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The Drakkant by Aylsworth Razors.

Just a quick post from a new razor maker. The razor is called the Drakkant from Aylsworth Razors being produced by Yates Manufacturing. This one here is a pre production model and is about as close to the actual units that will be available some time in May of this year. I signed up for a pass around on another forum just to give it a go and see how it stacks up to some of today's razor offerings in the higher end market.

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Couple quick razor facts from the Aylsworth website.

  • Weight - 97 grams
  • Blade Gap - 0.73mm
  • Exposure - Neutral
  • Thread - Standard 10-32
  • Handle - 89 mm (3.5 inches)
Here is a copy & paste post from my first shave last night.

Quick thoughts.

The Razor has some nice heft with pretty good overall balance. In hand it feels secure and provides very good tactile grip that is different but, welcome in my eyes. The top cap and base plate locks the blade in firmly and securely with a real nice feel when twisting the handle onto the threaded top cap stud. There’s not a whole lot of blade reveal/exposure and to be honest I was a bit tentative in thinking this might not provide the feel I’m accustomed too. But, I had faith in the Feather and those thoughts would quickly dissipate once the shave began. On skin blade feel is minimal but, there’s enough to give instant feedback that whiskers are being sliced & diced. Angle of attack was just about neutral for me, nor cap or guard dependent. The angle was relatively easy to maintain throughout the shave regardless of what direction of passes I was in (atg, wtg & xtg). Audible feedback on this shave was rather muted as this is not a very loud shaver yet feel on skin was very smooth & comfortable. A normal 3 pass shave with just a slight buff on the chin and a quick touch up on either side of Sir Adam. No nics or cuts with just 3 tiny weepers at the corners of the stache. Irritation was non existent. Smooth and easy shave that did not require a whole bunch of thought or adjustments. Like I’ve shaved with it a few dozen times. Not bad.

Very nice first shave. Gillette Platinum is in the batter’s box for the next shave.

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Shave two earlier this evening with the Drakkant and this time paired with a fresh Gillette Platinum. And again, another very smooth shave but, all I needed were two passes and a very light chin buff. Yesterday’s shave with the Feather actually proved to be a better shave than I had previously thought as I did not start feeling any stubble until about 9-9:30 this morning. That’s close to 13 hours. I did have my 5 O’clock shadow by this evenings shave but, the stubble was a bit lighter and hence only 2 full passes were needed. I’d like to mention as I had missed to mention it in my first shave with the Drakkant. This razor rinses cleanly phenomenally well. The lather channels provide plenty of escape for soap infused hairs allowing a couple extra strokes for clearing out stubble. Might be a small and insignificant thing but, for those that like too see the point of shave attack from their razor still clear is an added benefit. Nothing clogs the business end of this razor. Really nice to see that. I think my shave with the Feather was a bit more satisfying but, this was not a bad shave by any means. Smooth & comfy with a DFS result.

On to the Lord Platinum’s for the next shave happening.

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Changed it up today and decided to forgo the Lord Platinum and jump right into the KAI blade. The 2 previous shaves that I’ve had have already proven what the designer had in mind and that’s to present a mild and smooth shaving tool that is both easy on the skin yet efficient enough to tackle a couple days of whiskers and simultaneously being an easy daily user. With the Feather blade installed on the first shave, it was very good indeed. The Gillette Platinum, though good and smooth did not match the shave performance of the Drakkant & Feather combo. I don’t think the Lord Platinum would have faired better that the Gillette Platinum and certainly would be no match for the Feather. So, how was the KAI? Exceptionally good. I know, the KAI blade for some is a dog and for others it borders on shave nirvana (or almost). I enjoy the KAI and it’s always in my top 5 of blade choices, maybe even top 2. Plenty sharp with that tiny, tiny bit of extra overall width from blade edge to blade edge, it helps in most instances (in my experience) with razors that are designed with negative or neutral blade exposure in giving a bit more feel and in enticing audible feedback. Two solid passes on nearly 2 days growth with very minimal buffing and touch ups required around the usual spots. Blade on skin feel was ever so slightly boosted yet while still retaining the smooth nature of the Drakkant in both WTG & ATG passes. I can’t tell you how the Drakkant works in the stache area since I maintain one but, I see no reason on how this razor would not work equally as well in that area with its low profile design. A quick cold water splash and an alum face run proved nothing except for a smooth and irritation free shave. 3 different soaps so far and the razor rinses out quickly and easily with no clogging. This razor kind of reminds me of the Merica razor from Wet Shave Club. Less blade feel than the Merica but with equal if not better efficiency with hardly none of the drag type feel that the Merica exhibits. At least to me it feels as such.

Next shave I’ll be going back to the Feather and then right back to the KAI and wrap this thing up.

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Went back to the Feather today and just a real good shave. As I’ve stated in my previous posts in this pass around, the term smooth and effectively efficient is the theme with this razor. The Feather blade just works exceptionally well as the Drakkant tames the harshness that the Feather can deliver, especially during the first shave. Today it was super smooth and just as efficient as its first shave a few days back. My skin feels no irritation and is free of any nics, cuts and weepers. It was 2.5 passes but, I’ll call it 3 even though that last one was for a slight chin buff and some clean up around the Adam’s apple. It reminds me of a couple of razors in my den in terms of feel and performance but, I’ll save that comparison for my final thoughts and summation on the Drakkant. Today it was simply a mahvelous shave.

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Got my last shave in with the Drakkant this evening and with the KAI blade on its second go around. Had a nice 2 days worth of growth and was looking forward to the enhanced blade feel that the KAI provides. No disappointments from a near 3 pass shave that was easy, felt great on the skin and with good audible feedback. The Ethos soap just simply brings it. Slickness, protection and post shave that is top notch. I had 5 total shaves and 4 of them (2 each with the Feather & KAI) were just really outstanding shaves. I think my results with the Feather were a notch better than with the KAI but, it was very close. The Drakkant from Aylsworth really excelled for me with those two blades.

Will have my final thoughts and summation on the Drakkant shortly. Stay Tuned…

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My final thoughts on the Drakkant from my post on the pass around forum. Just did a copy & paste from there as I posted it yesterday evening.


I think the razor is well made and the shave geometry that it is designed with is a good starting point. Balance on the razor is quite good though, I wish the weight bias was geared more towards the head and not so neutral feeling along the razors length. It’s not that I find the razor bad as some might prefer how it feels as is but, I tend to steer towards razors with a bit more top heaviness. Tactile grip is better than average and maneuverability along the length of the razors handle is easy to execute if one wants to choke up on it for finer detail work or drop down on it for long clearing strokes. Neutral blade exposure as not to feel overly aggressive with ease of use & comfort seems to me to be a priority in this razor makers agenda. And I believe it’s the right way to start things off for a new artisan razor maker in getting their feet wet in the razor producing game, at least in my opinion. Down the road the maker can decide where to go based on user feedback and on their idea of where the performance end of the razor wants to get to or achieve. I mentioned previously in one of my previous posts that the Drakkant reminds me of a few razors in my shave den and some of those are the RR Gamechanger .68, Mamba .70, Timeless .68 SS & Ti, Blackland Dart & the Merica razor. It has similarities with all yet does not shave identical to any of them. If I were to pinpoint it or place it to any of these mentioned I would mark it nearer the RR GC .68 & Mamba .70. The mildness and easy smooth nature of the Mamba with the efficiency of the RR GC .68. Design wise it looks closer to an RR Lupo but, shares nothing with how that razor series shaves in my experience. I think the Timeless duo in both SS & Ti in the .68 configuration ups the razor cutting ability over the Drakkant while actually being just as smooth and maybe even smoother just my perception of course. The Merica has nearly the same feel but, is not as smooth and easy on the skin. The Dart is a mixed bag because when I use it engaging the safety bar, it shaves every bit as good as the Drakkant and actually gives me a better resulting shave. The Dart with a neutral or even gearing towards the cap turns the blade feel up quite a bit and efficiency but, at the cost of smoothness & comfort. The Drakkant for me worked best at a near neutral position throughout my shaves. If I moved it towards either end of the spectrum whether it be towards the safety bar or top cap, I lost all cutting ability or it suffered in its ability to be as efficient as possible. The ability for the Drakkant to offer any sort of adjustment in angle of attack is pretty much static and neutral is its calling card. It was easy to keep it there and maintain it in that optimal cutting position and it produced quality shaves with quality results. I think the Feather & Drakkant were made for each other as the razors inherent design actually tamed the harshness that a Feather can exhibit while still allowing the superb sharpness of that blade to slice up whiskers. The KAI was an extremely close second while turning up the blade feel that was not at all intimidating and was still exceptionally smooth on the skin. Also while with the KAI blade the audible aspect was turned up nicely sending good shave vibes and sounds to the ears. Blades are held rigidly and near enough to the cutting edge and I never felt any skipping or blade deflection while in attack mode. Great lather channels keep lather and hairs away from the shave area with no overflow into the working end of the razor and rinsing it clean was a quick shake in the water or a quick faucet blast. Blade tabs are covered so to some that would be a plus. I find no issue with tabs covered or exposed, I’m neutral on that design aspect. In terms of performance, it’s irrelevant. If your all thumbs, you’ll appreciate the covered blade tabs.

I really don’t have much negative to say except for a couple of things. To me and in my brief experience with the Drakkant the potential inability to use more blades other than the Feather & KAI for my desired shave parameters is a bit concerning. Granted, the neutral blade design of the Drakkant has something to do with it but, not being able to use a full gambit of blades in this razor limits my ability to warm up to it. Others may find that it works perfectly well for them with whatever blade they install in it. It’s a subjective matter, that I know but, I view a razor as performance #1 & comfort #2. Others have it the other way around and I respect that. This is just my take. Another which is more important is the potential price point. I never will ever begrudge a razor maker in putting a price on a razor that they believe to be fair and still be profitable. Thing is, a few of those razors that I previously mentioned above are anywhere between a 1/3 to 2/3rd’s lower versus the price of the Drakkant while employing the same alloy 316/L SS (304 for the Dart) and giving me nearly the same exact performance and truthfully, they perform better for my shave parameters. And to be honest, in hand they offer a better finish over the Drakkant with their machine finish and basic polish looks. Again, these are just my observations and my opinion. Sample for yourself as that’s what the pass around is for. It’s a great benefit that these artisan razor makers provide to us wet shavers and potential consumers the opportunity to test these products out.

It’s a good razor that is soundly designed and produced from one of the better manufacturers in the business in Yates Precision. Perhaps with their further development and offerings in the future I might be pulled into acquiring a Drakkant with a more efficient nature. As it stands I find it redundant to own as I have razors that match it and surpass it in price, performance & value.
 

Star_Wahl_Clipper_Treker

Likes a fat handle in his hand
Just a quick post from a new razor maker. The razor is called the Drakkant from Aylsworth Razors being produced by Yates Manufacturing. This one here is a pre production model and is about as close to the actual units that will be available some time in May of this year. I signed up for a pass around on another forum just to give it a go and see how it stacks up to some of today's razor offerings in the higher end market.

View attachment 1425253
View attachment 1425252

Couple quick razor facts from the Aylsworth website.

  • Weight - 97 grams
  • Blade Gap - 0.73mm
  • Exposure - Neutral
  • Thread - Standard 10-32
  • Handle - 89 mm (3.5 inches)
Here is a copy & paste post from my first shave last night.

Quick thoughts.

The Razor has some nice heft with pretty good overall balance. In hand it feels secure and provides very good tactile grip that is different but, welcome in my eyes. The top cap and base plate locks the blade in firmly and securely with a real nice feel when twisting the handle onto the threaded top cap stud. There’s not a whole lot of blade reveal/exposure and to be honest I was a bit tentative in thinking this might not provide the feel I’m accustomed too. But, I had faith in the Feather and those thoughts would quickly dissipate once the shave began. On skin blade feel is minimal but, there’s enough to give instant feedback that whiskers are being sliced & diced. Angle of attack was just about neutral for me, nor cap or guard dependent. The angle was relatively easy to maintain throughout the shave regardless of what direction of passes I was in (atg, wtg & xtg). Audible feedback on this shave was rather muted as this is not a very loud shaver yet feel on skin was very smooth & comfortable. A normal 3 pass shave with just a slight buff on the chin and a quick touch up on either side of Sir Adam. No nics or cuts with just 3 tiny weepers at the corners of the stache. Irritation was non existent. Smooth and easy shave that did not require a whole bunch of thought or adjustments. Like I’ve shaved with it a few dozen times. Not bad.

Very nice first shave. Gillette Platinum is in the batter’s box for the next shave.

View attachment 1425254

I like the razors stealth look in your pictures. The head of the razor and cap makes me think of a tank. And the handle is quite aggressive on the texture, talk about a grip king! Looks like a nice razor, and from your description, sounds like a mild razor. I have the Feather AS-D2 razor and I love it, its also classified as a mild razor. I wonder what that razor is going to cost once released, have any idea? And who makes it, didn't you say it was Feather?
 
I like the razors stealth look in your pictures. The head of the razor and cap makes me think of a tank. And the handle is quite aggressive on the texture, talk about a grip king! Looks like a nice razor, and from your description, sounds like a mild razor. I have the Feather AS-D2 razor and I love it, its also classified as a mild razor. I wonder what that razor is going to cost once released, have any idea? And who makes it, didn't you say it was Feather?

Produced by Yates Precision Manufacturing for Aylsworth Razors. Price is anywhere from $170-$185. The Drakkant is just as easy on the skin as your Feather AS-D2 and slightly more efficient. It offers better cutting ability in my experience.
 
My final thoughts on the Drakkant from my post on the pass around forum. Just did a copy & paste from there as I posted it yesterday evening.


I think the razor is well made and the shave geometry that it is designed with is a good starting point. Balance on the razor is quite good though, I wish the weight bias was geared more towards the head and not so neutral feeling along the razors length. It’s not that I find the razor bad as some might prefer how it feels as is but, I tend to steer towards razors with a bit more top heaviness. Tactile grip is better than average and maneuverability along the length of the razors handle is easy to execute if one wants to choke up on it for finer detail work or drop down on it for long clearing strokes. Neutral blade exposure as not to feel overly aggressive with ease of use & comfort seems to me to be a priority in this razor makers agenda. And I believe it’s the right way to start things off for a new artisan razor maker in getting their feet wet in the razor producing game, at least in my opinion. Down the road the maker can decide where to go based on user feedback and on their idea of where the performance end of the razor wants to get to or achieve. I mentioned previously in one of my previous posts that the Drakkant reminds me of a few razors in my shave den and some of those are the RR Gamechanger .68, Mamba .70, Timeless .68 SS & Ti, Blackland Dart & the Merica razor. It has similarities with all yet does not shave identical to any of them. If I were to pinpoint it or place it to any of these mentioned I would mark it nearer the RR GC .68 & Mamba .70. The mildness and easy smooth nature of the Mamba with the efficiency of the RR GC .68. Design wise it looks closer to an RR Lupo but, shares nothing with how that razor series shaves in my experience. I think the Timeless duo in both SS & Ti in the .68 configuration ups the razor cutting ability over the Drakkant while actually being just as smooth and maybe even smoother just my perception of course. The Merica has nearly the same feel but, is not as smooth and easy on the skin. The Dart is a mixed bag because when I use it engaging the safety bar, it shaves every bit as good as the Drakkant and actually gives me a better resulting shave. The Dart with a neutral or even gearing towards the cap turns the blade feel up quite a bit and efficiency but, at the cost of smoothness & comfort. The Drakkant for me worked best at a near neutral position throughout my shaves. If I moved it towards either end of the spectrum whether it be towards the safety bar or top cap, I lost all cutting ability or it suffered in its ability to be as efficient as possible. The ability for the Drakkant to offer any sort of adjustment in angle of attack is pretty much static and neutral is its calling card. It was easy to keep it there and maintain it in that optimal cutting position and it produced quality shaves with quality results. I think the Feather & Drakkant were made for each other as the razors inherent design actually tamed the harshness that a Feather can exhibit while still allowing the superb sharpness of that blade to slice up whiskers. The KAI was an extremely close second while turning up the blade feel that was not at all intimidating and was still exceptionally smooth on the skin. Also while with the KAI blade the audible aspect was turned up nicely sending good shave vibes and sounds to the ears. Blades are held rigidly and near enough to the cutting edge and I never felt any skipping or blade deflection while in attack mode. Great lather channels keep lather and hairs away from the shave area with no overflow into the working end of the razor and rinsing it clean was a quick shake in the water or a quick faucet blast. Blade tabs are covered so to some that would be a plus. I find no issue with tabs covered or exposed, I’m neutral on that design aspect. In terms of performance, it’s irrelevant. If your all thumbs, you’ll appreciate the covered blade tabs.

I really don’t have much negative to say except for a couple of things. To me and in my brief experience with the Drakkant the potential inability to use more blades other than the Feather & KAI for my desired shave parameters is a bit concerning. Granted, the neutral blade design of the Drakkant has something to do with it but, not being able to use a full gambit of blades in this razor limits my ability to warm up to it. Others may find that it works perfectly well for them with whatever blade they install in it. It’s a subjective matter, that I know but, I view a razor as performance #1 & comfort #2. Others have it the other way around and I respect that. This is just my take. Another which is more important is the potential price point. I never will ever begrudge a razor maker in putting a price on a razor that they believe to be fair and still be profitable. Thing is, a few of those razors that I previously mentioned above are anywhere between a 1/3 to 2/3rd’s lower versus the price of the Drakkant while employing the same alloy 316/L SS (304 for the Dart) and giving me nearly the same exact performance and truthfully, they perform better for my shave parameters. And to be honest, in hand they offer a better finish over the Drakkant with their machine finish and basic polish looks. Again, these are just my observations and my opinion. Sample for yourself as that’s what the pass around is for. It’s a great benefit that these artisan razor makers provide to us wet shavers and potential consumers the opportunity to test these products out.

It’s a good razor that is soundly designed and produced from one of the better manufacturers in the business in Yates Precision. Perhaps with their further development and offerings in the future I might be pulled into acquiring a Drakkant with a more efficient nature. As it stands I find it redundant to own as I have razors that match it and surpass it in price, performance & value.
You mean Drakkant has similar efficiencies to GC68?Then its efficiency should not be very high, no better than those famous razors,like blackbird or overlander
 
Just a quick post from a new razor maker. The razor is called the Drakkant from Aylsworth Razors being produced by Yates Manufacturing. This one here is a pre production model and is about as close to the actual units that will be available some time in May of this year. I signed up for a pass around on another forum just to give it a go and see how it stacks up to some of today's razor offerings in the higher end market.

View attachment 1425253
View attachment 1425252

Couple quick razor facts from the Aylsworth website.

  • Weight - 97 grams
  • Blade Gap - 0.73mm
  • Exposure - Neutral
  • Thread - Standard 10-32
  • Handle - 89 mm (3.5 inches)
Here is a copy & paste post from my first shave last night.

Quick thoughts.

The Razor has some nice heft with pretty good overall balance. In hand it feels secure and provides very good tactile grip that is different but, welcome in my eyes. The top cap and base plate locks the blade in firmly and securely with a real nice feel when twisting the handle onto the threaded top cap stud. There’s not a whole lot of blade reveal/exposure and to be honest I was a bit tentative in thinking this might not provide the feel I’m accustomed too. But, I had faith in the Feather and those thoughts would quickly dissipate once the shave began. On skin blade feel is minimal but, there’s enough to give instant feedback that whiskers are being sliced & diced. Angle of attack was just about neutral for me, nor cap or guard dependent. The angle was relatively easy to maintain throughout the shave regardless of what direction of passes I was in (atg, wtg & xtg). Audible feedback on this shave was rather muted as this is not a very loud shaver yet feel on skin was very smooth & comfortable. A normal 3 pass shave with just a slight buff on the chin and a quick touch up on either side of Sir Adam. No nics or cuts with just 3 tiny weepers at the corners of the stache. Irritation was non existent. Smooth and easy shave that did not require a whole bunch of thought or adjustments. Like I’ve shaved with it a few dozen times. Not bad.

Very nice first shave. Gillette Platinum is in the batter’s box for the next shave.

View attachment 1425254
Great review as always, Gus!
 
Bump!
Any updates on the Drakkant?
I haven't read anything about the "plus" baseplate!
I'd love to hear a comparison between the "plus" and the Yates with the "H" or "EH"!
 
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