Paradigm 2020 Diamondback

Wow great photos Mark! Two beautiful razors. I got my tester of the Diamondback from Andrew and I’m going to compare it to my 17 4 and then the TI 1 I have from Paradigm. To me the fit and finish is right up there with the top 3.

They have testers available? I’d be interested in that program. Please share details.

Andy has a 30 day return policy if you are not happy with the razor.

First shave in was excellent. It's a solid, weighty piece that exudes quality. The shave was smooth, intuitive and very efficient. Seems like the best qualities of the Ti v.1 and the 17-4. Going to use it all week....

Hoping to hear from him this week about international shipping (Canada). Seems like a winning razor, but gotta try it to know! Great Pics all.

Happy Easter everyone!
So after a nice Easter dinner I decided to do a nice relaxing shave showdown:
Diamondback vs CarbonCx Ti w/ ++ SS baseplate
Pre Shave Proraso Green
Soap Proraso Green
Blades Gillette Platinum 2nd use
Post shave Proraso Green
2 passes WTG then ATG
With the first pass the Carbon displayed the same smoothness and blade feel as the all Ti yesterday but had a little louder audio feedback. The Diamondback continues to have a very smooth feel with a little blade feel and a little audio feedback letting you know you are at the right angle. Cold rinse and the Carbon side had removed more whiskers yet both sides were an easy DFS.
2nd pass. Again both razors were very smooth with the Carbon having more blade feel and a little louder audio feedback. Cold rinse and both sides were an excellent BBS.
This definitely was a tie in end results between thes 2 razors and I would say your choice in either would be based on weight and blade feel. The Carbon is half the weight of the Diamondback but the Diamondback has less blade feel. I am really enjoying both.
As a note some people have questioned a 2 pass BBS but you must take into consideration that I shave daily so while my whiskers are grey and sharp and need to be removed daily for my work your results may be different especially if you skip a day or 2 between shaves. Now for a few Bunny pics:

Shavemd Shave that bunny WTG. Anything else is animal cruelty.

Happy Easter everyone!
So after a nice Easter dinner I decided to do a nice relaxing shave showdown:
Diamondback vs CarbonCx Ti w/ ++ SS baseplate
Pre Shave Proraso Green
Soap Proraso Green
Blades Gillette Platinum 2nd use
Post shave Proraso Green
2 passes WTG then ATG
With the first pass the Carbon displayed the same smoothness and blade feel as the all Ti yesterday but had a little louder audio feedback. The Diamondback continues to have a very smooth feel with a little blade feel and a little audio feedback letting you know you are at the right angle. Cold rinse and the Carbon side had removed more whiskers yet both sides were an easy DFS.
2nd pass. Again both razors were very smooth with the Carbon having more blade feel and a little louder audio feedback. Cold rinse and both sides were an excellent BBS.
This definitely was a tie in end results between thes 2 razors and I would say your choice in either would be based on weight and blade feel. The Carbon is half the weight of the Diamondback but the Diamondback has less blade feel. I am really enjoying both.
As a note some people have questioned a 2 pass BBS but you must take into consideration that I shave daily so while my whiskers are grey and sharp and need to be removed daily for my work your results may be different especially if you skip a day or 2 between shaves. Now for a few Bunny pics:

Both razors are gorgeous! Does the Carbon have a titanium handle?

shaveSymptomatic This is the all titanium Cx the ++ baseplate that I used today is SS 316L

I did a late night Shave Off using the Diamondback vs the 17 4.  I had 4 days growth which is 2 days longer than I normally go between shaves so a good challenge for both razors.  I only did a 2 pass shave going WTG and XTG.  Looking at the blade exposure I thought to myself the Diamondback would maybe be smoother than even the 17 4 which is one smooth razor. I lathered up and started my WTG pass with the Diamondback on my right side and it had a decent amount of blade feel but was still fairly smooth but it was taking down my 4 days growth fairly easily with no hesitations or skipping. Finished the pass and picked up the 17 4 to continue my WTG pass on my neck. I immediately noticed that the 17 4 had less blade feel and was smoother as far as face feel goes. The 17 4 also had no problems taking down my growth so with the 17 4 in hand I went right over to my right side and began my N to S WTG pass and on my face compared to how he Diamondback felt on my right side the 17 4 once again was noticeably smoother. I also felt at that time that the Diamondback may be a bit more efficient. Also noticed around my mouth that I had to pay more attention with the Diamondback than with the 17 4 which was not quite mindless but I didn’t have to slow down nor focus as much. Finished the WTG pass rinsed and lathered up again. I stated to notice that I was getting some sort of reaction to the soap which really surprised me as I have two other pucks of Lisa’s Naturals and have no issues with them at all and in fact I have not gotten any in like the last 3 years or so. So at that point I figured it had to be the scent which was a pleasant barbershop scent. The irritation continued to get worse through the XTG  pass so I kind of flew through the pass rand rinsed it off right away upon completion of the pass with a noticeable amount of redness and some burning in some spots. Needless to say the 2nd pass was rushed and as far as the razors go I noticed that the Diamondback got a bit smoother on the 2nd pass but still not as smooth as the 17- 4 was which also had very little blade feel on the XTG pass so based on the 2 pass DFS shave I got in the end and beard reduction I evaluated right after the shave along with the 9 hrs regrowth I have now I’d call the shave a tie as fast as effectiveness goes but I’d have to give the edge to the the 17 4 on comfort. 

I’m going to see how the Diamondback compares to my so far favorite Paradigm the Ti 1 which unfortunately there were only 51 produced which I wish Andrew would make again. 

Then I’m going to revisit this Shave Off again with a different soap as I feel I didn’t have the best shave experience because of the irritation I got.

Dragonsbeard Ouch, doesn't sound optimal. Diamondback is a little fussier regarding shave angle, but it ought to give you at least as comfy and a slightly more efficient shave. It has a bit more mass, which can make things a little trickier, as well. Obviously your individual experience is what matters.

Paradigm Shaveware


Hi Andrew

Basically the whole shave was not the best experience due to the irritation that went from not so good to bad so like I mentioned I’m going to revisit this comparison after a match up vs the Ti 1 which I love. I have shaved many many times with the 17 4 so I know it well and your right the Diamondback is heavier with a longer handle etc so I’m not coming to any serious conclusions until I get a few more shaves in with it. Those were just my initial thoughts based on the not so perfect conditions. I’m also going to use my favorite Feather Blades as I keep trying others but so far none have worked as well for me.