Struggling with Pearl Flexi

[Hobby Hoarder]

Bought the Flexi a few weeks ago and I'm really struggling with it. I keep daily shaving scores and I own 4 other razors - the Flexi really stands out with having mediocre to poor results, regardless of which soap or blade I use.

I've tried various settings between 3 and 1 and none were great. I tried riding the cap (which works really well with other razors), but no luck either. It feels that no matter what angle, it's pulling my hair instead of cutting it cleanly. I always end up with hot-red skin and really feel the burn with alum block.

Am I missing something or is Flexi just not for me? It's from the newer series, so it doesn't have the famous blade gap misalignment.

Thanks!

 

[BigJ]

Sorry!

I don’t own a Flexi, so take this with a grain of salt. For me, some razors just work better than others. Period!

My approach is to give a ‘new’ to me razor a fair trial with a variety of techniques, different blades and soaps. If the razor still does not deliver, then I move on to other razor options.

 

[AshleyC]

Well, what blades have you been trying? Your discription of it pulling your hair rather than cutting it suggests a blade issue rather than a razor issue. I used my Pearl Flexi last week on "4", I think. I used one of the Willys blades it comes with. Those blades experience some slight resistance on the first pass, so they fall within my "sharp enough" category of blade.

My sharpest blades--currently Personna Lab Blues and Sunekos--move across my face on the first pass with no sensation of pulling, drag, or resistance.

So I'd say try a sharper blade and a setting higher up on the dial than 1-3.

 

[DesertIguana]

Shane at Blackland do Utubetvcustomerservice about finding YOUR PERFECT ANGLE.

Play with the Razor more before giving up on it.

Might be the Pearl might be different then the other Razors in you tool box.

 

[fast shaver]

Bought the Flexi a few weeks ago and I'm really struggling with it. I keep daily shaving scores and I own 4 other razors - the Flexi really stands out with having mediocre to poor results, regardless of which soap or blade I use.

I've tried various settings between 3 and 1 and none were great. I tried riding the cap (which works really well with other razors), but no luck either. It feels that no matter what angle, it's pulling my hair instead of cutting it cleanly. I always end up with hot-red skin and really feel the burn with alum block.

Am I missing something or is Flexi just not for me? It's from the newer series, so it doesn't have the famous blade gap misalignment.

Thanks!

Pearl Razors are junk I threw mine out in the trash. Life is to short to be shaving with a crappy razor.

 

[Ranyart Finn]

I could get a decent shave with my Pearl Flexi, but I always found that I struggled with the weight of it. It's handle-heavy, which made it a struggle to use when shaving south to north or east/west - and those were the times where I'd nick myself. In the end, I put the Flexi away and went full-in on the Rex Ambassador, which is a bit more aggressive, but far better balanced, and so much nicer to shave with.

 

[Hobby Hoarder]

Well, what blades have you been trying? Your discription of it pulling your hair rather than cutting it suggests a blade issue rather than a razor issue. I used my Pearl Flexi last week on "4", I think. I used one of the Willys blades it comes with. Those blades experience some slight resistance on the first pass, so they fall within my "sharp enough" category of blade.

My sharpest blades--currently Personna Lab Blues and Sunekos--move across my face on the first pass with no sensation of pulling, drag, or resistance.

So I'd say try a sharper blade and a setting higher up on the dial than 1-3.

So far, I've tried Derby Extra, Personna Platinum and Tatra. Derby is my favorite so far and works really well with every other razor. I've only tried Tatra with Leaf Thorn before using it with Flexi, but results were way better with Thorn.

I've never tried going above 3 though. At this point, I'll give it a try, might be crazy enough to make a difference. I just assumed if it's terrible at 3, it'll be even worse going higher.

 

[Hobby Hoarder]

I could get a decent shave with my Pearl Flexi, but I always found that I struggled with the weight of it. It's handle-heavy, which made it a struggle to use when shaving south to north or east/west - and those were the times where I'd nick myself. In the end, I put the Flexi away and went full-in on the Rex Ambassador, which is a bit more aggressive, but far better balanced, and so much nicer to shave with.

I know it's very personal, but I actually don't mind the weight. It's the heaviest razor I own, but I never thought of it as too heavy. Maybe I'm not experienced with it enough to notice the issue you had with it though.

 

[Ranyart Finn]

I know it's very personal, but I actually don't mind the weight. It's the heaviest razor I own, but I never thought of it as too heavy. Maybe I'm not experienced with it enough to notice the issue you had with it though.

You're right - some people love heavy razors, and when I first started, I also thought that was the way to go too, but I discovered, through trying quite a few vintage razors, that I prefer lighter ones. I'd say now that the Ambassador is probably about the heaviest I'd be prepared to go - and even, it's very evenly balanced, which the Flexi certainly isn't. But that's part of the fun of the hobby; so much choice and fun to be had finding what works best.

 

[Hobby Hoarder]

Well, what blades have you been trying? Your discription of it pulling your hair rather than cutting it suggests a blade issue rather than a razor issue. I used my Pearl Flexi last week on "4", I think. I used one of the Willys blades it comes with. Those blades experience some slight resistance on the first pass, so they fall within my "sharp enough" category of blade.

My sharpest blades--currently Personna Lab Blues and Sunekos--move across my face on the first pass with no sensation of pulling, drag, or resistance.

So I'd say try a sharper blade and a setting higher up on the dial than 1-3.

Tried going with fresh new blade and max setting of 6 today and it was definitely different, but not necessarily better. Surprisingly, it didn't feel any more aggressive, even though the blade gap made me look twice. The cheeks were definitely smoother, but the neck area was worse off than before. It felt like it took off more skin and the alum block was quite harsh afterwards (7/10). The whole neck area was kinda weird - it was cutting much more smoothly, but every so often, it would catch on a hair very harshly, felt like it was cutting my skin off (even though there wasn't any bleeding afterwards).

I think I'm done with Flexi. I gave it plenty of tries, 4 different blades, tried every setting, used my best soaps and it's still barely tolerable. I just don't see the point anymore and I'll be putting it for sale today.

 

[Hobby Hoarder]

You're right - some people love heavy razors, and when I first started, I also thought that was the way to go too, but I discovered, through trying quite a few vintage razors, that I prefer lighter ones. I'd say now that the Ambassador is probably about the heaviest I'd be prepared to go - and even, it's very evenly balanced, which the Flexi certainly isn't. But that's part of the fun of the hobby; so much choice and fun to be had finding what works best.

I keep hearing good things about the Ambassador, but it's out of my budget right now.

I've tried Flexi again today, new blade and different setting, still no luck, so I'll be selling it off. I already have Merkur Progress on the way, hopefully that one works better. My goal is to have one razor from each category/design/type and sadly, Flexi just wasn't it for adjustable razor.

 

[BradWorld]

I had both the Flexi and the Flexi OC. Both gave me great shave results. I used Astra SP, Perma Sharp, and Wizamet blades mostly with those razors. And I ride them steep. I also tried all the settings, but settled on running them wide open most of the time. Even though the razors were providing great results, I found them to be unfulfilling and just really boring to use. Shaving for me is a zen-like experience in the morning that helps me get centered and ready for the day. Those razors were here at a time when I was shaving every other day, and did a good job at mowing down everything in their path. But the unrewarding shave experience was something I had a hard time quantifying, and I eventually sold them both to members that would better appreciate them. Great performing razors. But not a good overall fit for me.