Adjustable razors

Satanfriendly

Supporter
Supporter
LeJog 2022 Finisher
Messages
6,622
Location
Liverpool
I have recently been using a Fat Boy and I really must say what a lovely little razor it is. I also have a very beautiful slim of my own which I still need to break out when I can stop staring at it and use it for its intended purpose. Both are of course adjustable.

As beautiful and as nice as they are I simply find the setting which suits then leave it there. To the same extent I just work around the strengths and weaknesses of my non adjustables and just get on with using them. This is irrespective of how much growth there is.

I just don't see the advantage of adjustables but I do have every bit of respect for those who do and enjoy using them as they were made to be used. Everyone to their own.

However I'd love to hear why adjustable folk enjoy their benefits and what they see as the benefits
 
I have recently been using a Fat Boy and I really must say what a lovely little razor it is. I also have a very beautiful slim of my own which I still need to break out when I can stop staring at it and use it for its intended purpose. Both are of course adjustable.

As beautiful and as nice as they are I simply find the setting which suits then leave it there. To the same extent I just work around the strengths and weaknesses of my non adjustables and just get on with using them. This is irrespective of how much growth there is.

I just don't see the advantage of adjustables but I do have every bit of respect for those who do and enjoy using them as they were made to be used. Everyone to their own.

However I'd love to hear why adjustable folk enjoy their benefits and what they see as the benefits

There are a few reasons why I love my Merkur progress razor so much. So too quickly list them:

Whenever I find blade that doesn't give me a very good shave with a fixed double-edge razor I'm able to find the setting that can make a bad blade bearable

It can also make a good blade a really really good blade, just like tuning the Engine on a Car.

And now this might be a bit crazy but I am also able to adjust the razor feel to fit my mood and really that's important to me, one day the razor might just feel to sharp and I find I have to dial it back a bit, and other days I feel like I want a bit more bite from my razor, however since my mood changes like the wind blows so maybe that's not such a good thing ;)

Finally it also allows me to change the aggressiveness of the razor mid shave so if I fancy having a more mild first pass or first two passes, I can, and then finish up the stragglers with a more aggressive pass, Or if I fancy going in heavy on the first two and seeing if I could knock the face fungus off in a couple of strokes I could do that as well and cleanup if necessary with a third pass.

However because I enjoying my time shaving so much I pretty much find a third pass is always necessary ;)

So I guess it's about customising your shave and as burger king always says "have it your way"
 
Last edited:
I don't use a DE so much now....but when I do....I usually reach for an adjustable. I like to start medium and increase the aggression with each pass. I have a Fat Boy, Futur, Futur Clone, Variant, Weishi V2 and tomorrow will be using a Parthenon V2 for the first time. I used to have a Progress but it went missing in Afghanistan and I haven't felt the need to replace it. I find them to be less blade fussy than 'ordinary' razors and they always give excellent finishes.....once you know what you want. The Futur was my first razor and I persevered with razor burn because I wanted to look macho. A revisit after some time revealed that it could be my only razor if I wished.
 
I have two adj, the slim and the black beauty...like you Satanfriendly...I cannot stop admiring the BB, a beautiful razor, it is the only DE in my cabinet with a blade in it, I use straights exclusively apart from the odd clean up around my nose and ears, thats where the BB comes in. I really should break it out for a full shave one day.

Bob.
 
I seem to have an underlying love for adjustable razors. I think there's a psychological advantage to them. Where you mention working around the strengths and weaknesses, the adjustables can help tweak that somewhat. It's debatable whether the character of the razor significantly changes with these adjustments but it can help with confidence.

I'm still not sure how I came to have this many adjustables in the collection but here they are:

Merkur Progress
Rockwell 6C
Mingshi
Weishi Adjustable
Rex Ambassador
Gillette Slim Adjustable M3
Gillette Aristocrat Slim M2
Gillette Fatboy F2
NOS Gillette Black Beauty Y3

IMG_20191007_183419.jpg IMG_20191007_183655.jpg

I also have a Supply V1 with the three plates and a NOS Schick Adjustable.
 
Like Boycie83 I am truly fascinated by the mechanics of adjustables even if I don't change settings during the shave. Maybe I should try that one day...

Here is my adjustables collection, the Le Coq is a newcomer hence separate pic:

Apollo Mikron (1950s), L'Essor Le Supreme (1950s?), Gillettes, Bohin (1940s)
3EFA9570-FCD8-49F2-82EF-76027E3D028A.jpeg

Le Coq License Palmer (1950s). This is a brass version, most License Palmers are zamak
74893E85-7A4F-4BB7-A842-A07B5EC91C03.jpeg
 
Like Boycie83 I am truly fascinated by the mechanics of adjustables even if I don't change settings during the shave. Maybe I should try that one day...

Here is my adjustables collection, the Le Coq is a newcomer hence separate pic:

Apollo Mikron (1950s), L'Essor Le Supreme (1950s?), Gillettes, Bohin (1940s)
View attachment 51494

Le Coq License Palmer (1950s). This is a brass version, most License Palmers are zamak
View attachment 51493
Beautiful razors!
 
I don't use a DE so much now....but when I do....I usually reach for an adjustable. I like to start medium and increase the aggression with each pass. I have a Fat Boy, Futur, Futur Clone, Variant, Weishi V2 and tomorrow will be using a Parthenon V2 for the first time. I used to have a Progress but it went missing in Afghanistan and I haven't felt the need to replace it. I find them to be less blade fussy than 'ordinary' razors and they always give excellent finishes.....once you know what you want. The Futur was my first razor and I persevered with razor burn because I wanted to look macho. A revisit after some time revealed that it could be my only razor if I wished.

I think the Futur was the first razor I used to knock nails in with. Not a great fan and passed on
 
I am very grateful to hear your personal thoughts towards the advantages and reasons for using adjustable razors. Plus some lovely bits of kit on display here. I do agree entirely about the fascinating mechanisms behind them.

However I am not wholly convinced as to why one would want to change the nature of the razor when an non-adjustable can do such a fine job and a change of angle or pressure can make those little tweaks.

The Fat Boy is an absolutely pleasurable razor but I can't quite see what the lower settings actually achieve. Still I do look forward to using my own slim and enjoying it for what it is. When I stop seeing it is an item of beauty which will take quite some doing.

Perhaps one of my hold backs is that I am not quite sure that blade gap necessarily makes or break what is aggressive and what is not. I still can't quite figure out why an Ikon should be so efficient when the blade gap is quite negligible.

Still it is all horses for courses and I like folk who have their own reasons and love for items I don't quite understand.

That is what makes the world so fascinating
 
I am very grateful to hear your personal thoughts towards the advantages and reasons for using adjustable razors. Plus some lovely bits of kit on display here. I do agree entirely about the fascinating mechanisms behind them.

However I am not wholly convinced as to why one would want to change the nature of the razor when an non-adjustable can do such a fine job and a change of angle or pressure can make those little tweaks.

The Fat Boy is an absolutely pleasurable razor but I can't quite see what the lower settings actually achieve. Still I do look forward to using my own slim and enjoying it for what it is. When I stop seeing it is an item of beauty which will take quite some doing.

Perhaps one of my hold backs is that I am not quite sure that blade gap necessarily makes or break what is aggressive and what is not. I still can't quite figure out why an Ikon should be so efficient when the blade gap is quite negligible.

Still it is all horses for courses and I like folk who have their own reasons and love for items I don't quite understand.

That is what makes the world so fascinating

1582113833807.png

The Ikon has more blade exposure ie more blade beyond the shave plane, even though it has minimal blade gap. The Gillette OLD and Fatip also have positive blade exposure and minimum blade gap.

Here's a Slim on minimum setting. It still has a little positive blade exposure.

1582114660205.png

Slim on max setting. Increasing blade gap changes the shave plane resulting in more blade exposure.

1582114820851.png

Shallow angle shavers won't feel a difference but those shaving at a steeper angle will.

1582115048631.png

The Ikon Tech has a blade exposed like a murderers tool. Finally a pic showing negative blade exposure of a Merkur 33C.

1582115225457.png

Pics are not mine I just lifted them from the Web.
 

Attachments

  • 1582114998916.png
    1582114998916.png
    391 KB · Views: 0
View attachment 51543

The Ikon has more blade exposure ie more blade beyond the shave plane, even though it has minimal blade gap. The Gillette OLD and Fatip also have positive blade exposure and minimum blade gap.

Here's a Slim on minimum setting. It still has a little positive blade exposure.

View attachment 51544

Slim on max setting. Increasing blade gap changes the shave plane resulting in more blade exposure.

View attachment 51545

Shallow angle shavers won't feel a difference but those shaving at a steeper angle will.

View attachment 51547

The Ikon Tech has a blade exposed like a murderers tool. Finally a pic showing negative blade exposure of a Merkur 33C.

View attachment 51548

Pics are not mine I just lifted them from the Web.
So to follow through this argument, the negative blade exposure of a 33c should mean it gives a poor shave, or takes more passes to give a good shave. But some people are very happy with the shaves from a Merkur 33c.

I would also argue that no one should be shaving at the "shave plane" angle shown in the diagrams - that's how people struggle with certain razors and frequently cut themselves. Ride the cap, using the cap to gain the right shaving angle for the razor, and you won't go anywhere near the guard on the above razors. Hence why blade gap usually doesnt matter.

Blade on the face is what's actually shaving. Wide gap, no gap - doesnt matter as long as the razor has some positive blade exposure and your technique is good.
 
The negative blade exposure of the 33C doesn't mean it gives a poor shave.
A razor clearly doesn't need to have positive blade exposure, although many may prefer that.
As for angle it's a matter of preference. Like you I ride the cap on all DE razors.
To suggest no one should do otherwise is...flawed.
Shaving on 'the shave plane' is known as the neutral angle and is commonly used.
Riding the bar or steep angle is also commonly used.
 
View attachment 51543

The Ikon has more blade exposure ie more blade beyond the shave plane, even though it has minimal blade gap. The Gillette OLD and Fatip also have positive blade exposure and minimum blade gap.

Here's a Slim on minimum setting. It still has a little positive blade exposure.

View attachment 51544

Slim on max setting. Increasing blade gap changes the shave plane resulting in more blade exposure.

View attachment 51545

Shallow angle shavers won't feel a difference but those shaving at a steeper angle will.

View attachment 51547

The Ikon Tech has a blade exposed like a murderers tool. Finally a pic showing negative blade exposure of a Merkur 33C.

View attachment 51548

Pics are not mine I just lifted them from the Web.

Thank you for your time to explain away.

There is simply more to this razor thing than first meets the eye. Likewise with what makes for aggression right down to personal technique. I also think there is blade flex to take in to consideration and how well a blade is clamped in to place.

I tend to change from one razor to another. With the Ikon I use a steep angle and with the Hone I ride the cap. I change for what I feel comfortable with while trying my best to maintain that sense of assertive control.

Taking time to understand yourself and your equipment goes a long way.
 
The negative blade exposure of the 33C doesn't mean it gives a poor shave.

I guess a razor with the right exposure could be used to shave on the "shave plane", but surely something with more positive exposure would be dragging the blade across your face?

And how does the blade make contact with the face when there is negative exposure? Unless it causes you to use more pressure, which isnt something people usually recommend.
 
Back
Top Bottom