ti Blackbird might end up saving me a ton of time as well.
 
JL 52

JL 52

No shave today but the postman dropped off some goodies for me today.

First was the Colonial CR7 full plate set. I had ordered this one just before the end of the year and I’m excited to see how it stacks up to the other aluminum razors I have. @LRod and @gdawg55 highly recommended this razor as one of the top aluminums out there and it could end up seeing a lot of use this year as I’m realizing how much my skin seems to like lighter razors.

Second package was none other than the Bronze Blackbird! I broke my “no new razors for 2025” rule just three days into the year when I realized the Workshop Batch 001 wasn’t quite sold out yet. I wasn’t in the market for another high-end razor but I’d had so much success with the Ti Blackbird that I didn’t want to miss out on this one. More to come…
 

Attachments

  • IMG_8230.jpeg
    IMG_8230.jpeg
    1.2 MB · Views: 25
  • IMG_8229.jpeg
    IMG_8229.jpeg
    901.5 KB · Views: 24
LRod

LRod

JL 52 said:
No shave today but the postman dropped off some goodies for me today.

First was the Colonial CR7 full plate set. I had ordered this one just before the end of the year and I’m excited to see how it stacks up to the other aluminum razors I have. @LRod and @gdawg55 highly recommended this razor as one of the top aluminums out there and it could end up seeing a lot of use this year as I’m realizing how much my skin seems to like lighter razors.

Second package was none other than the Bronze Blackbird! I broke my “no new razors for 2025” rule just three days into the year when I realized the Workshop Batch 001 wasn’t quite sold out yet. I wasn’t in the market for another high-end razor but I’d had so much success with the Ti Blackbird that I didn’t want to miss out on this one. More to come…
Click to expand...
Beautiful, congratulations!
You'll love them both!!
And I'm never in the market,
the market pulls me into it! 😅
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Beshave Yourself
Tatara Nodachi Open Comb Razor
Replies
16
Views
3K
LRod
LRod
No1Up
Henson Ti22++ VS Ti BlackBird (my opinion)
Replies
7
Views
4K
gdawg55
gdawg55
Guido75
Razor wars - Greencult 1.0 SB versus Greencult 2.II SB
2
Replies
27
Views
3K
never-stop-learning
never-stop-learning
Guido75
Razor wars - DSCosmetics Poleaxe / AX versus Gillette Red Tip
Replies
6
Views
3K
Guido75
Guido75
RvL
A beginners journal from someone who hated shaving
3 4 5
Replies
98
Views
9K
RvL
RvL
Top Bottom