Kai in Wolfman not for me

I tried my first Kai in my Mamba just last week. It was the most godawful shave experience in memory. It was like shaving with a jagged piece of sheet metal. Worse, it wasnt even cutting hair. I tried 2 passes and then switched blades.

Maybe it was a defective blade, but I'm not sure I want to investigate further.

Seemed to work well in my ATT R2. Since it’s wider I can see how unless it’s used in a razor that bends the blade enough how it could affect shaving angle. Another example of how Blade/razor combos are so unique.

My first reaction when I tried the KAI in the Mamba last week was that it really amped-up the blade feel. After a few shaves, I decided that the added exposure did not actually yield a better shave. My current favorite is the very-sharp Bic Chrome Platinum.

I'm happy using Kai blades. Tried them again this weekend. Like butter.

I must have some good ones. I bought them a few years ago when they were kind of expensive. Now everything's easier to get and costs less too.

Wait, are we referencing blade thickness or blade width? I'd guess either would change the shave but width would seem to be the bigger of the two influences.

I measured the KAI to be quite a bit wider (edge to edge) than most blades, almost 1/3 millimeter. It is also believed by some to be thicker. I agree that it feels stiffer, but I could not confirm that it is any thicker. If so, it is only by a little and below the resolution of my calipers (0.0005”). It cannot be more than about 12% thicker at most, and may not be thicker at all.

The extra width definitely increases the blade exposure.

If it really is any thicker, it would have very little effect on the geometry (far less than actually adding a shim made from an old blade).

It is possible that being stiffer would reduce blade chatter, but this is probably offset by the increase in exposure.

I think the KAI is a good but atypical blade. It will definitely change the geometry of the razor. Whether that is good or bad depends on your razor and face.

It simply deviates from the norm, which can be a useful tuning tool in the right application.

I think the KAI is a good but atypical blade. It will definitely change the geometry of the razor. Whether that is good or bad depends on your razor and face.

It simply deviates from the norm, which can be a useful tuning tool in the right application.

Very true. I’m not sure why but I always thought that DE blades were all exactly the same size and dimensions. Not sure why I came to that conclusion but obviously it was a false one.

Well, they have to be very close in order to be interchangeable, but I'm sure the blanks are stamped slightly wide to allow for honing the edge. Maybe KAI uses a different honing process or just allowed a little more margin for it.

I've also seen some very slight variation in how snugly the blade cutouts fit the close-tolerance posts of the SS Mamba, but haven't kept any notes.