Occam's razor

GlazedBoker, I appreciate your continued remarks, and I think those pictures show the razor (with the blade gap) very well.

Glad to hear that your perseverance with the razor is paying off. I’ve experienced something similar myself, and in the end was glad that I didn’t give up on the product in the early stages.

I tried some new gripping techniques this morning, as suggested by a video they put out, and I found success. I may still add some grip enhancing material to be safe, I'm starting to enjoy the razor more now.

12/9/17
Round 6

Decided to let a few days go by and get some decent growth and throw the Occam's at it. Same items as in the last shave except for the Maggard synthetic. Everything worked together as planned. Just an excellent 2.5 pass shave that was super comfortable and produced a wonderful BBS shave. The razor went right through 4 days growth without a hiccup and the KAI blade felt sharp, smooth and efficient. The ProTouch MG is an excellent match for the Occam's on the 3 dot plate. Of course that's just my own personal experience. Nonetheless, it pairs very, very well.

The grip of the razor has been more comfortable since I saw the link with Luke Webster giving a few tips and pointers on how to use and hold the razor. I will say that on ATG passes, I still get a better feel and better control with my thumb behind the razors head. But used it as was mentioned on the link on the WTG and minor touch up passes. The shaves have been better and this one was the best, rivaling some of the better shaves I've given myself with other, more well known SE razors. One more to go and an overall write up in tune....

12/16/17

Rounds 7,8 & 9

Haven’t been able to put the last 2 shaves prior to this one in the shave report spaces here. Work, family and the holiday shuffle have been very hectic, plus I received a vintage injector razor that I just had to try out. That’s done and over with (great shave by the way with the injector, report on that soon). Put 3 more shaves in from last Saturday to today and they have been just superb.

I will just come out flat and say it. The razor stays in my rotation as it has proven to be an excellent and efficient razor regardless of hair growth from 1-3 days in my experience. It took me 2-3 shaves to get it dialed in, but once I got the feel, grip and technique for it, it has been smooth sailing without a single issue. All shaves have produced excellent results with various blades in the mix. From a Feather Pro Super, Schick Proline and KAI ProTouch Pink’s, no complaints at all with neither of them. I will say that my best shaves came at the hands of the KAI ProTouch Pink with the 3 dot head. They were smooth, comfortable and very close that gave really good longevity on face feel and duration of quality of shave. I must say that I never did use the 1 dot head in the razor. But I will in the future experiment with the 1 dot head. As for now, the 2 & 3 dot were more than enough to get me good, consistent shaves.

First, the pro’s on the Occam’s razor:
1. Solid build and construction. SS gents, it’s not going anywhere. Fit and finish is top notch with not a hint of sloppiness in its construction.
2. Adjustability. You can set it to your favorite set up and forget it. Like I said, I never tried the 1 dot head but with the other 2 sizes I never felt an overly aggressive shave or blade feel with it. Just smooth shaves and I never felt that I would cut or nic myself with it.
3. Weight distribution. Though I thought it should have weighed more since it’s all SS, it was surprisingly light but, very well balanced. Good in the hands, with good transitional movement between WTG, XTG and ATG shave passes. It has a sort of tongue depressor type handle, but it never felt slippery nor did I drop it. And the groove on the handle actually aides in getting a proper grip just right under the head.
4. Blade insertion/removal is a snap. I actually don’t use the tool that came included with it for removing and installing a blade. Just grab a blade, insert from the rear of the head, and a gentle 2 finger push on the blade from both ends. Easy as pie.
5. Great clean and rinse razor. No other safety razor comes close in clearing out soap and hair. Nothing.
6. Nice, wide head. Covers more real estate with each pass.

Now the con’s. I don’t have much, but I believe they are significant in holding back a razor that is good that potentially could have been great:
1. The guard. It is just a big safety guard and I believe it doesn’t allow for the blade to engage more smoothly with the skin. A little less safety bar would turn this razor up a notch in efficiency and feel in my opinion.
2. Ease of adjustability. Let’s face it, having to use a tool (small Phillips head ) to remove 2 screws to change head types is a bit of a nuisance. Though you get an extra set in the razor kit, if you’re careless or happen to drop one in your bathroom/shave den sink, good luck. I think a simple slide and lock mechanism would have been much better and easier to deal with in changing those head plates. Besides, who uses a tool to shave with their razor? Exactly.
3. The handle can be an issue. It’s love or hate and getting a proper grip or hold of it can be a bit of an issue. It took me a fe shaves to figure it out and find a hold I was comfortable with. Not a deal breaker, but has to be mentioned nonetheless.
4. Maneuverability. The wide head is great on flat, clean passes. But getting into the corners of your mouth and lining up those sideburns can be a real problem. Again, the safety bar for me is the culprit here. And if you have a pronounced Adams Apple such as I do, it can get tricky moving around there. Not impossible, but more work required to get it done compared to others. I don’t shave the stache area, but I can see where using it can be a problem. Again, back to the safety bar here.

In the end, the Occam’s is a very capable razor in giving excellent shaves. My shaves got better as I got more and more shaves in. Worked with every blade I put in it. The razor never felt aggressive nor did I feel that it was capable of cutting me.

The razor has great potential in being an everyday shaver. A simpler system for changing the heads and a reduced safety bar contact area would pay off big dividends in making it more user friendly and a force in the safety razor world. It’s a competent razor that gets it done, but I believe with a couple of tweaks it can be a top shaver in anyone’s shave arsenal. As it stands, it’s just a notch below, a tiny one to some of the heavy hitters in my possession. But it’s a keeper and it has a uniqueness to it that draws me. Anyway, that’s how I see it......

Thanks for the update and I hope you continue to enjoy the razor.

GlazedBoker Excellent summation and review. I agree with all the pros & cons. For someone like myself who has to do a little buffing on the upper lip is the big shortcoming of this razor for me, very difficult. Otherwise this is the smoothest SE I own even on the 3 dot.

I really like the shave I'm getting, and hope to make it my daily driver, but I have to do something about the handle.

I have a water softener due to hard well water, and it makes everything extra slick, including the handle of this razor. I tried the best I could to dry my hands and the razor between rinses, but inevitably, it would get wet and I had a hard time keeping a grip on it.

In fact, I had two slips that I don't know how I didn't slice my face off.

But that's a problem for ME and my situation, not really a knock on the razor. Just for me, some knurling would be helpful. I'm looking at other solutions because I am enjoying the shave using the moderate head and pro guard blades.

I'm not one to rotate razors, and have been hoping since Kickstarter that this my be 'the one'.

JustinHEM,

Try making your fingers damp and rubbing them on your alum block.

That should take care of the slipperiness on both the handle and your skin.

Mickey

GlazedBoker,

Thank you for this extraordinarily detailed and beautifully illustrated report.

Mickey

After several shaves using the medium head and Feather Pro blades I can say the thing works. Changing blades is pretty easy by hand without the tool. I had no more issues adapting to the handle, getting under my nose, on upper lip or around the creases at the corner of my mouth than with other AC format razors. The shaves have been PDG and very comfortable. I'll try other blades and heads eventually but for now I can say the razor pretty much performs as advertised.

Today I used the medium head and a Schick Proline blade and I have to admit, somewhat grudgingly, that the result was as nice and comfortable a shave as from my ATT SE1.