Cobra Classic SE Tour

[Sullybob]

The Cobra only uses Feather Professional blades. The razor was designed specifically around this blade.

The only other blades on the market that are of the same length, and width are Kai Captain blades.

Kai blades are somewhat difficult to come by in the US, with 1-2 vendors stocking some of them, but not the entire range.

The Feather blades are generally around $22 for a 20 pack.

Do the Kai blades work in the Cobra?

[poonjaji]

Hmm... About $1.00/blade. How many shaves/blade? Seems expensive.

Hi Jake,

You can find the blades cheaper than $22 a pack. In fact, I do not understand the current pricing at all. When I first bought my Cobra the blades were around $13 a pack, and then vendors across the board increased rates in upwards of $20. However, if you search on Google for "Feather Professional Blades" you will find prices ranging from $12.95 to $23.95 for a 20-pack. I buy mine from the vendors that sell them for less. In terms of shaves per blade, I get in upwards of 10 shaves. Others have touted 20 good shaves. Bong suggested hand stropping stretches them even further. YMMV, but 10 shaves is twice as many as I get out of my DE blades (i.e., SIs and Feathers). If my math is not failing me....

Feather Professionals
$12.95/20 blades
$64.75/100 blades
$0.6475/blade
$.06475/shave (based on 10 shaves per blade)

Super Iridiums
$58/100 blades
$0.58/blade
$0.116/shave (based on 5 shaves per blade)

Feathers
$30/100 blades
$.30/blade
$.06/shave (based on 5 shaves per blade)

Based on the above I find the cost of blades are on par with DEs and, therefore, not expensive. Of course, if you prefer Derby blades.....

P.S. I know I owe you a PM. Long story....

[michiganlover]

Do the Kai blades work in the Cobra?

The Kai Captain blades have quite a range of choices, just like Feather does. I assume they are of verifying widths, just as Feather's are as well.

Razor Blades and More sells the Kai Captain Mild blades, but it makes no mention of their width, so I don't know if they are equivalent to a Feather Pro, or perhaps a Feather Light. They would work perfectly if the width is the same as a Feather Pro.

The Cobra razor was designed around the Feather Pro blade, the other blades in the Feather lineup are either too wide (Feather Super Pro), or too narrow (Feather Light), as I understand it (I have not yet held, or used a Cobra).

[Jake]

Thanks for the cost analysis Michael. I had no idea the Feather Professionals were available at 20/$12.95. That is a very fair price. And 10 shaves/blade -- that is also quite impressive. The person I know who uses the Cobra has only been able to get 5-10 shaves/blade. I wonder if he is doing something wrong with it. I'll tell him your experience. And I'd be glad to hear from you -- any time.

[Sluggo]

There should be a viper waiting for me in todays mail! I can't wait to try this thing!

[Sluggo]

This thing has teeth! Sheesh I did a two pass shave and got a few weepers. I also noticed the increased drag due to the wider blade. I am sure there is a learning curve with this deadly beast, and I hope to move up that curve quickly.

[garyg]

This thing has teeth! Sheesh I did a two pass shave and got a few weepers. I also noticed the increased drag due to the wider blade. I am sure there is a learning curve with this deadly beast, and I hope to move up that curve quickly.

How did it compare to your electric Tom?

[HoosierTrooper]

While I'm not in the pass around, B&B memebr Bit2 sent me his for a trial run, I'd like to give give my impression of the Cobra. Beautiful razor, extremely efficient but I had some problems with the handle. I prefer round or hexagon handles that have a consistent feel regardless of how the razor is turned. I found that with the Cobra I can't get a secure, comfortable grip during ATG and XTG passes because I have to make several adjustments during those passes. Has anyone else experienced this?

[global_dev]

once you get used to holding it, the discomfort issue disappeared and i was just used to holding it... maybe it's the particular grips used.

[Sluggo]

While I'm not in the pass around, B&B memebr Bit2 sent me his for a trial run, I'd like to give give my impression of the Cobra. Beautiful razor, extremely efficient but I had some problems with the handle. I prefer round or hexagon handles that have a consistent feel regardless of how the razor is turned. I found that with the Cobra I can't get a secure, comfortable grip during ATG and XTG passes because I have to make several adjustments during those passes. Has anyone else experienced this?

Yes this is happening to me. I get a wonderfully smooth shave on my cheeks and chin, but. My throat doesn't seem to get as smooth as I would have expected. Today I got my grip a bit stickier using my alum bar which helped, but I still find it a little awkward.

Oh, and it does shave better than my electric.

[poonjaji]

once you get used to holding it, the discomfort issue disappeared and i was just used to holding it... maybe it's the particular grips used.

I agree with both Jon and Tom. I have been using the razor for some time, and do not even think about how I am holding it and it shaves like a dream. However, I do believe they could have made some changes to the handle that may have made it easier to use out of the box for a new user. A round or hexagonal handle could have been the sweet spot, but I am happy to take it as it is.

[AngusSmythe]

I am soooo tempted.

[Sluggo]

The tour continues tomorrow. Next up Gary G

[Paris]

I have been using the Cobra for over a year with outstanding results. I have found one problem and that is with the consistancy of the feather blades. One blade gives me the best shave possible while another gives me terrible results.
Sort of at the mercy of Feather pros since it is the only blade that fits the razor.

[garyg]

My Mailgal delivered the Snake this afternoon, so tomorrow we'll see what it is all about

[Doodi1]

I have been using the Cobra for over a year with outstanding results. I have found one problem and that is with the consistancy of the feather blades. One blade gives me the best shave possible while another gives me terrible results.
Sort of at the mercy of Feather pros since it is the only blade that fits the razor.

Very interesting information. I use the Feather DE blades regularly (in addition to the Personna Red and Med Prep Blades) and have found them to be very consistent.

[garyg]

The Cobra will be on its way to Ithaca in the morning. I thought I’d share some of my impressions of the week I used it, and thanks again to Michael & Bong for making this a reality!

First impression upon unwrapping it was wow, this is one serious tool. I like heavy razors, and tend to enjoy some meat on their bones; the Cobra fulfills both of these “wants”. The razor is constructed of three cast components (plus a couple/three fasteners), the handle appears anyway to be one piece. The finish on the backside is a fantastically shiny chrome, which while it looks great clean picks up soap scum & fingerprints handily. So, you pay for the shine with a need to polish it up now and again. The underside of the handle casting is finished ok but not to the mirror level of the back/top. Ascetically a very nice package.

Loading was somewhat fiddly, but I cut nothing of any consequence off so it is ok, if not to the standard of ease set by a “real” Injector. The trade-off here is that the blade is easily released after a shave for cleaning or hand-stropping. The blade itself is longer than any of the standard DE’s, SE’s or (especially) the injectors, more on that later.

So, on to the shave. The blade width requires just a very little getting used to, and performed admirably on most of the surfaces of me mug save the east/west passes around the Adams Apple, where it fell off due to the width. I have trouble in that area with everything but a standard injector, which is the narrowest of the bunch, so makes sense. With the Cobra you need to do more stretching of the skin and moving it around to the flat spots, akin to using a straight. The (only) Feather Pro blade I used was sharp from the get-go, I did hand-strop at the outset and after each shave. Due to the huge blade gap this one is tough to clog, unlike most injectors.

The Cobra gave a close, comfortable shave 8 times for me, though on shave #8 it was starting to fail. A couple less shaves than I get from a vintage Personna 74 or Schick Plus Platinum Injector .. To calibrate, I have a wiry beard that requires 4+ passes to get BBS, and get 4 to 5 shaves out of a DE Feather .. Like other injectors it would be a great 2 pass razor ..

The grip is nice, the asymmetric profile lets you know by feel exactly where the blade orientation is; I use alum on my fingers so no slips were expected or experienced. I'm thinking about getting one, but also have the Joris inbound from another tour, so for the time being I am looking for the lead tape I used to have for golf clubs, to apply to a Schick Type M .. in lieu.

Great experience, a great razor, and thanks again to the members who made this tour possible, poonjaji and superbleu …

[noahpictures]

^ Great review!

[Sullybob]

I received the Cobra from Textbilly yesterday. I preparation for the event my last shave was on Tuesday.

First impressions, garyg hit it on the head. This is a solid razor. It is substantial in the hand. Loading was a breeze, shaving was even easier. I didn't have any trouble with it slipping, the grooves are nice, and the contours on the handle seem to be pretty well thought out, or at least they really worked well for me.

I shaved this afternoon and it was really nice. The real test will be if I still feel that way after four or five shaves in a row. It didn't have any problems mowing down five days worth of stubble, none at all. I lathered with Haslinger and had a nice three pass shave with almost no buffing. The real surprise for me was that I didn't need to do any buffing, usually that's the only way I can get my trouble spots BBS. I used Vitos AS and it only gave me a slight twinge, no burn to speak of.

Initially I thought that finding the correct angle might be a problem because the head is so narrow. It wasn't a problem at all.

[Gam]

I've been interested in this razor for a long time now.You guys are doing really fine reviews.The only thing that's keeping me from getting one is maybe it's too aggressive for head shaves.I used to use a straight on my face so aggressive for face and neck isn't a issue for me, the dome is another story,LOL!!!!