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Rockwell 6C
Many of us remember - and own - the original Rockwell 6S (Stainless steel) razor.
Its launch had quite a bit of challenges - the finished, cast, razors were rough and in quite a few cases difficult to even use due to flaws resulting in poor blade alignment. However, the Rockwell guys kept at it and when they came out w/ a much improved v2 I feel they did the best they could to make things right for their backers. For that reason - and the fact that I really do like my v1 and v2 Rockwell 6S razors - I decided to do a 'superbacking' of their new 6C offering.
"Super backers" in this case means that 750 of the 6C (white chrome model) would be sent out in November (turned into December) where people could provide feedback to Rockwell on the razor. Then in March a second razor (Gunmetal or brushed chrome) will be issued completing the offering.
Well, my Rockwell 6C, white chrome model, just dropped into the mailbox today so here's a rather quick "First Impressions" on the razor.
6C vs 6S
It's near impossible to not compare the two as the 6C was engineered to be a low cost version of the the 6S in every way - apart from finish and material.
Left to right - 6S v1, 6C, 6S v2:
Visually, as you can see the two models are near identical apart from some cosmetic subtleties such as the logo branding on 6S v2.
It might just be an optical illusion or the high-chrome that is playing tricks with my eyes but it feels as if the handle on the 6C is a couple of mm's less wide than the 6S handle.
* Note: I couldn't figure this one out so I contacted Rockwell asking them for clarification and will update when I hear back from them
Anywho, in an attempt to make this uncharacteristically short let's look at the four key aspects of the razor;
- weight,
- material/manfacturing process,
- finish, and
- shave.
Weight
This one surprised me.
I am far from a metallurgist and can quite honestly barely remember if copper or brass weighs the most - so it maybe not a huge surprise that in my mind I had associated the 6C (made out of a Zinc alloy) to be a rather light weight razor - close to say a Hawk (made out of aluminum).
Taking it out of its box it felt much closer to the weight of the original 6S than I would have thought. The rather beefy, solid Zinc head creates a razor with a nice heft to it - far from the toy-like feeling I think most Hawk owners felt when they picked up theirs.
The 6S (fitted with a 1-3 plate): 113gr
The 6C (fitted with a 1-3 plate): 100gr
You can tell the 13gr if you hold both razors at the same time - but that's about it.
A very nice feel and balance (towards the head).
Material/Manufacturing process
Zinc Alloy and cast/molded.
I know there's normally some concern whenever the Z-word is dropped (be it Zinc or Zamac) but I've had some heads for years and they've never broken or given me any type of problem. Odds are that with proper care they will outlast you anyway.
There are some indentations on the base plate and some edges that one normally don't see on CNC machined items but as far as I can see nothing that would have any impact on the shave itself.
Finish
Another positive surprise. The plating on the 6C Chrome is shiny - and not only is is shiny but it's also near flawless. Very impressive.
The shave
The most important thing of it all - and I haven't had a chance to try it out yet.
I had an extremely close shave this afternoon using a Timeless razor so I might not shave until Thursday - but will add a shave report here once I've had a chance to try it out.
Assuming that the head-design has not changed from 6s v2 the blade gap should be according to this per base plate;
- R1: 0.20mm,
- R2: 0.35mm,
- R3: 0.48mm,
- R4: 0.61mm,
- R5: 0.69mm, and
- R6: 0.79mm
As mentioned earlier I own both the v1 as well as the v2 of the Rockwell 6S razor and find it to be a very efficient - and dare I say it - fun razor to use.
The concept of making the razor 'adjustable' by having a set of base plates (1 through 6) that gives you a more or less aggressive shave can feel as somewhat of an odd - and cumbersome way to go about it but once you realize that out of the six base plates you will quite honestly only ever shave with maybe two or three of them it becomes a bit more manageable.
Using the 6S I found that I was a "3.5" almost always favoring base plate #4 but going down to a 3 - or up to a 5 when I felt so inclined. The key here are the options - you may choose to use them all or you may find the one that you love and stick with that one. A few years down the road however your preferences might have changed and you find yourself gravitating towards a different plate.
Now, which base plate to start with on the 6C....
Last edited:
Should be Thursday
