First Paste & Cut travelling hardware box

with my time enjoying the box at an end i thought it was time to go over my thoughts. the box was well worth participating and i finished up with some different opinions coming out than i might have expected going in. the biggest surprise was the mergress i didnt expect much from it not being a big fan of the adjustables ive tried but i loved it besides the slippery handle and i am considering purchase of a progress.the karve i enjoyed but was not overly impressed with overall. it is a good razor and well built but it is really in terms of performance really just run of the mill doing nothing you wouldnt expect its not exceptionally close nor exceptionally smooth but rather just on par with other razors and the brass would be a pain to live with.i had been considering purchasing one but now i wont be. the sticky i really wanted to like this one it provides a nice smooth shave and is really well built but has no real efficiency for my face at all leaving me with a sub par shave.and finally the wolfman. its an exquisitely built razor that shines beautifully and has almost perfect balance and has a super smooth face feel that you barely notice it has a blade in it while being very efficient at the same time. but when you take the price and availability into account its not worth it purely on performance terms.its kind of like a porsche cayenne to me. it is somewhat better than your average razor performance wise but what your really paying for is the build quality, exclusivity and bragging rights of owning a more expensive marque.under neath all the shiny its still just a up volkswagon toureg with shiner badges and more attention to detail.if you can afford to spend the cash it would be a worthwhile acquisition but if you cant afford it then you arent missing out on the holy grail of all shaves either.the main conclusion i have come to though is that i prefer my colonial general on a purely performance basis than any of the razors i tried in the box and that in itself was an interesting discovery. its made it even harder to resist the call of a vector so i have already put in a birthday request with the missus for one.to finish i will list the razors i used in order if what i would purchase after giving them all a good workout and taking everything into consideration and including razors i didnt try in the box but already own so are a known quantity.
mergress
wolfman
karve


fatboy
slim
aristocrat
sticky
 
beerhog said:
with my time enjoying the box at an end i thought it was time to go over my thoughts. the box was well worth participating and i finished up with some different opinions coming out than i might have expected going in. the biggest surprise was the mergress i didnt expect much from it not being a big fan of the adjustables ive tried but i loved it besides the slippery handle and i am considering purchase of a progress.the karve i enjoyed but was not overly impressed with overall. it is a good razor and well built but it is really in terms of performance really just run of the mill doing nothing you wouldnt expect its not exceptionally close nor exceptionally smooth but rather just on par with other razors and the brass would be a pain to live with.i had been considering purchasing one but now i wont be. the sticky i really wanted to like this one it provides a nice smooth shave and is really well built but has no real efficiency for my face at all leaving me with a sub par shave.and finally the wolfman. its an exquisitely built razor that shines beautifully and has almost perfect balance and has a super smooth face feel that you barely notice it has a blade in it while being very efficient at the same time. but when you take the price and availability into account its not worth it purely on performance terms.its kind of like a porsche cayenne to me. it is somewhat better than your average razor performance wise but what your really paying for is the build quality, exclusivity and bragging rights of owning a more expensive marque.under neath all the shiny its still just a up volkswagon toureg with shiner badges and more attention to detail.if you can afford to spend the cash it would be a worthwhile acquisition but if you cant afford it then you arent missing out on the holy grail of all shaves either.the main conclusion i have come to though is that i prefer my colonial general on a purely performance basis than any of the razors i tried in the box and that in itself was an interesting discovery. its made it even harder to resist the call of a vector so i have already put in a birthday request with the missus for one.to finish i will list the razors i used in order if what i would purchase after giving them all a good workout and taking everything into consideration and including razors i didnt try in the box but already own so are a known quantity.
mergress
wolfman
karve


fatboy
slim
aristocrat
sticky
Click to expand...
Glad you enjoyed the box so much @beerhog (y)

On the Progress/Mergress: I believe you experienced the most "extreme" version - tall handle AND long SS knob.

The standard Progress is very head heavy...I think the ideal one balanced wise would be somewhere between a normal handle with short SS knob and a long handle as is - probably a standard Progress with a long Stainless Knob would be the one to go for...
 
thanks @alfredus i think the heavy knob is part of the problem with the slipperiness as well with the handle not providing much grip the weight seems to drag it downwards.im looking at the standard mergress on bullgoose and it does look like it should be a bit more evenly balanced.
 
You could always try to send Mer a message and ask, which one is the most evenly balanced...
 
So, the box have ended up with yours truely. Last recipient :)


I already have the krave and mergress, and had a fat boy in the recent past. So going to focus my effort on the wolfman and Gillette #16

First shave with the wolf and I am very impressed with the quality of machining polishing.

I started the shave and was thinking I should be looking out for one of these when it bit me going against the grain under my jaw bone. 3 seperate spots.

My RS 10 does not do that but the krave sometimes does. Maybe a milder plate would help? @alfredus what gap is this one?
Rest of the shave went fine. I am planning to use it for the rest of the week and see How it goes. I quite like it actually.
 
todras said:
The Wolfman is my WR1-SB (standard gap) with WR-2 handle, if you have not tried a wolfie before the razor will be an excellent introduction to James razors. It shaves superbly!
Click to expand...
So @Rami it would be the standard gap/default gap for a WR 1 is 0.61
Rami said:
So, the box have ended up with yours truely. Last recipient :)


I already have the krave and mergress, and had a fat boy in the recent past. So going to focus my effort on the wolfman and Gillette #16

First shave with the wolf and I am very impressed with the quality of machining polishing.

I started the shave and was thinking I should be looking out for one of these when it bit me going against the grain under my jaw bone. 3 seperate spots.

My RS 10 does not do that but the krave sometimes does. Maybe a milder plate would help? @alfredus what gap is this one?
Rest of the shave went fine. I am planning to use it for the rest of the week and see How it goes. I quite like it actually.
Click to expand...

Very interested to hear your thoughts on the Wolfie WR1 standard gap after a week of use compared to the RS-10. As the reports I've seen seem to say the RS-10 is a better shaver.

You know you aren't the last recipient :cool: :LOL:
 
Second shave with the wolfman.

I think this razor needs someone who is more used to de shaving. For the flat places in my face it shaves nice. But in my trouble areas I still get nicked. The rs 10 in more forgiving in that regards. I will give it a final shave tomorrow evening. Then switch over to the Gillette.
 
Funny how different we all are.the wolfman felt safe as houses for me like I would have to work hard to nick myself.interestingly Gillette ttos always seem to give me nicks if m not carfull or i I get sloppy shaving despite their mildness.
 
Latest update.

Finally. A nice clean shave and off I go. It’s a really nice razor. Not sure why I had trouble with it honestly.

Now, let’s put it away and get started on the Gillette #16
 
Rami said:
Latest update.

Finally. A nice clean shave and off I go. It’s a really nice razor. Not sure why I had trouble with it honestly.

Now, let’s put it away and get started on the Gillette #16
Click to expand...
Great, you finally dialled it in. Very interested now where you see the RS-10 will sit. The #16 is lovely too. Just watch out for those blade tabs I keep forgetting about them and nick my nose trumpets.
 
Well, well, well

I thought a vintage razor needs a vintage blade. In goes the spoiler.

And it turns out I was right. Easy, effortless Shave. Which I thought was very mild. Until I realised I had 3 day growth in and the razor had no issues.

Man. Now I need to go off and grab one, don’t I.
 
So this is a wrap - received the box today (minus the Wolfman and Mergress, which are home already).

I want to thank once more the generous donators to this box:

@todras who generously let members play here with a Wolfman and a Mergress
@Nico who generously donated a Karve with 2 baseplates
@Mark1966 who generously let members play with a variety of vintage razors

And of course thanks to all who participated in this pass around and shared their thoughts with the rest of us - I hope you all enjoyed it (y)
 
alfredus said:
So this is a wrap - received the box today (minus the Wolfman and Mergress, which are home already).

I want to thank once more the generous donators to this box:

@todras who generously let members play here with a Wolfman and a Mergress
@Nico who generously donated a Karve with 2 baseplates
@Mark1966 who generously let members play with a variety of vintage razors

And of course thanks to all who participated in this pass around and shared their thoughts with the rest of us - I hope you all enjoyed it (y)
Click to expand...
What it's over?? :facepalm:
So I gather I'll never get to try a Wolfman now? Nor a great vintage razor either @Mark1966 :cry:
 
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