Alpha Bandit DFS pass around

Gents - quick plug... I will be making a VERY limted number of special edition Bandits in C145 Copper - only opend and closed comb with a slightly modified handle. $650.00 a pop. There will be less than 10 of these in the world and 2 are sold already...

Of course feedback from this passaround is included.

Package in hand. First shave and initial thoughts to follow. 

Package in hand. First shave and initial thoughts to follow. 

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First shave and initial thoughts.

Bandit OC/Super Iridium Polsilver 
APShaveCo 28mm Silksmoke Summer
Ethos Greenfresh soap & splash
ADP Colonia Essenza 

First I’d like to thank Steve Vlasta Alpha Shaving Works and andrewjs18 for getting together and setting up this pass around for us shave enthusiasts to partake in. 

Went with the OC plate on the Bandit for my first shave as I hadn’t shaved since Monday morning and had a nice 3 days worth of whiskers to slice & dice. I like the package that the razor is actually placed in. Has a nice upscale feel to it with a nice foam cutout for the razor to be placed in that keeps it safe & secure. The box is sturdy and I thought the cover sleeve that goes over the 2 piece box set up was a nice touch in the overall razor packaging. If this is the retail version or close to what it will be shipped in, Steve at Alpha nailed it. For me at least. The look and feel of the Bandit to my eyes has a luxury look to it, next level if you want to call it that. Feels substantial in the hands once it’s all put together with an elegant look that also means business. The threading on the top cap stud is smoother than smooth, I mean world class smooth. Felt like there was a bearing installed inside of the handle thats how smooth and easy it was tightening up the components. I’m a sucker for Brass Alloy razors and the Bandit is no exception. I love the looks of it. Whipped up a gorgeous lather with Ethos Greenfresh and went to work. 2 strokes in and got the angle and kept it there for all 3 passes. Smooth, efficient and easy on the skin. There is a slight bit of blade feel but, not intimidating in the least. No skipping or chatter from the blade/razor combo as the blade was held very rigidly with good blade support. I was done in three with just 2 tiny weepers at the corner of my mouth and not an ounce of irritation. It’s a solid razor with some real heft so the weight will be pretty much all is needed to produce quality results. The caveat for me is there in that weight and mostly because it pretty much is centered around the handle. I like and prefer weight bias towards the head of the razor as one can tinker and experiment where ones grip would be best positioned on the Bandit. Here I had to choke up some closer to the head to get comfortable and that allowed me to get the results I wanted. That’s just me and is a bit of nitpicking but, I think better balance can be achieved with fluting or some sort of tapering along the top end of the handle to better balance out the razor as a whole. Still, not annoying nor a turnoff for me if this turned out to be the finished product. Had no issues with cleaning or rinsing out the razor between strokes and passes.

Very nice first shave. Next shave will be with the SB plate with the lather channel cut outs. Great shaves to all….

Alpha Bandit/Polsilver Super Iridium
Fendrihan 24mm Tux Black & Clear
Stirling R4L soap & splash
Banana Republic M pour homme edt


Second shave today with the Bandit and the serrated base plate with lather channels. A little over a day and a half’s worth of growth for the razor to tackle. Built a good lather with the Stirling soap and went with a full 3 pass shave. It was imminent from the first stroke that to me, this was not going to be as smooth a feeling shaver as it was with the open comb plate. It wasn’t rough or uncomfortable but, it wasn’t as easy feeling on my skin. Somehow I felt a bit more blade feel and the angle was quite easy to get and maintain. I felt no skipping or blade chatter during successive strokes on each individual pass WTG, ATG & XTG. The blade and razor felt more assertive and yet at the end the shave was just as close as it was with the first shave with the OC plate. Similar in a sense to an R41 ‘13 version with this SB plate. I also gave myself a couple more weepers around the stache area and on one side of the burns. Cleared up quickly and easily with a cold water splash and alum pass once I was done. I felt a bit of heat along the side burns, jawline and to the left of my chin. Not unbearable and actually quite low level but, present nonetheless. And to be honest, I still enjoyed the shave immensely. I chalk up the weepers and heat to just getting to know the razor and my inexperience with this slayer of whiskers. I liked the shave a bit more with the OC plate versus this one but, I don’t think this plate is that far off from being a smooth and still be exceptionally efficient.

Next is the SB plate with no lather channel exits. Great shaves to all….

Third shave in with the Bandit.

Alpha Bandit SB/Polsilver Super Iridium
WCS 26mm Tux Blue/White two tone
RR The Dead Sea soap & splash
D&G Light Blue eau intense

Pardon my delay in getting in these shave reports, gentlemen. I’ll make this short and sweet. Opted to go with the 3rd plate in this kit and that was the SB plate without the lather slots. Still had the Polsilver blade going on its third use. Whipped up a great lather with the RR Dead Sea and just went to town on 2 full days worth of whiskers. Superbly smooth and yet nicely efficient. This was by far the easiest and smoothest shave of the trip yet with excellent efficiency with just enough blade feel to let one know what the business end is doing. No nics, cuts or weepers and zilch for the irritation gremlins. Smooth as glass in the end and a shit eating grin from ear to ear. 

Not all is rosey though. The one caveat was the SB head itself. It definitely needs the lather slots to facilitate the removal of soap and whiskers during the rinsing phase. That was the only thing that kept me from making this plate the bee’s knee’s. Overall very close to the OC plate in overall effect from start to finish.

Will try the OC plate one more time and give my final assessment with the Alpha Bandit. I’ll send a pm to the next gentleman in the pass around list to get it ready to go once I’m done.

Great shaves to all….

If you want to be included in the pass around list, please comment that you're in and what state you live in. As per usual, keep the razor for 7-10 days (mostly because there's 3 plates) and then pass it off to the next person on the list. When you have time, please share your thoughts in this thread.

Here's the google form with some feedback questions Vlasta has for people who have used the razor in the pass around: https://forms.gle/cP6VTUGh1uLx3FN37


List:
ALI (Connecticut)
Dave in KY (Kentucky)
jorvaljr (California) *removed at user's request*
draebeard (Washington)
CK89 (Indiana)
Marhos24 (Michigan)
Lbkindy (Indiana)
Timeclo (California)
Ketotrader (Virginia)
Calm_Shaver (New York)
GlazedBoker (New Jersey)
MaineYooper (Maine)
ewk (South Carolina)
Timeclo (California)
Bullyson (Kentucky)
J33pGuy13 (Pennsylvania)
andrewjs18 (Pennsylvania)

No shave today in memory of a good shave friend whom I learned earlier today had passed on. My apologies gentlemen.

As most of you can tell, I enjoyed every shave with the Alpha Bandit. Good efficiency with good to excellent feel on skin in terms of overall comfort. I enjoyed the OC plate the most as it had a real good balance on shave prowess, ease of use and overall comfort. The SB plate with no lather channels came in a very close second. Easier on the skin than the OC counterpart and just a hair less blade feel. I’m in on this razor once Alpha gets it ready for production and if it is offered in multiple plate configurations (hopefully that SB plate gets those lather channel slots and some weight distribution on how the razor balances itself. It’s a bit handle heavy as it stands, fingers crossed) this is going to be a heck of a razor to contend with. One more thing, please keep it in Brass as it just looks awesome. 

Again, a big thank you to Steve Vlasta & Andrew andrewjs18 for getting this together for us shavers to experience and enjoy.


RIP my fellow shave brother & friend Mark D. Shavemd. 

Can I remind folks to fill the google form once you're done?

https://forms.gle/e4hvnYVSxN4Wdv2H9

Can I remind folks to fill the google form once you're done?

https://forms.gle/e4hvnYVSxN4Wdv2H9

Oooppss. On it.