WCS Razor Head Set (Lithe, Brawny, Toothsome)

[Timeclo]

So West Cost Shaving and Charcoal Goods joined to make these interesting little heads. The top cap is supposed to help guide the face for starters, having the pyramid-like shape. According to their descriptions, "Like the GEM razors of old, the top cap has a pre-defined "sweet spot" to help guide new shavers to the right angle."

I only have the Lithe head so here's my take on it after the first use.

It was a decent shave. Mild-mid aggression. Relatively smooth but rough spots here and there. Similar to DE89 efficiency while feeling similar to GC68. Not as smooth though.

One thing that I had trouble with is blade alignment. The wide head covers the blade ends but the alignment is not perfect. This leads to me having to adjust the blade while not being able to feel the blade tabs. A weird phenomenon. I'm sure they intended for no blade adjustment but in reality, it did not work out that way. It might be a QC thing as well since these are value razor heads.

Overall, the Lithe is a nice razor but I have trouble with the blade alignment. Even though it is value razor, I would like to see more consistency with the alignment; either covered blade tabs with no blade adjustment or uncovered tabs allowing for blade adjustment.

 

[BigJ]

Excellent review: well balanced!! Thanks!

 

[kingfisher]

It is actually kind of surprising that nobody ever came up with the idea of the cap that guides the user to the proper angle. If the blade loaded perfectly, it would be a real boon to newbies.

Can't expect somebody who needs a guide as to the angle to be able to figure out how to straighten a blade in a head without exposed tabs. That's a bridge too far. I'm sure they intended for the alignment to be fuss-free and perfect.

 

[gvw755]

I purchased the Lithe head when it first came out. The head reminded me of the Alfa razor from the Czech Republic, which also had one of those type of top cap, except it was made of plastic.

I have to agree that having a shave angle defined by the top cap really helps not only a new shaver, but even experienced ones that don't want to try to remember what angle a particular razor worked best at. Thanks for posting this thread as I was waiting for the other two base plates t be released and just picked them up last night.

By total coincidence, I used the Lithe's cap on my Maggard v3a base plate (which is the same as the RR Mentor and the Yintal), and came out with a more efficient shave than the original base plate. I am assuming that the Brawny base plate would have similar shave characteristics. That Toothsome plate looks unusual because it is an OC made of holes instead of teeth.

 

[Timeclo]

It is actually kind of surprising that nobody ever came up with the idea of the cap that guides the user to the proper angle. If the blade loaded perfectly, it would be a real boon to newbies.

Can't expect somebody who needs a guide as to the angle to be able to figure out how to straighten a blade in a head without exposed tabs. That's a bridge too far. I'm sure they intended for the alignment to be fuss-free and perfect.

Yeah. If the alignment was good, I'd have nothing bad to say about the head.

 

[BradWorld]

It is actually kind of surprising that nobody ever came up with the idea of the cap that guides the user to the proper angle.

The Blackland Blackbird does this. But it's nowhere near a beginner razor.

On a separate note, I'm attending a shave group meetup in March, and one of the gift bag items is a Lithe razor head. Glad to hear it's not as mild as some have reported. I will look forward to trying it next month.

 

[Timeclo]

My second shave with the Lithe head.

Not bad but not the best either. It shaves mild but there are rough spots here and there. The drag is present throughout the shave. It'll be less with slicker lather but if I'm shaving spots without lather, there's a full on drag. I like the guided head idea but it's not my type.

I'm not sure where this razor places in my rotation. It's somewhat comfortable but not as enjoyable as others. I'll give it a couple more tries and come up with a conclusion.

 

[hairless wonder]

I got the WCS-CG three pack in February. The Lithe was a little too mild for my preferences. The Brawny is very aggressive and I rather like it; I can get a BBS with two passes (WTG and ATG) with an Astra SP. But I've been using the Toothsome, as it's medium aggressive, since March so that I can work my way through a blade sampler pack I bought in February.

Unlike the OP, I have not experienced the uneven blade placement. However, I do tend to try to line up my blades evenly before securing the final couple turns of the razor handle.

My only criticisms of the heads are that (1) they appear to be ZAMAK instead of brass or stainless steel, and (2) the baseplate for the Toothsome wasn't finished/polished well and it's slightly scratched up a couple of my razor handles where the base of the plate meets the handle.

 

[Atlantic59]

Training wheels...or for those who shave while half-awake.

 

[romsitsa]

It is actually kind of surprising that nobody ever came up with the idea of the cap that guides the user to the proper angle. If the blade loaded perfectly, it would be a real boon to newbies.

It was patented by Walther Busch (Walbusch).

 

[hairless wonder]

Training wheels...or for those who shave while half-awake.

The funny thing is, I don't actually use the angle suggested by the cap. I lift the head of the cap (as I do with any other DE) and shave by sound/feel.

 

[CallMeNugget]

I have the Lithe head also, with similar results. I didn't not have any issues with blade alignment, though. It was nice using it until I got my hands on a Gamechanger.

 

[BradWorld]

As I mentioned above I went to a shave club meetup where the Lithe head was added to everyone’s goodie bag. The meetup got delayed due to the pandemic, and was ultimately moved to a virtual zoom meetup. But it did happen. Given the reports of the Lithe being very mild, it took me a while to throw it on a handle and give it a shot. But when I did, I was quite surprised at how enjoyable the shave was with this weird little head. It was mild, but efficient enough. It’s a nice design.

 

[Felix G]

Somebody thinks about it. It called Walbusch. I have it. Wonderful experience

 

[MrBeez]

I have the Toothsomb head which is the middle ground of the three in terms of aggressiveness. I get fine shaves from it, the only issue I have with this kind of pre-angled head is that's it's difficult to get all the whiskers under my nose.

 

[never-stop-learning]

I have this on tap to try the Lithe cap with a Schöne base.