What’s up with my Progress?!

[DE Steve]

No, they didn't.
All my 4 Progresses are the new mold. All of them have a little wiggle. Sometimes the blade will sit with uneven exposure that I have to correct by holding the blade tabs and aligning.
Do you watch for even exposure from above the head? Because that is only cap exposure, which is not the real exposure (looking from below the guard at the line of actual angle of shaving)

Yes I do, and I'm an Engineer. Mine (bought in early 2017) has no blade wiggle.

Even the newer molds will wear over time.

 

[ivan_101]

Even the newer molds will wear over time.

It's not that. 2 of my Progresses are still in the boxes. They were only opened and loaded with 3-4 different blades (each blade 2 times) to check for the above mentioned issue. And again 50% of the time the exposure is more on one side.

 

[Invicta]

What I did notice is that if I just throw in the blade carelessly one side can be a little bit more exposed than the other.

That can apply to any razor that is cast and even some of the CNC machined razors have problems. Razor blades have a lot of tolerance built in as they have to fit many razor designs. However I have not noticed any of my blades having alignment issues although I do a quick check by eye to ensure the blade is aligned; that only takes less than 2 seconds. The Fatips are most prone to alignment issues but the latest ones are much improved; that is an inherent problem with two pin alignment systems. Looking at your photos, the riser blade table is centralised with the base so I cannot see why you would have alignment issues other than sloppy installation of the blade.
The Progress is a very old design and dates back to the 50s'. The blade table can get wonky in some razors but that is not a common problem, in fact it is very rare which relates more to the centre coil spring. My Progress dates to pre 2012 and I have never had any issues with blade alignment.
Going back to your problem of drag, I have noticed I need more water in the lather especially on the last pass. Now because the there is more curvature on the cap than with many other razors, it may be there is more contact with the skin thus causing more drag. Try an experiment with adjusting the lather with more water. There should be no drag with a chrome finish but it may be the blade (blade bevel) that needs the lubrication and slickness from the lather and it is not a razor problem. For further clarity, I never do a pass without lather or even repeated strokes over the same area without lather; some demonstrators on utube are terrible in that respect. Blade buffing is something different and only used on particularly difficult areas.
I like the Progress and it is my favourite razor including that ivory knob so persevere with it as it is a great shaver.

I think Alex JR needs to return his razor under warranty as a defective razor. And I think he should get the latest fixed models. You would think in the year 2022, all pre-2016 versions would have already been well sold, out of stock by now. Strange

The latest moulds did not need to fix any issues as there were very few alignment issues with the razor. Wear in the moulds were more of an issue but the riser table is still the same in the newer models. The centre spring that pushes the blade table up may be an issue but that would be persistent and happen all the time. I think some of the Rex Konsuls had alignment issues which I put down to poor design from the coil spring suppliers and not an inherant problem with the razor design; reading in between the lines of various posts on that razor.
I too can load the blade wonky in my Progress but that would be my fault. I have not seen anything in Alex's posts that suggest the razor is defective.
In fact I can load the blade wonky in all my razors so that does not make it a razor problem. Having said that, the Gillette Slim Adjustable seems to be the easiest for blade loading, probably because of the centre bar alignment design.

As for blade chatter, I have not experienced that as a problem but some people do. If you shave more steeply you get more chatter because of the greater lateral force on the blade edge.

 

[never-stop-learning]

The Progress was my only razor from 2013 until I joined B&B in 2019. Used Proraso Green soap and a Frank Shaving synthetic brush. Never had any drag issues with my Progress (now modified/upgraded to Opgress).

There are several razors out there that others love, but that drag on my face. If your Progress drags on your face/skin/beard, it may not be the razor for you.

 

[Filudo]

Interesting, I have a 510, first DE I ever got.....works fine, to the extent that I got another just to have at a frequent travel destination....
Now what happens to you, is just what I have experienced with two different Parker adjustable razors.....can't get a decent shave with them.....I gave up.

 

[Alex Jr]

That can apply to any razor that is cast and even some of the CNC machined razors have problems. Razor blades have a lot of tolerance built in as they have to fit many razor designs. However I have not noticed any of my blades having alignment issues although I do a quick check by eye to ensure the blade is aligned; that only takes less than 2 seconds. The Fatips are most prone to alignment issues but the latest ones are much improved; that is an inherent problem with two pin alignment systems. Looking at your photos, the riser blade table is centralised with the base so I cannot see why you would have alignment issues other than sloppy installation of the blade.
The Progress is a very old design and dates back to the 50s'. The blade table can get wonky in some razors but that is not a common problem, in fact it is very rare which relates more to the centre coil spring. My Progress dates to pre 2012 and I have never had any issues with blade alignment.
Going back to your problem of drag, I have noticed I need more water in the lather especially on the last pass. Now because the there is more curvature on the cap than with many other razors, it may be there is more contact with the skin thus causing more drag. Try an experiment with adjusting the lather with more water. There should be no drag with a chrome finish but it may be the blade (blade bevel) that needs the lubrication and slickness from the lather and it is not a razor problem. For further clarity, I never do a pass without lather or even repeated strokes over the same area without lather; some demonstrators on utube are terrible in that respect. Blade buffing is something different and only used on particularly difficult areas.
I like the Progress and it is my favourite razor including that ivory knob so persevere with it as it is a great shaver.

The latest moulds did not need to fix any issues as there were very few alignment issues with the razor. Wear in the moulds were more of an issue but the riser table is still the same in the newer models. The centre spring that pushes the blade table up may be an issue but that would be persistent and happen all the time. I think some of the Rex Konsuls had alignment issues which I put down to poor design from the coil spring suppliers and not an inherant problem with the razor design; reading in between the lines of various posts on that razor.
I too can load the blade wonky in my Progress but that would be my fault. I have not seen anything in Alex's posts that suggest the razor is defective.
In fact I can load the blade wonky in all my razors so that does not make it a razor problem. Having said that, the Gillette Slim Adjustable seems to be the easiest for blade loading, probably because of the centre bar alignment design.

As for blade chatter, I have not experienced that as a problem but some people do. If you shave more steeply you get more chatter because of the greater lateral force on the blade edge.

Thanks for all the suggestions! I’ll try to experiment with the lather and see if it makes a difference. Interesting note about the cap curvature.

Like I said, I don’t think the razor is defective at all. Even the little blade wiggle that can happen is within tolerances for me.

I think you may have a point about the razor needing a slicker lather, I’ll focus on that variable for the next shaves.

 

[Medivh]

Mine also has small issues, one of which is being that when I tighten up the knob as hard as I can, the arrow stops at setting 5 instead of 1 or + and one of the sides used to look like a slant. After taking it apart I was able to fix the ''slant'' issue, but no matter how much I try I can't fix the adjustment. The concept of the razor is really nice and if someone invests enough time to make it a bit more precise and also make the blade support much better, this razor could easily be just as good if not better than pretty much every modern adjustable on the market without a doubt.

 

[never-stop-learning]

Thanks for all the suggestions! I’ll try to experiment with the lather and see if it makes a difference. Interesting note about the cap curvature.

Like I said, I don’t think the razor is defective at all. Even the little blade wiggle that can happen is within tolerances for me.

I think you may have a point about the razor needing a slicker lather, I’ll focus on that variable for the next shaves.

A slicker lather is always helpful.