Parker Semi-Slant Safety Razor Graphite Finish Close Shaving Double Edge Razor for Sensitive Skin Coarse Hair Slanted Precision

Update after a week of use. I tried a feather blade in and it goes even better, though the original parker blade was pretty good. It's becoming my favorite razor fast. Much recommended. _______ I received it 2 hours ago, and I shaved with it 10 minutes ago. Here is my feedback. A shave is not merely the result of the razor. Post review is some specs in my case, to see if my experience might be transportable to yours. + Aesthetics: the razor is really gorgeous. Stylish, masculine, cool. I have the graphite, and I really like it. It's just a gorgeous design to see and even at a tactile level it doesn't just look, but also feels beautiful in your hand. + Quality: The machining looks excellent, then again I am no machinist, so I defer to the judgement of the competent. Had I received it as a gift, the spartan packaging (which I also like) notwithstanding, I would have imagined its price to be 5X what it is. I wonder where it is made, the box would not say. Google says USA. I understand the company is Indian, their straight razors are made in US. I presume this is made in India. Both cases are ok for me. + Functionality: The head of this razor is much larger than any of my other razors. And yet, no problem around the nose or in other areas. The handle is exactly the way I like it. Grippy and very functional. Similar to my Feather (cost: 200+ bucks) but sharper looking. My suggestion to the company: while already good, this handle would gain from being a bit more grippy. Love the balance of the entire thing. Usually it takes one shave to get used to a razor, but I got an excellent shave at the first try. Very close. + Blades I have used it only once, a few minute ago, with its own Parker blade. The blade was sharp enough but it felt less sharp than feather. I should imagine the result would be even better with a feather. The parker blades also seem considerably lighter and thus more bendable than the feathers, I wonder if micro-vibrations play a role. + Agressive? While obviously more aggressive than the SS Feather, I found it only mildly more aggressive than King C. Perhaps because of the excellent handle, I could always intuitively find the right angle of cut along the topography of my face (and I shave without mirror). I would say, just aggressive enough for me, maybe I'd like it a bit more aggressive (but using Feather blades next time might fix that). + Overall: a beautiful object, functional, works for me, and the price is really good. Obviously I cannot comment on durability. I am happy of the purchase. I would have easily paid more for this. ______________________ + Beard: thick and coarse in the best of spots, barbed wire in the worst spots + Skin sensitivity: I have no idea, since I never had any other skin as benchmark + Shaving location: I shave blindly, under the shower. + Shaving style: I shave only against the grain, from the throat up. First passage perpendicular against the grain. Second passage 30-45 deg against the grain. Then here and there in difficult spots + Foam: I've tied proraso and others. I feel much better with dove body wash, which is what I use. I know it sounds crazy, but that works much better for me than any fancy soap. + Blades: Feather (rarely Gillette) + Post shave: proraso aftershave, then a cream + Fundamental elements for me: 1- Super hot water (hence the shower). 2- I never wash my face with soap before shaving, though I keep it under abundant hot water. Also, I never rinse out the old soap until the end. + Seniority in DE shaving: Have done it for 8 months. My other razors are Feather stainless steal, and Gillette C King + I find shaving to be an enjoyable activity. I find razors, like mechanical watches, or guns, or compasses, to be beautiful objects to possess when they are well made. _________________________________ Read more

This is a Slant razor, which means the razor twists the blade in such a way that it cuts whiskers at an angle - like a guillotine. This tends to give you a more smooth shave - it doesn't catch on whiskers nearly as often. Regular razors can catch on the whiskers more, especially if you're using a less sharp brand of blade. The sharpest I've used is Feather blades, but blade brand is a personal preference and you have to go with what works for you. I love slant razors and didn't realize that they were so common. I've had my first slant for several years thinking it was specific to that brand. It's a great razor. I spent about $50 bucks on it at the time. Then I recently came across several other slants - and they were even significantly cheaper. So I started trying out these new cheaper slants - and I've been happy with every one of them. Each of them is different in its aggressiveness. This Parker is probably exactly what I'd give to someone just starting out. It's maybe the least expensive slant I've come across. It's not overly aggressive and not too mild. It's a great place to start - and it could easily be what you would come back to permanently. Especially for the price - this is a great razor. Just for descriptive purposes, the knurling on the handle is mild. I personally like as aggressive knurling as they can muster - but that's just my personal preference. This works for me just fine and I love using this razor. As we all know, you have to try this out to really see if this works for you, but this razor is quite nice. If you wanted to put together a safety razor set together for your kid or your husband who has never used safety razors before, this is probably exactly what I'd start them off with. It's inexpensive, perfectly functional and looks classy. Read more

Excellent razor. Shaves very well. A bit crisper than the Merkur 37C (a bit more blade feel). Unfortunately Parker's quality control is poor. The central post of the razor head cap was too wide. The KAI Japanese blades could not be used at all. The central blade opening was too narrow and could not pass beyond the threaded portion of the post. As a result the head could not be fully tightened. The Persona and Lord Platinum went it, but with a lot of creaking and scraping noises. No problems with the Astra / Gilette Silver Blue / Nacet blades from the St Petersburg factory. Update: After an hour of work and a lot of scraping the razor can now take the Personna and the Lord Platinum blades. Not everyone has the patience and the tools though. Read more