#1
I just received a new adjustable razor that is 316 SS and made in the USA but currently only for sale in Italy. The creator, Giovanni, started this project with Matt from RE along with one other gentleman, Matt decided to go with a more aggressive Rex and Giovanni wanted a smoother razor so they went their separate ways. 
When you first see the razor it looks very much like a Rex and even has excellent knurling on the handle. The lather ports are similar and very effective. The Denali has large tabs on the base of this 2 piece razor to hold the blade while placing on the top cap, works very well. The Top of the top cap is mirrored polish but the underside and the top of baseplate are machined. The solid bars are also fine polished. 
I loaded up a 2nd use PolSilver and lathered up my ETHOS Peppermint, as it’s really muggy here today and proceeded with a 3 pass shave on 72 hours growth. 
WTG Dialed up to level 6 and it had good blade feel but smoothly took off a good portion of my beard. 
XTG. Level 5, Very smooth with a touch of blade feel and I was DFS in 2 passes
ATG Level 4. Extremely smooth ATG with minimal blade feel. End result BBS. 
My initial impression is this is a very well built razor. I would say it is about 1 level down in efficiency compared to the Rex so a 6 on the Denali is more like a 5 on the Rex but significantly smoother. I will have to compare it to my Pearl, which for me has been very good but there still are complaints on the Pearls quality. 
[Image: Z2E9zXF.jpg][Image: IFflotH.jpg][Image: D0YL9H9.jpg][Image: r4QlPSe.jpg][Image: VMb5h9x.jpg]

TJ19, Calm_Shaver, AQU and 12 others like this post
#2

It's sharp and it cuts. I like it...
Northeast, USA
That is a gorgeous looking razor Shavemd and a very nice presentation. I’ve seen this razor being talked about on shave forums and over at ATG a couple weeks back. Looks very similar to the Rex Ambassador and Like I’ve stated, it looks to be a finely made instrument for whisker reduction duties. Perhaps this is the razor that will provide that smooth feel while still providing good cutting ability that a few found not to their liking with the Rex. Though the Rex can cut with some of the best of them, many reports of it not being smooth or actually exhibiting drag while shaving was a downfall for the razor for those that didn’t find the Rex up to snuff. Hopefully, this razor can be an answer to that dilemma for those individuals. Really a shame that it is only available in Europe and not stateside for us razor tool gluttons.  Winking

As always, a quality write up and 1st impression my friend…..

Dragonsbeard, ExtraProtein, Shavemd and 2 others like this post
#3
(06-09-2021, 11:06 PM)Shavemd Wrote: I just received a new adjustable razor that is 316 SS and made in the USA but currently only for sale in Italy. The creator, Giovanni, started this project with Matt from RE along with one other gentleman, Matt decided to go with a more aggressive Rex and Giovanni wanted a smoother razor so they went their separate ways. 
When you first see the razor it looks very much like a Rex and even has excellent knurling on the handle. The lather ports are similar and very effective. The Denali has large tabs on the base of this 2 piece razor to hold the blade while placing on the top cap, works very well. The Top of the top cap is mirrored polish but the underside and the top of baseplate are machined. The solid bars are also fine polished. 
I loaded up a 2nd use PolSilver and lathered up my ETHOS Peppermint, as it’s really muggy here today and proceeded with a 3 pass shave on 72 hours growth. 
WTG Dialed up to level 6 and it had good blade feel but smoothly took off a good portion of my beard. 
XTG. Level 5, Very smooth with a touch of blade feel and I was DFS in 2 passes
ATG Level 4. Extremely smooth ATG with minimal blade feel. End result BBS. 
My initial impression is this is a very well built razor. I would say it is about 1 level down in efficiency compared to the Rex so a 6 on the Denali is more like a 5 on the Rex but significantly smoother. I will have to compare it to my Pearl, which for me has been very good but there still are complaints on the Pearls quality. 
[Image: Z2E9zXF.jpg][Image: IFflotH.jpg][Image: D0YL9H9.jpg][Image: r4QlPSe.jpg][Image: VMb5h9x.jpg]
Nice review. Where did you purchase it from. Thanks

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#4
(This post was last modified: 06-10-2021, 12:01 AM by Shavemd.)
Thank you gentlemen for the kind comments, it can be ordered from https://www.barbaebaffi.it They had a sale on it recently so I think it is currently sold out, but I was told there is more to come

ALI likes this post
#5
More photos here:

https://www.atgshaving.com/threads/denal...zor.20394/

Entasis likes this post
#6
For comparison, it does look like this is more expensive than the Ambassador if I'm right? The RA usually lists for $225-250 (w/ free shipping), and the Denali looks to be 260euros (so roughly $315 at current exchange rate plus shipping costs/time to the US if that's where you're ordering from).
I'd be really interested to know if there was any animosity in the split between them, or if there could be any angst with the 2 razors looking so similar. Hopefully not
#7
(06-10-2021, 05:59 AM)jesseix Wrote: For comparison, it does look like this is more expensive than the Ambassador if I'm right? The RA usually lists for $225-250 (w/ free shipping), and the Denali looks to be 260euros (so roughly $315 at current exchange rate plus shipping costs/time to the US if that's where you're ordering from).
I'd be really interested to know if there was any animosity in the split between them, or if there could be any angst with the 2 razors looking so similar. Hopefully not

The price includes VAT tax which we do not pay in USA, according to Giovanni the split up of partners was amicable and he and Matt are still friends.
#8
(06-10-2021, 09:00 AM)Shavemd Wrote:
(06-10-2021, 05:59 AM)jesseix Wrote: For comparison, it does look like this is more expensive than the Ambassador if I'm right? The RA usually lists for $225-250 (w/ free shipping), and the Denali looks to be 260euros (so roughly $315 at current exchange rate plus shipping costs/time to the US if that's where you're ordering from).
I'd be really interested to know if there was any animosity in the split between them, or if there could be any angst with the 2 razors looking so similar. Hopefully not

The price includes VAT tax which we do not pay in USA, according to Giovanni the split up of partners was amicable and he and Matt are still friends.

Ah very good point about the VAT, didn't think about that  Happy2

I'm glad to hear it was a friendly split
#9
Tonight I dialed the Denali around once and back to 2 and did a WTG pass on a 2 day beard, using a twice used Bic blade. Definitely had blade feel but the shave was very smooth. 2nd pass ATG on 5 and I was BBS except for a small area near the Adam’s apple that I needed to touch up. The feel is not Rocnel Sailor aggressive but it certainly can dial up enough, I believe to satisfy most shavers, excluding the few who really like an aggressive shave. As always YMMV, and this is just how it is working for me.

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#10
I am surprised there is not more hype on this razor. I have loved mine, today I did a 3 pass shave using ETHOS peppermint. WTG at 6 then XTG and ATG at 4 and got a very smooth BBS shave. Unlike the Rex I can take this razor apart for cleaning and it is giving me consistent great shaves. No drag issues either. I am putting this razor in the same category as my Rocnel 2021 adjustable and my Homelike Taiga at a very competitive price for all SS adjustable razor.

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