Thread: Disposable Straights?

The personna blades are very unforgiving on the first shave and leave a lot of weepers if shaving the whole face. Its at its best on the third shave and with some skill, the 4th shave is OK.

My other no name blades for my Diane 21 are better performing.

Pabster

Originally Posted by jeffegg2

I was just looking around.... not really thinking of buying one, but it is all so confusing?

Feather, Parker, Dovo... Half DE blades, single blades, adapters....

They don't all take the same blades? Are some blades longer than others? Will a Feather blade fit in a Dovo? The DE blade is pretty short, breaking one in half just seems like I could use my safety razor and use it DE and would get the same shave? How about if I just tape a DE blade to a popsicle stick? Really though, where is shavette central with all the info?

Perhaps I am much better off with the good ol straight!

It seems most of the disposables are meant for barber use for hairline trimming, and use standard double-edge blades broken in half. The Dovo Shavette with the steel handle seems nice for the price, and uses special single-edge blades. I don't know if DE blades broken in half could be used.

The Feather Artist Club RX (chrome-plated brass, heavier) and DX (solid stainless steel, lighter) seem more like an attempt to duplicate the feel of a traditional straight razor, but with disposable blades. The Feather Artist Club uses a blade that looks a whole lot like an injector blade, but is slightly longer by a few millimeters. I think an injector blade would fit in an Artist Club (with a slight gap at each end), but a Feather blade would need to be snipped off a bit to fit in a standard injector razor.

Originally Posted by niftyshaving

Since you are just looking -- look at the Artist club Feather.
....
Feather blades are sharp as they come, It takes a LONG
time to learn to hone and strop an edge that is an equal.
I keep one in my shave den and used it a lot while
learning to strop and hone..... I consider
it money well spent...

I agree with Tom here. I bought an Artist Club DX as both a travel razor, and as a "control razor." By control razor, I mean that I'd been honestly struggling with the closeness of my shaves, and wanted to eliminate my honing or stropping as possible contributing factors. I developed a very healthy respect for the belligerent sharpness of Feather blades back in my DE shaving days.

The DX was pricey (you could buy a very nice real straight for the price), but the weight and handling are very similar to a real straight. In spite of this, the feel on the face itself is much more like a DE with a folding handle than a true straight. It's a very effective shaver though, and has helped me work through some technique issues. My honing and stropping ended up being pretty sound, but my shaving technique had drifted into sloppiness. I don't automatically improve by experience, unless I'm paying attention! Even a sharp razor cannot overcome flawed technique.

Because of the "grind" of the body/holder, and the inevitable step between the body and the actual tiny width of the thin blade insert, the Feather AC has an effective shaving angle of close to 30 degrees even when it's nearly flat against the face. This also prevents effectively stropping it (in my opinion, anyway).

The Feather AC enforces a soft touch, and is a very effective shaver. It's eerie how it just quietly melts facial hair when used right with a new blade, or how quickly it will cut you if not used right. I love the long sturdy tail, it reminds me a bit of the tail on a Hartsteel razor, allows two fingers easily.

Here are a few photos of mine. The razor body has one removable face that is spring loaded kind of like a binder clip, you pinch the razor at the spine to open the slot just enough to insert a blade. It holds the blade firmly, and comes apart pretty easily to clean.

The Dovo shavette takes three different types of blades, the longest being the Personna type that are suppost to shave closest to the straight razor style. There are three different holders, the red (standard) and also a black, and a green. The green adapter fits the long Personna blades. I believe the red that comes standard fits the broken in half DE blades. Not sure what blades fit the black.


I am wondering if the feather blades come in the long type like the Personna, and if they would fit the Dovo shavette?
I like the sharpness of the feather, but their holder is rather pricy compared to the Dovo.