Pearl SBF-11 TTO OC razor review

[gvw755]

When I first got into DE shaving after spending most of my time with straights, I started with two TTO, a Feather Popular and my birth year SS. As I started getting better, I started to look at OC razors and saw where Cadet had a TTO OC razor. By the time I decided to get one of those, all the major places that sold them were not selling them anymore, so I just forgot about it. Just recently I found out that the Pearl version of it was available and got my hands on that.

It arrived in yesterday's mail and I had a chance to shave with it tonight. First off, this razor will never be mistaken for a Gillette Black Handle Sheraton. There was a large head joint and the TTO worked by turning the entire handle. Next, the comb was thick and flat and did not have as much teeth as the regular Pearl OC razor (or any other three piece OC razor). When I loaded the blade, I saw significant blade exposure and noticed that the door area closest to the blade was not domed, but was convex. The razor had good weight to it and so I lathered up and started my shave.

First pass was WTG and I immediately noticed that the shave was closer to it's OC roots than it's TTO roots. It was definitely aggressvie, but more like a Gillette Old rather than a Muhle R41. I used that convex angle the head gave me and came out with a pretty smooth, comfortable, and efficient shave. I actually could have stopped there as it was close to a DFS, however I decided to do an ATG pass. Once again, the shave was smooth and efficient. I stopped without even a touch up pass. I was very impressed with the shave and the razor and it has definitely earned a spot in my rotation.

I have no idea how this razor compares to a Gillette Sheraton since I don't own one of those (remember I am extremely cheap), but I was definitely impressed and maybe this WILL be my Black Handle Sheraton after all.

 

[imatabor]

Nice read. I'm surprised that you said it was as aggressive as you said,I thought I read that it is much milder than a Sheraton.

 

[TobyC]

I know nothing about the Pearl TTO razors, strange looking critter.

 

[Lightcs1776]

Nice looking razor. F
Glad you're enjoying it.

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

 

[imatabor]

Found this older thread on the Cadet oc tto. I guess I was wrong about the mild part:

So today I came home from work and had a little package from shaveabuck.com... it was the new TTO OC... so I immediately went to the bathroom to shave because i've been growing out for 3 days now in anticipation for this shave (imma shave nerd) and my face felt too hairy..

I decided to put it against the gillette senator as they are similar and would shave the senator (which i find very mild but can get bbs with some work) on the left side of my face and the cadet on the right side of my face.

So here's the setup:

Head to head cadet OC TTO against a user gillette senator (another chrome OC TTO) both with personna blue blades, a rubberset 3 aluminum brush, japanese soup bowl, and Crabtree and evelyn nomad. Finished with alum block, 4711 aftershave, and 444 post shave balm


image by Heespharm, on Flickr


image by Heespharm, on Flickr

Appearance: this razor is not going to win any beauty awards. The head is not very round and the teeth are thick and long combed... like buck-teeth thick. The handle looks like double bulb connected to a barber pole stick.. Also they don't cover the full shave bar. The handle has spiral grooves which grip pretty nicely to my fingers and can feel them engaging with my fingerprints... so all in all very grippy. It feels made of cheap tin covered in a thin layer of chrome finish... that being said I would consider it about the same quality finish of the 30 dollar merkur razors... Blade exposure is much higher on the cadet than the senator


image by Heespharm, shows buckteeth


image by Heespharm, on Flickr



image by Heespharm, EDIT: forgot profile shot

Use: the tto is very smooth and operates somewhat differently from the senator. The senator only the bottom knob turns in the cadet oc tto the whole handle turns to open the bay doors... the cadet weighs in at 72.4grams and the senator at 53.3grams and compared that to my mergress which weighs 103.3g it's feels light in the hand and is a bit on the head heavy side.

Aggressiveness: Seems to me that it's a more aggressive than the senator and gillette new oc but not as aggressive as my fatip chrome grande... maybe dialed in on a merkur progress of 3-3.5 would be similar... You can really hear the hair getting shaved because its not a solid metal razor


image by Heespharm, shows blade exposure

So how did the shave turn out: I had to do less clean up passes with the cadet than with the senator... and i had one nick and that was from the senator NOT the cadet... both sides were BBS with the cadet side being a little smoother than the senator side

Verdict: Although the cadet has cheap looks and sounds cheap as it shaves, it does its job well and admirably... Given the choice of shaving with a senator OR a cadet, I would pick the cadet over the senator. If you don't like really aggressive razors (like the fatip) or don't care if the razor looks ugly, this razor might be your bread and butter...

For 30 bucks? i would give it two thumbs up...It's a nice starter into the world of OC razors... but would i put down my Mergress, aristocrat, or micromatic OC for this razor?? probably not unless I was looking for some strange!

 

[BSAGuy]

Thanks for the review.

 

[Double_Edgez]

When I first got into DE shaving after spending most of my time with straights, I started with two TTO, a Feather Popular and my birth year SS. As I started getting better, I started to look at OC razors and saw where Cadet had a TTO OC razor. By the time I decided to get one of those, all the major places that sold them were not selling them anymore, so I just forgot about it. Just recently I found out that the Pearl version of it was available and got my hands on that.

It arrived in yesterday's mail and I had a chance to shave with it tonight. First off, this razor will never be mistaken for a Gillette Black Handle Sheraton. There was a large head joint and the TTO worked by turning the entire handle. Next, the comb was thick and flat and did not have as much teeth as the regular Pearl OC razor (or any other three piece OC razor). When I loaded the blade, I saw significant blade exposure and noticed that the door area closest to the blade was not domed, but was convex. The razor had good weight to it and so I lathered up and started my shave.

First pass was WTG and I immediately noticed that the shave was closer to it's OC roots than it's TTO roots. It was definitely aggressvie, but more like a Gillette Old rather than a Muhle R41. I used that convex angle the head gave me and came out with a pretty smooth, comfortable, and efficient shave. I actually could have stopped there as it was close to a DFS, however I decided to do an ATG pass. Once again, the shave was smooth and efficient. I stopped without even a touch up pass. I was very impressed with the shave and the razor and it has definitely earned a spot in my rotation.

I have no idea how this razor compares to a Gillette Sheraton since I don't own one of those (remember I am extremely cheap), but I was definitely impressed and maybe this WILL be my Black Handle Sheraton after all.

View attachment 783170 View attachment 783171 View attachment 783172

I have one of these with a different colour handle, everything you described is spot on, lol im amazed i see a thread on this as i wake-up, i will use mine in a short while, im in the UK just got for work (early shift) i loaded mine up yesterday night with a Supermax blue diamond blade, i thought i never used it in a while give it a spin. Hope you enjoy yours mate, have many great shaves with it.

 

[gvw755]

Found this older thread on the Cadet oc tto. I guess I was wrong about the mild part:

I think that was the same review I read that got me interested in it in the first place. Then when you posted your thread about looking for a Cadet OC three piece, that started a chain of events that ended up with me getting this razor.

 

[emwolf]

Thanks for the review I've been debating whether to get one or not

 

[Jacquers]

I have one, but with the gold colored handle. It has loud audible feedback, aggressive and a tiny bit of blade chatter on the one I have.

 

[gvw755]

I have one, but with the gold colored handle. It has loud audible feedback, aggressive and a tiny bit of blade chatter on the one I have.

I did not know they came in gold. I know of the silver and the black ones. Yes, I do recall the blade chatter on the first pass. I think it is because when tightened down, the blade is still relatively flat. that and the very large blade exposure. Still, it works.

 

[ttalkington]

Where are you guys purchasing these? I didn't know they where still made.

 

[imatabor]

Where are you guys purchasing these? I didn't know they where still made.

I don't know where the members above got theirs but a member here has an ebay store:
Pearl SBF-12 Twist To Open/Open Comb Double Edge Razor | eBay

 

[BigJ]

Terrific review of an interesting looking razor! Thanks.

 

[Jacquers]

I did not know they came in gold. I know of the silver and the black ones. Yes, I do recall the blade chatter on the first pass. I think it is because when tightened down, the blade is still relatively flat. that and the very large blade exposure. Still, it works.

Yeah, it's actually a decent razor. I bought mine from a local (SA) vendor who sells them. I'm actually busy trying to sell mine, but only because it's more aggressive than my taste and I prefer vintage.

 

[Slapo]

Must... resist... urge...

 

[Techichi]

I don't find the razor that aggressive. I feel it's around medium high.

These can actually be made in any of the Pearl SBF TTO model configurations.

 

[KeenDogg]

Great review! Makes me want another razor!

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk

 

[emwolf]

I got mine yesterday and it did not disappoint. Very smooth and efficient, some great sound coming from it. nearly BBS with the most delicate touch. it's a winner and at $25 very much worth every penny.

 

[Slapo]

I have gone for this one. Pretty happy I have, too. Had my eyes on it since before this review was posted.

On mine, I can:
- adjust the blade, so it's mild, 'normal' and aggressive, as there is a bit of room between the top doors and the plates that help keep the blade rigid.
- thank to the room mentioned above, I can shim it

Also:
- only shaved with it once, but it was a nice enough shave... need more
- looks pretty neat
- handle is sufficiently grippy
- blade overhang is slightly annoying, but I'm fine with it as it allows for adjustability