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Captain CS by Lord, first impressions

Hi Penge, good to see you here and welcome to Badger & Blade!!

Of course I selected only the best B&B shavers for this experiment so that is why all get good shaves from the start! :lol:

I agree this blade behaves very different from all the blades I tried before. I also don't think everybody will like it because it does not tolerate a wide variety of angles; it works great but within rather strict limits. When this would be my everyday blade I would not try to get more shaves out of it than 5 because the Captain feels very uncomfortable now. But since I normally throw out a blade when it starts irritating on my two "dificult" spots on my neck I will do that now too. While the 6th shave really felt like I was peeling my entire face off my image in the mirror tells me my skin looks as good or better than ever and my curiousity drives me to yet another shave with this blade.
I think with the teflon gone this blade will be much like a blade in the 50's after some use.

Actually my hair isn't that unstressed I think; as I said before I use a typical DE blade for 2-4 shaves max and there are far more blades that I do not like than there are that I do like and some don't even shave me at all (Derby, Dorco ST-301 are worse than using pinchers). The Captain is not the easiest to use blade I encountered and I would have to use a few more to know how it ranks among the rest but it does a truly great job on the hard to shave spots.

It is typical for me to find a fav (not just with blades) that is almost impossible to get I think.....:001_rolle
 
My 2nd shave with Captain carbon steel Lord blade. I used my Flying Eagle razor and Crabtree and Evelyn Nomad shaving cream with Eterna 928W shaving brush. I did my usual quick prep and proceeded to shave like it was a stainless steel blade. Smooth, no irritations great shave like it should be with a good blade. I can`t wait for tomorrows shave. The noise of the blade has less tingle/vibration sounding due to a slightly thicker blade and a thicker wedge shape blade edge.

My 3rd shave with Captain carbon steel Lord blade. I used my Flying Eagle razor and Crabtree and Evelyn Nomad shaving cream with Eterna 928W shaving brush. This 3rd shave is smoother than my first shave and about the same as my 2nd shave. I did 2 passes and touch ups. No tugging or roughness whatsoever. A nice shave bbs. Let`s see how tomorrows shave will be. I have shaved on daily basis and no irritations or nicks.
 
Shave #7 with the Captain.

Before I started I decided to give the Captain a glass-hone with some alcohol. Despite the alcohol being a cheap AS I think from an economical point of view this is not worth it as the AS would be at a higher price-point as 1/5th of the price of a blade with 5 being the number of great shaves this first Captain gave me. It had been in my razor in my bathroom for 12 days and there were no signs at all from rust; this blade is well-protected indeed!

Whether it was the glass-hone or my extra care I don't know but the shave was more pleasant than shave #6. I took care to do not go ATG (automatism for me) and that worked well. Ok, the blade felt harsh but the hairs came off easy enough and I managed a more than decent shave in 2 passes and only used touch ups around the jaw (where I did go ATG despite my intentions). No nicks, no cuts, no nothing except some glowing cheeks from a mild razor-burn that gave a little tightness for a couple of hours. My neck was feeling and looking great so I still can't toss the blade with my own standards....

There is little chance I will take my next Captain this far but curiousity killed the cat here.


This 3rd shave is smoother than my first shave and about the same as my 2nd shave.

That is exactly the same as my experience Radium. Shave 2 and 3 are about the same and smoother than the first. I wonder if that will be repeated when I start a fresh blade; maybe I needed the first shave to get to know the blade.
 
Hi Gentlemen, great posts! Just wonder what will be the verdict after having used a packet of these...:sneaky2:
Just one remark on irritation. I beleive we never get to a point ( at least I never did) with this blade when we could talk about irritation on normal and especially on careful use. This blade will get dull well:lol: (at least on my face)

Irritation occurs when one takes off more epidermis during shaving, than his skin will allow to remove only the dead skin. Usually either you need a blade that is sharp (being at certain low angles on the final facet ) or a damaged blade (or both), that has not a constant fine edge, and of course you need the wrong moves at wrong angles. My experience, at the last uses of a Captain, the edge dies really fast, and this applies quite even for the whole length of the blade in the same time. At this point when examining the edge in portrait on a microscope, it seems still perfect and less sign of deterioration, which means the very edge just rounded and will not cut hair, neither skin.
Maybe this is an advantage of CS over SS and the coatings play less part in the success of a good shave (but not on a harsh one when the coatings are off).

Talibeard- I beleive a one time glass honing can be useful for a while because of the previous constant deteriorating edge, however I beleive second honing (with all coatings off) will fail and you may even not get to the end of the shave. Can you please confirm or disprove this, I never (could) resharpen a DE blade.
 
Talibeard- I beleive a one time glass honing can be useful for a while because of the previous constant deteriorating edge, however I beleive second honing (with all coatings off) will fail and you may even not get to the end of the shave. Can you please confirm or disprove this, I never (could) resharpen a DE blade.

Since this is the first Captain I use it is impossible to say whether the glass hone did do any good or not. But 2011 was the year I decided to use up (as far as possible) second choice stuff that I had lying around including lots of blades I didn't like. Some blades were terrible right out the box and I tried a glass-hone on those with reasonable succes especially on carbon steel blades.

I doubt it really sharpens the blade but I think it evens the edge; straightening the cutting edge and hone off some burrs or other imperfections. On some blades it made a day or night improvement but it never made a perfect blade out of a horrible one; all it did was making it possible to use them.

What intrigues me with the Captain is that it is still capable of delivering a fair shaving result despite its bluntness (cutting goes certainly less good now but there is hardly any pulling or tugging going on) and leaves my skin in good condition despite the harsher feeling. I never used a blade before that behaved this way; other blades start irritating my neck area before they are too blunt to shave with. I still could use them on my face with only little discomfort but my neck wouldn't allow it. With the Captain it seems the other way around as by all standards it is time to toss the blade and take a new one but despite the uncomfortable shaves my neck shows no signs of any irritation, on the contrary; the skin on my neck looks fine even right after the shave. I am not sure whether that has to do with the carbon steel, the geometry of the edge or both but it makes the Captain the most interesting DE blade I ever tried.
 
My 3rd shave with Captain carbon steel Lord blade. I used my Flying Eagle razor and Crabtree and Evelyn Nomad shaving cream with Eterna 928W shaving brush. This 3rd shave is smoother than my first shave and about the same as my 2nd shave. I did 2 passes and touch ups. No tugging or roughness whatsoever. A nice shave bbs. Let`s see how tomorrows shave will be. I have shaved on daily basis and no irritations or nicks.

My 4rd shave with Captain carbon steel Lord blade. I used my Flying Eagle razor and Crabtree and Evelyn Nomad shaving cream with Eterna 928W shaving brush. It is maybe a little bit rougher and still a good shave but I`ll reconfirm with tomorrows shave with a little more prep time. My short prep time might be the reason for what I perceive as as a little rougher? Though I do enjoy shaving my usual style for shaving is quick and as painless as possible. I did my usual 2 passes and touch ups. A dfs and it was only my first shave with Captain carbon steel blade that I was extra cautious and then onwards it has been a straight forward and good clean free smooth nickless shaves. Looking forward for tomorrows shave.
 
Shave #7 with the Captain.

Before I started I decided to give the Captain a glass-hone with some alcohol. Despite the alcohol being a cheap AS I think from an economical point of view this is not worth it as the AS would be at a higher price-point as 1/5th of the price of a blade with 5 being the number of great shaves this first Captain gave me. It had been in my razor in my bathroom for 12 days and there were no signs at all from rust; this blade is well-protected indeed!

Whether it was the glass-hone or my extra care I don't know but the shave was more pleasant than shave #6. I took care to do not go ATG (automatism for me) and that worked well. Ok, the blade felt harsh but the hairs came off easy enough and I managed a more than decent shave in 2 passes and only used touch ups around the jaw (where I did go ATG despite my intentions). No nicks, no cuts, no nothing except some glowing cheeks from a mild razor-burn that gave a little tightness for a couple of hours. My neck was feeling and looking great so I still can't toss the blade with my own standards....

There is little chance I will take my next Captain this far but curiousity killed the cat here.




That is exactly the same as my experience Radium. Shave 2 and 3 are about the same and smoother than the first. I wonder if that will be repeated when I start a fresh blade; maybe I needed the first shave to get to know the blade.

I think perhaps the blade gotten a bit smoother with usage?
 
I think perhaps the blade gotten a bit smoother with usage?

Could be but that is a story I never came across in real life. With all the other blades I ever used the first shave was the best and after that it went downhill. Some could repeat that first good shave once or twice more but most blades I tried were noticeable less sharp after the first shave and gave a less result as well. Since this is the first Captain I ever used it is too early for definite conclusions, especially since it behaves differently from other blades.

The secret has yet to be revealed I guess. :idea:
 
I switched to Treet Classic for my slant yesterday, and that thing tore my face apart but it was very close. I'm just trying to compare the two but the captain was a lot smoother.
 
Saturday's shave was acceptable but I find the blade to be degraded somewhat. I skipped today. Tomorrow I will palm strop a few times and see how it goes.
 
My 4rd shave with Captain carbon steel Lord blade. I used my Flying Eagle razor and Crabtree and Evelyn Nomad shaving cream with Eterna 928W shaving brush. It is maybe a little bit rougher and still a good shave but I`ll reconfirm with tomorrows shave with a little more prep time. My short prep time might be the reason for what I perceive as as a little rougher? Though I do enjoy shaving my usual style for shaving is quick and as painless as possible. I did my usual 2 passes and touch ups. A dfs and it was only my first shave with Captain carbon steel blade that I was extra cautious and then onwards it has been a straight forward and good clean free smooth nickless shaves. Looking forward for tomorrows shave.


My 5th shave with Captain carbon steel Lord blade. I used my Flying Eagle razor and Crabtree and Evelyn Nomad shaving cream with Eterna 928W shaving brush. I did my shave preparations using a bit more time and the shave was not as smooth as the first few shaves. The teflon has worn off some. Keep in mind I live in the tropics where it can be 80-90% plus humidity so it is harsh on metals like carbon steel blades. Right from the start after each shave I have wiped/blotted my Captain cs blade gently to dry it as much as possible. Then I let it air dry. I did my usual 2 passes and some touch ups. I got a dfs.
 
I just wonder, Talibeard, if you bought the wrong stock of blades on your last holiday :scared:? Just kiddin' you, what an interesting post this is.
 
I REALLY like this blade. I think I am on shave 4 or 5. Still cutting - smooth.

Thanks homie for hookin up the PIF.

You are welcome; 5 smooth great shaves is what I got as well.


Shave #8 past weekend

Apart from feeling harsh there was definitely some tugging and pulling going on. Still a nickfree shave and despite minute razorburn my skin is still happy and healthy after this one. Not as close as before, an "SAS-plus" if you will (still a lot better than what most colleagues present every morning), and probably good enough for another shave-like sensation I decided to do not push it any further. It is remarkable that this blade can do this (or that the blade, the razor and me can get away with this) but I am never going to take another Captain this far; 5 great shaves it gave me and the other 3 were a miracle in one way but not the pleasant shaves I am used to these days. Time to move on.

I switched to Treet Classic for my slant yesterday, and that thing tore my face apart but it was very close. I'm just trying to compare the two but the captain was a lot smoother.

This is what I did today (monday) too. In order to get some wider perspective on carbon steel blades I took out a Treet Durasharp tonight and took off with the same set-up. Actually I like this blade too but it is a lot different. I always start a new blade carefully with only two passes and some minor touch-ups. A good shave no doubt but less smooth on my face and not as close as the Captain was on its first. Easier to use (if that makes sense) but not as nice. It handled my difficult spots well above average but not with the ease as with the Captain. Still a good shave that makes me even more curious about the carbon-steel universe.

And this is where I begin to have a little problem. The reason I like carbon blades is because you can feel them. There is some tugging. There is some pulling. They require you to adjust your technique and your expectations. The Captain doesn't do that.

After using the Treet I think I start to understand what you meant now. I am not sure I am a fan of that as you are but it was a good shave for sure.
 
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Saturday's shave was acceptable but I find the blade to be degraded somewhat. I skipped today. Tomorrow I will palm strop a few times and see how it goes.

How many shaves have you done now with that blade?

I just wonder, Talibeard, if you bought the wrong stock of blades on your last holiday :scared:? Just kiddin' you, what an interesting post this is.

:lol: :lol:

That would be something! I almost didn't take the Captain at all because of my previous experience with carbon steel blades. It is mainly because there was nothing to be found about the blade that curiousity got the better of me. With hindsight maybe I should have taken some more of these, if only to hand out some more; I expected nothing from the blade for myself and thought to PIF them to some members that did like them after this thread.

But no more PIFfing now, that is for sure!! :biggrin:
 
How many shaves have you done now with that blade?



:lol: :lol:

That would be something! I almost didn't take the Captain at all because of my previous experience with carbon steel blades. It is mainly because there was nothing to be found about the blade that curiousity got the better of me. With hindsight maybe I should have taken some more of these, if only to hand out some more; I expected nothing from the blade for myself and thought to PIF them to some members that did like them after this thread.

But no more PIFfing now, that is for sure!! :biggrin:

Today was six I believe...Yep...After a little palm stropping there was a small amount of tugging but still a DFS.
 
How many shaves have you done now with that blade?
That would be something! I almost didn't take the Captain at all because of my previous experience with carbon steel blades. It is mainly because there was nothing to be found about the blade that curiousity got the better of me. With hindsight maybe I should have taken some more of these, if only to hand out some more; I expected nothing from the blade for myself and thought to PIF them to some members that did like them after this thread.
But no more PIFfing now, that is for sure!! :biggrin:

Why I was not more pushy...? :biggrin1: Yes, because I am not. :biggrin1:

Actually as Captain is one of my favourites, regarding leaving a healthy skin after shaving, but took a lot more time to discover it will be... It is remarkable you got to an opinion so quick, I wouldnn't expect it ( neither you will be doing #8 shaves with it) and even I had thought you will not like them at all... For most people who tried this blade was not sharp enough and tugging and pulling around... For those who are mostly experienced with DE shaving did discover its beneficent bevel properties after using up a few blades.
 
I had to start a fresh blade today. I got one pass done and already had irritation and blood. It still went six shaves, which is more than I normally get from any other blade I have.
 
Why I was not more pushy...? :biggrin1: Yes, because I am not. :biggrin1:

Actually as Captain is one of my favourites, regarding leaving a healthy skin after shaving, but took a lot more time to discover it will be... It is remarkable you got to an opinion so quick, I wouldnn't expect it ( neither you will be doing #8 shaves with it) and even I had thought you will not like them at all... For most people who tried this blade was not sharp enough and tugging and pulling around... For those who are mostly experienced with DE shaving did discover its beneficent bevel properties after using up a few blades.

I think that might have to do with the final cutting bevel of the Captain. Now I dont have a microscope here, I am just trying to visualize on what I feel the blade doing and reacting to shaving angles. The final edge on the Captain can't be shallow imo because the maximum and minimum shaving angles between which the blade still cuts are not very far apart. This means that you have to keep a close watch on how you are holding your razor. Actually I think the Captain is a sharp blade but not with a shallow acute bevel but something closer to 60 or so (just guessing here) degrees. Meaning that if you don't hold it at its sweetspot it won't cut easily, or even not at all. A very shallow final bevel will cut at much more shaving angles (although not all of those will keep your face in one piece!!).

Why do I think it is sharp; because of the ease with which it mows down my hairs and because of the sound it makes. When blades are not so sharp there is a cracking-like sound to it and the sharper ones have this 'whoosh'-like sound (like the Captain has on its first couple of shaves). And there is simply too little resistance during the shave (like with a red IP, Astra or Merkur blade) when the razor is held right. I think that is the harshness I noticed every now and then during my first shave with the Captain; I was still getting adjusted to it and my angles were slightly off.


And yes, why weren't you more pushy here!!! :angry:






Just kidding........:001_tt2:
 
Today I had my second shave with the Treet Durasharp and it did put the Treet a (few) steps behind the Captain for me. First of all I hardly ever shave two days in a row but I was in a bad need of a shave (free after Tom Waits) after the first shave with it and secondly I noticed the Treet had some troubles with my neck already. Not bashing the Treets here, I still think I know more blades less good than better, but they don't play in the same league with the Captain. Part of the reason I had high hopes for the Treets came probably from going from a Captain's 8th shave to a Treet's 1st.

I had to start a fresh blade today. I got one pass done and already had irritation and blood. It still went six shaves, which is more than I normally get from any other blade I have.

I have the same experience. The Captain is the first DE blade that comes close to what an injector or SE can give me in # of shaves.

I think it should be on the market though, YMMV and such, not everybody will like it.
 
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