Closed Pass Around : Lightweight Plastic Tech and Trumpf slant OC COMPLETE

W

Whosthedaddy

Messages
3,122
Location
Essex
Recently acquired this very lightweight plastic DE that I believe is similar to the Tech design, or at least one of them?

FB_IMG_1454571093250.jpg

It's unbranded and very, very lightweight.

If using it you have to remember that they are not as tough and rugged and a metal or SS version so care must be had, but saying that, they are there to be used.

Remember that a little, just a little more pressure may be needed to over come just how light this razor actually is.

Usual rules of a pass around apply.

Names below:

1.
2.
 

Attachments

  • FB_IMG_1454571093250.jpg
    FB_IMG_1454571093250.jpg
    32.1 KB · Views: 31
As a surprise, two razors have landed today.
The unbranded Tech-style lightweight and a Trumpf (bakelite?) slant - the colour reminds me of the Merkur 45, hence the bakelite guess.
The Tech-style is much heavier than anticipated :D Still at 10.1 grams it is the lightest DE razor I've handled. Just for the record: the Trumpf weighs in at 15.3 grams.
Decision time. Which one to use first? I'll give the Tech-style a whirl later. I've never been a big fan of slants (I sold all of mine), but I've only ever tried much heavier ones, so that should be interesting as well.
 
Day one with the ultra-light Tech-style

Whosthedaddy said:
It had the feel of the R41 and yet the post shave absence of AS sting like the Hone?
Click to expand...
Keeping this in mind, I put a fresh PolSilver blade in and get going.
After the first stroke I stop and check that I have put the blade in correctly, I have.
Boy, can you feel the blade, or what? This is one aggressive little bugger. Definitely up there with the R41 in that respect. The blade doesn't feel like a PolSilver at all. Very sharp, but not as smooth as usual.
I do my usual four passes that I do with every new razor. And while my face is very smooth at the end, I also have three little nicks, but nothing that just the alum block can't fix. However, the alum is quite stingy and so is the after shave lotion. Here my experience differs . I can't rule out that the blade is to blame, although I've hardly ever had a bad PolSilver blade. So tomorrow I will use the same blade in my Digress on a fairly aggressive setting. Then I'll know more.
 
I was taken aback by the feel, it is not a mild razor at all. Very surprising for something so small and light? I would say it's down to the blade as the exposure and gap and small enough not to think twice but who knows?
 
So, I tried the same PolSilver blade in my Digress, cranked up to five.
The first time I went all the way with the Digress and I paid for it. :eek:
Firstly the PolSilver blade performed perfectly, just like a PolSilver should. My face is so smooth, a dolphin would feel hairy in comparison.
Secondly, the Digress reminded me, during a momentary lapse of concentration, that hacking it into my upper lip, even ever so slightly, is not a good idea. I can't blame the blade for that. The bleeding has stopped now. Phew.
So my conclusion is that the combination of the lightweight and a PolSilver blade is not for me. Tomorrow I'll try another blade. Voskhod maybe. Definitely not a Feather. What blade did you use in it for best results, @Whosthedaddy ?
 
Day two with the ultra-light Tech-style
Today I had much better results with an Astra Superior Platinum blade. I also used a steeper angle, more like sixty degrees. But even trying a 45 degree angle or thereabouts, like I did on the first shave the blade felt much smoother.
This little guy is so aggressive though, in the sense that you can feel the blade. It's as noisy as a 1912 as well - the sound of buttering toast.
The end result is incredibly smooth. It does give a very good shave. The alum and aftershave did sting again, albeit much, much less than on the previous shave.
It is still a bit too direct for my liking. In this weight class I preferred the Merkur 45.
I'll try the slant next.
 
Shave with the Trumpf Slant

OSP Neroli soap (sample)
Omega Hi-brush 46751
Trumpf Slant
Astra Superior Platinum (3)
Indian Old Spice Fresh Lime ASL

The surprise razor in this pass around is a Trumpf slant. At 15.3 grams it is 50% heavier than the Tech-style unnamed razor. About the same weight as a bakelite Merkur 45. That's a good thing, as I think the Merkur 45 is one of the best razors ever.
The first thing you notice is the extreme twist in the head. This is a slant on a mission. Due to the twist in the head it is quite fiddly to put a blade into the head, but I managed. Getting the blade out of the head after the shave was even trickier. This can be a dangerous operation, so be careful.
The shave was my standard pass around four pass WTG/XTG/XTG/ATG. The Astra blade is superb. Very smooth. I hardly ever use a DE blade more than twice, but I have only one more ASP blade left, so I used this one again today.
What can I say? This twisted little bugger is the real deal. Although I did the full four passes, I think the shave would have been as close with three. It just slices through stubble mercilessly. The sound it makes is not so much ‘buttering toast', it's more ‘popping candy'. Quite nice.
The end result is a super smooth face. Everywhere. A little burn from the alum and the Old Spice, but definitely less than from the Tech-style.
Whosthedaddy said:
It had the feel of the R41 and yet the post shave absence of AS sting like the Hone?
Click to expand...
You must have been thinking of the Trumpf :D
My conclusion: I like this slant a lot. It's a winner. Fantastic little machine. The Tech-style ultra-light was not my cup of tea though.
I don't think there much more to learn about either razor, so I'll be passing them on to @AndyMc133 soon. Can you PM me your address, please, Andy?
Thanks, @Whosthedaddy. Great pass around again.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom