Your thoughts on OneBlade

In the past several months I've realized that blade rigidity, and significant sharpness, are key to handling my coarse whiskers. My best DE razors give the blade a lot of rigidity, and Feather DE blades are doing very well for me. My foray into SE shaves are with Schick injectors (E-2 and an I-2 Hydromagic), which I've had very nice experiences with. Thinking the thickness of SE blades will keep working well for me, I now have a Mongoose arriving this week. Looking forward to it!

Meantime, of course I've come across the OneBlade. I've read a bunch of threads on this razor, including SharpSpine's excellent journal here. I'm not wanting anyone to rehash that material, but rather I'm curious what the broader thoughts are on this razor right now? We're less than a year into its release, but some have had time to get to know it. I'm tempted to check it out, but I'm still hesitant: how much is hype? how limiting is the choice of one (or two) blade types? what's the shave actually like, and how would it improve what I get from an injector, or my Wolfman, or the Mongoose? Is the company likely to be around long enough to stand behind it?

Basically, I'm tempted. It's calling me. But I would love more perspective. Obviously since I'll have the Mongoose to play with, I'm not in a rush. But then, pure rationality isn't the only thing at play here, is it?

onethinline, I posted some thoughts here. I had been curious and the holiday discount of 35% pushed me over the edge in December [they have a Valentine's Day 25% off going currently too]. No regrets. It is a very solid piece of HW; efficient shaver and well constructed.

Check out the reviews Mantic59 did and compiled as well: http://sharpologist.com/2015/11/oneblade...=hootsuite

Hands down, the OneBlade gives the best shave of my life, with every shave. It is even better for those with sensitive skin, and is perhaps the 'safest' safety razor on the market. No irritation, almost never a weeper in sight, while allowing you to add or remove pressure on difficult or sensitive areas for a truly BBS shave. The pivot is no gimmick. It adds both forgiveness for safety, and will keep the same shaving angle around curves, so that difficult areas are now shaved clean, without difficulty.

And it's actually a high end razor that doesn't put you on months or year long waiting lists. Want it, buy it... No waiting games... And their customer service bends over backwards to make sure you're satisfied.

Price point will turn a lot of people off. But there's no risk here if you are willing to spend for the best shave possible. For anyone interested, they have a 30 day money back guarantee, to return for a full refund if you don't like it. So, you really have nothing to lose if you don't like it.

There's no risk in buying (trying) this razor boys, something you can't say for any other razor.

The 'forever' guarantee is just icing on the cake, but not something I see as needing with a piece of kit this solidly built.

Those are my general thoughts, but don't hesitate to ask if you have any more specific questions.

It is a good razor. I enjoy it.

3 years of mostly vintage SE use. Micromatics, 1912, 1914, 1924, Feather Weight, Heavy Flat Top, Streamline.

Tried Cobra Classic for a year or so.

Went back to vintage SEs. Mainly 1914 & Clog Pruf.

Enter the Mongoose for 15 months of solid use. Tried a couple vintage shaves & went back to Mongoose.

Then the OneBlade came in & basically gave all my other razors their walking notice.

I do not have one, but I feel that if the main part of a razor is the blade, than it can be said that if other razors use the same blade, there should not be a significant difference from the other razors who use the same blade.

Thanks for the thoughts, guys! SharpSpine when you put it like that, I get a VERY itchy trigger finger. I'm calming myself down a little by telling myself I can spend time with the Mongoose first, and that I would want to give that razor its due. And yet I'm also imagining a possible near future where my shelf will have a few great SE razors, and then my Wolfman and NEW SC for old times' sake. And that's it. Clarifying thought!

Would you say the key feature with the OneBlade is the pivot? From all I've read, the Mongoose also gives smooth, close shaves (with the AC Pro at least). I guess if I ended up with both, one might feel more like an automatic, and the other a manual transmission? In either case, I'm after an efficiently close, comfortable shave (aren't we all?).

I do not have one, but I feel that if the main part of a razor is the blade,  than it can be said that if other razors use the same blade, there should not be a significant difference from the other razors who use the same blade.

If the blade we're the only thing that mattered, we would all only be using straight razors. As it is, there are different tolerances, blade exposures and gaps, head angles, materials used, weight, newer tech like the pivot, and more.

Even in the older vintage SE's, besides the Valet, they all take the same blade, and guys seem to notice often very wide differences between the shaves they give with these different razors. Try them yourself, and I think you'll agree.

The OneBlade takes the Feather FHS SE and the despined GEM PTFE SE. Both are very good blades, and different people have their preference for one or the other. But once you have a very good blade (GEM or Feather in the case of SE's) it all comes down to razor quality. (And OneBlade is tops, from this person's viewpoint...  )

Thanks for the thoughts, guys! SharpSpine when you put it like that, I get a VERY itchy trigger finger. I'm calming myself down a little by telling myself I can spend time with the Mongoose first, and that I would want to give that razor its due. And yet I'm also imagining a possible near future where my shelf will have a few great SE razors, and then my Wolfman and NEW SC for old times' sake. And that's it. Clarifying thought!

Would you say the key feature with the OneBlade is the pivot? From all I've read, the Mongoose also gives smooth, close shaves (with the AC Pro at least). I guess if I ended up with both, one might feel more like an automatic, and the other a manual transmission? In either case, I'm after an efficiently close, comfortable shave (aren't we all?).

I don't think the pivot is the only thing which sets the OneBlade apart. The head angle, blade exposure and gap work with the pivot to give the closest possible shave, while maintaining smoothness and making it very unlikely to draw blood or cause irritation. The option of using pressure in difficult areas, without danger, is unique to the OneBlade. No other safety razor I know of can do this.

The OneBlade is also the only modern SE razor that takes the traditional width blades. The Cobra and Mongoose take wider shavette blades. Shavette blades, while high quality, were never designed to be used in a safety razor. Those blades are meant for shavettes, a type of disposable straight razor. Some people find that these wide type shavette blades in a safety razor to be unwieldy and awkward, less nimble and having less control over the surface area being shaved (which can lead to irritation and cuts).

The handle design is also unique, in that you have an extremely sturdy stainless steel handle, but with the hollowed out center, it provides excellent grip, and the weight is light enough to where it does not feel like you are wielding a hammer like some other modern razors. (One reviewer even claimed that this handle design helped with his arthritis in a way that no other razor handle did.)

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Having said all that, onethinline , if I were you, I would still hold off on buying the OneBlade. You have a Mongoose coming, a great razor! Enjoy it, get to know it, and savor it by itself. After a couple months of use with the Mongoose, buy a OneBlade. If the OneBlade isn't better after a few weeks of use, return it for a refund. If the OneBlade is better, you can sell the Mongoose used for roughly the price you bought it for.

Then of course, you could elect to keep both, as they are two of the top SE shavers out there...

But I don't think it is possible to regret a risk free OneBlade purchase though...

Please do share your thoughts on the Mongoose, and the OneBlade, if you decide on getting one.