I have all 3 AL13's. Mild,Medium and Aggressive. The Medium gets the most use. I feel like if I move too quickly, the aggressive model will cut me. The medium is the right choice for a regular wet shaver. I would recommend the mild if you were transitioning from carts and this would be your first razor.
Henson mild v medium
- Thread starter Enclave68
- Start date
And my advice would be to buy whatever you want. The whole purpose of this forum is to share information and follow the YMMV mantra whilst despising the acronym.
The fact that your razor costs less than another and more than others doors not mean that it is the logical choice for everyone.
You love your razors and that’s fantastic. It’s great.
But….you yourself say that you have chosen a Henson because of the “foolproof” angle. So how could a Timeless be better than a Ti Henson for someone wanting Ti AND a user friendly angle?
Again, you have criticised a company’s prices despite not knowing anything about their business model or circumstances. Henson have charged prices that the market will bear - and why not?
I am sure that you don’t even see my responses but it seems that every company you mention needs to be sued, reduce their profits and ship your orders within an hour of receiving them.
My Henson +++ Aluminum arrived in the mail and I will take it for a test flight later today. I’ve been shaving exclusively with the ++ for about a month now. I’m looking forward to seeing how the aggressive model compares.
I can't compare, as the mild is my only one. But I would like to share that the razor can be made more aggressive by loosening the handle about a quarter turn. I do this for the first pass, then tighten it fully for the rest of the shave. During my clean up touches, I'll loosen it again if there are any areas giving me trouble.
I almost always use the m plate. Once in awhile I’ll put in the h plate which gives more blade feel and maybe slightly more efficiency but I have to pay a lot more attention with that plate in. For me anyway the m works the best.
I shave every day and have a normal beard growth and normal skin.
Looks like you got in on the special run they did of these which was started from the guy that does that Shaver Talk show on YouTube. I found out after they stopped taking orders, but I contacted Henson and they have a few left and they allowed me to order. Haven’t gotten a shipping notification yet but I ordered Monday, so should be soon. I was hoping with the amount of people that ordered (not sure how many here from Badger and Blade were a part of the special run?) that Henson would consider this a part of their regular offerings.
I received the same exact response regarding the AL13 +++ (aggressive). I wonder if they get an overwhelming response they’d consider making this a permanent offering. I was just hoping I could have bought the +++ in a color other than bare aircraft aluminum. They did have another paragraph that hinted they will possibly be using other metals (I’m assuming SS) and would offer +++ for that.Yes I did. I ordered the razor on June 16 and it arrived yesterday. I saw a couple of Henson related questions on the this forum so I contacted Henson directly. Here is the reply I received:
| Thu, Jun 16, 4:14 PM (6 days ago)
Hi Paul,
We appreciate your continued support!
1. Yes, the idea in unscrewing the razor slightly is to allow airflow into the razor and blade between shaves.
2. We have done a small run of Al13 aggressive razors. They are not publicly available so you will not find them on our website. This said, they can be purchased through the direct link HERE. Do note, they are only available while supplies last, and it is unlikely that we will make more. The aggressive razor does not qualify for our return policy and is final sale!
All the best,
Tanea
Henson Shaving
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Wow, is anyone else's formatting on page 2 of this thread totally screwed up? It's like it created a second column for post #28! 
Anyway, @Shave Souffle, I don't expect Henson to ever offer their razors in stainless steel. In the podcast that the Al-13+++ came out of, the Henson guy said it would cost almost as much to make a stainless version as it does to make the titanium. Maybe they were talking about the titanium?
Anyway, @Shave Souffle, I don't expect Henson to ever offer their razors in stainless steel. In the podcast that the Al-13+++ came out of, the Henson guy said it would cost almost as much to make a stainless version as it does to make the titanium. Maybe they were talking about the titanium?
Let me find the response they gave me in email or FB messenger. I’ll update this post with their response.Wow, is anyone else's formatting on page 2 of this thread totally screwed up? It's like it created a second column for post #28!
Anyway, @Shave Souffle, I don't expect Henson to ever offer their razors in stainless steel. In the podcast that the Al-13+++ came out of, the Henson guy said it would cost almost as much to make a stainless version as it does to make the titanium. Maybe they were talking about the titanium?
When they state any future releases in heavier metals would seem they aren’t talking about Ti since that’s been out for a while now and it’s pretty light in weight. If they made a brass Henson I’d be down for that as I love brass!!!
@T Bone, yeah somehow when I posted #28 the narrow column happened not sure why…
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Yes it is totaly formating that way for me.Wow, is anyone else's formatting on page 2 of this thread totally screwed up? It's like it created a second column for post #28!
Anyway, @Shave Souffle, I don't expect Henson to ever offer their razors in stainless steel. In the podcast that the Al-13+++ came out of, the Henson guy said it would cost almost as much to make a stainless version as it does to make the titanium. Maybe they were talking about the titanium?
Interesting! Ok... Sounds like not titanium, since they mentioned titanium immediately before. He specifically said it was unlikely they'd ever put out a stainless version due to the cost. I'm no expert on metals to know what they could be referring to though if not SS. What other metals are used for razors? Brass?
Besides SS the only thing likely would be brass. I have several brass razors and they are among my favorites as far as razor metal materials. Karve CB, Yates 921, Blackland Brassbird, Charcoal Goods and I’m sure I’m forgetting others in my collection.
Timless makes a bronze razor. Bronze is one of the heavier metals.
Thanks I forgot that and i have both the .38 and.78 OC Timeless razors too. Beautiful patina on them
Sorry to be off topic. Where did you get the stand for your Henson? Thanks
I own the 3 models: mild, medium and aggressive, all in aluminum.
I'd say they perform exactly as expected and each step up provides an incremental (not quantum) leap in efficiency.
Most people will be able to use the mild and the medium as their daily drivers. You have a bit more of blade feel with the aggressive. But even the aggressive is not even close to a R41, a Fatip, or a 1+ Wolfman. If you have good technique, it's almost impossible for you to nick yourself with any Henson.
I'd say they perform exactly as expected and each step up provides an incremental (not quantum) leap in efficiency.
Most people will be able to use the mild and the medium as their daily drivers. You have a bit more of blade feel with the aggressive. But even the aggressive is not even close to a R41, a Fatip, or a 1+ Wolfman. If you have good technique, it's almost impossible for you to nick yourself with any Henson.
The Razorock Game Changer has a blade gap of .68 or .84. The Henson + has a blade gap of .68 and the ++ has a blade gap of .85. The Henson has less blade exposure and the blade is bent and clamped tighter. I find the Henson shaves better and smoother, no matter the blade I use. There are other comparisons that could be made, but this is enough.
One thing people can easily do with the Henson to increase blade feel (I think it has more than enough) and efficiency is to buy a slightly wider brand of blades or put in a Feather. This is a simple fix without drama. The Henson + is truly no worry shaves. The ++ is normally so, but you can give yourself some mild irritation with certain blades if you don't mind your angles.
I'd try the blade change before spending money to buy a razor...unless you just want to do it and there's nothing wrong with that. I have 2 + and 2 ++ so I'm not one to talk.
One thing people can easily do with the Henson to increase blade feel (I think it has more than enough) and efficiency is to buy a slightly wider brand of blades or put in a Feather. This is a simple fix without drama. The Henson + is truly no worry shaves. The ++ is normally so, but you can give yourself some mild irritation with certain blades if you don't mind your angles.
I'd try the blade change before spending money to buy a razor...unless you just want to do it and there's nothing wrong with that. I have 2 + and 2 ++ so I'm not one to talk.
I couldn't hardly tell the difference personally. The only thing I didn't like was the amount or drag/stiction on my face from the bevel fully against it.
When I feel that drag or suction, I know it is cutting well.
Yeah, indeed.
The Timeless Bronze is on the lighter end or the spectrum, roughly the same weight as their stainless steel. Brass tends to be heavier than that in general.
Both 14mm stands from Timeless.
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