Timeless Bronze 0.38mm SB Spiral Handle DE Razor ( An SWCT Review! )

[Star_Wahl_Clipper_Treker]

Just get some Bics, hope they aren't fakes, and find out if sharpness does the trick! Bics are slightly narrower, which will reduce the exposure and that's not a great thing, but the added sharpness should be informative at least. Also, that slight narrower width will increase the gap slightly. I didn't think you were clogging the razor because you make your lather in a bowl, but I have to agree that your experience lines up with what happens when a razor clogs. I know this is one reason some people insist on a basin full of water to constantly swish their razor in, which isn't viable for you obviously. You might try blasting it with your spray bottle frequently!

My original recommendation was going to be using a less sharp blade and some pressure so you can buff away without irritation, but that takes learning a new technique.

I actually already own Bic blades, I got a 100-pack of them back when I was still using my Feather AS-D2 still, and I used them in my Rex Ambassador, which was the 2nd razor that I bought. Its been a long time since I've used my Bic blades, so that might be a solid recommendation, especially since Bic blades are super cheap compared to Feather's! I did not know that their was a blade geometry difference between the two, I just thought Feather's being sharper was the only difference. See, you know more about the blades then I do lol. I do know that there is a huge difference to Kai blades, that they are usually longer in length. But I never owned or used Kai blades because again, they are so expensive! lol

Oh man, now I gotta learn a new technique, do I have to? Well I don't wanna lol! I know I know, I am so silly. HEHE

I can see what you're saying about the finish. I have used Brasso on mine to eliminate fine scratches and it worked very well.
Given enough elbow grease, it should clean up great.

Nice to have it confirmed from you Kix, glad to see I am not the only one. It just basically shows consistency. And I'd like to think whether good or bad, a manufacture that demonstrates consistency, shows that they can do either a quality polish job, or simply an OK polish job, and all the razors will be that way. Oh trust me, I'm a mechanic, I know all about that elbow grease, so I am used to it.

Hey, wanna hear a quick mechanics joke? Guy comes in and says, "Yeah, I don't know what is wrong with my car, I checked all my fluids, made sure the connection to my battery was tight, and for some reason my turn signals arn't working." And then I say, "Have you checked your blinker fluid?" Guy gives a gives this look like he doesn't know what I am talking about. And I say, "Just kidding, there is no blinker fluid, but I had you going there for a minute didn't I"

 

[Star_Wahl_Clipper_Treker]

This is the 3rd report, on the Timeless Bronze 0.38mm DE safety razor, SWCT reporting.

​

( 1 ) 3-Day Whisker Shave ( No Weekend Shaves ) ( Monday Evening Shave )
( 2 ) Hot Water Prep, Hot Water Shave, Western Freedom Water Cold Rinse
( 3 ) Face Washed With Stirling Bath Soap, PAA Pre-Shave Ice 2.0 Cube Used
( 4 ) Bic Chrome Platinum Blade 1st Use!
( 5 ) Stirling Almond Cream Shave Soap Used
( 6 ) Stirling 125G Alum Block Used
( 7 ) Captains Choice Italia Aftershave Used
( 8 ) Zenith Blue Chubby 28mm Manchurian Badger Brush Used
( 9 ) Captains Choice Starry Night Shave Bowl Used

I took a week off on DE shaving, and focused on electric only, to give my skin time to heal. But after a week, I was really missing DE shaving. For this shave, I changed a few things on the Monday evening shave. First, @APBinNCA recommended that I try using a sharper blade, to see if it improves the razors ability to shave. This turned out to be a solid recommendation, because there was a vast difference to the comfortability, using the Bic blades. I felt that the razor was shaving smoother, and easier, no doubt due to the increased sharpness of the blade.

In regards to technique, I discovered that this razor acts different then most razors. I discovered that when doing my WTG passes, if I shave steep, basically riding the bar, this razor seems to have a much easier time, removing whiskers. I almost felt BBS in spots, due to the greater efficiency. Having said that however, I still have to pull my skin in different directions, to help lift up the whiskers, so that the razor can chop them off. I really think its the lower gap. Higher blade gaps, equal better efficiency regardless.

Having said that however, when I did my XTG passes, I noticed that the razor did a better job, if I used a neutral angle of attack, between steep and shallow. I was really amazed at how smoothly this razor shaved my face, for the 3rd time around, going XTG. It was especially noticeable, when I was going over the moostash area. Perhaps the best razor I own for going across the moostash, I don't think I have a better razor in my collection for doing that, so this razor gets high marks for that!

I also discovered, that when I am going ATG, I am getting greater effeciency, but with less chance of nicking myself, or causing scary levels of irritation or weepers, if I instead shaved ATG in a shallow configuration, riding the cap, and then believe it or not, applying a little pressure. When you are riding the cap, you are preventing the blade from ever being able to bight into your skin. But when your riding the cap on the neck, the typical problem areas that are recessed in the sides of the neck, if you apply the stand recommendation of using no pressure while going ATG riding the cap, you will barely cut anything.

I discovered that if I maintain my angle of riding the cap, and applying a little bit of pressure, as long as you maintain that shallow angle, the blade still won't dig into your skin, but it will increase the efficiency, and allow the razor to cut more whiskers in the problem areas. So thats another solid win right there! Having said that however, while I did have a much easier time around the upper and lower chin, as well as moostash area, I always manage to nick the middle of my chin. My chin is even harder for me to shave then my moostash area, and its honestly common knowledge that chins are difficult to manage.

While I still managed to get some irritation aiming for an BBS, that nick in the middle of my chin was literally the worst part. I ended up with an 98% complete BBS shave, so nearly 100%, but not perfect. I would classify this as a better shave then last time. The change in results, were based on two factors, figuring out this razors angles better, and switching to a sharper Bic blade. I tell ya what, if you ever are interested in mapping out your beard, I never seen a razor that was better capable, of helping you to map it, based on what the razor will cut, and what it won't cut, based on what you do and your technique, so solid razor for beard mapping I'd say lol.

You will be happy to know, that I am razing my rating back to 4-stars again. I still have some difficulty with this razors lower efficiency on blade gap. Having said that, figuring out better angle of attach usage, and using a sharper blade, appears to be the ticket.

out of stars!


At least I managed to not shave my face off, thats always a good thing!
​

 

[APBinNCA]

It sounds like this razor is improving your technique, if nothing else! The thing to do with the chin is basically straight razor techniques, you may want to look into some. Some of these will pull the skin tight enough to negate the safety bar so you need to balance safety and skin manipulation. There is a whole range of angles you can stretch your jaw and I move mine dynamically as I shave the area. If you open your mouth and move your jaw up, that is one of the best positions to start with. You can add in finger manipulations too by poking off to the side, or even underneath, and pulling more or less. I tend to whittle at my jaw for some time to get it shaved fully, but what matters is finding the right direction to do reduction passes first. Every time I have cut my jaw it is because I went at it the wrong way on the first pass and the blade snagged and went in.

 

[Phoenixkh]

It sounds like this razor is improving your technique, if nothing else! The thing to do with the chin is basically straight razor techniques, you may want to look into some. Some of these will pull the skin tight enough to negate the safety bar so you need to balance safety and skin manipulation. There is a whole range of angles you can stretch your jaw and I move mine dynamically as I shave the area. If you open your mouth and move your jaw up, that is one of the best positions to start with. You can add in finger manipulations too by poking off to the side, or even underneath, and pulling more or less. I tend to whittle at my jaw for some time to get it shaved fully, but what matters is finding the right direction to do reduction passes first. Every time I have cut my jaw it is because I went at it the wrong way on the first pass and the blade snagged and went in.

My chin is my problem area.. both the sides under my lower lip and the bottom part of my chin... the hair grows in multiple directions there. I cheat... use my fingers to feel how I'm doing as I shave those areas.... then I adjust the razor angle so it goes ATG grain as I finish up my shaves.... that's where my "touch-up"s happen, usually.

I have similar but somewhat less difficulties on my upper lip....

I really need to use my Timeless bronze 0.38 more.... so I can comment. I've only used it three or four times, with great results every time. I doubt I've gotten to where I'm getting the very best it can offer.

 

[Star_Wahl_Clipper_Treker]

4th Shave With Bronze Beauty, With Special Guest
Mr. Wahl Detailer...... SWCT's Final Report!

​

( 1 ) Custom 1-Day Whisker Shave ( Monday Evening Shave )
( 2 ) Hot Water Prep, Hot Water Shave, Western Freedom Water Cold Rinse!
( 3 ) Face Washed With Stirling Bath Soap, PAA Pre-Shave Ice 2.0 Cube Used!
( 4 ) Bic Chrome Platinum Blade 2nd Use!
( 5 ) Stirling Coniferous Shave Soap Used!
( 6 ) Thayers Lemon Witch Hazel Used!
( 7 ) Osage Rub With Menthol Aftershave Used!
( 8 ) Stirling 125G Alum Block Used!
( 9 ) Zenith Blue Chubby 28mm Manchurian Badger Brush Used!
( 10 ) Cayuen Workshop Dark Nebula Shave Bowl Used!
( 11 ) Special Guest: Wahl Detailer Used!

All the previous shaves I've done with this razor, have all been 2 to 3 day whisker shaves. I concluded, that even with a sharp blade, that this razor was most likely an daily shaving razor, and just can't really handle anything more, being that its a small gap solid bar razor. This evening, I had 7-day whiskers, the itchiness was real folks! I wanted to test how this razor does, with 1-day whiskers. So I took my new Wahl detailer to my face and neck, and because it trims so closely to the skin, it trimmed me down to 1-day whisker growth.

I used hot water, as hot as I could stand it, practically burning me hot, made my face nice and red, during my pre-wash routine, I was trying to get my whiskers as soft as I could, prior to the PAA pre-shave application. Someone else on the forum shaved with Stirling Coniferous recently, I realized that I haven't used mine since last fall most likely, so I decided to get right on that, and apply a nice slick lather courtesy of the wooden forest. HEHE

I began my WTG passes, as expected, the Bronze Beauty didn't get everything in the first passes, but there was a reduction in whiskers. But I did notice that the razor was shaving quite smoothly, and at no point, did it feel like it was yanking on whiskers. I was making sure to keep the lather on my face moist enough with my mister spray bottle, as these soaps tend to dry so fast for some reason. No nicks, no weepers, no irritaiton.

After a quick rinse, I re-lathered, and began my XTG passes. I get much more feedback in the side burn areas, its an indicator that I always seem to have ample supply of whiskers in those areas, not too much feedback in the cheeks. I think that detailer got my cheeks to almost a DFS on its own! And just as I remembered from previous shaves, going across the moostash area, went very smooth, and to my surprise, I managed to go across my lower lip, upper, and lower chin, without any nicks, weepers, or irritation.

After another quick rinse, I re-lathered, and began my ATG passes. I tried to remember to pull my skin down as I went up the jaw line, and then pulled my skin up, as I went up the cheeks and side burn areas. Due to crazy growth patterns, and using a less efficient razor, I had to go a few different directions, but I managed to get the last remaining whiskers, while riding the cap, and applying a little bit of pressure. You got to be careful doing that around the jaw line, as the razor will bight you if you aren't careful.

ATG on my moostash area and chin areas went smoothly, and for the first time in I don't know how long, I managed to secure those areas to a complete BBS, without causing any nicks, weepers, or irritation. When doing ATG on my neck, it also went relatively smoothly. But my neck, ( like so many other's ) is my problem areas, and my whiskers go every direction possible while they cackle like a super villain. I was forced to re-lather up on the neck a couple of times, in order for me to DTG on the left and right side of the neck, to get the whiskers that task me. Well they task me, and I shall have them!

In an effort to bring my neck to an BBS, while I still got no nicks or weepers, I did cause myself a little irritation. But here's the thing folks, in the past when I caused myself really bad irritation, it would last 24 to 48 hours till fully healed and red bumps gone away. But get this? The little irritation I did cause on my neck this time, literally went away after 15-minutes, after applying my aftershave! Because the irritation went away so fast, and did not linger, while I was still in my shave den, I won't be knocking down points. I did get some alum feedback on my neck for sure, but it only stung for 5-seconds, not a big deal.

I did not see Witch Hazel on the ingredients list of the aftershave, so I applied witch hazel to my face and neck. ( BTW, if you know where I can get a mentholated witch hazel, please let me know, preferably mint scented ) And then I got to try out for the very first time in my life, the one and only, infamous, Clubman Jerry's Osage Rub with menthol! I applied a good amount of this aftershave on, and yep, I felt the famous burn alright! But oh my gosh, this aftershave smell so good! And then after a few seconds, I began to feel the coolness feeling of the menthol, and it felt so good! Highly recommend Osage Rub!

The result of my shave was BBS on my face, and BBS on my neck, for a full complete 100% BBS shave. This is no doubt in my mind, the best shave I've ever had with this razor, 10 out of 10 experience via point scale. So there you have it folks, my testing has confirmed, that this is indeed a daily shaving razor, as that is when this razor does its best work. And if you intend to daily shave with it, I could give this razor a 4.5 out of 5 stars. However, this razor is not perfect, so for me, it will stay at 4 out of 5 stars. Its an great razor, its just not perfect for me. But as with all things... YMMV

out of stars
___________________________________________

@APBinNCA @cajunrph @thombrogan @blethenstrom @Phoenixkh @LRod @Osyri
​

PS: An SWCT wise statement to finish this out. When you begin to get impatient, thats when you begin to make mistakes. Try to keep your mind on where you are, and what you are doing. Your patience will be greatly rewarded.

 

[blethenstrom]

4th Shave With Bronze Beauty, With Special Guest
Mr. Wahl Detailer...... SWCT's Final Report!

View attachment 1730560
​

( 1 ) Custom 1-Day Whisker Shave ( Monday Evening Shave )
( 2 ) Hot Water Prep, Hot Water Shave, Western Freedom Water Cold Rinse!
( 3 ) Face Washed With Stirling Bath Soap, PAA Pre-Shave Ice 2.0 Cube Used!
( 4 ) Bic Chrome Platinum Blade 2nd Use!
( 5 ) Stirling Coniferous Shave Soap Used!
( 6 ) Thayers Lemon Witch Hazel Used!
( 7 ) Osage Rub With Menthol Aftershave Used!
( 8 ) Stirling 125G Alum Block Used!
( 9 ) Zenith Blue Chubby 28mm Manchurian Badger Brush Used!
( 10 ) Cayuen Workshop Dark Nebula Shave Bowl Used!
( 11 ) Special Guest: Wahl Detailer Used!

All the previous shaves I've done with this razor, have all been 2 to 3 day whisker shaves. I concluded, that even with a sharp blade, that this razor was most likely an daily shaving razor, and just can't really handle anything more, being that its a small gap solid bar razor. This evening, I had 7-day whiskers, the itchiness was real folks! I wanted to test how this razor does, with 1-day whiskers. So I took my new Wahl detailer to my face and neck, and because it trims so closely to the skin, it trimmed me down to 1-day whisker growth.

I used hot water, as hot as I could stand it, practically burning me hot, made my face nice and red, during my pre-wash routine, I was trying to get my whiskers as soft as I could, prior to the PAA pre-shave application. Someone else on the forum shaved with Stirling Coniferous recently, I realized that I haven't used mine since last fall most likely, so I decided to get right on that, and apply a nice slick lather courtesy of the wooden forest. HEHE

I began my WTG passes, as expected, the Bronze Beauty didn't get everything in the first passes, but there was a reduction in whiskers. But I did notice that the razor was shaving quite smoothly, and at no point, did it feel like it was yanking on whiskers. I was making sure to keep the lather on my face moist enough with my mister spray bottle, as these soaps tend to dry so fast for some reason. No nicks, no weepers, no irritaiton.

After a quick rinse, I re-lathered, and began my XTG passes. I get much more feedback in the side burn areas, its an indicator that I always seem to have ample supply of whiskers in those areas, not too much feedback in the cheeks. I think that detailer got my cheeks to almost a DFS on its own! And just as I remembered from previous shaves, going across the moostash area, went very smooth, and to my surprise, I managed to go across my lower lip, upper, and lower chin, without any nicks, weepers, or irritation.

After another quick rinse, I re-lathered, and began my ATG passes. I tried to remember to pull my skin down as I went up the jaw line, and then pulled my skin up, as I went up the cheeks and side burn areas. Due to crazy growth patterns, and using a less efficient razor, I had to go a few different directions, but I managed to get the last remaining whiskers, while riding the cap, and applying a little bit of pressure. You got to be careful doing that around the jaw line, as the razor will bight you if you aren't careful.

ATG on my moostash area and chin areas went smoothly, and for the first time in I don't know how long, I managed to secure those areas to a complete BBS, without causing any nicks, weepers, or irritation. When doing ATG on my neck, it also went relatively smoothly. But my neck, ( like so many other's ) is my problem areas, and my whiskers go every direction possible while they cackle like a super villain. I was forced to re-lather up on the neck a couple of times, in order for me to DTG on the left and right side of the neck, to get the whiskers that task me. Well they task me, and I shall have them!

In an effort to bring my neck to an BBS, while I still got no nicks or weepers, I did cause myself a little irritation. But here's the thing folks, in the past when I caused myself really bad irritation, it would last 24 to 48 hours till fully healed and red bumps gone away. But get this? The little irritation I did cause on my neck this time, literally went away after 15-minutes, after applying my aftershave! Because the irritation went away so fast, and did not linger, while I was still in my shave den, I won't be knocking down points. I did get some alum feedback on my neck for sure, but it only stung for 5-seconds, not a big deal.

I did not see Witch Hazel on the ingredients list of the aftershave, so I applied witch hazel to my face and neck. ( BTW, if you know where I can get a mentholated witch hazel, please let me know, preferably mint scented ) And then I got to try out for the very first time in my life, the one and only, infamous, Clubman Jerry's Osage Rub with menthol! I applied a good amount of this aftershave on, and yep, I felt the famous burn alright! But oh my gosh, this aftershave smell so good! And then after a few seconds, I began to feel the coolness feeling of the menthol, and it felt so good! Highly recommend Osage Rub!

The result of my shave was BBS on my face, and BBS on my neck, for a full complete 100% BBS shave. This is no doubt in my mind, the best shave I've ever had with this razor, 10 out of 10 experience via point scale. So there you have it folks, my testing has confirmed, that this is indeed a daily shaving razor, as that is when this razor does its best work. And if you intend to daily shave with it, I could give this razor a 4.5 out of 5 stars. However, this razor is not perfect, so for me, it will stay at 4 out of 5 stars. Its an great razor, its just not perfect for me. But as with all things... YMMV

out of stars
___________________________________________

@APBinNCA @cajunrph @thombrogan @blethenstrom @Phoenixkh @LRod @Osyri
​

PS: An SWCT wise statement to finish this out. When you begin to get impatient, thats when you begin to make mistakes. Try to keep your mind on where you are, and what you are doing. Your patience will be greatly rewarded.

Man that sounds like an awesome shave. Smooth all around. Some Osage Rub goodness to cap it off. Who doesn't like that?

 

[Phoenixkh]

Chris, I have this month sort of mapped out to use the La Faulx and my Progress variants alone... but I will be doing some more Timeless bronze 0.38 shaves soon... so we can compare notes.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Mine gave me a very nice shave today.

I think it was my best shave with the 38.

Happy shaves,

Jim