Like said above.....been at this about 6 months.
For reference, what I've been using mostly is a '66 Eversharp Krona, a Razorock SLOC and a Fatip Piccolo SE using the Gentile plate.
I've been kind of lusting after a few razors the last couple months because that happens here; reading the reviews and having a shave guru buddy that raves on his led me to purchasing a Karve.
Actually wanted to start with the B plate just in case the C was too much, but WCS had the 3" with the C plate in stock, and I'm an impatient man, bought and figured I'd deal.
I like razors that are easy going for the most part.....the SLOC has never bled me, even being an OC. It's like it was built for noobs and I've loved it since the first time I finished shaving with it. It's not the closest shave but I can buff over however many times I want and it doesn't irritate me one bit. If for whatever reason I'm in a hurry and can't take the time, the SLOC is my grab. I've said it before and I'll say it again.....no matter the soap, no matter the blade, that thing is awesome and probably the best $20 I've ever spent. If you're thinking about an OC and aren't sure where to start, grab that.
The Fatip was more work to learn, but a better shave when you put the time in. I gave it about 3 weeks and got the angles down and it rewards me with at least a DFS every time, and will probably always have a place with me. It's built well, it's classy, it's tiny and maneuverable and I dig on it.
I won the '66 Krona here in a great PIF, and was somewhat leery...I'm a tech guy, I like the newest and best in tech, guitars, phones etc...but I figured a whole damn forum full of guys with collectively speaking thousands of years more experience than I have couldn't be wrong.
I'm glad I tried it....it's intuitive, it's light and friendly, and the angle for the best shave to me just PRESENTS itself right where it needs to be and just works. It's a testament to great design and I'm really glad I get to own one. If I'm going to take my time, half an hour or so with some good music and have the spare minutes, the Krona is what I use.
So then this showed up today:
I hurried thru my shower after work, grabbed some stuff and set out to test it.
I'll say this....as a noob, this thing has ONE angle. Just ONE. Stick to that and you're gold. Deviate from that and you're going to bleed. I have a scar on the right side of my face from a childhood car accident....most of the time, no issue, not even noticeable. This was all going well, I was pretty amazed at how much like the Krona it was acting, and then I changed my grip slightly and took it off that line. WHAM. It opened that scar up quick.
I honestly didn't even notice, was rinsing the head under the tap and looked in the mirror and saw a river of blood running down my face. I didn't feel it cut me, I never even noticed. My fault, not the razors' fault, but be aware.
Construction is beautiful...it's machined wonderfully, no weird angles or burrs, it's actually quite lovely, if one could say that about a razor.
2 pass BBS other than that cut. I'm pretty amazed here. I'm committing to using this for the rest of the month just to get the angle down. I'm thinking the C plate is not going to be a problem, the weeper/cut was my fault, not the gear, and once I get it down I could see this being my main for a long time.
I've seen a few threads where people said it worked well for them during the shave but that there was irritation afterwards, and I'm glad to say that's not the case here. It's been a couple hours, and my face feels great.
WCS had this for under $70 shipped with one plate, and I think it's worth it given the quality that was evident from opening the box and picking this thing up.
Thanks in general to this forum for the reviews and guidance, and thanks in particular to my shave guru @guitarslinger for being honest about this thing.
Hope this review helps anyone. Any questions, feel free to ask in here or PM if you're shy.
I'll be updating this thread with subsequent shaves with this razor, in case anyone is wondering how the two of us are getting along.
sotd:
For reference, what I've been using mostly is a '66 Eversharp Krona, a Razorock SLOC and a Fatip Piccolo SE using the Gentile plate.
I've been kind of lusting after a few razors the last couple months because that happens here; reading the reviews and having a shave guru buddy that raves on his led me to purchasing a Karve.
Actually wanted to start with the B plate just in case the C was too much, but WCS had the 3" with the C plate in stock, and I'm an impatient man, bought and figured I'd deal.
I like razors that are easy going for the most part.....the SLOC has never bled me, even being an OC. It's like it was built for noobs and I've loved it since the first time I finished shaving with it. It's not the closest shave but I can buff over however many times I want and it doesn't irritate me one bit. If for whatever reason I'm in a hurry and can't take the time, the SLOC is my grab. I've said it before and I'll say it again.....no matter the soap, no matter the blade, that thing is awesome and probably the best $20 I've ever spent. If you're thinking about an OC and aren't sure where to start, grab that.
The Fatip was more work to learn, but a better shave when you put the time in. I gave it about 3 weeks and got the angles down and it rewards me with at least a DFS every time, and will probably always have a place with me. It's built well, it's classy, it's tiny and maneuverable and I dig on it.
I won the '66 Krona here in a great PIF, and was somewhat leery...I'm a tech guy, I like the newest and best in tech, guitars, phones etc...but I figured a whole damn forum full of guys with collectively speaking thousands of years more experience than I have couldn't be wrong.
I'm glad I tried it....it's intuitive, it's light and friendly, and the angle for the best shave to me just PRESENTS itself right where it needs to be and just works. It's a testament to great design and I'm really glad I get to own one. If I'm going to take my time, half an hour or so with some good music and have the spare minutes, the Krona is what I use.
So then this showed up today:
I hurried thru my shower after work, grabbed some stuff and set out to test it.
I'll say this....as a noob, this thing has ONE angle. Just ONE. Stick to that and you're gold. Deviate from that and you're going to bleed. I have a scar on the right side of my face from a childhood car accident....most of the time, no issue, not even noticeable. This was all going well, I was pretty amazed at how much like the Krona it was acting, and then I changed my grip slightly and took it off that line. WHAM. It opened that scar up quick.
I honestly didn't even notice, was rinsing the head under the tap and looked in the mirror and saw a river of blood running down my face. I didn't feel it cut me, I never even noticed. My fault, not the razors' fault, but be aware.
Construction is beautiful...it's machined wonderfully, no weird angles or burrs, it's actually quite lovely, if one could say that about a razor.
2 pass BBS other than that cut. I'm pretty amazed here. I'm committing to using this for the rest of the month just to get the angle down. I'm thinking the C plate is not going to be a problem, the weeper/cut was my fault, not the gear, and once I get it down I could see this being my main for a long time.
I've seen a few threads where people said it worked well for them during the shave but that there was irritation afterwards, and I'm glad to say that's not the case here. It's been a couple hours, and my face feels great.
WCS had this for under $70 shipped with one plate, and I think it's worth it given the quality that was evident from opening the box and picking this thing up.
Thanks in general to this forum for the reviews and guidance, and thanks in particular to my shave guru @guitarslinger for being honest about this thing.
Hope this review helps anyone. Any questions, feel free to ask in here or PM if you're shy.
I'll be updating this thread with subsequent shaves with this razor, in case anyone is wondering how the two of us are getting along.
sotd: