Haircut & Shave Ti Efficient DFS passaround

Shave #2 with it (40 hours after first shave) - was a better experience than my first shave.  I did pull my blade (Personna platinum made in Israel) palm strop it 5x per side and reinstall just in case I had a burr.  

This shave was more comfortable and efficient.  I performed a standard 3 pass shave WTG,XTG,ATG and was very happy with the results.  

There was no irritation, a pure BBS for my cheeks and mustache area and a DFS+ for my neck. 

I figured out 2 things.  First - I love the handle and it does allow for any thing I could ever want from a razor handle.  It allows me to shave the back of my neck , mustache area, anywhere without interference.  I can see every spot as my hand is out of the way.  3.75” is just perfect for me. 

The second, I was too steep on my first shave with it.  By going a bit more neutral (closer to riding the cap) I was able to just get a comfortable neck shave.  

I was asked by a member to compare to the BB Ti.  It is milder, smoother than the original BB Ti.  It is also less efficient.   Compared to Ti BB Lite it is a bit more aggressive, a larger blade gap to be aware of, and a bit more efficient.  It is between the two, more close in smoothness to the BB Ti Lite but a little more efficient also.  There is no comparison between the 3 that is conclusive other than what I mentioned. They shave differently.  I personally like a polished razor better and I love the handle, it’s a 10/10 for me from a handle performance.

Still pretty smooth at 24 hours out.  I could probably wait another day, will see how I feel this evening.

At exactly 2 days later, I performed shave number 3. I have changed only one parameter the blade.  A fresh Gillette Nacet was palm stropped and installed today.  

I performed a flawless, 3 pass shave (WTG, XTG, ATG) in all areas except mustache where only WTG and ATG are needed.  Even on my neck, i went for the garden of Eden strokes (towards my Adam’s Apple which is ATG for me).  This is usually a sin that will set me back 3-4 days, with irritation, folliculitis and potentially nasty cycle of skin inflammation.  Today, none of it, the shave was excellent.  

Really what I have come to realize, a positive blade exposure, mild to moderate gap straight bar really works well for my skin and beard combination.  In this razor, I am shocked that the Nacet so far outperformed the Personna Israeli Red.  Maybe I had a dud, maybe not and this razor just works best for me with the Nacet.  

But in reality, this razor is one that would be hard to cut yourself with (not a big gap), easy to be really satisfied with a 2 pass shave at DFS+ levels, or go for a BBS feel comfortable that you have a not a torture device but a moderately aggressive razor that really gets it done. 

Ratings - smoothness 8, efficiency 7.5, comfort 8, handle is just a 10, I can’t say enough about that 3.75” being perfect and you can’t drop this even with mittens on.  

I finished with a splash and lotion the shave was a complete “Success”.  



Rudy Vey beautiful brush
Dragonsbeard wonderful software
DanLaw thank you for the introduction to Success and the custom splash, you know the difference it’s made for me

Final Thoughts after 4 shaves with the razor and my morning shave today.

My first two were with a Personna Platinum (Israel made).  Both were 3 pass shaves, but the second shave was much smoother than the first.

My next two shaves were with a Gillette Nacet.  Both were 3 pass shaves, one was really good one was a bit off and irritation occurred and I used a different, top tier soap.

So now as I move on to my final shave, I have received a tub of Mike's Natural Soaps Lanvandin and Eucalyptus.  I want to rule out that one less optimal shave was based on soap, so this is a soap that I have never used before and do not know what to expect going into it.

The answer as you probably already know, it is not the soap.  The shave was very good, i did a 2.5 pass WTG, ATG, JL touch ups... and it was smooth.  This is a razor that provides 8-12 hour BBS for me so I can go 36-48 hours in between shaves with it happily.

So my final impression, it is a very good razor, smoother than most aggressive razors I have had, better than most razors I have had, but I am unsure I would add it to my den.

The reasons are as follows:

1.) I have a few razors that shave in this category of efficiency, all are either polished (preferred) or bead blasted... I have never kept a machined razor and HC&S is no longer offering polished finishes, I asked last week

2.) Although I like the handle for the functionality and length, it does look a bit more industrial than I would prefer

3.) The head is a little thicker stack than I would like (see the picture below compared to another razor)

I guess I would prefer a finish and style when you get above 300 dollars, and that is the heart of the deal for me.   It shaves well enough to be in my rotation, in fact I prefer it to a few of my daily shavers.  So I'm on the fence, if one came up for sale on BST for the right price, I would really consider buying it, but I checked the archives, many don't so I do wonder if this is a razor with staying power in dens, or if there were not as many sold as should have been... I really do not know the answer but I do know it is a smooth shaver that is efficient.

Thank you again andrewjs18 the razor is on its way Monday.

If not too late, I would like to be added in this pass around please. I am in Pittsburgh, PA.


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I'd absolutely love to take part but I'm sure this ended many months ago...  I'm in Virginia.

I'd absolutely love to take part but I'm sure this ended many months ago...  I'm in Virginia.

Correct

How would you all rate the Z074 versus the Ti-5 Efficient in terms of smoothness and closeness of shaves?  

The name "Ti-5 Efficient" is far too generic and makes it difficult to find information on it but that's another topic altogether.  Thanks.

The Efficient is a fair deal more aggressive than the Z074. I used the Z quite a bit and it is very easy to shave with but requires an atg pass and some extra buffing to get a good BBS result. The Efficient is one of my favorite razors though easy to shave with, effortless bbs I'll usually skip the atg pass and just buff after going xtg, doesn't clog and rinses easy even after a week of growth.