The Tilted Picnic Slant Circus, Year 2

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

I've never used a slant although they look quite interesting. Would you say they are better or worse than a typical DE razor for shaving your head, barring the learning curve? I would like to find the smoothest, least irritating shave I can, especially if it helps me avoid going over certain spots 4 or 5 times.

I'm not a head shaver, but my experience with my face tells me I have a spot (soul patch to be precise) which isn't ever going to be smoothed by going over it fewer than "many times" regardless of which razor I use.

In other words, I'm of exactly zero help.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[Old Hippie]

I think I addressed the question in last day's shave report, down at the end. Recapping: it seems easier going blind on the back of my head where angles change in several planes and I have to rely on what I can feel. The variety of blade angles that a slant presents means that I'm always going to do well back there because it's not finicky.

O.H.

 

[Old Hippie]

my experience with my face tells me I have a spot (soul patch to be precise) which isn't ever going to be smoothed by going over it fewer than "many times" regardless of which razor I use.

I've got a place like that, just on the right side above and behind my ear. Two things I've discovered: The Wunderbar can get that place if the blade is still fairly sharp (shaves 1-4 for me) and if I stretch a little and simply gently go over it from several angles. The other thing is that I can get the same result by doing a 2-pass shave with a razor and then going over that spot with a barber straight, again from several directions. Minimal irritation; close shave but again a sharper blade is indicated.

O.H.

 

[Old Hippie]

The Tilted Picnic, Year 2. Round One, Shave No. 3: RazoRock Wunderbar

I realized aside from the razor I haven't said the rest of my kit:

Razor: RazoRock Wunderbar
Blade: Astra SP (3)
Brush: Omega 10005 Boar
Soap: Yardley of London, Almond

What my son would call a "Cheap Old Man" shave. If you got it, rock it...

Number 3 is always the best shave in the blade for me, and so it is once again. Perfect shave.

O.H.

 

[Old Hippie]

The Tilted Picnic, Year 2. Round One, Shave No. 4: RazoRock Wunderbar

With apologies to The Mamas and The Papas...

Monday, Monday (bah-da bah-da-da-da)
So good to me (bah-da bah-da-da-da)
Monday mornin', it was all I hoped it would be...

And with apologies to those of you who now have that song playing over and over in your heads...

I mean, the rest of the song is about how a lover took off and how Mondays are now the worst day of the week, but the first three lines pretty much wrap up this morning's latherfest. Another fantastic shave.

O.H.

 

[efsk]

For Some reason it ignited california dreamin in my head.

 

[Old Hippie]

The Tilted Picnic, Year 2. Round One, Shave No. 5: RazoRock Wunderbar

Good thing there's only one shave left in this round! I'm running out of superlatives.

Another lovely shave. The blade's got some miles on the clock but still working top-notch.

O.H.

 

[Old Hippie]

The Tilted Picnic, Year 2. Round One, Shave No. 6: RazoRock Wunderbar

One down! Two weeks with the Wunderbar and well...it wouldn't be a Wunderbar series if I didn't collect one nick. Got that taken care of this morning. Nothing much; couple drops of blood and a little pink lather. One thing that using the barber razors has done is to make me even more aware when the blade's about to bite. That little moment of inattention missed the "I'm gonna bite" signal and so I got nibbled. C'est la vie.

Doing a couple of weeks with this razor really underscores a couple of things for me. One is that the Wunderbar is my second most favourite slant razor. I can't just let it run around on automatic pilot while I'm thinking about other things. That's not a criticism. It's a recognition that this razor takes a little more attention than some. It rewards that attention with a nicely interactive shave.

Also, like some other extraordinarily designed razors the Wunderbar easily gives out six shaves on an Astra SP. The blade's showing some miles, but in this razor it's still smooth and efficient. My scalp feels like it's been massaged and then polished.

Another thing is that long-term use leaves my skin just a tad sensitive, but very well exfoliated.

This first round was really a set-up for the next round. I managed to find a RazoRock Stealth Stainless, one of the precursors (some would say a prototype) of the Wunderbar. Having set the context with the WB, I'll spend the next couple of weeks exploring a razor I've not used before. More on that Monday!

O.H.

 

[Old Hippie]

The Tilted Picnic, Year 2. Round Two, Shave No. 1: RazoRock Stainless Stealth Slant, Version 3

Here we go with the next razor in line!

Thanks to @throughacoloredlens for providing this particular example. First let's do the data:

This razor is a bit of a tank. It weighs in at 138 grams, which is a little above my personal sweet spot. That notwithstanding, the mass makes it a great WTG cutter, ripping off huge flakes of hair and powering through the tough stuff. The handle is right in that 85mm ballpark.

The razor is carefully crafted, though one can see the extra metal that got carved away to create the Wunderbar.

With a fresh Astra SP this razor feels very safe. Compared directly to the Wunderbar it's got a bit less aggression and "efficiency" but still delivers a good shave in two passes. I found it requires a bit more care and time on the last pass, but it's not onerous. I wasn't as concerned about a possible nick as with the Wunderbar, though I also tried to touch down gently because of the higher mass.

ATG was pretty good but again Newton's laws rear their heads a bit with a massive razor. I noticed the mass, particularly after shaving all over ATG. It didn't leave me weak or anything but this IS a chunk of stainless and even ATG prefers to stay in motion once put in motion.

Others have remarked that it seems milder than the Wunderbar, and I concur. So far, on the basis on just one shave, I'd say it would be good for someone who wants a razor that is as efficient as possible with no blade feel. The angle is not hard to find.

My only other observation this morning was that the somewhat small lather ports and the deep skirt of the base require a little more frequent rinsing to keep things flowing. Again, not a problem. A fun shave that mellowed out to BBS.

O.H.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

The Tilted Picnic, Year 2. Round Two, Shave No. 1: RazoRock Stainless Stealth Slant, Version 3

View attachment 1240475

Here we go with the next razor in line!

Thanks to @throughacoloredlens for providing this particular example. First let's do the data:

This razor is a bit of a tank. It weighs in at 138 grams, which is a little above my personal sweet spot. That notwithstanding, the mass makes it a great WTG cutter, ripping off huge flakes of hair and powering through the tough stuff. The handle is right in that 85mm ballpark.

The razor is carefully crafted, though one can see the extra metal that got carved away to create the Wunderbar.

With a fresh Astra SP this razor feels very safe. Compared directly to the Wunderbar it's got a bit less aggression and "efficiency" but still delivers a good shave in two passes. I found it requires a bit more care and time on the last pass, but it's not onerous. I wasn't as concerned about a possible nick as with the Wunderbar, though I also tried to touch down gently because of the higher mass.

ATG was pretty good but again Newton's laws rear their heads a bit with a massive razor. I noticed the mass, particularly after shaving all over ATG. It didn't leave me weak or anything but this IS a chunk of stainless and even ATG prefers to stay in motion once put in motion.

Others have remarked that it seems milder than the Wunderbar, and I concur. So far, on the basis on just one shave, I'd say it would be good for someone who wants a razor that is as efficient as possible with no blade feel. The angle is not hard to find.

My only other observation this morning was that the somewhat small lather ports and the deep skirt of the base require a little more frequent rinsing to keep things flowing. Again, not a problem. A fun shave that mellowed out to BBS.

O.H.

It would be very interesting to know exactly what was changed to convert this razor to the Wunderbar, if, indeed, that's what they did. I've long thought that was what happened, and, most certainly, it is very obvious this razor could be trimmed down easily enough.

However, shaving with the both of them a few months ago, and examining them, side by side if you will, I became convinced they'd done more than just trim down this monster to produce the Wunderbar. The shave is different. The parameters - gap in particular - I could measure were different (although the gap was not a whole lot different).

Here's what wrote to a member, John, when I was using both razors and examining them...

...I broke out my new feeler gauges and measured the gaps. Both razors have I think a larger gap at the bottom end (you'll see what I mean if you use your feeler gauges). Still here are the kinda sorta gaps for the razors meaning I'm not great with measuring these gaps and also the gaps vary along the blade's long/sharp edge.

• Wunderbar ~1.04 mm - 1.05 mm
• Stealth ~0.97 mm

I thought before measuring 'em the Stealth gap "felt" smaller. My measurements are not guaranteed to be perfectly accurate, but it seems clear to me that the gap on the WB is a bit bigger.

I do think the Stealth is the parent to the Wunderbar.

Razor design and engineering is beyond me though.

The Stealth is a good razor albeit a tank.

Also, I have no idea what version of the Stealth mine is. I think it looks just like yours but I don't know one version from the other. Mine is SS and has a SS stand and handle like yours. Mine was a BST purchase as I recall.

My understanding, too, is there are at least two somewhat different versions of the Wunderbar, one with and one without serial numbers.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[Old Hippie]

It would be very interesting to know exactly what was changed to convert this razor to the Wunderbar, if, indeed, that's what they did.

I don't know what they did, of course. However, I can speculate based on what I'd do. (Says the guy who dropped out of engineering school to become a journalist; obviously I have all the insight. ) My guess is that they made incremental changes across several versions of the Stealth, then pulled back for a ground-up redesign incorporating their experiences plus feedback from users.

Also, I have no idea what version of the Stealth mine is. I think it looks just like yours but I don't know one version from the other. Mine is SS and has a SS stand and handle like yours. Mine was a BST purchase as I recall.

Early on when these were still current I was a bit put off by what I call the "blobbiness" of the design. It looked like one of those cheap slants from some parts of the world that just look under-designed to me. I'd kind of written them off in favour of more svelte looking product like the Wunderbar. I'm basing my identification on the previous owner's.

My understanding, too, is there are at least two somewhat different versions of the Wunderbar, one with and one without serial numbers.

That's what I'm hearing, too. My Wunderbar has a serial. Some days I wonder about doing a "generational" shave review. Mostly I think that's a little more fine-grained than I really want to get. Then I look at the lineup for this year and realize that I have the Fasan Double Slant, the PAA El Fantasma, and the Windrose helical slant -- all of them supposedly at least conceptually related. So I guess if I play my razors right we're gonna have a generational review after all.

O.H.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

I don't know what they did, of course. However, I can speculate based on what I'd do. (Says the guy who dropped out of engineering school to become a journalist; obviously I have all the insight. ) My guess is that they made incremental changes across several versions of the Stealth, then pulled back for a ground-up redesign incorporating their experiences plus feedback from users.



Early on when these were still current I was a bit put off by what I call the "blobbiness" of the design. It looked like one of those cheap slants from some parts of the world that just look under-designed to me. I'd kind of written them off in favour of more svelte looking product like the Wunderbar. I'm basing my identification on the previous owner's.



That's what I'm hearing, too. My Wunderbar has a serial. Some days I wonder about doing a "generational" shave review. Mostly I think that's a little more fine-grained than I really want to get. Then I look at the lineup for this year and realize that I have the Fasan Double Slant, the PAA El Fantasma, and the Windrose helical slant -- all of them supposedly at least conceptually related. So I guess if I play my razors right we're gonna have a generational review after all.

O.H.

You might want to add the FOCS. It's a terrific razor. Fatip really nailed it. Very efficient especially considering how smooth it feels and how easy it is to use. Not as efficient as the Wunderbar though (but close).

You have more engineering school than me. Mine's from the school of hard knocks and from what I've learned from engineers I listen to. In other words, I know zip about engineering other than the obvious fact that all engineers drive trains.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[thombrogan]

all engineers drive trains.

And wear cool boots with buckles!

Thanks for this ongoing write-up, @Old Hippie !

 

[Tanuki]

Now that this thread is quasi-hijacked I can contribute!

And wear cool boots with buckles!

This is the important part! Cool footwear!

all engineers drive trains

Even when I sat up in the cab, they wouldn't let me drive the train. They wouldn't even let me build a fire. I guess if they wanted a fire, they wouldn't have gotten rid of all the firemen. But when they needed brakes set, I was the star.

Back to RR slants.

I was a bit put off by what I call the "blobbiness" of the design

After borrowing the SS Stealth, I am convinced that the weight contributed by its blobbiness is a defining part of its shave character.

 

[Old Hippie]

Even when I sat up in the cab, they wouldn't let me drive the train.

They never let me drive the train
Or even ring the bell.
But let the darn thing jump the track
And see who catches hell!

O.H.

 

[efsk]

The Stealth is a metal version of the all plastic prewar Globusmann I’ve shown elsewhere on this forum. They made the head bigger and put a different type handle on.
The Wunderbar is more towards either the Mulcuto Needlepoint, without the needles, as are the iKon slant and the Maggard slant, OR, and the jury, ie me, is still out on that one, a version of the all plastic Globusman A47.

 

[Old Hippie]

The Tilted Picnic, Year 2. Round Two, Shave No. 2: RazoRock Stainless Stealth Slant, Version 3

The second shave yesterday went down pretty much like the first one. I had a minor revelation about where I fall on the aggression vs. mildness spectrum. The Stealth running in conditions as nearly alike as I can manage tends not to be as aggressive as the Wunderbar. The WB takes off more with each stroke and thus can give an irritation-free shave. The Stealth also gives an irritation-free shave, but it does it by being milder and therefore more congenial to a little more time spent on gradual reduction.

I wouldn't have had that realization if I hadn't started playing with barber razors, however.

O.H.

 

[Tanuki]

The Stealth running in conditions as nearly alike as I can manage tends not to be as aggressive as the Wunderbar.

Agreed on aggression. In my use, with a reduced beard and moustache fully in place, the efficiency of the Stealth was comparable to the Wunderbar and FOCS.

 

[Old Hippie]

Agreed on aggression. In my use, with a reduced beard and moustache fully in place, the efficiency of the Stealth was comparable to the Wunderbar and FOCS.

I'm quite liking it, actually. I had the spare bandwidth to think about why some guys come to B&B and want to get a "one-pass" shave from a super-aggressive razor. All those years I shaved with electrickery gave me a false idea of "passes." Sure, it's "one pass" but that pass is made up of about 4,357 "passes" from the cutter head. (OK, that's a W.A.G.)

I long ago came to the conclusion that if that was what was wanted, it would be simplest to just stick to an electric razor.

O.H.

 

[thombrogan]

I had the spare bandwidth to think about why some guys come to B&B and want to get a "one-pass" shave from a super-aggressive razor.

I don’t have the attention span to do much more than one pass and I’ve cut myself with electric razors. Hence the affinity for razors with celebrity endorsements from Countess Bathory