Some thoughts on adjustables, rushing to judgment

I was never a big advocate for adjustables. I have quite a few but most are vintage Gillettes and they're retired.

I'm late to the Rex Ambassador fan club. I got mine about a month ago. Right after I bought the Osprey.

It seems there are two kinds of shavers who like adjustables. The first kind wants a bespoke razor. There's no such thing, to be honest, unless you spend a tidy sum working with a razor maker. An adjustable fits the bill. The shaver can find the setting that works best and use it day after day. And on days where there is lots of hair to shave, he or she can start with a higher setting and work down or do it the other way.

The second kind of adjustable user often takes advantage of the various settings during each shave. I fall into this category. Today I started on setting 2 with the Rex. That was WTG. Then for XTG I went to 4. For ATG, back to 2 except for a few spots like under the nose where I use a higher setting.

For those of us in this category adjustable like the Fatboy, the Rex, the Osprey are better than adjustables that require you to change plates. For those in the first category, it doesn't matter.

For anyone new to shaving with a DE, an SE, or a straight (and I include shavettes in the straight category), I heartily suggest that when you try a new piece of hardware, be it a blade, a razor, or a brush, you use it every time you shave for at least two weeks. A month is preferable. Maybe this goes for soaps, aftershaves, balms too but that's your call.

When I started using the Rex I hated it. And this razor is so handsome, so wonderfully put together I was disappointed. I wanted to love it. But it was really harsh on all but the lowest settings. I considered selling it here. But I stuck to my rule.

Now, a month later, I've found the perfect blade for it and I'm able to get excellent shaves with other blades too. The razor and I have found each other. And I'm now a Rex cheerleader. (The Osprey needed no break in for me, it was smooth out of the box on every setting. This is not to say it's better. Just, for my face, it was an instant fit.)

Anyway, if you're in the market for a great adjustable and you like the Rex, try it. Or get the Pearl Flexi. Or get the Osprey. Or get a Fatboy. Whatever you get please don't make up your mind about it until you've used it for at least a fortnight. If after that you're still uncertain, put it away for a while then come back to it. You might find that the break changes your opinion.

My two cents.

I got my Rex early in my wet shaving journey. Had to put it down for a few months until my shaving skills improved. Now it delivers excellent shaves on each use. Just need to develop a light touch when shaving.

IMHO, the best adjustable razors are ones that have replaceable baseplates varying in aggression/efficiency.
I have a Karve CB razor with C, D and E baseplates. Each baseplate is precision machined so that no matter which I use, the tolerances will be excellent.
I also have two Timeless razors that have identical handles and caps, but one is a 0.68 gap baseplate and the other is 0.95.

Rockwell also sells razors with replaceable baseplates., but I do not have one.

I do have a Parker Variant razor that is similar in design to the Merkur Progress. However, I normally use the razor on its lowest setting as I am never 100% confident that the razor remains perfectly aligned as I change the setting. Using the razor on a single setting defeats the purpose of the adjustable design.

I made the mistake of purchasing a Van Der Hagen/Weishi adjustable TTO. While the razor is in good alignment on the lowest setting, as soon as the setting is changed, the cap is no longer parallel to the baseplate, defeating the purpose. Furthermore, the adjustment mechanism is near the head, completely destroying the balance of the razor. The razor is awkward to use, even on the lowest setting. I keep the razor in a drawer as a reminder of my occasional foolishness.

Perhaps the best use of an adjustable razor is determining the appropriate level of aggression for your shaves. Although the razor can be adjusted from one pass to another, I doubt many shavers do that.

I am unusual in that I often use multiple razors during a shave. I will start with a more aggressive/efficient razor like the Karve E plate for my WTG pass, change to a Timeless 0.95 razor for the XTG pass, use a Karve C-plate for my ATG pass and then use the mild Timeless 0.68 razor for my clean-up pass using buffing strokes. As the aggressiveness of the razor decreases, I will equip it with a sharper DE blade. That allows me to get the closest, most comfortable shaves.

At the moment I have only 2 adjustable razors, which are a Parker Variant and a Rockwell 6S. I've found the setting on both which work best for my use and that's where I leave them.

The Parker I use on setting 2. Anything higher than that and I risk nicks and irritation.
The Rockwell I use with baseplate #5.

It seems odd to me that the Parker I use at almost its mildest setting and the Rockwell at almost its highest, and I get extremely similar shaves that way. It is what it is I guess.

I toy with the idea of buying a higher quality adjustable like the Rex Ambassador, Blackland Osprey or perhaps a Christopher Bradley, but it may be hard to justify spending hundreds of dollars on an adjustable razor and then leave it on 1 setting. Then again, it may be less of a risk than spending hundreds of dollars on a non adjustable razor that ends up being either too mild or too aggressive for my taste. Leaving me with decision paralysis at the moment.

RayClem said:

I am unusual in that I often use multiple razors during a shave. I will start with a more aggressive/efficient razor like the Karve E plate for my WTG pass, change to a Timeless 0.95 razor for the XTG pass, use a Karve C-plate for my ATG pass and then use the mild Timeless 0.68 razor for my clean-up pass using buffing strokes.

I am right there with you, I just get a better shave this way. And why not, I've got the razors, may as well use them.  This morning: first pass with a Henson mild, second pass with a Timeless .68 OC, then a cleanup pass with a Timeless .95 SB.  Superb shave, better than I can manage with any one of those same razors.  Glad to see I am not alone in my madness.

RayClem said:

I am unusual in that I often use multiple razors during a shave. I will start with a more aggressive/efficient razor like the Karve E plate for my WTG pass, change to a Timeless 0.95 razor for the XTG pass, use a Karve C-plate for my ATG pass and then use the mild Timeless 0.68 razor for my clean-up pass using buffing strokes.

I am right there with you, I just get a better shave this way. And why not, I've got the razors, may as well use them.  This morning: first pass with a Henson mild, second pass with a Timeless .68 OC, then a cleanup pass with a Timeless .95 SB.  Superb shave, better than I can manage with any one of those same razors.  Glad to see I am not alone in my madness.

I would suggest reversing the order of your razors. I have a Timeless 0.95 SB and would consider it to be overly aggressive for my cleanup pass with buffing, but it works quite well for the WTG pass to rapidly reduce beard growth. I do not have a Henson, but love using a Timeless 0.68 SB with a super-sharp BIC CP blade for my clean-up pass. If you consider the Henson less aggressive than the Timeless 0.68 OC, then use the Henson for your final pass using a super sharp blade. With a mild razor, you can do buffing strokes with a super sharp blade without risking irritation.

I have gone back and forth on the topic of order of aggression, and have experimented quite a bit on starting least aggressive and working towards most aggressive vs going in the opposite direction.   I find that either order works pretty well for me, but if I want the closest possible shave I want the most aggressive razor on the cleanup pass.

If I really want to geek out about it I pick three razors (call them a,b, and c). I can order them 6 different ways:  abc, acb, bac, bca, cab, cba.  It is easy enough to use all 6 orderings in less than a week.  One thing I have found is I generally don't want the most aggressive razor for the second pass, better to have it go first or last.

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