Karve Shaving Co. A new DE Brass razor to market.

^
I had something similar. B plate was too mild. D plate is good but face needs a break after 3-4 days, so left wondering what C plate is like.

That was exactly my experience. Tried the C and it was perfect.

Glad you finally got it. Maybe this worked out for the best. The non-polished Karve SS is a very handsome razor. Personal preference of course, but I find that some razors just look odd when polished ... the Karve and the Home Shaving Start razors fall under this category for me.
Yes, I went back to the site and was reading about the 'passivation' process for SS. Then I read some web articles on it. So if he polishes them he will remove the passivation protection from the exterior. Maybe that is one of the problems he is confronting ? I sent him another article I ran into on 'electropolishing' which polishes and passivates at the same time. We'll see. TBH, I have a buffer, and some experience with metal polishing. One thought I had was to polish my own. After doing the reading on the passivation I figure I'll call it good as is. 

with a razor, I would have thought there is no need to passivate if hand polishing.

^
I had something similar. B plate was too mild. D plate is good but face needs a break after 3-4 days, so left wondering what C plate is like.

I personally find the D plate to be too aggressive and really enjoy the B plate for daily shave but yes the C plate is a great middle ground between the 2. Its both Smooth and efficient.

Glad you finally got it. Maybe this worked out for the best. The non-polished Karve SS is a very handsome razor. Personal preference of course, but I find that some razors just look odd when polished ... the Karve and the Home Shaving Start razors fall under this category for me.
Yes, I went back to the site and was reading about the 'passivation' process for SS. Then I read some web articles on it. So if he polishes them he will remove the passivation protection from the exterior. Maybe that is one of the problems he is confronting ? I sent him another article I ran into on 'electropolishing' which polishes and passivates at the same time. We'll see. TBH, I have a buffer, and some experience with metal polishing. One thought I had was to polish my own. After doing the reading on the passivation I figure I'll call it good as is. 

with a razor, I would have thought there is no need to passivate if hand polishing.

I wonder ? I'd never heard of it before reading of it on the Karve site. Since then, I've read up on both passivation of stainless steel, and electropolishing of same. The latter is a chemical polishing process that includes passivation. Examples were in the medical field, and oddly enough, tattooing equipment ... stainless tube tips.

Seeing I've never heard of any of the many companies making stainless DEs mentioning it, I'm wondering if Karve, being a machinist, also works with carbon tool steels, necessitating the passivation to remove iron left by his tool bits that are also used for the stainless ? 

I may true polishing my Karve SS down the road apiece.

Just shaved with the SS Karve and the E plate. Quite good. I don't feel like it is better than the brass, but still have to compare the G, F, SB, and F OC for more consideration.

I would be very Interested in thoughts regarding the brass vs the SS.

Day before yesterday I shaved two days of growth with the SS Karve and the F SB plate. I decided it is my favorite between E, F, G. Great shave !

Today I shaved two days growth with the brass Karve and the F SB plate. The brass equaled the shave of the SS. In both cases I was using Polisilver blades. 

Both materials deliver the goods.

I've always been a fan of the look of the karve razor and will probably be picking one up here soon enough.

what plate do you recommend for someone who likes the ikon tech, muhle r41 and blackbird sb?

is anyone willing to loan me one to try for 1-2 weeks? I'm not sure if Karve offers a 30-day return window like some other razor makers have..

I have a Karve SB D plate brass and a OC C plate in SS. I prefer the D plate.

If you have a plate that you consider to be either too aggressive or too mild for your liking, try using another type of blade in the razor.
Using a less sharp blade will reduce the aggressiveness and using a sharper blade will increase the aggressiveness.

I've always been a fan of the look of the karve razor and will probably be picking one up here soon enough.

what plate do you recommend for someone who likes the ikon tech, muhle r41 and blackbird sb?

is anyone willing to loan me one to try for 1-2 weeks?  I'm not sure if Karve offers a 30-day return window like some other razor makers have..

Judging by the razors you've listed above I'd recommend an F or a G SB plate.

Karve has a new design for the cap coming out soon that covers the blade tabs.  I've never really had a problem with exposed blade tabs and think the old design looks better. 

Great ... another SKU. Not a fan. It loses the nice lines. Very blocky. I don't understand the issue with uncovered tabs. I have never even come close to a scratch.