Participation PIF - The Mysterious KAI Blades

[xiletero]

I have 2 more face shaves to report:
Kai 3 #4 nd 5
MDC soap
Muhle synthetic
Speick AS
AquaVelva 5-1 balm

4th was with a Gillette Slim on #5 (that is what I use or up to 7 w other blades) I got 2 weepers.... and moderate burning...; unlike Slanterino, I did not find the the perfect combo.

Today, well it might be the same day? like 22hrs later, Fatip Focs gold , it was very very smooth, but I got 3 weepers. Close, very good shave. The only blades I have had weepers: this, Feather (after 3 uses--then. I toss them), Gillette Super Thin Thailand....that one is criminal....all shaves I get weepers.... (the only Gillette from many I have tried).
Back to Kai, the feeling of the shave, this was the best mix Fatip FOCS Piccollo. I am done w this blade, or maybe I will save and try in a shavette.

All have a nice weekend.

 

[Demolition]

Ninth shave with the Mysterious Kai blade #2

Razor: Fatip Lo Storto Originale (aka FOCS)
Brush: Yaqi Blue Marble 26mm Timberwolf
Soap: RazoRock Black Label

The FOCS/Kai duo continues to provide smooth, comfortable shaves. My usual three passes were all trouble-free and effortless. Afterwards, there was no post-shave irritation, so no ASB was required.

The slight increase in blade-feel is still there, but has not gotten worse. This is the polar opposite of the first Kai blade which became so rough by its ninth use that I was barely able to finish my shave.

Meanwhile, the second blade has been remarkably consistent. With any luck, I'll get many more excellent shaves from it.

 

[Slanterino]

Shave #3

Razor: Gillette black beauty.
Brush: Omega boar because I use nothing else except boar.
Cream: Denim black (just like the first time with the 37C).

I think I can confidently say Kai works better with TTO razors, at least for me. Just like the slimmy, my black beauty gave me a BBS shave albeit with a tiny bit of drag which is probably because of the Denim cream. It just isn't as thick and creamy as Vicco. The shave with slimmy did feel a little better and smoother. I'm not sure if it's because of the razor or the cream. At this point I hazard a guess it was the Denim cream.

While shave #3 was BBS, I could also feel a tiny bit of stubble remaining below my chin and right side jawline. Just a small tiny microscopic bit. Nothing to shout about at all.

As far as the shave went, it was smooth and the blade performed well cutting through 2 days of growth efficiently. Post shave had no drama like burns, discomfort or redness. ATG on my moustache area, 70% of a blade's overall performance factor would come from this, was smooth and efficient just like everywhere else. There wasn't any blood, tugging or pulling. If a blade can't go ATG on my moustache area smoothly, it's not a good blade. This is non-negotiable for me for any blade.

After 3 shaves with this Kai blade, I do not feel this is a super crazy aggressive blade like some reviews on the internet said. While it was great with my Gillette TTO razors, at no point did I feel the need exercise caution to get BBS. I've used blades that are far scarier than this. Kai when paired with my vintage TTO is, in my opinion, practically idiot proof.

Would I buy 100 then? Probably not. At $45 for 100 on ebay, the price is just insanely high. I can't bring myself to spend so much on blades when there are other cheaper ones that would perform the same.

 

[borwish]

SHAVE NO. 6
5 days growth

Preshave: Warm shower with Palmolive bath bar
Razor: SLOC
Blade: Kai
Soap: Stirling Sharp Dressed Man
Brush: Stirling Pro Handle Synthetic
After: Stirling Intrepid Man splash

A sudden change meant I was unable to shave as intended. I finally got a chance a few minutes ago with 5 days growth. 5 days growth usually means that a disposable is tossed or a cart needs to be unclogged two or three times. The SLOC seemed to be the razor for the job.

There was a little tugging at the densest part which is my mustache area (expected given the growth), but everything else went smoothly. 2 1/2 passes and I'm back to the closeness and smoothness of the first three shaves. BBS except at my sensitive area from chin to Adam's apple. These blades definitely give me the closest shave there yet in the SLOC or KCG. No blood, no irritation, no drama.

I was getting a little tired of the same old same old, so I switched the splash to Stirling Intrepid Man. I mainly use SDM because it's the wife's favorite.

 

[Weean]

Mysterious Kai Blade 2, edge 1. FrankenDOC; Art of Shaving Lavender soap; homemade boar brush (24mm).

I'm back, and loaded up my FrankenDOC, which is a YaQi DOC cap with a Vigshaving combination base (on the OC side, duh), all on a Razorock bamboo SS handle. Generally it gives me a nice smooth shave without being inefficient, so I wanted to see what it would do with the Mysterious Kai.

Generally it gave me a smooth shave without being inefficient. It did give me a nick on the final pass of my chin which required the styptic, a pretty rare occasion for me.

It's a poor workman who blames their tools, but a good workman also ensures they're familiar with what they're using. It's been a good while since I used FrankenDOC, and I don't really have it dialled-in again yet. I was also hampered by the fact that this brush is such a hog, and I didn't leave myself enough lather for the second pass. No-ones fault but mine.

It doesn't change my opinion of the blade. I note less irritation than on some occasions - possibly because I ran the alum all over my face today??

 

[fast shaver]

Kai Blade #4 Shave #2
Another nice shave & the Kai is doing great. No nicks or irritation noted.

Weapons used: Merkur Futur Razor & Arko soap.
First pass was on setting #4 next two passes on setting #3 XTG passes on setting #2.

 

[Tanuki]

Evening shave, Kai (8) rides in on a slantified/wantonly destroyed fat handle Tech to put the finishing touches on the shave.

For me Techs in general, even slantified, need more oompf. I had previously turbocharged this razor with a bottom shim. The Kai adds the oompf with ease. After the 8th use I was thinking it would be time to move to the second Kai, but the results were just too good to toss the blade.

 

[Demolition]

Tenth shave with the Mysterious Kai blade #2

Razor: Fatip Lo Storto Originale (aka FOCS)
Brush: Fine Stout 24mm Angel Hair
Soap: RazoRock Green Label

A top-notch shave!

The FOCS/Kai pairing was excellent, once again. In fact, this was one of those quintessential autopilot shaves where you suddenly "wake up" and realize that you've unconsciously performed three absolutely effortless passes. The only things left to do were to rinse my face and put everything away!

Meanwhile, the increased blade-feel from the last few days is much less obvious now. This is the opposite of what I experienced with the first blade. In that case, the blade went from remarkably smooth to broken-bottle jaggedness in the span of two or three shaves.

On the other hand, the current blade has felt pretty much the same since the first use. Consistency and predictability, thy name is Kai!

 

[Weean]

Mysterious Kai Blade 2, edge 1, shave 2. FrankenDOC; Stirling Frankincense & Myrrh; Franks Shaving 20mm best badger.

Due to an 'external' meeting today I'm having my first 24hr shave with the Mysterious Kai. Only since it was Sunday yesterday it's more like a 20hr shave. There was precious little stubble to take off, and given its assertive nature, I was worried about ending up with a face more flayed than shaved.

Subsequently I took a lot of care with this shave, and was rewarded with an excellent shave with no irritation, nicks or weepers. The Kai's mysterious magic seems to be in reminding you to take your time, something that really ought to be done for every shave.

 

[fast shaver]

Kai Blade #4 Shave #3
Got a nice close shave this A.M. The Kai is holding up good so far.
No nicks or irritation noted.

Weapons used: Merkur Futur Razor & Stirling Sheep soap.

 

[JWK1]

Blade #1, Shave #7

I decided to depart from plate C on my Karve since the initial sharpness of the blade has definitely waned. I changed to an E plate and proceeded as usual. For the record, I have never tried to get 7 shaves out of a DE blade before this.

Surprisingly, I ended up with a very nice, close shave. There was some irritation on my neck, and a very slight feeling of rawness by the end of the day, but that has completely gone as of this morning. As usual, I gave it 24 hours before giving my report here so that I would know how the shave *really* turned out. The neck irritation was my fault. I tried changing the sequential order of my passes on my neck and it didn't work. I need to be able to shave ATG on my neck, otherwise I end up with very sharp whiskers that are extremely irritating. I think this is due to some of them growing out very flat against my skin. Regardless of exact cause, I have to be able to shave ATG on my neck for at least one light pass. If a blade isn't sharp enough to handle that, it has to go.

I did notice that I have to steepen up the angle a bit. I got that little piece of advice from Esox, who told me once that he steepens up the angle on his GEM blades once he gets past a certain amount of shaves. I'm usually a cap riding kind of shaver, but this worked like a charm. I noticed that I had to change the angle, depending on where I was shaving, so the decision to go with the E plate turned out to be good.

I will go back to my exact shaving method, with the exception of angle adjustment, and see if I can continue to get this kind of shave without the neck irritation for shave #8. If I can squeeze 10 or more quality shaves out of Kai blades, they are no longer expensive. We shall see.

 

[JAHE]

BLADE 1 - SHAVE 1

Finally, the adventure has started...

My first shave with the mysterious Kai was close and effortless, almost BBS after three passes. I noticed the different (more pronounced but not bitey) blade feel almost immediately, even in the first strokes... on a R89 head...
I mean, what might happen if this blade is going to be paired with a R41...

The upcoming shaves in course of March will provide a better insight, but it looks like a lot of fun for me...

 

[BGO37]

Blade 3
Shave 1 & 2

I came back to the KAI after some time away.

This blade was just like the first one. It was smooth and sharp. I had a 2 day beard growing so there was some pulling there but that was to be expected. The blade gave me a great 2+ pass shave. It took down the beard and then gave me a good buff.

Overall, this blade met my expectations that the KAI has set. Blade 2 was a dud and it happens.

9/10 would definitely recommend.

 

[woodwzrd]

Blade 1 Shave 9

Pre Shave: Hot shower
Razor: WCS Toothsome head
Blade: Kai (9)
Brush: Maggard Synthetic
Soap: Stirling Executive Man
AS Balm: Nivea
AS: Stirling Executive Man
Beard Oil: Stirling Executive Man
EDT: Stirling Executive Man

No change in setup from the last shave and it was still another good shave. I had just a little tugging in one area on my neck and had a couple of little weepers as a result. There is no uncomfortable irrigation or anything so even though my initial thought after this morning was to pitch it and move on I may just give it one more go. I am not a glutton for punishment but I think there might be one more in this blade to just push it into a double digit blade. I'll make the final after my skin has had 12 hours to fully react.

 

[Mike M]

Blade#1 shave#1

Finally started using the Kai blade. The Parker 26C is my go to razor for trying new blades, not too aggressive for a sharp blade and not too mild to get the best from a mild blade. Soap wise I started with Fine Lavender Pour Homme, one of my favourite recent acquisitions, slick and protective.
First impression of the blade from the very first stroke is it's as sharp as a Feather but with a smoothness Feathers can only dream of. During the first pass I found I had to adjust the angle until it was quite steep to get the best performance and It gave quite a bit of audio feedback in a razor that is not known for audio feedback. Very impressive overall performance, the shave was very close but I found a little irritation on my neck and even a little blood which I ran over with the alum. Finished with a spray of witch hazel and Nivea after shave Balm.
Even so I am really impressed with my first shave and I'm sure the irritation can be countered with better technique.
Looking forward to shave number 2.

 

[HarleyDChevrolet]

So fellas, sorry for my lack of contribution to the cause but as you may have heard, we've been a little busy down here in Texas. 14⁰ temperatures are not something we are equipped to deal with down here on the gulf coast.

As of today I'm back in the game so I went for broke and put a fresh KAI in my mildest razor, a 6S, but decided to put it to the test and try the R6 plate even though I know the sweet spot for me is usually R3 or R4. I used the usual hot shower prep and Sterling soap for continuity aaaaand, still no drama. BBS with no blood, rash or aftershave burn. Zip. Zero. Nada. At the next blade change I'll put my Gillette adjustables in the rotation to see how they respond.

So far, my less than professional assessment is that these blades are as sharp as Feathers but much longer lasting. If I try and stretch a Feather into a third shave it usually gets pitched after the first pass, not so these KAI's.

Meteor metal. Yep, that has to be it...

 

[Beefdrippings]

Congrats on the quality shave experience, but more importantly here’s hoping things are headed in the right direction for you and your fellow Texans.

So fellas, sorry for my lack of contribution to the cause but as you may have heard, we've been a little busy down here in Texas. 14⁰ temperatures are not something we are equipped to deal with down here on the gulf coast.

As of today I'm back in the game so I went for broke and put a fresh KAI in my mildest razor, a 6S, but decided to put it to the test and try the R6 plate even though I know the sweet spot for me is usually R3 or R4. I used the usual hot shower prep and Sterling soap for continuity aaaaand, still no drama. BBS with no blood, rash or aftershave burn. Zip. Zero. Nada. At the next blade change I'll put my Gillette adjustables in the rotation to see how they respond.

So far, my less than professional assessment is that these blades are as sharp as Feathers but much longer lasting. If I try and stretch a Feather into a third shave it usually gets pitched after the first pass, not so these KAI's.

Meteor metal. Yep, that has to be it...

 

[HarleyDChevrolet]

Congrats on the quality shave experience, but more importantly here’s hoping things are headed in the right direction for you and your fellow Texans.

Thanks for the kind words. We are are a resilient bunch here in The Republic. I was lucky in that here in extreme east Texas our power grid is not controlled by ERCOT and we never lost power, our issue was loss of water pressure from broken pipes throughout the city. I did OK, 5 minutes with a hair dryer and we had water.

 

[Ted A]

Mysterious Kai blade 1, shave 20

Razor: King C Gillette.
Brush: Ever Ready 500 badger & boar mix. Kind of worn out but still makes nice lather
Lather: Fine Lavender por homme
Badger pre-shave oil

The blade was really dragging across my face. I figured it had reached the end of the line. But there was nothing at all from the alum block. So I’m thinkiNg that maybe the dragging was because of the pre-shave oil. And now that I think of it I think I’ve had this problem with this oil before. So tomorrow the blade gets another chance but without the oil. Maybe some Proraso pre-shave though

 

[Chard52142]

Tue 2nd SOTD Blade#2 Shave#1
Soap B&M Cheshire
Brush Yaqi 24mm Heavy Metal Tuxedo
Razor Pearl Flexi Adjustable V1
Blade KAI 1st
Post & Aftershaves Ice Water + Thayers + Hyaluronic + Clubman Brandy Spice
Reused previous-day lather. It was dried-up but with some added water, wow! From dried-up back to a nice creamy and slick lather. The scent remains consistent...very nice!!!
Shave with razor paired with the blade was good. Really heavy razor and just a very minor imbalance for both sides of blade exposure. At setting 4-4-3 it was smooth and comfortable for 3passes for a mostly bbs result but 1 micro weeper.
Excellent aftershaves. Rating 9.5/10. So far, this blade is not as impressive for me for the price point.