Try rubbing your hands on a moistened alum stone to improve your grip on the razor. It really works for me.A few comments, more or less on point I hope ...
- Even though OneBlade is the exclusive North American distributor for FHS-10 blades, they are not the only North American source. Maggard Razors has been selling FHS-10s for quite some time, and they have 1,264 boxes in stock as I write this. The last time I looked, Maggard's price was somewhat lower than OneBlade's.
- I have done the de-spined GEM thing many times in a V2 Genesis, where you must also clip the sides. (Instructions and video are here.) After a handful of unsuccessful trials, I seemed to have a quick and reliable routine down. On the upside, the GEMs do last many shaves and IMHO, the GEM PTFE blade can hold its own with any safety razor blade. On the downside, I noticed when loading that the de-spined GEM sometimes slips, overshoots the pins, or fails to seat evenly. "Overshoot" and "Auto-Slip" are not a very reassuring features in my book, so I have gone back to my stash of FHS-10s, which seat reliably IME.
- Forget the blade for a moment, and let's talk about the handle. I have trouble gripping it. This is partly due to age and health, and partly due to the incredibly slick soaps I have zeroed in on. I have attempted to solve this by applying Monster Grips to the handle. The jury is still out on this, but the limited results are positive. In case anyone in my situation wanders through this thread, I posted about it here.
- I encountered the OneBlade after having three heart surgeries, being put on blood thinners, and bleeding profusely. I immediately realized this was an opportunity to step up my technique, but I purchased a Genesis for some immediate relief while the technique building progressed. To OneBlade's credit, the Genesis helped a lot. I use the Genesis less often these days, but it is still an excellent tool when I want a quick and/or safe lower concentration shave. It is a solution with panache, although obviously an expensive one. I eventually ran across a video by IAMCDB where he explains that he ditched his OneBlade (for head shaving) after finding carts that work as well. If you are ever traveling this same stretch of highway as me, you may want to keep my excellent results and IAMCDB's video both in mind.
- IME OneBlade customer service is top-shelf. I got a big discount off the Genesis price for subscribing to the blades during the purchase. But after finding how much I liked the Genesis and discovering Maggard's, I stocked up on FHS-10s from them. I had no problem thereafter discontinuing my subscription - on short notice too and with zero hassle, just as promised. As long as we're discussing the ownership experience, it seems fair to mention the customer service too.
Oneblade's FHS-10, longer life ?
- Thread starter lancelot
- Start date
Try rubbing your hands on a moistened alum stone to improve your grip on the razor. It really works for me.
The Type O injector is pretty much fool proof for $35 or so new. Injector blades last quite a while too.
Thanks very much. I completely forgot about the alum option. I will probably keep using the Monster Grips for now, but when they fail ...
Just completed my 6th shave with the OneBlade loaded with the Feather FHS-10. I've been flipping the blade starting with the 4th shave. Six shaves is about all I can do with the Feather but I've palm stropped it and may try number 7 - if it is shot then I'll switch it out but numbest 6 resulted in a very good shave albeit that I shortened up my strokes when going ATG. Long strokes felt little "prickly"...LOL but no irritation or weepers.
This kind of practice really saddens me, because I think the OneBlade is a very good razor.
Getting locked to certain vendors and paying more for an already expensive and short lasting blade is sad.
Getting locked to certain vendors and paying more for an already expensive and short lasting blade is sad.
Because the company got greedy and tried to lock in customers and force them to pay a premium - I believe they lost a lot of business and credibility.
I don’t know if it is greed, per se... I think they are trying for long-term viability. They need a long term sustainable business model, which has to include replenishables. I fear the inexpensive blades most of us would like them to sell do not have the margin necessary to work.
I wonder who Oneblade's main customers are? We're a fussy opinionated bunch. And a small demographic I would think.
I think I read somewhere online that their target market primarily is cartridge users. With the way their razor design works, I think that probably is the right one for them. Ironically, with their choice of blade, due to its relatively high cost and relatively low useful life, in many cases the cartridges cost less per shave than OneBlade. I guess they need to focus on the shave being “superior” to cartridges as their unique selling proposition.
Having used the OneBlade Hybrid for the past couple of months I believe it really does provide an exceptional shaving experience, but that FHS-10 blade cost and longevity is a big deterrent to conversion (especially when coupled with the relatively high cost of the razors themselves versus alternatives), opening OneBlade up to future potential competitors who can offer similar performance for less.
As an aside, I have spoken to the OneBlade CEO over the phone, and I really do get the impression he is just an average joe type trying to make a fair buck in the direct-to-consumer personal care market with a small team of less than a handful of employees. That said, it is a tough space to survive in with a bunch of big players, and OneBlade occupies a very niche space that may prove tenuous in the long-run. I wish them well and love their product, but only time will tell its long-term viability based on the irreversible design choices they have made.
I sort of stumbled on this approach today, I used my postwar Tech first, wasn't happy with a couple of places, mainly my neck, and picked up my OneBlade to bat cleanup. Very pleased with the result and I'm guessing it will double the life of the OneBlade. Of course, there is the cost of the DE blades, but that's very little, at least incrementally (for the curious, it was a Nacet on the third or fourth shave today).
4 pages of complaining about the FHS-10, the alternative is an despined GEM SS PTFE coated, it fits and gives at least 10 good shaves for a fraction of the price. I am really done with Feather blades, if DE or SE, maximum of 3 good shaves and they are finished. For my VALET I will try the KAI BEST blades even when these are industrial blades. If they won't work I will convert my VALET to GEMs.
I have really enjoyed this thread and found it often times quite amusing to listen to the different opinions. All I can attest to is my experience with the One Blade. The Genesis razor just gives me a better shave, no nicks and over the past week of exclusive use my skin has recovered and is smoother than it has been in years. After that I went back to my best de razors and blades and after three days the problems started again. Back to the One Blade Genesis and my skin is good again. I get the best shave for me with two passes and an occasional cleanup of a trouble spot and I am done. I have never gotten past a three pass with my de razors. So for me if I get only two shaves, sometime three but mostly just two for 35 cents a shave it is worth it for me. With the best cartridge razors I would get 4 shaves and I would have to throw it out. So in the end it is not just about the cost of the blade it is about the whole experience and the end result that matters.
If you get a better shave with another razor and it has cheaper blades then good for you! But for some of us the One Blade Genesis has made shaving not just a chore anymore.
Just my non important 2 cents.
If you get a better shave with another razor and it has cheaper blades then good for you! But for some of us the One Blade Genesis has made shaving not just a chore anymore.
Just my non important 2 cents.
Sorry for my little english first to all.
I had OB hybrid just few days ago, and I had the same problem with Feather blades.
That´s what I`m doing....I use my GC 84 for my first pass, down my face, and second pass from neck to face I use OB. I had problems with other razors at my second pass so I leave my OB just for this and use more times the same Feather blade.
I had OB hybrid just few days ago, and I had the same problem with Feather blades.
That´s what I`m doing....I use my GC 84 for my first pass, down my face, and second pass from neck to face I use OB. I had problems with other razors at my second pass so I leave my OB just for this and use more times the same Feather blade.
I bought a OneBlade Core last January and liked it at first, but over time that feeling has waned. I find the first pass is unpleasant...it doesn't leave any irritation, but it doesn't feel very good either. And I end up doing a lot of cleanup with another razor.
I sold my genesis because although a good shaver never used it
Still have my cores just in case I screw up with an other razor they are great for recovery
I mostly shave with a broman pivot head and just half de blades somewhere in between core and genesis in experience
And from time to time I take a qshave futul to make sure I keep my technique up to par.
It is a shame the oneblade Genesis is a wonderfull razor but it would have been more wise to build a gem head instead or maybe best an injector head
Still have my cores just in case I screw up with an other razor they are great for recovery
I mostly shave with a broman pivot head and just half de blades somewhere in between core and genesis in experience
And from time to time I take a qshave futul to make sure I keep my technique up to par.
It is a shame the oneblade Genesis is a wonderfull razor but it would have been more wise to build a gem head instead or maybe best an injector head
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