Paradigm Salient Test Drive

Paradigm Salient and Ti2 compared with some history.

I have been wanting and waiting for a Ti2 for a long time.  Many of you who are holding out hope for a new run of the old razors beyond the Diamondback, don't they can't be made again.  If you want one and it is within your means on BST, buy one.

I did at one time have a Paradigm 17-4 and remember it being a bit milder than the Diamondback, at least less efficient but smooth, maybe even smoother than the Diamondback.  

Since Dragonsbearddid such a nice job writing up the shave off between the Diamondback and the Salient, I don't want to compete with that level of write up.  Frank's posts on B&B were legendary in the world shave off and he's had more razors than I will ever care to.  Plus, the picture he uses reminds me of Michael Myers, and Halloween freaked me out as a kid so you won't see me posting that picture.

The main question I wanted to answer is how does the 17-4 and Ti2 shave compared to the Salient?  If you don't know this already, the Ti2 and 17-4 have the exact same head geometry they are just different materials.  

First, let me talk about how I will perform this test.  I will wash my face with Cetaphil (you always should wash your face before a shave, and cetaphil gentle is perfect for this task).  I whipped up Ethos Rendezvous available at TRC, which after reading AJ's post I had to up my game with some nice lemon and cedar soap.  This was the one.  I bowl lathered and performed a three pass shave WTG, XTG, and ATG.  

Left side 100% used the Salient with a fresh Personna Platinum (IR) and the right side the Ti2, same exact blade, etc...  Between each pass, I inspected my face for stubble left, by putting a little soap on my finger tips and checking how efficient each razor was.  I also finished my shave with Ethos SFS and Lotion.  

So a slight razor comparison in images.  Note the L is the Salient and the R is the Ti2.  The two things that stick out to me are the handle (I love the original Paradigm handle and the length is perfect) and the clamping (the Salient has perfect clamping and a lower profile head).



So how did the shave?  

First pass with two days growth:

The Ti2 went smoothly down my face.  Efficient, no worries about irritation, yet a tiny bit of blade chatter which you could expect looking at the clamping.  There wasn't a lot of stubble left but against the grain I could feel a small amount.  Blade feel was just a touch, almost nothing there.

The Salient mowed it down, a bit more efficiently, but with considerably more blade feel for this pass. I did not enjoy this first pass quite as much as the Ti2 but the result was similar.  

On to the second pass, XTG.  Both razors performed marvelous, with the Ti2 still having less blade feel but the Salient absolutely crushing under my nose with the low profile head.  Here i started to prefer the slightly longer handle of the Ti2 over the Salient.  There was really not much left except for my jaw line and neck.  

Final pass, ATG.  The Ti2 must have a lot less blade exposure, because here it absolutely pampered my neck and jawline.  I could buff with it but didn't need to.  The Salient was still more efficient, but at a slight cost of feedback from the alcohol based SFS.  

The final result on the left side (Salient) BBS and it will last a while, I can tell.  No irritation, but I had to shave more carefully.  It's efficient and smooth but it is sneaky efficient.  

The result on the right side was a BBS that I can tell will not last as long as the Salient, but it was also a mindless shave that was so smooth it confirms one thing in my mind, Ti material does make a difference.  It makes the shave less aggressive and more pleasurable for my skin.  

I want to thank all of you who participated in the pass around, and ask others who have shave offs with the Salient to consider posting them here.

Signing off and thank you everyone for your interest in this thread.

~Mike

24 hour update - nearly identical efficiency for me

Salient arrived yesterday. First shave today.

And conformed to my test during the pass-around. A simple, easy, close shave.  Maybe it was in my head but I think I got a bit more blade feel than when I used the pass-around razor with a GSB, which is my standard reference blade.  I prefer a touch of blade feel, so that sensation was just fine.

Also, without even giving it a moment's thought, I went ahead and used it with the original handle.  In the middle of the second pass, I realized I was enjoying how it felt in my hand, which was a bit of a different reaction than I had during the pass-around.  I held it loosely and let the bottom of the handle touch my palm. Worked great.

Very glad I sprung for this razor. 

Paradigm Shaveware Salient / Gillette Silver Blue / AP Shave G5C / Ariana & Evans The Recipe / No splash / Hermes Ambre Narguile

Paradigm Salient vs Razor Rock GC .76P

Hi everyone,

I received a GC .76P last week and put it through a few shaves.  

I think it most closely matches the Salient so I wanted to do a shave off.  There is one issue - tbhs will take me almost a week to complete.  

So here are the rules:

I will only use these 2 razors for 2 shaves each. I will alternate which side gets which razor.  

I will be completing a 2.5 pass shave (WTG, ATG and jawline touch up) without exception.  

The products will only be the razors, Gillette dark blue Platinums, a single Rudy Vey Brush, my CC Obsidian Bowl, Ethos Bay Rum Soap, Derby Winter Reserve Bay Rum Tonic, Ethos Tortola splash and Ethos Bay Rum lotion. 

I will rate the shaves only in 3 ways:

1.) comfort - did I get any irritation or feedback 
2.) efficiency - which one knocked down more whiskers and kept them off longer 
3.) enjoyment - which razor had intangibles that are not apparent when I pick it up but really appreciate as I use it  (the soft factors)

Please give me until the weekend and I’ll be back.  


Here is one thing in the soft factors that I should mention.  

Blade loading and location - the Salient follows a more conventional safety razor model (locating pins on cap) where the GC uses pins on the base plate (I believe similar to the original Guerrilla razor). 

On the left is the GC and the right the Salient. 






TommyCarioca this one might be interesting to you.

Paradigm Salient vs Razor Rock GC .76P

Hi everyone,

I received a GC .76P last week and put it through a few shaves.  

I think it most closely matches the Salient so I wanted to do a shave off.  There is one issue - tbhs will take me almost a week to complete.  

So here are the rules:

I will only use these 2 razors for 2 shaves each. I will alternate which side gets which razor.  

I will be completing a 2.5 pass shave (WTG, ATG and jawline touch up) without exception.  

The products will only be the razors, Gillette dark blue Platinums, a single Rudy Vey Brush, my CC Obsidian Bowl, Ethos Bay Rum Soap, Derby Winter Reserve Bay Rum Tonic, Ethos Tortola splash and Ethos Bay Rum lotion. 

I will rate the shaves only in 3 ways:

1.) comfort - did I get any irritation or feedback 
2.) efficiency - which one knocked down more whiskers and kept them off longer 
3.) enjoyment - which razor had intangibles that are not apparent when I pick it up but really appreciate as I use it  (the soft factors)

Please give me until the weekend and I’ll be back.  


Here is one thing in the soft factors that I should mention.  

Blade loading and location - the Salient follows a more conventional safety razor model (locating pins on cap) where the GC uses pins on the base plate (I believe similar to the original Guerrilla razor). 

On the left is the GC and the right the Salient. 






TommyCarioca  this one might be interesting to you.

The results are in in the Paradigm Salient vs. Game Changer .76P

Most shaves performed with 36 hours of growth with a new corked and palm stropped Gillette Platinum blade.

First the ratings:



1.) comfort - the Paradigm scored a solid 8 here and the GC .76P scored a 6.  It is simple, I felt less feed back from my alcohol splash and my face felt better each time (and I alternated which side or quadrant I shaved with each time).  The Salient was smoother and less harsh on my skin.

2.) efficiency - the Paradigm scored a 7.5 and the GC scored a 7.  At first I couldn't tell the difference which was a closer shave, but my results at 12 hours with the GC were the same as at 14 hours with the Salient every time.  The Salient kept the hairs shorter longer.  Neither razor required extra care to clean things up, both did a great job.

3.) enjoyment - The soft factors which I won't score but I'll elaborate on.  

The GC handles are all bulky, I would love a 12mm handle that is 88-90mm long.  The Salient handle, as odd as it looks, actually has a good center of mass when attached to the razor head and shaves well.   The bottom is also not quite flat on the GC (it is supposed to be but it just rocks around where the salient is flat and stable).  

The head design and plate alignment of the Salient is superior in my opinion.  From blade loading, clamping, and shave angles available due to the geometry it is a bit of a mid aggressive mystery to me.  I actually shaved with it next to a SS Diamondback for about a month and found it was a slightly better shave than the legendary Dback in SS.  The GC offers tremendous value for what it is, I can't deny it but the mojo of shaving with it just isn't there.  The blade angle is a bit more locked in and for me I just enjoy a tad more freedom while shaving.  Both have a low profile head, but the Salient is slightly thinner and has a slightly smaller gap (about half a mm).

Finally the finish.  Look, you can't beat what the Game Changer is for 55 dollars being made in Canada.  The finish on it is really nice, it's bright and shiny.  If I was to point out it's only flaw, you can feel some of the sharp edges a bit.  I was surprised as they claim a 24 hour tumbling process but it must just be in the way it was machined.  The Salient has a handsome hand Satin finish and I believe this will changed to an automatic satin finish which should improve it a little.  Still, I prefer a little more shine on a finish and would always choose a slightly less perfect look with a shiny top cap over bead blasted or satin.  

So to summarize, you can't really go wrong with either razor, but for me the smoother and more efficient Shave definitely came from Paradigm Salient over the Game Changer 0.76P.

The results are in in the Paradigm Salient vs. Game Changer .76P

Most shaves performed with 36 hours of growth with a new corked and palm stropped Gillette Platinum blade.

First the ratings:



1.) comfort - the Paradigm scored a solid 8 here and the GC .76P scored a 6.  It is simple, I felt less feed back from my alcohol splash and my face felt better each time (and I alternated which side or quadrant I shaved with each time).  The Salient was smoother and less harsh on my skin.

2.) efficiency - the Paradigm scored a 7.5 and the GC scored a 7.  At first I couldn't tell the difference which was a closer shave, but my results at 12 hours with the GC were the same as at 14 hours with the Salient every time.  The Salient kept the hairs shorter longer.  Neither razor required extra care to clean things up, both did a great job.

3.) enjoyment - The soft factors which I won't score but I'll elaborate on.  

The GC handles are all bulky, I would love a 12mm handle that is 88-90mm long.  The Salient handle, as odd as it looks, actually has a good center of mass when attached to the razor head and shaves well.   The bottom is also not quite flat on the GC (it is supposed to be but it just rocks around where the salient is flat and stable).  

The head design and plate alignment of the Salient is superior in my opinion.  From blade loading, clamping, and shave angles available due to the geometry it is a bit of a mid aggressive mystery to me.  I actually shaved with it next to a SS Diamondback for about a month and found it was a slightly better shave than the legendary Dback in SS.  The GC offers tremendous value for what it is, I can't deny it but the mojo of shaving with it just isn't there.  The blade angle is a bit more locked in and for me I just enjoy a tad more freedom while shaving.  Both have a low profile head, but the Salient is slightly thinner and has a slightly smaller gap (about half a mm).

Finally the finish.  Look, you can't beat what the Game Changer is for 55 dollars being made in Canada.  The finish on it is really nice, it's bright and shiny.  If I was to point out it's only flaw, you can feel some of the sharp edges a bit.  I was surprised as they claim a 24 hour tumbling process but it must just be in the way it was machined.  The Salient has a handsome hand Satin finish and I believe this will changed to an automatic satin finish which should improve it a little.  Still, I prefer a little more shine on a finish and would always choose a slightly less perfect look with a shiny top cap over bead blasted or satin.  

So to summarize, you can't really go wrong with either razor, but for me the smoother and more efficient Shave definitely came from Paradigm Salient over the Game Changer 0.76P.

Well, thanks for this comprehensive comparison.  Very illuminating.  And while I don't have a GC to compare it with, your general observations on the Salient align with mine.  I would note change from my earlier posts, however.  The last two weeks or so, I've been using the Salient handle more and more -- a few weeks ago I was using a similarly weighted by longer H&S handle (as I've posted).  I still think a bit more length might fit my hands better, but I've actually gotten more and more used to the Salient handle itself.  It is, as you note, possessing a good center of mass for the head.  Before I'm done, I could never want anything different.  Irrespective, though, I'm getting solid shave after solid shave.

Excellent Sunday shave with the Salient.