Rockwell Model T

Discussion in 'Safety Razors' started by Sabre, Mar 16, 2018.

  1. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    I'm just surprised the mods haven't come in yet and consigned the last page or two of this thread to the dustbin.
     
    blashe likes this.
  2. Whistle Pig

    Whistle Pig New Member

    Jim, if you read carefully, you'll note no "blanket attack". But misery does love company, I spose. Nurse Ratchet gave the meds even to McMurphy. I'll stand by my contribution to the party. Lots of indiscrimitnate piling on ... by some.

    Conviction can be painful, for sure. Been there, done that. Welcome, Jim!
     
  3. Jim Bennett

    Jim Bennett Member

    I'm not going to argue. I won't claim that I can read your mind to see what you intended with that post but I can say that many here found it insulting and interpreted it as an attack. Take that for what it's worth.
     
  4. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    Earlier you asked what our first posts were. For the vast majority of the members on this forum, it was a new thread, introducing ourselves, laying out our wet shaving experience to date, and possibly asking for advice.
    Your first post started off with a bang, and could easily be considered a "banket attack."^^^
    And another post basically saying that anyone complaining should be checked to make sure he isn't a secret squirrel, working for the mysterious unnamed "competition."

    The vast majority of posts in this thread are by folks who take this hobby seriously, and have little interest in shilling for other companies. On top of that, I don't think any of the other shaving companies actually sees Rockwell's model T as a serious threat.

    Edit: until you post elsewhere in this forum, with actual meaningful posts that contribute to the forum, you will be regarded (with some justification) as a troll at worst, and a Rockwell shill at best.

    Edit 2: FYI, I am a Rockwell Model T kickstarter backer.
     
    Last edited: Jun 26, 2018
    Str8on2, korbz, Jim Bennett and 3 others like this.
  5. Str8on2

    Str8on2 Well-Known Member

    For what its worth, here’s the most recent update on the Model T moving forward with the newly redesigned part(s) that was mentioned in the previous 2 updates....

    Posted by Gareth Everard
    • July 4, 2018 1:18pm

    June Update - Production Moving Forward


    Dear Backers,

    We are happy to share with you this month’s Model T update and some good news regarding production.

    Before the update, however, we would like to address an important issue. At Rockwell, we believe that it is important to treat you, the backer, right. We understand that many of you have been frustrated by the long time this complex Indiegogo product launch has been taking. We regret the unexpected delay, and sincerely apologize for any frustration caused, but be assured that we are totally committed to making the best possible product and to delivering an excellent Model T razor to all our backers. It took over two years to deliver the now universally-loved Rockwell 6S, so we know what it takes to deliver a product that our customers will love and we have the patience to do it right. In addition, Rockwell has a fantastic collection of products and is a sustainable business outside of the Model T campaign, so you can be assured of our ability to deliver the Model T to all of our backers.

    Increasingly, over the last few months, Gareth has received personal threats and harassing messages which are abusive and unacceptable. If you are unhappy with the campaign and wish to have your money back, we have repeatedly made clear that you can easily opt out and we will offer a refund. Personal threats and harassment do not move the project forward, or help in any way.

    On to the update:

    In our last update, we told you that a major production consistency improvement would hinge on moving from a Two-Piece T-Bar to a One-Piece T-Bar. We ran a production of One-Piece T-Bars to confirm the manufacturing could hold tolerance and that it would in fact improve the assembly and overall quality of the product. We now have positive indication that a One-Piece T-Bar can in fact be manufactured and are switching all of the production to the One-Piece T-Bar. As more razors go out, we continue to receive more feedback. All feedback is useful, and feedback that indicates any kind of issue that we can address lets us see if it is possible to make the product better. An issue we recently heard from one reviewer is that he believes that at some higher settings (R4 and higher), there is too much play with the blade which could cause chatter. Although we have not been able to replicate this issue in our testing, we looked again at how could we tighten up the current design to provide more support for the blade in the head and eliminate any possible looseness that would result in blade chatter.

    We found that we do have some room to tighten the blade in the head and that this could address the issue. We requested and have tested two additional engineering changes to accomplish this tightening. First, we evaluated a small increase to the thickness of the T-Bar head and arms. This increase holds the blade tighter, eliminating play. Second, we thickened the thrust plates that move the blade and also found that this minor change improves the stability of the razor in the head. These changes required only minor mold changes.

    34419FC8-7EF4-45C9-BE94-CC9A3DE36877.jpeg

    The razors on the left side of each photo are from before we modified the molds to thicken the T-Bar and the Thrust Plate. The razors on the right side are from after the change. As a result, the Thrust Plate fits more snugly in the housing (see top picture) and the blade sits more snugly (see bottom picture).

    Therefore, moving forward, we plan to implement these engineering changes as well as move all production to the One-Piece T-Bar. A production of new parts is en route and we will use it to confirm that these changes work in an additional mass production. We expect to a start shipping Model T Razors with these new parts in late-July. Then, once we’ve confirmed the new parts work in mass production, we will manufacture remaining new parts in all finishes.

    As always, thank you for all of your ongoing support,

    The Rockwell Razors Team
     
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  6. blashe

    blashe Well-Known Member

    fingers crossed for Rockwell
     
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  7. DesertTime

    DesertTime Well-Known Member

    It's good to see they responded quickly to the Ruds review. Even though they couldn't replicate the problem, they made what they saw as an improvement, putting to rest a potential issue.

    In software engineering we called this "step-wise refinement." They're getting there, one step at a time. Each time they fix an issue, they're improving the overall design and product.
     
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  8. Jim Bennett

    Jim Bennett Member

    I'm out of this but I wish the guys who stayed all the luck in the world. I hope you get all you were promised.
     
  9. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    I'm staying in. At best, I'll have helped birth a new razor into the world. At worst, it will be an interesting collectible.

    It also shows why it's important to send out finished samples to experienced wet shavers. Feedback like this is important, and shouldn't be left to the 11th hour.
     
  10. Str8on2

    Str8on2 Well-Known Member

    +1 Agreed. Very well said. Goes to show that even with a couple of successful razors under their belt with the 6s & 6c, the R&D on Rockwells part was and is still slightly lacking. Growing pains and hopefully a valuable lesson for their future endeavors. And yes, I'm still in it. :lam:
     
  11. SpeedyPC

    SpeedyPC Well-Known Member

    I'm still in and still hanging onto my nuts so it doesn't fall off.................................................. HURRY UP!! Rockwell is bloody cold in the Land of OZ.
     
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  12. poikkeus

    poikkeus Member

    I decided to get a refund on the Model T campaign; it's just taking too long. I'm pretty happy with my Rockwell 6S.

    If the Model T reviews get better, I can always purchase a used razor on eBay.
     
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  13. Jim Bennett

    Jim Bennett Member

    To be honest I'm surprised there hasn't been a stampede of people looking to bail out. Some of you guys are really persistant.
     
  14. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    We are, by and large, razor collectors. It's what some of us do. I'm perfectly willing to review both good and bad razors.

    This one is going in my collection as the first "modern" TTO adjustable on the market. In my opinion, whether it shaves well or not, it's a collectible all the same, and worth having for that reason alone.
     
  15. DesertTime

    DesertTime Well-Known Member

    What do you mean by modern? The Merkur Vision and the QShave Parthenon are post Gillette adjustables, the first Vision in 1998 and the Parthenon this year. Both those razors are a departure from the Gillette design, making them a unique addition to the adjustable TTO family of razors. The Rockwell model T design seems to share a closer kinship to a Gillette (which is not a bad thing at all).
     
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  16. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    The Parthenon came out later than the Model T, even if they have managed to actually get razors to their customers quicker. And the Vision has been discontinued since 2014, with production ending in 2013.

    I should have said, "first modern Gillette style TTO adjustable," instead. :)
     
    DesertTime likes this.
  17. DesertTime

    DesertTime Well-Known Member

    I know I was hoping for a modern verion of the Fatboy. I'm still hopeful it will happen some day. With the right blade, I can get as good a shave with my Fatboy as anything else I own. That's why I still use it often. If it were just a little bigger...but alas, if wishes were horses, beggers would ride.
     
  18. blashe

    blashe Well-Known Member

    Actually if we keep it honest and keep them in order for adjustable modern TTO razors this is how it should look like considering release date:

    1. Merkur Vision
    2. Parthenon Razor
    3. Vikings Crusader
    4. Rockwell MT ( yet to be released)
     
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  19. Str8on2

    Str8on2 Well-Known Member

    Don’t be discouraged. Hopefully Janus Razors can bring back the Toggle successfully. And you might need some Reeeeeal Deeeeep pockets.... :sad027: :happy068:
     
    DesertTime likes this.
  20. DesertTime

    DesertTime Well-Known Member

    That Viking Crusader was new to me. Just watched a review. Interesting.
    edit: Their site looks a lot like Classic Shaving's site, are they a subsidiary? I used Classic Shaving many years ago, long before WCS or any of the others. They had a decent, though not spectacular, soap.
     
    Last edited: Jul 10, 2018

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