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

I wasn't planning on getting one and still probably won't but its great to see someone stand behind their product and accept constructive criticism.

The more I thought about this situation, the more irritated I became. I am officially off this train wreck. It's been a cluster since Day 1. There is no way in hell I pay $500 for a razor that is finished as poorly as this one when we were promised a "2 step mirror" like Wolfman. I politely called bullcrap when it was brought up...now I can certainly call BS. Pitiful really...and to know that every piece was assembled by Eric personally, he certainly saw the tool marks on the Toggle. The most unique part, duh they are called Toggles after all, was really poorly executed. The sloppy paintwork is another indicator of poor QC and/or just lack of interest. I'll have no part of a new razor being cobbled together to make it usable with afterthought parts, more shipping costs, and more endless time frames. I'll sit the rest of this out until there is a production model that gets some positive reviews, if that ever happens. True to his word, the refund was pretty quick so I am at least thankful for that. #50 is back in the mail and I'm glad to have this albatross off my neck.

LOOT James I hope my last post didn’t give you or anyone else the impression that Eric was going to try and repair or change the existing Janus. He just said that he could fix the design so it goes back to shaving like the prototype easily when he does come out with another razor. He needs a qualified machine shop to do the next version and not like the one that did this version. I was just as upset as you were about every subject you just brought up in your last post plus the quality of the shave! He’s actually encouraging people to take their refund and I know he feels bad about how the razor came out.
Just wanted to clear that up.

LOOT James I hope my last post didn’t give you or anyone else the impression that Eric was going to try and repair or change the existing Janus. He just said that he could fix the design so it goes back to shaving like the prototype easily when he does come out with another razor. He needs a qualified machine shop to do the next version and not like the one that did this version. I was just as upset as you were about every subject you just brought up in your last post plus the quality of the shave! He’s actually encouraging people to take their refund and I know he feels bad about how the razor came out.
Just wanted to clear that up.

Understood. Thanks. My issue is not performance. If you go back and look at his first post, Eric clearly says he wasn't sure how changing the dome would change the shave from the prototype. At that point, to me, he absolved himself from the quality of the shave. I can't really complain about poor shave quality, I knew that was a variable going in. My primary issue is with finish and the sloppy work. The quality of work Eric shipped is inexcusable, especially given he assembled them all personally. There is no way he can recover from that, with me. They'd all have to be disassembled, polished, reassembled. I'm not at all interested in leaving my $500 in Eric's hands while he attempts to put this crap show back together. I'm pretty sure I gave Eric plenty of opportunity to shy away from the DuFour finish several times in this very thread. He stuck to his guns and delivered a product that he should have been embarrassed to box. The problem is, he was too far down the road and he has enough apologists on this thread to continue carrying his water and excusing inferior work. I've always subscribed to a very simple business model, "Under promise, over deliver". Eric might consider adoption as well.

I feel for you guys. I wanted to back this project but having read all these horrific stories with raising money projects that are not yet made I was a bit afraid of giving them my money and was waiting to see the outcome (like many others). $500 are a lot of money anyway and didn't want to risk it.

If I may, let me suggest something. Let's give this guy a chance. I would hate to be in his shoes. He could have done better, but he deserves at least one I believe. Remember the Rockwell stainless project years ago. It was a disaster. But eventually it turned up to a fantastic razor that almost all of us have tried and we think it's an outstanding product and made in the USA. These guys eventually delivered an excellent product. If the Janus guys listen to the precious feedback, the razor will be made correctly as promised. Comparing it to Rockwell is not fair though, because Janus is a much more complicated project with lots of parts. Time will tell. For now, I'm looking forward to more reviews.

It’s painful to see the direction this project has gone.

Certainly Eric meant well in his intentions and the crafting of the razor. The shops he had hand selected created a decent looking prototype that looks like it should have polished up well (see page 1).

But things happen. Shops changed timelines. Eric changed shops. Shops no longer wanted to meet the high assembly standards. And the end product (from viewing the photos here) certainly does not look like it warrants the price tag, even IF the shave quality was great.

I think Eric knew, as he was assembling them, that things had gone awry. He seems to demand high standards from everything we’ve seen here. But I imagine he pushed to finish the project regardless. Perhaps he tired of the constant delays and struggles with shops. I don’t know.

But shipping them offered an end to it all. And he has been good enough to offer a refund for anyone not satisfied. There are few companies who would do the same in this type of situation. And this allows him closure and a new start.

Was the end product worthy of the price? No. That is clear from everything posted here.

Is Eric worthy of a little bit of recognition for the countless hours, emails, negotiations, manual assembly, and shipping he’s conducted in the last year? Let’s not count that out.

I hope mine Is released from customs soon and then I’ll decide whether to hold on to a little piece of history or return it.

Tony

I for one don’t think that Eric deserves to be crapped on, he is not a machinist, things may have gotten off track and may not have fully lived up to his initial vision. He’s willing to issue refunds to those that want them, he could have done what others have done say the project has exceeded its budget and canceled it and not delivered anything and had people fight to try and get their money back many others have done that on Kickstarter. He delivered a product and is willing to take the criticism for it. How many of us have tried to manufacture a razor, let alone one as complex as this, I can’t imagine there is much if any profit in this initial run. I for one applaud the attempt and hope he can make lemonade out of the lemons but if he is beat up I fear the community will dissuade Eric and others like him from having vision and motivation to try new things. Just my 2 cents


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UPDATE:


Ok so I've been given the ok to post up what was decided in my conversation with Eric yesterday. I feel that some of this falls back on me and honestly I was upset when this Janus was delivered to me and I opened the box and saw that the fit and finish were not at all what I expected and then when I shaved with it my concerns were solidified by the terrible shave I got! So after standing behind Eric and his project and being as supportive as I could I feel that based on my reviews back when using the prototype may or may have not had an influence on some people's decision to lay down their $500 in for what should have been improved new Janus that was just released. Again I feel like my reputation is on this line here as well and I'm not sure but I'm guessing maybe Mark feels the same as I do. I based everything on the shave I got with the Prototype. A razor that was built like a tank, haf great fit and finish compared to this latest version and yes it didn't have the mirror finish but a very nice PVD coating on it and it screamed quality. Thick metal, felt like a high quality razor in hand deep numbers in the dial etc etc. but most importantly a razor that was as efficient as a Charcoal Level 3 OC or WR2 SB 1.35 for example!  I'm using those two as I'm certain a lot of members can relate to either razor when talking about efficiency but the Janus prototype was noticeably smoother than either from my point of view as the owner of all three razors. So yes was I excited about this release? Yes very much so as I thought I was going to get a razor that hand a smaller head profile, shorter in size, mirror polished and a little bit more efficient but still with the same smoothness that prototype provided. Well as I made the statement a while back in my post. That is not what was delivered to my door at all and the more I thought about it the more upset I got as again I believe my reputation could be hurt as some folks might have laid down their money based on my reviews. Not sure how many but even if it was one it still bothers me as all you had to go on was mine and Marks reviews. 

I can post on here till I"m blue in the face that shaving with the prototype was like night and day different than this production Janus and I'm sure some of the members might not believe me and I don't blame them as all they can go by is how this production version shaves and it sure isn't the way I described the Prototype it in my reviews.

So with that said I talked Eric into sending me the Prototype back. I plan on doing a side by side with the new Janus and in case your wondering I'm not keeping mine but getting a refund for it after I'm done with the comparison. 

Also here is what I convinced Eric to do to prove to people that the reviews I put out there on the prototype were not bias or an effort by me to sell his razors although I will say when you believe in something as I did the prototype I was a 100% behind the project as far as support goes but had no part in the company. 

So with that said here is what I'm going to do. As soon as I do my comparisons I'm going to start a pass around of the prototype to show folks why I was excited about the Janus. Thsi pass around is going to be only for those that have or had the new Janus. Even if you sent it back for a refund. This is not for any that didn't or don't have the Janus. 

As with all pass arounds I would ask that replacement cost of the prototype in insurance be covered ( Have to get that amount from Eric )  and of course shipping to the next person on the list. I will start a new thread just for that pass around when I have the razor in hand. 

I will also add since the prototype came out a little over a year ago there have been a lot of  both adjustables and 3 piece razors that have been released so remember what I was comparing the prototype to. I didn't have a Taiga, a Rocnel, Diamondback or H&S for some example to compare the prototype. So take that into consideration when you do get to use it. I really don't have time to manage a pass around but I'll get it started and if anyone does have exta time on their hands and experience with pass arounds I'm open to any help I can get. 

Also to clear up things Eric said he could of and probably should have just made a few changes to the prototype and will make those changes when and if he comes out with another Janus. An I'm holding him accountable for anything he does moving forward but like I said before I consider him a friend so although throughly dissapointed I'll try to be supportive as best I can but all the rest is one him.

I’m definitely more nervous waiting for mine to show up then I thought I was going to be. This time last year I was using higher gaps then I do now. So hopefully, I’m happy with the shave on the lower settings.
Crazy to think that these were mass produced all those years ago!

If the Janus guys listen to the precious feedback, the razor will be made correctly as promised.

I think that's one of the problems that has led to this situation in the first place.
Too much feedback in the early stages, not all of which should have been treated as gospel.
I speak unencumbered by any obligation to the manufacturer, but Ive watched as
various shave gurus pushed him to tweak this or that...and they are now either silent or frantically
washing their hands off in a rather clumsy way.

My advice to any manufacturer is...know your market, but have your own vision and trust only yourself.