Yates Precision Manufacturing Razor

There is a new Artisan razor made in Pennsylvania by Jacob Yates, Model 921-M. It is made from 316 SS and can be ordered in a washed, polished or PVD finish. It also has a Dual comb hybrid baseplate made in brass to add contrast to the SS. I just received mine yesterday and want to get in a few more shaves before I post a full report, but first impression is this is going to be a very smooth ( even with a first use Feather blade ) razor. 

I quite enjoy it when artisans and entrepreneurs introduce new products to the wet-shaving market.

Kudos and best wishes for his success.

Great looking razor. Looking forward to your complete review.

Its head design looks so unique. He tried to make the base plate as light as possible. I liked the idea to have three holes.
Hope you will enjoy it. Looking forward to your review...

Razor sounds like a winner and I also can’t wait to hear your reviews of it after a few uses. BTW nice photos Mark!

Is the stainless razor in your pictures the stonewash finish or polished finish? Look forward to your review. Thanks.

Is the stainless razor in your pictures the stonewash finish or polished finish?  Look forward to your review.  Thanks.

That's polished. I like the stonewash look, myself.

Is the stainless razor in your pictures the stonewash finish or polished finish?  Look forward to your review.  Thanks.

Mine is the polished version. It is very shiny but still shows some machine marks on close inspection.

3 Shaves in with the YPM 921-M
Initial thoughts on the razor. The finish is very shiny but machine marks are still slightly visible, I like the look.
The edge of the blades are covered by the baseplate but the top cap has indentations so it is easy to remove the blade.
The handle thread is is 10-24 so most handles will not swap out. The handle is 4” and a little thinner than many but it felt good and balanced for the 3 shaves and Jake has plans to make different handles.
The additional hybrid baseplate is made of brass, SS is on the way, it has the same geometry of the 921 baseplate but offers a dual SB/ OC option.
Now on to the shaves.
Pre shave Hot shower
I used a Feather blade ( a 5 pack is included with the razor), Polsilver and GSB. The feather was just as smooth and offered the greatest efficiency ( number of passes to BBS)
Soap I used was PannaCrema Nuavia, Proraso and M&M.
The first shave using the SS baseplate  was 24 hours after Wolfman WR1 .94 and I was able to do a 2 pass WTG, XTG with touchup under the jaw line using the feather blade for a BBS shave without irritation or nicks.  The shave was very smooth and there was just a touch of blade feel. 12 hours later I was just starting to feel some stubble but looked very clean.
The second shave I used the hybrid baseplate shaving one side of my face with the OC and the other with the SB.  I used a Polsilver blade.  The brass SB side felt exactly like the SS and the OC side had just a touch more blade feel, and I mean just a small difference. Using the Proraso green preshave and soap I did a 3 pass WTG, XTG and ATG shave. The OC side took down a little more beard WTG but overall results were identical. Again this was a mindless smooth shave.
My 3rd shave was with a GSB blade using my M&M soap about 17 hours following my last shave. I went back to the SS baseplate and had a wonderful 2 pass WTG, XTG with touchup under the jawline and upper lip shave. I followed it up with Thayer and Aqua DI Parma Colonia Club for an irritation free smooth shave.
In a time where so many members are reaching for hyper aggressive razors this would not be a razor for them. However, if you are a daily shaver like me, this is a very well built, smooth shave that delivers BBS without irritation and is very maneuverable at a very reasonable price for 316 SS.
I will be keeping this razor and Feather blades will be standard in it. I look forward to seeing where Jake goes from here

Excellent 3, day review Mark.. So nothing has changed since your first shave with the razor as you were really excited about the first shave results. Sounds like an excellent razor for a daily shaver like yourself. How would you compare it smoothness wise to your Ti Timeless or Paradigm Titanium 2 ? I’m curious.