Shave review of Janus Adjustable razor and Shave Off vs Gillette F4 Toggle

@ Loot Great review and you do not need to apologize for your honesty - it is appreciated. Maybe I missed something but how is the Janus a Toggle with 15 positions as I thought it clicks through 9 positions - can you clarify. Those pictures are fantastic and that Rhodium is absolutely stunning.

First shave with the Janus
Pre Shave Shower
Soap Ethos Lavender 
Blade New PolSilver 
Brush Brad Sears Ebonite 
AS Ethos Lavender Skin Food
I started WTG on level 9. I know I am comparing from memory, but I read my notes on my comparison shaves from a little over a year ago, there is way more blade feel, not harsh, but not as smooth at all compared to the prototype notes.
It was very efficient on 2 days growth. I would put it in the realm of WR1 .94 OC efficient on 1st pass.
2nd pass XTG I dropped to level 5 and the smoothness felt more in line with the level 9 of the prototype 
3rd pass ATG. I dropped to 4 for this pass and there was not much to remove it was more touchup on the jawline and upper lip. 
The thing I loved about the prototype was how smooth it felt and still gave a very efficient shave. I believe the LE has more blade feel and more efficiency but I believe it lost some of its smoothness at the higher levels. I will need to try some different shaving angles as the more domed head put the razor at a fall into place angle where as the flatter head allows for more angle adjustment which I did some of during this shave. 
I am not a designer but I know what I feel and it feels to me like the LE has more blade exposure. This is not a bad thing if you enjoy blade feel, but normally I am a daily shaver so I tend to lean to smoothness first. 
I did get a very good BBS 3 pass shave without nicks or irritation I will have to see the duration, and I need to try using it at some lower levels.

@ Loot Great review and you do not need to apologize for your honesty - it is appreciated. Maybe I missed something but how is the Janus a Toggle with 15 positions as I thought it clicks through 9 positions - can you clarify. Those pictures are fantastic and that Rhodium is absolutely stunning.

I was just trying to simplify a comparison, the Janus LE acts a lot like the original Toggles, if you could crank it up to 15. The LE expanded on the headroom...which was always my complaint with the Gillette models.

First shave with the Janus
Pre Shave Shower
Soap Ethos Lavender 
Blade New PolSilver 
Brush Brad Sears Ebonite 
AS Ethos Lavender Skin Food
I started WTG on level 9. I know I am comparing from memory, but I read my notes on my comparison shaves from a little over a year ago, there is way more blade feel, not harsh, but not as smooth at all compared to the prototype notes.
It was very efficient on 2 days growth. I would put it in the realm of WR1 .94 OC efficient on 1st pass.
2nd pass XTG I dropped to level 5 and the smoothness felt more in line with the level 9 of the prototype 
3rd pass ATG. I dropped to 4 for this pass and there was not much to remove it was more touchup on the jawline and upper lip. 
The thing I loved about the prototype was how smooth it felt and still gave a very efficient shave. I believe the LE has more blade feel and more efficiency but I believe it lost some of its smoothness at the higher levels. I will need to try some different shaving angles as the more domed head put the razor at a fall into place angle where as the flatter head allows for more angle adjustment which I did some of during this shave. 
I am not a designer but I know what I feel and it feels to me like the LE has more blade exposure. This is not a bad thing if you enjoy blade feel, but normally I am a daily shaver so I tend to lean to smoothness first. 
I did get a very good BBS 3 pass shave without nicks or irritation I will have to see the duration, and I need to try using it at some lower levels.

Yeah, I'm certain I read Frankie say the exposure on the LE was increased over prototype so a 9 was now an 8.

Extra exposure + flatter head explains why it performs like it does.

Thanks for the review and the affirmation.

The brush handle looks so beautiful.

Maiden shave and it was good. I had shaved on Saturday so, i didn’t get to go full tilt with the Janus LE and started it off at 7. Very quickly, the razor looks very good. Is it a fine piece of finished jewelry? No, it’s not a Rolex but, I’d say a Patek Philippe and that’s still a heck of a statement. Yes, there is some tiny bit of tooling in certain areas such as the toggle handle where polishing wasn’t as precise. High polish on most of the Janus but, certainly not a superb mirror luster that a Wolfman, H&S, Timeless & Blackland have produced. It’s about 95% there though and it’s still a good looking tool, regardless. Balance is near perfect for me with good weight distribution through the whole length of the razor. The toggle mechanism is precise and gives an authoritative snap/click and the adjustment dial is great in click and lock adjustment. You will not move this adjuster during your shave. You would need both hands to do so, trust me. The knurling is good but, not great to be honest. I thought I would get a nice tactile grip feel to it, that is not the case. I never felt that it would fall or slip during my shave and razor transfers from left to right hand. I’m assuming that’s because of the polished finished but, I would have liked perhaps just a tiny bit more pronounced knurling or deeper serrations to seal the deal on grip. Nonetheless, it will work and work well as it is.

I started on 7 and actually finished at 3. There is some blade feel throughout those size ranges that I used. Plenty of blade exposure on my first experience. Was it  a smooth operator at 7? No, but it wasn’t a rough feel neither. Far from it. I completed the first pass on 7 and it knocked down quite a bit. Turned it down to 5 and the shave got a bit smoother and still maintained good blade feel. Finished the 2nd XTG pass and was at a DFS finish with just a couple of stragglers around Sir Adam and just under each side of the jawline. Turned it down to 3 and the 3rd ATG pass finished it off with a BBS finish on both face & neck. Didn’t have to chin buff nor perform any touch ups elsewhere. But, I did give myself about half a dozen tiny weepers with most coming from that 1st pass. That Feather is a mother f****r at first shave especially, when you’re getting to know a razor for the first time. My advice? Use a smoother and not as sharp blade for the first few shaves or just start out low with the Feather installed and work your way up. I thought I was fine until I saw them read dots on the first pass. Yeah, a WTF? moment. Ironically, no irritation or burn of any kind. A quick alum pass only revealed a slight burner near Sir Adam but, everywhere else was golden.

Again, it’s only one shave and I need to put some time in to get to know this new pup. Will the shaves get better? Absolutely. It has cutting prowess and decent smoothness once I dialed it down. I think at max there might be some issues because in all honesty, I didn’t get that “Damn! That was sweet” feeling. Sorta like when I grabbed my .95 SS Timeless for the first time. I just knew even though it exhibits excellent blade feel but, there was this awesome smoothness that for me also inspired confidence that it would deliver with utmost precision & performance. I didn’t get that from the Janus Toggle. Not saying I won’t get there because I’m sure I will, it’s just going to take a bit of work to find out how it works best with me.

I can’t reiterate it enough though that it’s just the first shave. I’m looking forward to putting in some more work with it and see how it goes in the following weeks to come. I like this razor as it has some definite potential to deliver outstanding shaves......

SOTD 06.01.2020

Janus LE Adjustable, wide open

GD Preshave V2

DG Milksteak

DG Cane B4

Rooster's Nest Bourbon Bay Rum

Fresh Feather

Excellent mail call today. A new Janus LE and brush.  It's good to be the king.

Great image Loot! Red is my thing, I LOVE your new brush, it’s CRISP! The wave spilling over on the top is bada—!

Great photos all! Mine is stuck in Chicago for who knows how long as it makes it’s way north of the border.

We’re protesting, rioting and looting here in the CHI, maybe I’ll slide over to the main post office and get myself a new razor?

@ Loot  Great review and you do not need to apologize for your honesty - it is appreciated.  Maybe I missed something but how is the Janus a Toggle with 15 positions as I thought it clicks through 9 positions - can you clarify. Those pictures are fantastic and that Rhodium is absolutely stunning.

+1 on the Rhodium, beautiful

First shave with the Janus
Pre Shave Shower
Soap Ethos Lavender 
Blade New PolSilver 
Brush Brad Sears Ebonite 
AS Ethos Lavender Skin Food
I started WTG on level 9. I know I am comparing from memory, but I read my notes on my comparison shaves from a little over a year ago, there is way more blade feel, not harsh, but not as smooth at all compared to the prototype notes.
It was very efficient on 2 days growth. I would put it in the realm of WR1 .94 OC efficient on 1st pass.
2nd pass XTG I dropped to level 5 and the smoothness felt more in line with the level 9 of the prototype 
3rd pass ATG. I dropped to 4 for this pass and there was not much to remove it was more touchup on the jawline and upper lip. 
The thing I loved about the prototype was how smooth it felt and still gave a very efficient shave. I believe the LE has more blade feel and more efficiency but I believe it lost some of its smoothness at the higher levels. I will need to try some different shaving angles as the more domed head put the razor at a fall into place angle where as the flatter head allows for more angle adjustment which I did some of during this shave. 
I am not a designer but I know what I feel and it feels to me like the LE has more blade exposure. This is not a bad thing if you enjoy blade feel, but normally I am a daily shaver so I tend to lean to smoothness first. 
I did get a very good BBS 3 pass shave without nicks or irritation I will have to see the duration, and I need to try using it at some lower levels.

Wow, the depth of colour on that Ebonite is stunning, between it and Loot’s new brush, I’m sitting here empty handed with nothing to open.  I feel like I’m at someone else’s birthday party....