I’ve been in the hospital since mid-January with what started as a diagnosis of something serious and subsequently something much more dire and life altering. However, after receiving excellent care and candidly working my heiny off in physical therapy the end is in sight and I’ve been given a discharge date of June 15th. While here out of practicality and physical limitations I had to give up using a DE razor and instead had briefly gone to the darkside and was shaving with a Philips OneBlade (much like the fourth generation Ford Taurus or Chrysler K-Car functional but neither inspired or fun to operate). With my impending departure from inpatient socialized healthcare nirvana I thought it would be nice to leave with a properly shaven face so went shopping.
My RAD has been in remission since early 2019 so didn’t feel too guilty with my impending cash therapy. Looked on ETSY and eBay and aside from the one listing for a $2500CAD Gillette Toggle (I’m still LOL’ing at that price) couldn’t find anything of a vintage nature to pique my interest so figured I’d check out new razors. First purchase was the Feather AS-D2 which has been on the to be acquired list for a while and admit there was some trepidation in spending $200+ on a razor, but what the hell it's only money; review coming shortly. Second purchase was the Parker Semi-Slant which after only a couple of shaves I am duly impressed.
Sourced from Amazon and since the hospital won’t accept patient packages it was delivered to a friend who’s been like my dutiful Cato in tending to my affairs on the outside and muling in critical items like clothing, Werthers candy and now shaving supplies. Packaging is standard Parker which is neither impressive or disappointing. Fit & finish of the razor is similar to that of the Variant meaning it appears to be well made with alignment and tolerances all looking to be spot on but will see how it stands up over time. It’s physical properties:
Model: 55SL (mine in the graphite finish, also available in rose gold & satin chrome)
Mechanism: Three Piece
Adjustable: No
Comb: Slant Safety Bar
Length - total (mm): 109.5
Length - handle (mm): 103.2
Handle diameter (mm): 11.9
Blade Overhang/Side* from top plate (mm): 2
Blade Overhang/Side* from bottom plate (mm): 1
Blade Gap (mm): tbd (ruler I have at the moment isn’t accurate enough)
Weight sans blade (g): 83.6 (per a scale in the hospital pharmacy, spending five months here I’ve made some useful friends)
Base Metal: Brass
*with a Feather blade
The finish on the handle is lighter than it comes across in the picture. It is more of a graphite grey as Parker suggests.
Given previous reviews describing the Semi-Slant as a mild razor I decided to pair it with a Feather blade and for the soap/cream went with Reuzel. As an aside it’s a fantastic product and I’m kind of surprised it's not in wider use; absolutely latherless with properties similar to Cremo but more effective beard softening and a wonderful scent. First pass of the first shave on a four day beard was with the grain and reasonably efficient and close. I’ll write off the odd missed patch to me being out of practice and not the fault of the razor or blade. Second pass was across the grain and a beautiful close shave with nary a single whisker left behind. Second shave the following day was a single pass with the grain and completely effortless.
At 83.6g/2.95oz I’d consider it a mid-weight but it is well balanced and the sweet spot for me to hold a razor is where I like it held about an inch from the head. The knurled handle provides good grip even with wet or weak hands. While very effective at clearing your beard it’s quite forgiving and never felt as though I was getting close to nicking myself. Cut stubble & the removed cream schmoo clears well under a moderate water stream.
It stacks up well against the other slant razors in my collection both in terms of build quality and performance. Comparing it to the Ikon X3 and Merkur 37C I’d consider the Parker less aggressive and to the Ikon 102 the Parker has slightly more bite. Of the four it’s the least expensive at $47CAD/$30USD (from the Amazon evil empire as of the time of writing). Based on my granted only limited use and only one type of blade I think it's a very decent razor and priced quite well.
Once home I will be interested to measure the camber of each razor’s head and see how that might play into their relative feel. Will also post how it handles with other blades. Quite curious how it will run with the Croma Diamant which I think is of a similar sharpness as Feather blades.
And a shout out to Alberta Health Services for providing a functional, albeit large, blade safe in my room.
Apologies for the lousy pics with the poo colored background, best that I could pull off with an older iPhone and mid-80's hospital decor
My RAD has been in remission since early 2019 so didn’t feel too guilty with my impending cash therapy. Looked on ETSY and eBay and aside from the one listing for a $2500CAD Gillette Toggle (I’m still LOL’ing at that price) couldn’t find anything of a vintage nature to pique my interest so figured I’d check out new razors. First purchase was the Feather AS-D2 which has been on the to be acquired list for a while and admit there was some trepidation in spending $200+ on a razor, but what the hell it's only money; review coming shortly. Second purchase was the Parker Semi-Slant which after only a couple of shaves I am duly impressed.
Sourced from Amazon and since the hospital won’t accept patient packages it was delivered to a friend who’s been like my dutiful Cato in tending to my affairs on the outside and muling in critical items like clothing, Werthers candy and now shaving supplies. Packaging is standard Parker which is neither impressive or disappointing. Fit & finish of the razor is similar to that of the Variant meaning it appears to be well made with alignment and tolerances all looking to be spot on but will see how it stands up over time. It’s physical properties:
Model: 55SL (mine in the graphite finish, also available in rose gold & satin chrome)
Mechanism: Three Piece
Adjustable: No
Comb: Slant Safety Bar
Length - total (mm): 109.5
Length - handle (mm): 103.2
Handle diameter (mm): 11.9
Blade Overhang/Side* from top plate (mm): 2
Blade Overhang/Side* from bottom plate (mm): 1
Blade Gap (mm): tbd (ruler I have at the moment isn’t accurate enough)
Weight sans blade (g): 83.6 (per a scale in the hospital pharmacy, spending five months here I’ve made some useful friends)
Base Metal: Brass
*with a Feather blade
The finish on the handle is lighter than it comes across in the picture. It is more of a graphite grey as Parker suggests.
Given previous reviews describing the Semi-Slant as a mild razor I decided to pair it with a Feather blade and for the soap/cream went with Reuzel. As an aside it’s a fantastic product and I’m kind of surprised it's not in wider use; absolutely latherless with properties similar to Cremo but more effective beard softening and a wonderful scent. First pass of the first shave on a four day beard was with the grain and reasonably efficient and close. I’ll write off the odd missed patch to me being out of practice and not the fault of the razor or blade. Second pass was across the grain and a beautiful close shave with nary a single whisker left behind. Second shave the following day was a single pass with the grain and completely effortless.
At 83.6g/2.95oz I’d consider it a mid-weight but it is well balanced and the sweet spot for me to hold a razor is where I like it held about an inch from the head. The knurled handle provides good grip even with wet or weak hands. While very effective at clearing your beard it’s quite forgiving and never felt as though I was getting close to nicking myself. Cut stubble & the removed cream schmoo clears well under a moderate water stream.
It stacks up well against the other slant razors in my collection both in terms of build quality and performance. Comparing it to the Ikon X3 and Merkur 37C I’d consider the Parker less aggressive and to the Ikon 102 the Parker has slightly more bite. Of the four it’s the least expensive at $47CAD/$30USD (from the Amazon evil empire as of the time of writing). Based on my granted only limited use and only one type of blade I think it's a very decent razor and priced quite well.
Once home I will be interested to measure the camber of each razor’s head and see how that might play into their relative feel. Will also post how it handles with other blades. Quite curious how it will run with the Croma Diamant which I think is of a similar sharpness as Feather blades.
And a shout out to Alberta Health Services for providing a functional, albeit large, blade safe in my room.
Apologies for the lousy pics with the poo colored background, best that I could pull off with an older iPhone and mid-80's hospital decor
