So like many, I was intrigued with the new stick from Standard, but not $70-$80 (depending on finish) intrigued. But when it showed up alongside some other goodies in the $45 "Barber" box from Bespoke Post, I decided to take the gamble. Here are my thoughts...
The Good:
A handsome shaver. I chose the silver version. It has what are generically referred to as "Teutonic good looks". An artfully industrial aesthetic... It could easily have been designed by some Bauhaus modernist in the early 30's.
Surprisingly grippy for the finish. Don't get me wrong, there is no comparison to a well-knurled handle. But for a smooth handle, it does pretty well. It appears to be bead blasted, and moisture seems to increase the grip.
It's mild. As in milder than the Feather AS-D1. Many proficient DE users don't like this level of mild (myself included) but I feel listing this quality as an attribute is fair, considering a mild shaver can be a good thing for people starting out with a DE razor.
The Bad:
The fit and finish is not up to par. It flirts with adequate for what I paid with the Bespoke Post deal, especially since it's part of a package... But as a standalone razor for $70-$80? Not even close. The finish, while grippy, doesn't appear particularly durable. After one blade was installed, there were significant rub marks under the baseplate where it made contact with the top of the handle. I imagine regular knocking around a sink and hanging on a stand would result in the finish going sooner rather than later. Additionally, the screw on the head of mine was not attached well. When I loosened the razor, it came out. It's a tiny piece- basically a small, threaded, dual-diameter nub of steel, like a headless screw. Easily lost. It features a standard diameter on the half that screws into the handle, and a smaller diameter on the half that screws into the head. Best case scenario, the head and screw should be a single piece, like on the offerings from Feather or Ikon. At the minimum, it should have had a dab of locktite on the half that screws into the head, as that's where it should be permanently attached. Losing this bit down the drain would end the fun quickly.
It's light. 49 grams. A light razor is really never a good thing, in my opinion- and a particularly bad thing for people starting out with DE shaving. Light razors encourage a heavier touch than razors with some heft, which naturally tend to do the work for you... You know, with gravity. It's science.
The Whatever:
It's not that I don't like the Standard. It's that I'm unsure who the intended user is. The vast majority of proficient DE shavers are going to find it far too mild. Yet the vast majority of newer DE shavers are going to end up dragging it across their faces and receiving raw, nicky shaves due to the razor's lack of heft.
I hate to say it, but I don't have a tremendous amount of faith in the intentions behind the Standard's design. I think perhaps more thought and energy went into creating a good-looking razor that could be produced cheaply, in order to cash in on the current DE shaving trend... Rather than a real effort to build a durable, quality razor capable of delivering a great shave. I don't mean to sound jaded. I don't know the people at Standard, they could very well be nice guys with a passion for old timey shaving. Who knows.
That all said, the shave I got out of the Standard was okay. So it works. I've tried a few "fashion" DE razors that were far worse. After my first few strokes, I predicted I would need three passes and some touchups, and I did. Still not a BBS shave, but not the worst I've had. There was one nick and some irritation. Nothing terrible.
All in all, I think the Standard is an attractive albeit flawed razor. If it were $20-$30 on Amazon, I'd call it a fair deal, worth checking out. Everybody's face is different after all... Results vary by user and all that. As is, I think it's overpriced. A bit too much of a gamble at $70-$80. Or $45, as it turns out.
The Good:
A handsome shaver. I chose the silver version. It has what are generically referred to as "Teutonic good looks". An artfully industrial aesthetic... It could easily have been designed by some Bauhaus modernist in the early 30's.
Surprisingly grippy for the finish. Don't get me wrong, there is no comparison to a well-knurled handle. But for a smooth handle, it does pretty well. It appears to be bead blasted, and moisture seems to increase the grip.
It's mild. As in milder than the Feather AS-D1. Many proficient DE users don't like this level of mild (myself included) but I feel listing this quality as an attribute is fair, considering a mild shaver can be a good thing for people starting out with a DE razor.
The Bad:
The fit and finish is not up to par. It flirts with adequate for what I paid with the Bespoke Post deal, especially since it's part of a package... But as a standalone razor for $70-$80? Not even close. The finish, while grippy, doesn't appear particularly durable. After one blade was installed, there were significant rub marks under the baseplate where it made contact with the top of the handle. I imagine regular knocking around a sink and hanging on a stand would result in the finish going sooner rather than later. Additionally, the screw on the head of mine was not attached well. When I loosened the razor, it came out. It's a tiny piece- basically a small, threaded, dual-diameter nub of steel, like a headless screw. Easily lost. It features a standard diameter on the half that screws into the handle, and a smaller diameter on the half that screws into the head. Best case scenario, the head and screw should be a single piece, like on the offerings from Feather or Ikon. At the minimum, it should have had a dab of locktite on the half that screws into the head, as that's where it should be permanently attached. Losing this bit down the drain would end the fun quickly.
It's light. 49 grams. A light razor is really never a good thing, in my opinion- and a particularly bad thing for people starting out with DE shaving. Light razors encourage a heavier touch than razors with some heft, which naturally tend to do the work for you... You know, with gravity. It's science.
The Whatever:
It's not that I don't like the Standard. It's that I'm unsure who the intended user is. The vast majority of proficient DE shavers are going to find it far too mild. Yet the vast majority of newer DE shavers are going to end up dragging it across their faces and receiving raw, nicky shaves due to the razor's lack of heft.
I hate to say it, but I don't have a tremendous amount of faith in the intentions behind the Standard's design. I think perhaps more thought and energy went into creating a good-looking razor that could be produced cheaply, in order to cash in on the current DE shaving trend... Rather than a real effort to build a durable, quality razor capable of delivering a great shave. I don't mean to sound jaded. I don't know the people at Standard, they could very well be nice guys with a passion for old timey shaving. Who knows.
That all said, the shave I got out of the Standard was okay. So it works. I've tried a few "fashion" DE razors that were far worse. After my first few strokes, I predicted I would need three passes and some touchups, and I did. Still not a BBS shave, but not the worst I've had. There was one nick and some irritation. Nothing terrible.
All in all, I think the Standard is an attractive albeit flawed razor. If it were $20-$30 on Amazon, I'd call it a fair deal, worth checking out. Everybody's face is different after all... Results vary by user and all that. As is, I think it's overpriced. A bit too much of a gamble at $70-$80. Or $45, as it turns out.
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