Closed Pass Around: Hone Type 15 - Completed

Hone journey update:

  1. Bechet
  2. mikebrownington
  3. rowlers
  4. Stacy555
  5. george
  6. Nico1970
  7. MPH
  8. Whosthedaddy
  9. Sir_eider
  10. Tall_Paul
  11. Dipesh
  12. Geofnay
  13. p.b
  14. Shavejourneybadger
List closed.

Legend: Currently with, On the way to, Waiting, Completed
 
Hello. First apologies for the extended silence (I have a good excuse, but I'm back in the loop now). But first, I have just caught up with all the feedback and it is great thank you. I look forward to seeing the patina and comparing it to samples I have. Nothing like more real world testing. And I think its been great that so many people have got to influence it, see it, and comment on it so thank you - and especially for @riverrun for taking on the organizing. This thread has had a big influence on future developments too :)

I will take a series of before and after pictures, and was thinking I would try an create a little tutorial on cleaning with household things most people should have to try and save having to get something specialist to look after the brass.
 
Thanks for reminding me Andreas. Sorry it's taken so long.

+ve:
  1. Beautifully made - second only to Wolfman razors for fit and finish.
  2. Clamps the blade very well and creates a stiff cutting edge.

-ve:
  1. Too heavy. I found it too cumbersome, I don't like heavy / top heavy razors, plus it's bulky and I prefer agile razors.
  2. I'm not convinced by the idea of it developing a patina. It seems the direction to not polish it has been taken to mean don't wipe it and it now has many water stains rather than an elegantly aged appearance. Maybe if it were my own it would age differently but in my opinion this razor now looks tatty.
  3. It's far too mild. It feels a lot like a Feather AS-D2 in terms of aggressiveness which simply isn't enough for me. I tried shimming it and that worked much better but it still wasn't enough for me.
Overall.
I love the look. If this were made from Aluminium or Titanium and much more aggressive I'd be very interested.

Once again I want to thank TSR (Andreas) and Andrew for making this available to try out and congratulate Hone on making a beautiful razor.

cheers, Paul.
 
@p.b Thanks for the write up and feedback, nicely structured thoughts.

I look forward to seeing the razor, and making a bit of a demo on cleaning to address the patina aspect, I know its not going to be everyone's cup of tea in the long run. (And I hope I have a solution that might suit some of your other thoughts soon...) I believe the plan is then to auction the razor, and I want the proceeds to go to The Shaving Rooms chosen charity.

This has been a really fun experience for me. As the first razor for the brand it caries a lot of expectation and thank you for receiving it so openly. I've really enjoyed the feedback and conversation. Being small I hope I can react to the comments in a meaningful way, and long may it continue.
 
@Hone well the Natalie Portman of razors arrived Saturday and had my first shave this morning,

I was Impressed with the look of the razor it didn't disappoint!! I love the way the blade curves and fits in perfectly, the head geometry works beautifully!

Yes it is heavy and I'm going to hold judgement on that until I have a few more shaves, but the positives of it being heavy in my mind are theses.....it's weight makes you conscious of the movements you are making, this is the first time in a few months I've really concentrated on my angles and how I hold a razor, I loved the razor, and it's made me fall in love with de shaving again, not that I'd fallen out of love but I'd become viewing it as a chore and today's shave was enjoyable!!

Andrew @Hone you should be proud of this, you've also given alot of time and effort into replying to people on this forum and I'm very impressed with that, shows you really care about your product and want people to enjoy using it!!

I'll post another review of shave number 2
 
@Hone well the Natalie Portman of razors arrived Saturday and had my first shave this morning,

I was Impressed with the look of the razor it didn't disappoint!! I love the way the blade curves and fits in perfectly, the head geometry works beautifully!

Yes it is heavy and I'm going to hold judgement on that until I have a few more shaves, but the positives of it being heavy in my mind are theses.....it's weight makes you conscious of the movements you are making, this is the first time in a few months I've really concentrated on my angles and how I hold a razor, I loved the razor, and it's made me fall in love with de shaving again, not that I'd fallen out of love but I'd become viewing it as a chore and today's shave was enjoyable!!

Andrew @Hone you should be proud of this, you've also given alot of time and effort into replying to people on this forum and I'm very impressed with that, shows you really care about your product and want people to enjoy using it!!

I'll post another review of shave number 2
@Shavejourneybadger Thank you very much. I am really pleased you are happy with the Type 15. I'm glad it has already made an impression, even though it is pre-used. :) And I look forward to hearing some more thoughts after a couple more shaves.
 
Last edited:
I recently bought a used one @Hone, it is a very pleasing razor to hold and look at, however I have to agree with its mildness. To me it's not merely mild, it (to be frank) flatters to deceive, as I run it across my beard, I can hear it cutting hair and I can see the dark speckles in the lather, yet the amount cut seems to be microscopic because running my hand over my beard, one the first, second, third or fourth pass, still finds more hair left than I would have thought possible. Having said that, the Hone is the only razor I could ever attempt four or even five full passes. At the moment my best way of getting the most out of it is two passes WTG then two ATG.

Is there possibly a more permanent fix to increase the aggressiveness slightly other than using a shim made from a doctored blade?
 
Last edited:
I recently bought a used one @Hone, it is a very pleasing razor to hold and look at, however I have to agree with its mildness. To me it's not merely mild, it (to be frank) flatters to deceive, as I run it across my beard, I can hear it cutting hair and I can see the dark speckles in the lather, yet the amount cut seems to be microscopic because running my hand over my beard, one the first, second, third or fourth pass, still finds more hair left than I would have thought possible. Having said that, the Hone is the only razor I could ever attempt four or even five full passes. At the moment my best way of getting the most out of it is two passes WTG then two ATG.

Is there possibly a more permanent fix to increase the aggressiveness slightly other than using a shim made from a doctored blade?

Hello @Uncle Bertie, thank you for your thoughts :). As the Type 15 was the first razor I certainly eer'd on the side of caution with the aggressiveness, and it is a very mild razor. (This might also say something about my razor preference too). This feedback on feel will influence where future versions are going where I will offer a more aggressive razor. Indeed at the moment I am working on the Type 15 A, (the aluminium version) I have made slight change to the cap to bring in a bit more blade feel (it is needed with the reduction in weight too) but still staying in the mild end of the spectrum. Its a tough call as for some people that level of mildness is something that they have been searching for and does make it an 'everyday' razor for some.

Let me see what it might take to really put some aggression into the Type 15 without needing an entirely new razor and get back to this thread. :)
 
Thank you @Hone. I'm not asking to entirely change the nature of it, my favourite razors are mostly on the mild side, particularly the Techs.
When the Aluminium versions are ready (there have been a couple of small delays... soon!!) I might try and get one into your hands to see what you make of the slight changes (they are quite minor hence why sticking with the 15 moniker) I felt it needed it as the effect of the weight of the brass was gone, but it might make all the difference for you. I can then work from there.
 
Hello @Uncle Bertie, thank you for your thoughts :). As the Type 15 was the first razor I certainly eer'd on the side of caution with the aggressiveness, and it is a very mild razor. (This might also say something about my razor preference too). This feedback on feel will influence where future versions are going where I will offer a more aggressive razor. Indeed at the moment I am working on the Type 15 A, (the aluminium version) I have made slight change to the cap to bring in a bit more blade feel (it is needed with the reduction in weight too) but still staying in the mild end of the spectrum. Its a tough call as for some people that level of mildness is something that they have been searching for and does make it an 'everyday' razor for some.

Let me see what it might take to really put some aggression into the Type 15 without needing an entirely new razor and get back to this thread. :)
For me the level of mildness is perfect, with a polsilver si blade and three passes and a clean up pass I got bbs...
 
Back
Top Bottom