World Shave Off Showdown 2nd Edition

I have no idea which one will come out ahead as I have never tried either razor. I do know you (AKA Dragonsbeard) loves the RFB from the prior Shave Offs so it should be a strong contender. I assume the handle on the RFB is not the stock vintage handle but a Tibam - is it Titanium or Stainless ? And could you show us the actual RFB handle ? In fact should the comparison shaves not be with the original stock handles or at least a handle from the same company like the multiple Timeless or CG handles matched to their respective razor heads ? I hope I'm not making things difficult Frank but ...

I have no idea which one will come out ahead as I have never tried either razor. I do know you (AKA Dragonsbeard) loves the RFB from the prior Shave Offs so it should be a strong contender. I assume the handle on the RFB is not the stock vintage handle but a Tibam - is it Titanium or Stainless ? And could you show us the actual RFB handle ? In fact should the comparison shaves not be with the original stock handles or at least a handle from the same company like the multiple Timeless or CG handles matched to their respective razor heads ? I hope I'm not making things difficult Frank but ...

Hi AJ 
A good valid point and I’ve already thought of this situation but with the RFB there is a problem. There is no stock handle. I gave it away to a new local wet shaver along with a New long comb I had. I always  disliked that  ball handle so I didn’t have a reason to keep it so I had a short comb and the Long comb handle was in excellent condition so I switched and now the Short Comb has the Long Comb handle on it and the LC and Ball handle which I really didn’t like either are both gone. So I ended up with two razors and two handles  I like.  So that’s the story and I think I mentioned it in the guideline thread. So I hope that explains the situation and why I’m using the TiBam handle with the RFB head. 

UPDATE:

Shave Off completed: Gillette RFB vs Rockwell 6 S plate # 6 

Ok guys this one was very close and I'm going to let this Shave Off marinate for a few hours and then I'll post it up once I get a better feeling of which one took this one based on efficiency. I don't know how this will play out once I go to the Scoring System with all the other considerations but the shave I got from both are pretty much identical at this point. 

So results later on today! 


Thank you! 

DB  

Looking forward to the winner. My guess is the RFB.

Looking forward to the winner. My guess is the RFB.

It's a very close one my friend and you know I will call it like I see it or should I say feel it LOL!

Looking forward to the winner. My guess is the RFB.

+1 on the guess...but I'm actually rooting for the 6S.  It's by far my favorite razor.  There are others that provide closer shaves and longer lasting BBS, but I have to give up smoothness in order to achieve those shaves.  I still haven't tried a razor that is "overall" better than the 6S

I also noticed how good the RFB was in other shave offs, but have no experience with it. The RFB looks more maneuverable from here, let's see .

Shave Off Report: 

Gillette RFB vs Rockwell 6 S # 6 baseplate 


So this ones in the books and I don't think I need to introduce you all to either of these razors especially the Rockwell 6 S as it's been one of the more popular razors out there since it's launch out. keto aka Keith was kind enough to send me his hand polished ( by him ) 6 S along with a another razor that will be in this Shave Off and I'd like to thank him once again. This is a heavy razor and it has a big head when compared to the RFB so they are like night and day different as far as weight and head profile goes. I'm very familiar with the RFB as I've used it a lot and it's one of my travel razors along with my Slim. I love the feel of it with the TiBam handle and as I explained earlier I no longer have the stock handle as it now has a Long Comb head on it that I gave to a local friend of mine that wanted to give wet shaving a try and I already found him a tech on the bay and he wanted something a little bit more efficient and I thought he might like the challenge that the long Comb will give him. Anyway I really like my RFB and I had a 6 S when they first came out but for some reason I didn't really connect with it and sold it rather quickly after getting a Parker Variant but I did get a brand new Rockwell 6 C in a trade deal and I kept that for a while until I started to thin out my den last year. So I've got some experience with the 6 S but not compared to the RFB but it was honestly quite easy to get used to within a couple of strokes. 

I decided to do my normal 2 pass shave going both WTG and ATG with no touch ups and I thought I'd use some longer strokes than usual just to break things up a little but still using my SSSST technique. It worked out good with these two razors and I'm glad I tried it as it made for a faster shave than normal. 

Gear used: 

Rockwell 6 S 
Gillette RFB 
Once used Feather blades 
CBL Tonsorial Fresh Lime 
Wolf Whiskers badger brush 
A homemade citrus aftershave I made a couple of years ago from a bottle of 4711 and some Citrus EO's 
Timeless shaving bowl


1st Pass WTG - So whipped up my lather and I really like the CBL fresh Lime scent. It's a blend of Lime EO and a synthetic lime with a cooling agent in it that's the new synthetic one that a lot of soap makers are using. Feels great on the face! Also really like my Wolf Whiskers Shaving brush I got at the Maggard show last year and I plan on picking up another one this year. So I started out with the RFB on my right side heading N to S and this is one smooth OC razor and nicely efficient so a good allround razor and it would make a nice daily shaver for sure. I was on a almost exact 2 days growth and the RFB had no problem going through it although I know from using it that it isn't going to give me a BBS in one pass LOL. I really like the very low profile head as it's easy to get under my nose and it maneuvers around my mouth great. Finished up the pass and grabbed the 6 S to continue downward on my neck. This is where my nasty cowlick lurks and waits to give a lot of razors a hard time and I was pleasantly surprised that the 6 S showed no hesitation but I knew there'd be stubble left. It was almost the same on my weird beard growth right under my ear on my neck where it's difficult to take down the growth unless I'm using a very efficient razor. So blade feel on the 1st pass was a little more prominent with the 6 S and the audio feedback was also just a tad louder. Taking the longer strokes the pass went pretty fast so I went right up under my sideburn to begin my next N to S pass on the left side of my face and the 6 S had a nice pass taking down a nice amount of hair on my more predictable left side and very much like the Mergress I used in the 1st Shave Off with the big head of the 6 S I had to move my nose off to the side to get under it so advantage would go to the RFB in that area. I was also surprised it did a good job on my chin so all and all a good pass out of the 6 S. On to my neck with the RFB and when you pick it up after using the 6 S it feels like a lightweight in comparison but I had no issues adjusting back and forth between the two razors. So another nice pass out of the RFB and the WTG pass is over. I rinse my face and did a quick face feel and at this point I thought the 6 S had taken down a bit more growth on the first pass than the RFB but it was a minimal difference but noticeable. 


2nd Pass ATG - I relathered up and I looked at my bowl and I'd say I went a little heavy on loading as I had a whole lot of lather in their and I was tempted to shave my head! ( only kidding ) girls at work with laugh me out of the building as I've brought it up before and they just look at me and say NO! haha!  Anyway gave my skin a good stretch at the base of my neck only this time I started on my easier to shave left side with the RFB and with some of the stubble already gone and taking long strokes this pass went super fast and the CBL base gave me some nice slickness to glide along on so a nice pass from the RFB. I picked up he 6 S and continued upward and I noticed right away that the blade feel and the audible feedback were more subdued than on the first pass. The razor was taking down my stubble nicely and going upward it was better getting under my nose than on the WTG pass. The razor was also good on my chin which sometimes can be a bit of a pain but with only 2 days growth it wasn't a factor. So a nice pass out of the 6 S. Kept it in hand and headed over to my right side and gave my skin a good stretch as I knew it had some stubble to take down on my cowlick and under my ear on this the most difficult part of my entire face to shave and I have to say it did a good job! On to the last ATG pass on my face with the RFB and this was an excellent pass for the RFB. Smooth and easy is the best words I can find to describe this pass. Going ATG under my nose was no issue as usual and it did a nice job on my chin as well. No no weepers, nicks or irritation from these two razors. Rinsed the soap off and applied another layer and left it on while I cleaned up my gear. I wanted to see how the post shave was and it was good but the cooling sensation and the lime scent was what I really liked about it because when I rinsed it off the cool feeling stayed with me for a couple of hrs which I enjoyed. All and all a nice shave experience from all the gear used for this Shave Off. 

Summary:

As I mentioned in an earlier post the end results of the shave I got from both razors was very close as far as beard reduction goes so I waited until now to post up the results but over time a winner in the efficiency dept came through as you can see in the scoring system. Also I must add that because of not using the stock handle and a Ti as well which gave a maneuverability advantage to the RFB I judged the 6 S and gave the RFB the same score just to be fair and I can't say it would be any different if I had the stock handle but I had to make a decision on the spot and this is what I did so you can take that into consideration if your thinking of either razor as a possible purchase. 


Scoring System: 

6 S 

Efficiency - 41 points 
Smoothness - 16 points 
Maneuverability - 3 points 
Balance - 3 1/2 points 
Glide - 4 points 

Total = 67 1/2 points 

RFB 


Efficiency - 40 points 
Smoothness - 16 1/2 points 
Maneuverability - 3 points 
Balance - 3 1/2 points 
Glide - 4 points 

Total = 67 points 


So the 6 S takes this one by a half a point and is the winner and will be moving on to the next round while the RFB will go back into my rack. The end result of the Shave Off was both sides had areas of my face and neck that were BBS and DFS and initially both sides were so close so that's why wanted to wait a bit and sure enough I felt the growth on the RFB areas grow out a bit sooner than the on the areas the 6 S shaved. So it was a close one for sure and if your a fan of one of these two razors you can judge this one for yourself. Also a reminder if anyone has both or these razors and wants to do their own Shave Off on here to give their opinions and experiences I welcome that but please stick to the guidelines as a Shave Off using the same razors much be done before the next Shave Off so we don't have a bunch of things going on at the same time.  I will enter this in the index which is found on page # 2  post # 15. 

Great Shaves my friends! 

DB 


  

Excellent review, once again I am a little surprised by the result. The 6S is a very good razor for me and I never connected with the RFB but I know you really like it.

I didn't think it would go that way but it was very close. I like that you had to wait a while for the final decision.
The TiBam handles are nice, I really enjoy them too. Actually I use mine with about any razor.