Essence vs DX shave off

I have been in possession of the Tedalus Essence razor for a little over a week now and have put in about four or five shaves with it just to get a feel for the razor. So far I am totally impressed.

So tonight I decided to do what everyone was hoping to be done (or at least I was hoping to be done) and do a shave off between the Essence and the Feather DX mano a mano, or I guess navaja a navaja.

To begin with, the tale of the tape:

The Feather DX that I will be using has wood scales and is about 6.25 inches long. The blade width is approximately 5/8. It has jimps along the underside of the tang.

The Tedalus Essence has an aluminum scale that is very dark anodized making it appear almost like ebony wood. It is about 7.75 inches long. The blade is possibly 7/8 but hard to say exactly because it has a curve along the spine. It has a very long monkey tail and jimps on top and below the tang.





The blade of the DX is rather thick because it has a spring to release the blade. The face of the blade has a slight hollow grind to it.


The blade of the Essence is extremely flat as it uses magnets to hold the two sides together. The face of the blade is almost flat.

I decided that the best way to do this was to devote one shave to each razor on subsequent nights using the same blade, shaving soap, brush, and aftershave.

blade: Schick Proline brand new
soap:  Hasslinger’s Schafmilch
brush: HSC custom Koa handle with tuxedo knot
AS:    TFS V

The Essence won the coin toss and decided to shave first even though Schick Prolines take one or two shaves to settle in. I guess the Essence wanted to strike while I was familiar with it and wanted to put this shave off out of reach early.

WTG pass started out a little shaky. I used a medium to long stroke pressing the blade against my face as close as I could. Because the blade of the Essence was wide, I did have some problems under my nose and around my chin area. There was more stubble left after the WTG pass than I expected, and so I knew I had to pick all of that up with the ATG pass.


For the ATG pass, I went with shorter, more deliberate strokes, again laying the blade as close to my face as possible. This worked well as I ended up (once again) with a two pass BBS with minimal touch up.

Applying the aftershave, there was no stinging or burning, and no nicks or irritation.

Did the Essence deliver the knock out punch over the DX? We will find out tomorrow.

Will you be purchasing the stand, when available? Both the razor and the stand are nicely done.

Just looked at mine and I would disagree that the sides of the Essense are flat. It does look that way when viewed head-on. However, if you look from the top, you'll see the razor is widest from the nose and tapers in the direction of the tail. If you look at the razor from the back, you can see the concave curvature.

I am not sure if that is normal. I kind of expected that the razor head to be uniform from front to back, but it's not the case with the Essense, and I haven't noticed any negative impact on my shaves. (Though the quality of my shaves should NOT be anyone's benchmark. )

One question for you as you go through your shaves, if you can ... one clear difference in design is the notch in the Essence, right after the heel where one's index finger grips the razor. I find that gives me really good control. The DX doesn't have that. Is there any noticeable in comfort and shaves with the two due to that difference? Thanks in advance!

Just looked at mine and I would disagree that the sides of the Essense are flat. It does look that way when viewed head-on. However, if you look from the top, you'll see the razor is widest from the nose and tapers in the direction of the tail. If you look at the razor from the back, you can see the concave curvature.

I am not sure if that is normal. I kind of expected that the razor head to be uniform from front to back, but it's not the case with the Essense, and I haven't noticed any negative impact on my shaves. (Though the quality of my shaves should NOT be anyone's benchmark. )

There is a hollow grind on the Essence, pretty shallow, maybe a quarter hollow grind. As for the curve in the spine, that's something you normally see on a "smiling" razor that is purpose built that way. You also see it on turn of the century Sheffield razors which tended to have mostly flat razor edges, with just a ghost of a smile. It can make the razor more difficult to hone, and in the Essence, it's a stylistic choice and a weight saving option. It serves no other purpose other than to add to the flowing lines of the razor, and to deepen the illusion that it is a 'real' straight razor. It also gives you a fraction more visibility and maneuverablity than a straight spine would.

Screenshot from Tedalus website. End view render of the Essence.

Zhang Doe , I checked my Essence this morning before going to the gym. I pinched the blade and moved my finger and thumb down the sides and yes, there is a very slight hollow grind (as pointed out above by PLANofMAN ). this does serve to allow the razor to glide better against my face instead of causing too much drag as some of my other shavettes.

As for the notch at the heel of the razor, I have never been one to use it, probably since very few of my straight razors and shavettes had such design. I usually hold the two sides of the heel with my thumb and middle finger, and my index finger on top, meaning that I seldom take advantage of the jimps of any razors either. Small details, but I think it is significant for those that use those features.

I totally agree that the styling of the blade (the smile along the spine) probably serves the purpose of weight and balance.

Zhang Doe , I checked my Essence this morning before going to the gym. I pinched the blade and moved my finger and thumb down the sides and yes, there is a very slight hollow grind (as pointed out above by PLANofMAN ). this does serve to allow the razor to glide better against my face instead of causing too much drag as some of my other shavettes.

As for the notch at the heel of the razor, I have never been one to use it, probably since very few of my straight razors and shavettes had such design. I usually hold the two sides of the heel with my thumb and middle finger, and my index finger on top, meaning that I seldom take advantage of the jimps of any razors either. Small details, but I think it is significant for those that use those features.

I totally agree that the styling of the blade (the smile along the spine) probably serves the purpose of weight and balance.

Interesting. Never seen that kind of grip before (based on very, very few YouTube videos watched). I'll try it out.

Zhang Doe , I checked my Essence this morning before going to the gym. I pinched the blade and moved my finger and thumb down the sides and yes, there is a very slight hollow grind (as pointed out above by PLANofMAN ). this does serve to allow the razor to glide better against my face instead of causing too much drag as some of my other shavettes.

As for the notch at the heel of the razor, I have never been one to use it, probably since very few of my straight razors and shavettes had such design. I usually hold the two sides of the heel with my thumb and middle finger, and my index finger on top, meaning that I seldom take advantage of the jimps of any razors either. Small details, but I think it is significant for those that use those features.

I totally agree that the styling of the blade (the smile along the spine) probably serves the purpose of weight and balance.

Interesting. Never seen that kind of grip before (based on very, very few YouTube videos watched). I'll try it out.

If you do use that kind of pinch grip, the cutouts for the brand name act as jimps. It's an odd grip, but I've used it before when going after single hairs, or when doing the edges of my sideburns. It’s a "tip work" type of grip.
Edit: for me, anyways.

Tonight’s shave was with the Feather DX. The performance by the Essence last night did put a lot of pressure on the DX, but it has been put to the test before by other shavettes and so this was nothing new.

WTG pass went a little better than the Essence. The blade being 5/8 was the size that I preferred for my straight razors and the more pronounced hollow ground just felt more natural as I shaved. No problem with shaving under the nose or my chin. There was still some stubble left over after the WTG pass, but not as much as the Essence.

The ATG pass, I again went with shorter, more deliberate strokes and allowed myself to find the correct angle. The blade being thicker and the grind being more pronounced made it easier for me to use the angles I use with a straight razor. I ended up with a two pass BBS with very minimal touch up.

Applying the aftershave did not produce any stinging or burning and again, no nicks or irritation.