Sure is Sir...Like 50% chance that its 20 % accurate that its gonna work out with a Bird..... Billy....
Shave report #4 This morning I used base plate #4 for the first time. I've truly enjoyed the past three shaves and every time I moved to a higher tier base plate the shave certainly did get more aggressive. I felt that #3 was pretty close to what I want in a razor but was maybe just a bit too mild - so I was really looking forward to how #4 would perform. Assembled the razor with the aesthetically-challenged-looking base plate. Put a brand new Rapira blade in and lathered up some Soap Commander Endurance. Impressions: The level of "aggression" was stepped up once again. Probably by another 30-40%. It also felt more audible. I think this plate came with some trade off - it felt less comfortable than plate 1-3 but it felt more efficient in mowing down the stubble. For the first time I felt that I could cut myself....and I did (right under the nose). After two passes I was very clean shaven. A good 80-85%. There were some faint stubble left on the right side of my jaw but I'm actually going to attribute that to sloppy technique rather than blaming the razor as the rest of my face was very well shaved. I now only have two plates to go through - 5 and 6 - and I think I will approach using them very carefully...
Shave Report # 5 Last day with the Rockwell for now so decided to try out both the #5 and #6 base plates this morning. Assembled the razor with the #5 plate and started out with a WTG pass...wow...much more aggressive. I really felt as if I had to be careful here. Completed the WTG on one side of my face and changed over to the #6 plate for the ATG pass. Yowza! Audible and aggressive but also surprisingly smooth. I really liked it. Did the same process on the other side of my face but reversed- WTG with #6 and ATG with #5. Conclusion: Both the #5 and #6 baseplates offer a very aggressive shave but the 'funny' thing to me is that these two plates regained some of the 'comfort' that I felt plate #4 lost. Next time I pick up this razor I'll be using #3 or 5/6 depending on how I feel. And that's that.
Two Rockwell-related news today. One good...and one very disappointing. The good one: You can now buy this razor at Westcoastshaving by just the components that you want. If you for instance just want the handle and the #2 and #4 baseplate you pay $15+$20=$35. That's it. Great idea if you already kinda know what you want/like. The disappointing one: It never ceases to amaze me how messed up the 'marketing'/sales w/in this company is and the message that they themselves convey about their razor. Read this: This razor is currently not sold with a top cap while that piece is in production. (Coming soon!) Currently, it can be used in conjunction with the top cap from any 3-piece safety razor. I seriously can't being to fathom how it was deemed a good idea to continue to sell the product - even push it through new venues without having all the issues resolved. It's just so disappointing to see how these guys run their company - but hey, who am I to talk...I got one of their razors and I happen to love it.
The pricing sounds very reasonable. But selling it without a top cap seems like a bad move and a weird thing to do. It gives the impression that they don't really care about the quality of what they are selling.
It gives me the impression that they are incapable of producing a finished product at this time, but monetarily are forced to sell the bits that they have. I'm quite surprised the vendor is carrying such a product. They must have gotten quite a deal on the parts, or the top plates are actually very close to being available.
Excuse my ignorance since my experience is limited to vintage Gillettes, but just how interchangeable are top caps these days?
I have been following this since the first backers were starting to get theirs. It was FUBAR then, and doesn't seem any better now. I think the above poster had to be on to something, when he talked about the need for cash, and just selling the available bits. I really wanted/want to see this work out, but who does that? Supply your own top cap? Maybe they can get pulled out of this tailspin, but at this point, I work too hard for my money.
The base plate is quite thick. Will a central post from a EJ89 top cap for example be long enough? I doubt it.
I read in thread elsewhere, that people were originally trying different top caps, bench grinders, etc., anything to diagnose the problems, and to make a decent shaver out of it. I don't remember specifically which caps people were trying, but standard post caps would grab with a couple of threads. There are some people who are quite happy with the shave they get from theirs. I have a lot of popcorn, and will keep watching the story unfold. I would still kind of like to see this Edsel of a razor take off.
If anyone is interested but curious how their current top cap would look mounted I can snap some photos of I happen to have the razor in question
Rockwell6s kickstarter about 2 weeks ago they posted that everyone that bought one of the original razors will get a complete new razor free. They have redseigned the cap and base plates. The new parts look great, go to their website, they are 2 stand up guys.
I don't doubt that they mean well, but the rollout was an abortion, the initial fix was worse, and they have been promising new repair caps to the initial backers WHILE they continue to sell razors that are bunked. Now we are to the point where they are counting on the goodwill of the community to buy partial razors and provide your own cap while we wait for a fix? Honestly I can't believe a reputable seller like West Coast Shaving would put his name on this.
I personally don't get involved with these New Razor Projects, but these things are of no surprize to me....The OneBlade Razor has turned out to be another farcical escapade....They are knowingly selling faulty goods and continuing to do so....The whole idea behind these projects are Dodgy in my books...Now whilst I admire the quality of the Mongoose and indeed I do ...They too are selling goods that have obvious flaws from minor to severe ...Some folks are putting up with it on the promise of Game Changing Stainless Steel Razor... I don't get it.. Billy....
I guess meaning well, and that quiet, dark metallic fear sweat are not that different of things are they?
There is a certain irony in the fact that no matter what I spend on the latest stainless/machined razor, my vintage Gillette's give me the sweetest shaves.
The Irony of it all is ...These designers are primarily concerned with producing a stainless razor that shines...The shaving potential of the razor is a secondary function now that's the truth of the matter by my reckoning...Stainless is notoriously hard to work with and CNC machining is very expensive and the more refined the job is the more Bucks its going to cost...Its almost ludicrous to achieve the finer requirement's of a razors head & comb design in stainless steel...Especially a DE design... The Mongoose is the exception to the rule because of its simplistic almost flat head and base plate design that utilizes a straight edge blade...The Mongoose and the Cobra have cleverly jumped on the Mythical status of the feather blade... Nice piece of work I must say...Most of these modern razor designers are supplying a Forum led demand for stainless razors which will amount to a few hundred thousand folks worldwide that are willing to part with their cash for them....Quite ingenious really.. Billy....
I think I'll just buy an "Above the Tie" and be done with all of this... Although my Mergress - which achieves exactly the same thing with great ease - is the cat's meow!
