Atelier Durdan N°7 razor pass around.....

Two more days. Two No 7 shaves with the 0.7 plate.  Both were just plain excellent -- mild shaves that were not aggressive but clean and in the DFS category.  I am particularly liking the feedback this razor gives me: it seems greater in detail than any other razor I've used.  Or so it seems.  Or maybe my technique has simply improved over the last four years.  In any event, with the No. 7 I can gauge just what and how many hairs are being cut during a pass.  I find that level of feedback quite useful and, as I just said, something seemingly more pronounced than I'm accustomed to.  Below is today's equipment:  the No.7, again a GSB, T+S Spiced Fougere soap, and an Elite Quartz brush with a G5C knot.  I was in a hurry and I took the shave at full speed - had one tiny, tiny nick but a good clean shave.  Was impressed.  Tomorrow I'll move up to the 1.1 and try that.  

Today I went with the 1.1.  I also went with the set-up I used the first day I used the razor (Elite Brush; B&W Vesper; GSB blade).  

Not surprisingly, the 1.1 is more aggressive. Unlike others, I found the difference noticeable. Since I tend towards milder razors, I would say this is about as aggressive as I usually would wish to go.  The blade feel was again noticeable, but this time I felt I obtained less control information from the feedback -- the point I raised yesterday.  I believe this is due to my shaving more cautiously and wanting to use a lighter touch.  I also found that I got most comfortable by shifting my angle.  Unlike the .7 where the sweet spot was immediately clear to me, with the 1.1 today I found I rode the bar more.  When I used my usual -- about 30 degree -- angle today, it verged on the uncomfortable.  But, by using a light touch and not rushing, I was able to get a BBS shave.  Definitely a closer shave than with the .7.  On the flip side, I had to go slowly and carefully -- particularly on the more difficult folds of my neck.  I also experienced three small nicks. I would characterize none of the three as a cut or anything substantial but spots of red did appear.  

So, all in, a very close shave but not the easiest.  If the 0.7 was effortless, this required some effort.  For a razor of this aggressiveness and efficiency, though, I'd have to say that it was fairly smooth.  I'm going to use the 1.1 at least twice more to see if use changes things.  And only then go to the 1.5 -- and also, for fun, the 0.3.

Atelier Durdan N°7 .7 plate 10/10 shave outstanding, just the perfect amount of aggression for my skin type. Just a pleasure, and it is fixed in my rotation. I found that the .7 is my sweet spot where I can control the angle and the shave just to where I like it. Has Faulx pedigree but has more shaving personality. Perfect acoustics, you can hear where its shaving, so over-shaving rarely happens. .7 is a perfect daily driver for me. No irritation to speak of and beautiful BBS result. I enjoy it because it shaves differently than all my other razors with spectacular results.

Atelier Durdan N°7 .7 plate 10/10 shave outstanding, just the perfect amount of aggression for my skin type. Just a pleasure, and it is fixed in my rotation. I found that the .7 is my sweet spot where I can control the angle and the shave just to where I like it. Has Faulx pedigree but has more shaving personality. Perfect acoustics, you can hear where its shaving, so over-shaving rarely happens. .7 is a perfect daily driver for me. No irritation to speak of and beautiful BBS result. I enjoy it because it shaves differently than all my other razors with spectacular results.

Perfect review - I agree on all particularly the “personality”.   

.50 is my sweet spot

Cheers!

I’ve got 2 days to decide which plates of the No. 7 to get since the Black Friday sale ends 11/30 and I won’t be getting the pass around kit until mid December I’m guessing.

I know I’ll buy the 1.5 since all the other Atelier Durdans I bought were the most aggressive ones. The other one I’m debating between .7, .9, 1.1 or 1.3. The 1.3 might be too close to the 1.5 to be practical, and knowing me, the .7 would probably be too mild even if it was a daily shaver type plate which I rarely ever shave two days in a row. Whichever ones I get they will both be brass, which I haven’t seen throughout this entire thread for some unknown reason?‍♂️?‍♂️?‍♂️

Also thinking about a spare Vestige plate in brass but not sure if I should go with ++ or +++. I already have a +++ plate in SS, and not really wanting a plate more mild than the +++ but I’d consider the ++ JUST for the idea of variety.

I’ve got 2 days to decide which plates of the No. 7 to get since the Black Friday sale ends 11/30 and I won’t be getting the pass around kit until mid December I’m guessing.

I know I’ll buy the 1.5 since all the other Atelier Durdans I bought were the most aggressive ones.  The other one I’m debating between .7, .9, 1.1 or 1.3.  The 1.3 might be too close to the 1.5 to be practical, and knowing me, the .7 would probably be too mild even if it was a daily shaver type plate which I rarely ever shave two days in a row.  Whichever ones I get they will both be brass, which I haven’t seen throughout this entire thread for some unknown reason?‍♂️?‍♂️?‍♂️

Also thinking about a spare Vestige plate in brass but not sure if I should go with ++ or +++.  I already have a +++ plate in SS, and not really wanting a plate more mild than the +++ but I’d consider the ++ JUST for the idea of variety.

Although I’m in the middle of the pass-around and have only tried the 0.3, the 0.7 and 1.1 - and prefer milder razors for my daily shaving - is think you’d probably want a .4 difference. Since the two 0.4 gaps I’ve tried are noticeable but not overwhelmingly different, I’d extrapolate that a .2 would be somewhat small and not worth getting an extra plate to have.

I'm trying to decide what baseplate to get for number 7 as I'm looking to buy both La Faulx (I am 90% on the ++) and also going to buy Number 7 (head only). I'm also going to buy one handle (leaning towards La Faulx handle) to use on both razors. The other option is to not buy any handles and use one of my own like Razorock Ti or buy a Timeless Ti Crown handle. If buying a handle from AD, which do you guys suggest between La Faulx and Number 7 handle?

As for the razors, I was looking at ++ or + for La Faulx (a few people have suggested +, but my feeling is to get ++).

For number 7, just can't seem to decide between 1.1 & 0.9. I guess I still have about 9 or so hours to decide.

I'll be using both razors for head shaving, so I don't want anything too mild, and also don't want anything too aggressive. I've seen people mention that La Faulx ++ is similar efficiency to the Vector SB but smoother, so if that is the case, I think ++ should suit me. Is it possible to do buffing with the ++ baseplate, or is it too aggressive for that?

Number 7, though, not sure if 1.1 would be a bit too aggressive? I have the GC 1.05, and while that is a smooth shaver, it's a touch too aggressive for me as I can't do any buffing with it to cleanup my harder areas. Would you guys says the 1.1 would be similar aggression wise? Is it possible to do any buffing with the 1.1 baseplate or is it too efficient for that (I usually have to always do some buffing on the back of the head otherwise I'm left with stubble that you can easily feel, so that is why I'm asking).

Two more shaves:

First, the 0.3.  This was decidedly just too mild.  I found myself trying to work unnecessarily to get what felt like a proper shave going.  The 0.5 might be a sweeter spot for a mild shave but either because I knew it was just 0.3 or I didn't attune myself to it, I didn't get it to work. Not a bad shave, just a tiny nick in a neck fold, but nothing exciting.

Second, the 1.5.  I approached this wish some trepidation as I don't love large gaps -- I do use the safety bar out of instinct and habit so having that much space can feed into my thoughts.  However, the shave was excellent.  As expected, close but smooth and clean.  I did try too hard on the neck as, a few hours later, I noticed some irritation.  But for a gap that large, the No 7 wasn't bad at all.

I'll probably do two more shaves -- a 0.7 and a 1.1 as those were more enjoyable for me -- and then send it on.

Today was a comparison shave:  the 0.7 base on the No. 7 with the Haircut & Shave N075, which is my single favorite razor -- my touchstone.   I figured this was a good comparison since my prior use of the 0.7 on the No. 7 made it seem similar to the N075.

Well, perhaps it was because of my greater familiarity with the H&S butusing it proved to have the more comfortable and successful passes.  I found it got further down, didn't need a repeat buffing, and was altogether more comfortable.  I was a bit surprised because my earlier shaves with the No. 7 had impressed me, as I've previously described.  

Tomorrow, I'll finish off my time with the No. 7 by trying the 1.1 again, hoping it works as a more efficient razor.  I found that as a daily driver it was too much for me.  I might compare it to my Paradigm Diamondback Ti as a comparator.  

Enjoy these amazing reviews by Lesser and others that proceeded.....Dave ain't that smart or detailed in comparisons