Pass Around Carbon CX-316L including two new base plates

[p.b]

The razor is now in the care of the post office winging it's way to the next user via Special Delivery.

I re-tried the original plate and rediscovered that I still don't like it. It's too mild for me and frustrating to use. I also rediscovered that I can't stand any of the handles. The R1 is awful to look at and not much better to use. The R2 promises much as it's far more attractive but is almost as bad to use as the R1 and the Ti is far too light and unbalances the razor (I dislike head heavy razors).

As per David's advice I pitched straight in with the ++ plate and was blessed with a superb shave: my kind of blade feel and wonderfully efficient. Excellent work. I jumped between the ++ and the + plates several times and found the + consistently better than the standard and consistently worse than the ++ regardless of the blade.

I found the ++ plate spot on for the level of aggression I like to experience - I like to know there's a sharp piece on metal on my face - but still incredible smooth and I was able to achieve a brilliant finish with it.

Would I buy one?

No. The handles just don't work for me - I don't find them comfortable or intuitive and the threads aren't metric (which really annoys me as it does with Karve and Fatip). If there were better handles then I might think about buy one - the ++ is god enough to stand comparison with my Blackbird - it's that good.

 

[Masamune]

Razor has safely arrived

Now where do I start?

 

[Ventastic]

Start with the ++ and a noticeably reduced blade feel.

 

[Masamune]

The Carbon has landed - thank you @ajc347 I loaded up a fresh blade in the ++ plate for tomorrow and saw the blade gap, bottled it, and switched the + plate. That's quite a bit gap there!

Ah, now I know exactly what you are talking about. Just tried assembling the Carbon with the various baseplates before tomorrow's first go.

 

[p.b]

Ah, now I know exactly what you are talking about. Just tried assembling the Carbon with the various baseplates before tomorrow's first go.

however, I can highly recommend the ++. It didn't bite at all.

Did you try the Std Cx plate?

 

[Masamune]

No, haven't tried any configuration yet. I'm still planning to use the ++ as I've been saving up stubble since Saturday evening to give it a proper test.

 

[Masamune]

First impressions of the ++ plate are very positive. I used the R2 handle and a fresh Wizamet with Fitjar Islands Folgefonn soap. Really comfortable and smooth shave, very little blade feel at all. Will be interesting to see how the increased blade exposure of the + and standard plates affect efficiency.

 

[Masamune]

Shave #2 with the + plate

2 days growth, same setup as above. I can now feel the blade, a little, not overbearing but present. Not as smooth with the enhanced blade exposure and efficiency is less. Not a huge difference but it is less. Still not used to the R2 handle, as fingers keep slipping from the knurled parts to the smooth.

@CarbonShavingCo can you share the blade exposure of the + and ++ plates?

I know you said the standard plate is similar to a Nodachi, 0.13 and between a Karve C and D, 0.09 - 0.13

 

[Steven_jagger]

Would like to join the list

1. Nishy
2. Ventastic
3. Morr
4. ajc347
5. p.b
6. Masamune
7. Stonec0ld
8. Carbold
9. Danjo312
10. Jeepie
11. Hogan
12. Steven_jagger

 

[Masamune]

Carbon razor is on the way to @Stonec0ld

I'll put a full review together later.
Thanks @Nishy for running the passaround

 

[Nishy]

Shave #2 with the + plate

2 days growth, same setup as above. I can now feel the blade, a little, not overbearing but present. Not as smooth with the enhanced blade exposure and efficiency is less. Not a huge difference but it is less. Still not used to the R2 handle, as fingers keep slipping from the knurled parts to the smooth.

@CarbonShavingCo can you share the blade exposure of the + and ++ plates?

I know you said the standard plate is similar to a Nodachi, 0.13 and between a Karve C and D, 0.09 - 0.13

So far:
When discussing and quantifying "blade exposure" we are talking a very
small measurement, it becomes difficult to claim this with any amount of
accuracy. The blade choice can swing this number, debris on the razor
can swing this number...for this(and competitive reasons) we haven't
communicated this metric. However .15mm would be a good approximation
for discussion. To put this into perspective a human hair is about
.04-.1mm...

 

[Masamune]

I knew the Carbon was blade forward by reputation with the standard baseplate but wanted to try out the razor all the same, despite most of my razors being decidedly milder. However, the feel of the .68 plate wasn't as blade prominent as expected but this plate was my least favourite. I didn't really get a chance to experiment with blades so maybe it smooths out. To cut down on variables I used the same blade and soap, Wizamet and Fitjar Islands. The best plate was the ++ with very minor blade feel, really comfortable and smooth despite the large gap.

To be fair the gap on my Silversmith is pretty close to the ++ plate but less blade is on show.

Next I tried the + plate which bumps up the exposure. Still fairly smooth but I much prefer the ++ and the efficiency was less with the + plate.

The regular plate had the most but not loads of blade feel. Even milder and even less efficient. Maybe with more shaves I could have improved the closeness of the shaves but didn't really have time to dial in the plates as I kept flipping between them.

Additional shaves just confirmed that the ++ plate is the only one I'd consider but not sure I'd want to use it daily. I never got comfortable with the R2 handle, kept slipping from the knurling to the smooth section of the handle. The handle is well balanced and looks different. The R1 handle looks like an unfinished handle but with better, deeper knurling cut into it. Didn't try the Ti handle in the end.

Not that is has any bearing on the shave, the machining was disappointing compared to my other razors (not including the Wolfman as that is an unfair comparison). I don't just mean on the underside of the cap where the machining marks are pretty hard to miss. Given the price of the razor I'd hoped for a more refined finish. Yes, I know Carbon flag this up on their website.

Overall the Carbon CX isn't really for me but I can understand the appeal for others. Thanks for the chance to try it out.

 

[Zhang Doe]

I agree that the underside of the top cap could have been done more nicely to give more of a premium impression, but I actually like how these particular tool marks are ... there is almost a flow of movement. Kind of Zen. I have definitely seen worse when it comes to tool marks.

I have actually have two Carbon CXs, one with the R1 handle and one with the R2. The R2 is one of my favorite handles. Appearance-wise, it is a nice evolution of the R1, but the R1 is slightly more comfortable for me because of the knurling and how the sharp breaks from the knurled sections to the center section hooks onto your fingers to give a more secure grip.

 

[Stonec0ld]

A very well packaged parcel arrived today. 15 mins unwrapping and I got most of it out. I didn't bothet bother with the Ti handle as I recall it being too light for my tastes.

 

[Sig Solo]

Please add me, too!!