(This post was last modified: 07-25-2020, 11:57 AM by Elfskin.)
Got my Taiga 6 months ago and I never loved a razor like it. It wasn't the case at the beginning, I had second thoughts for a while. Sharing my experience hoping it might help some.
I started shaving like I did with my variant and the progress before it, usual 2-3 pass shaves every other day or so and it didn't work that well with the Taiga. I have a sensitive skin on my neck prone to irritation and razor bumps so while the razor is extremely smooth and my skin did not get irritated I did cut myself much more than usual. Part of it is because of the angle (the cap is on the flat side), part of it because of imperfections on the skin of my neck. Probably had to use alum every time.
In the last 4 months I have gotten a perfect BBS every single day (can't remember my last break) with no irritation nor cuts by switching to the OC plate exclusively and dialing down to 2. On my neck hair grows randomly in all directions so I start with one pass mostly against the grain. Then I pass my hand repeatedly on my skin to feel it and spread the lather left by the Taiga, stretch the skin and buff however needed until I don't feel a single stubble in any direction. With its flat head the Taiga leaves a film of lather on the skin, just have to spread it around to even it before buffing and rebuffing, most of the time I reach BBS before all the film is gone. At setting 2 I don't get cuts, razor burns nor bumps, at 2.5 it's not a given anymore. On my face I dial up, it's easier as my skin is not as sensitive and hair patterns are easy to follow. I very rarely need alum, maybe once every other week when I rush too much. If in a hurry I can be done in under 5 minutes using canned goo. In my decades of shaving and trying everything sharp under the sun I have never been remotely close to being that clean shaven consistently with a BBS lasting well into the evening
One last tip, I tried a couple dozen blades and only one gave me a bloodbath every single time. The KAI blades are a tiny bit wider, guessing that's why they're not a fit for the OC plate. All the others were fine, as usual YMMV, initially I was going more for derby premium but once I settled in my daily routine I switched to a sharper blade Gillette 7 o'clock super stainless (the green one), it's the one my skin prefers of all the blades on the sharp side.
Maybe other early adopters can chime in with their own discoveries to make that pass around even more enjoyable. Happy shaves!