(This post was last modified: 01-16-2021, 08:25 PM by ALI.)
Razor will be cleaned and sanitized and will go out in Monday morning’s post to the next participant, my friend
jbreakfield .
I had a good week with the Yates. I enjoyed this razor, and the three plates. Thank you to
YatesPrecision and
andrewjs18 for the passaround.
To cut to the chase, here is the crux of my review. Will I be buying this razor? Yes.
Here are some random thoughts:
- In my last year of wetshaving I experimented with a wide array of razors. I think, at least at this moment, I am fond of razors that have a pronounced blade feel, with a bonus if they also have a slim head. The Yates is not that. But I have an additional criteria when it comes to adding a razor to my den: (in addition to shaving well) if it feels unique or different, I can justify keeping it. The Yates does this for me.
- In addition to the above, I am a big fan of the co-founders. I don’t know them personally, of course, but they are active on social media and they are active in the wet shaving community. They seem like very good people, and to the extent I can purchase from a good American artisan, this is money well spent, as far as I’m concerned.
- In terms of the 3 plates, as others have explained, there is an M (medium), H (high) and a Hyb (hybrid plate). The M and H are stainless steel, whereas the Hyb is brass.
- The Hyb plate is a dual-comb. The OC side is one of the most comfortable OC’s I have used. The other which was pretty comfortable also for me was a Wr1 OC. But other than those two, I tend to find OC’s harsh and prefer solid bars. And even with the Yates, I still prefer the solid bar. So I will be picking up the M and H plates.
- The M and H plates are quite distinct. I can use both for daily shaving, but I suspect the M will be better for daily shaving for most people. The H plate has a noticeably higher gap and more blade exposure, I believe. If I were to compare the H to a razor I have, I would say it reminds me of the Tatara Nodachi in some ways. Or, as AQU has pointed out, it could also be like a Rockwell 6s on plate 7.
- The shaves on both have been extremely close and long lasting… among the closest I can get.
- Razor is also comfortable to shave ATG, a litmus test for me.
- The Stonewash finish is good. Aesthetically I like the look of it. Is there some drag? Perhaps, but honestly, it may be psychological.
- The handle seems to be polarizing. I liked it well enough. In general I prefer to use handles that come with the razor. I liked the length but found it a bit thin. When I buy it I may try the stubby handle, if they have it in stock.
As
SCShaver predicted earlier on the thread, this passaround is going to sell a lot of razors for Yates. I am happy to do my part to help fulfill this prediction.
