Which Blade Sounds Best In A Lambda Athena Razor

[Mr. Shavington]

This is an incredibly niche topic, I know, and not many people have a Lambda Athena razor, so I assume responses will be infrequent. But if you have the razor you are probably aware that the Athena gives a lot of feedback during the shave, and it is mainly aural feedback (i.e. sound, not blade feel). The razor also has water channels inside the head which seem to amplify the sound. But, however it works, users of the Athena have commented that the sound has a rather lovely tone, and I agree. In addition, I am starting to find that using different blades affects the tone the Athena produces (which would make perfect sense).

So the strange purpose of this thread is to try and share our collective experiences with different blades in the Lambda Athena, and try to decide which blades sound best. I think if we just keep posting that [XXXXX blade] sounds better than [YYYYY blade] then eventually we will collect enough comparisons to reach some conclusions. I’m sure there will be differences of opinion too, which is ok.

I can say, to start, that the Bic Astor I just used sounded very beautiful indeed, and definitely more musical and resonant than the Kais that I normally use. So…

Bic Astor sounds better than Kai.

Hope that makes sense, and some other Lambda Athena owners will also think that this is something worth finding out. For everyone else, I apologise and I know this sounds like I’ve gone mad. Humour me, please - all the best science sounded mad at the time.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Wearing hearing aids I can hear the tones. Without them I don't hear the Athena's music.

The Polsilver SI sounds great in the Athena as I discovered wearing the hearing aids on Saturday and Sunday.

Mostly I can't wear hearing aids shaving - it's too much trouble and takes valuable morning time - so I won't be much help. Plus, I use only Polsilver SI and Wizamet SI DE blades. I do like the topic though.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[Mr. Shavington]

Wearing hearing aids I can hear the tones. Without them I don't hear the Athena's music.

The Polsilver SI sounds great in the Athena as I discovered wearing the hearing aids on Saturday and Sunday.

Mostly I can't wear hearing aids shaving - it's too much trouble and takes valuable morning time - so I won't be much help. Plus, I use only Polsilver SI and Wizamet SI DE blades. I do like the topic though.

Happy shaves,

Jim

Understood. I’m just glad you don’t think it’s completely mad.

Also, am curious whether you feel less feedback from the Athena or not without your hearing aids. I’m just interested in how the razor is working and whether the brain interprets sound as feel, or if it’s rather that we are feeling something through our hair follicles. You might be in the perfect situation to shed some light on it. I had considered shaving with ear plugs to try and see if there was a difference.

 

[Butch Waxx]

Understood. I’m just glad you don’t think it’s completely mad.

Also, am curious whether you feel less feedback from the Athena or not without your hearing aids. I’m just interested in how the razor is working and whether the brain interprets sound as feel, or if it’s rather that we are feeling something through our hair follicles. You might be in the perfect situation to shed some light on it. I had considered shaving with ear plugs to try and see if there was a difference.

We are indeed a bunch of mad scientist when it comes to our shared passion!!!

 

[Phoenixkh]

I've only used Wizamet and USA Personna Lab blues so far in the Athena. Both have the same lovely timbre sound. I didn't notice any difference but I didn't pay close attention. I know the sound was pleasing with them both. I'll pay closer attention next shave with it. I'm in the middle of a Lupo test at the moment but I might interrupt the proceedings in between the 72SB and OC base plates and the testing of the 95SB and OC base plates with what will no doubt be a pleasurable Athena shave to see if I can hear any difference in the aural feedback with a Kai or another blade.

 

[thombrogan]

DE blades can sound good, but they better than saw blades?

 

[faroll2]

These blades were very audible and quite smooth for me:

 

[Mr. Shavington]

These blades were very audible and quite smooth for me:

View attachment 1574719

Perfect, that’s a good benchmark. Any time you try a different blade in the razor please let us know if you think it sounds better, worse, or about the same.

I’m sure we’re going to learn something. Don’t know what yet.

 

[corlay]

Bic Astor sounds better than Kai.

side question: how do you like the Kai in the Athena? Does it amp-up the efficiency noticeably?
(not that I am criticizing the Athena's efficiency! It's pretty amazingly good already. But was curious...)

 

[Mr. Shavington]

side question: how do you like the Kai in the Athena? Does it amp-up the efficiency noticeably?
(not that I am criticizing the Athena's efficiency! It's pretty amazingly good already. But was curious...)

Works great for me. Smooth and efficient. Makes it probably the easiest razor I own to get a completely perfect shave with no risk of irritation. It’s definitely quicker to get a perfect shave with the Kai than other blades I’ve used in it - but I can get a very long-lasting and irritation-free shave with all the blades I’ve tried, just requires more buffing in some areas.

But that’s just me. I’d say it’s worth you trying a Kai to see if it works for you.

 

[huck1680]

Feathers for sure.

 

[corlay]

Works great for me. Smooth and efficient. Makes it probably the easiest razor I own to get a completely perfect shave with no risk of irritation. It’s definitely quicker to get a perfect shave with the Kai than other blades I’ve used in it - but I can get a very long-lasting and irritation-free shave with all the blades I’ve tried, just requires more buffing in some areas.

But that’s just me. I’d say it’s worth you trying a Kai to see if it works for you.

Thanks. I just ordered some up.
Been meaning to try Kai for a while now - this gives me as good an excuse as any...

 

[Mr. Shavington]

Ok, more science. I just shaved with a Feather in the Athena and the sound was dull and rather subdued compared to other blades. It was not a musical tone at all, more like the sound when you run your fingers across the teeth of a plastic comb. The shave was great but that’s not what we’re after here.

So, from the ones I’ve listened to: Bic Astor > Kai > Feather.

 

[Major Overkill]

We are all, indeed, a completely deranged bunch. I must admit admit, I'd never even given a moment's consideration to how this blade or that would sound a in a razor. I am, indeed, an oddball, not I've always been far more interested in how good a shave I got. But now, of course, I'm starting to wonder.

-Z

 

[Guido75]

Ok, no Lambda razor opener here (yet), but if you want audible blades then perhaps the Gillette 365 is worth a shot. I use them in my Razorine Flatboy and because these are thinner blades, my razor sings more than with others blades.

Guido

 

[Paul from IL]

I usually use Feathers. Tried a BiC Astor and was surprised how different it sounded. Lower pitch, probably a thicker blade. Also surprised at the great shaving results from the Astors. Ordered more to use with my Athena.

 

[corlay]

Thanks. I just ordered some up.
Been meaning to try Kai for a while now - this gives me as good an excuse as any...

Had my first shave with the Athena/Kai combo this am.

for me, the Kai definitely produces some "blade feel", and steals a bit of smoothness from the shave.
BUT... oh, how very close of a shave it resulted!
No nics/weepers/irritation, and about as close of a shave as I've ever had with any razor.

Good Combo.

 

[Mr. Shavington]

Had my first shave with the Athena/Kai combo this am.

for me, the Kai definitely produces some "blade feel", and steals a bit of smoothness from the shave.
BUT... oh, how very close of a shave it resulted!
No nics/weepers/irritation, and about as close of a shave as I've ever had with any razor.

Good Combo.

Sounds good, and I’m glad it worked well for you. To be honest I don’t notice any blade feel from a Kai in this razor, and for me Kais have always been a smooth blade. Sharp and smooth are the same thing, in most cases. Using a Feather also felt good to me, and was equally efficient, just slightly less smooth than the Kais to me, but still pretty smooth. A Personna Lab blade was also great and seemed to add some pleasant ‘bite’. So far these are the blades that work best for me in the Athena (and in every other razor, for that matter), though the included Bic Astor was surprisingly good, and not far behind.

I never really bought into this thing people say about Kai blades being wider. If the measurements people have quoted are correct then it may be a tiny bit wider, but when blade curvature is taken into account - especially with the high curvature in the Athena - the difference must be so small that I don’t know how it could have any effect or be felt. That’s just my not really scientific feeling about it. You could possibly be imagining blade feel because you were expecting it, but if you still perceive it next shave then I’ll take your word for it.

I could be completely wrong, of course. I frequently am. And everyone seems to experience blades differently.

 

[corlay]

I never really bought into this thing people say about Kai blades being wider. If the measurements people have quoted are correct then it may be a tiny bit wider, but when blade curvature is taken into account - especially with the high curvature in the Athena - the difference must be so small that I don’t know how it could have any effect or be felt. That’s just my not really scientific feeling about it. You could possibly be imagining blade feel because you were expecting it, but if you still perceive it next shave then I’ll take your word for it.

where our implement's head geometries are typically measured in tenths or even hundredths of millimeters,
I'm guessing even a small increase in blade width would be felt - either against the skin, or at the very least, in the difference in shave results.

fitting the Kai for the first time,
it seemed as though the thickness of the steel was a bit more "stout" than I've ever handled before?
You mentioned high blade curvature on the Athena, and getting the Kai into the posts, and compressed completely,
just seems to provide a bit more "bending resistance" than I'm used to.

 

[Mr. Shavington]

where our implement's head geometries are typically measured in tenths or even hundredths of millimeters,
I'm guessing even a small increase in blade width would be felt - either against the skin, or at the very least, in the difference in shave results.

fitting the Kai for the first time,
it seemed as though the thickness of the steel was a bit more "stout" than I've ever handled before?
You mentioned high blade curvature on the Athena, and getting the Kai into the posts, and compressed completely,
just seems to provide a bit more "bending resistance" than I'm used to.

I think I read somewhere that Kai blades are thicker. You might be right. Actually it’s something I’d be interested to know, since I seem to like a lot of the razors that clamp the blade rigidly, and blade rigidity appears to give smoother shaves with my stubble. At least in my mind it does.

That said, I’m sure I also read that Bic Chrome Platinums are thicker too, but for me they seem to chatter and become harsh against the grain (though they are astonishingly smooth feeling with the grain). Maybe it’s more complex - the thickness of the blade centre has one effect, and the thickness / angle of the edge bevel has another effect.

I bet @APBinNCA knows.