It showed up today. Can’t use it as I’ve already shaved this morning but, it’s in the batter’s box for tomorrow morning for sure. Mr. Dufour is world class in both creation and packaging. Superb shipment of a $135 razor. He gets it….
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An affordable Wolfman? Yep. Aluminum Guerilla, ‘23 version…..
- Thread starter GlazedBoker
- Start date
A very nice first shave from the Aluminum Guerilla on its first outing. As some of you have seen from the photos of another shave member & those that I posted, quality, finish and fitment is world class. The quality of the anodizing is of premium status with no deviation in shading of color and is fully complete on every millimeter of this razor. Blade alignment is precise with nearly zero wiggle fore & aft nor side to side. Exposure is equal on both sides of the cutting ends and there is the slightest in blade tab reveal on each end. Just enough to be able to remove the blade when one is done. The clamping and support of the blade is top notch and exhibited no flex or chatter during my shave. It’s very lightweight yet, it still feels substantial in the hands and the thickness of the handle gives it a more robust and solid feel. It exhibits good overall balance and offers nice tactile feel once one gets down to business.
How was the shave? For a first time out and me not being the biggest fan or proponent of lighter razors, this shaved very, very well giving a BBS finish with little work required. I had a real good shave with my Brass General yesterday so whiskers were at a minimum (Feather Pro Supers are viciously good) and I just performed an XTG & ATG passes with no touch ups or buff work involved. From the first stroke on it was obvious that there is positive blade exposure on the Guerilla which I always welcome. Not in an intimidating way as there is enough curvature to the blade where one doesn’t feel an initial bite or that the blade edge can potentially dig into the skin if one is not careful. I adjusted pressure slightly adapting to the lighter weight and just experimented with angles just to get a feel on what this lightweight whisker reducer was made of. Quite frankly, the cutting window is broad and easy to achieve plus maintain at every stroke. Ride the guard slightly, it cuts almost with a bit of a muted scraping sound. Ride closer to the cap and one gets a similar effect but, with a slight increase in audible effect. Find the sweet spot somewhere in the middle or neutral land and this pup sings with some really nice high notes. If you like blade music, this one delivers in that category in spades. I attribute that audible feedback somewhat to the razor itself. Aluminum alloy is much less denser than Stainless and Brass and acoustically the Aluminum alloy absorbs less sound effect or doesn’t mute it as much as the other more denser alloys do. Whipping this thing around one’s face and neck is really nice yet, with that positive blade exposure you can’t get to lazy or reckless because it can draw blood just like any other razor. Better than average smoothness or comfort of feel on the skin. Can’t give you an estimate yet on what razor or razors it assimilates to as I‘ve only this one shave but, it reminds me somewhat of the Timeless Aluminum. The Guerilla though offers better cutting ability thanks to its higher gap and exposure. One thing I thought about that could be a potential negative was on the anodizing itself. My experience in the past with using anodized products always had this micro abrasive feel to it and I was afraid that I was going to get that with the Guerilla and that somehow might affect the glide or smoothness that the razor could provide once on skin. No worries at all on that end as you can tell from the pics the finish is superb and the feel on skin is slicker than Llama snot once it hits lather & skin.
One shave does not nor should it tell a story of a razor. But, call me impressed with a very efficient performing razor and I look forward to putting in some more shaves with it and experimenting with some different blades in the coming days.
Great shaves to all…
How was the shave? For a first time out and me not being the biggest fan or proponent of lighter razors, this shaved very, very well giving a BBS finish with little work required. I had a real good shave with my Brass General yesterday so whiskers were at a minimum (Feather Pro Supers are viciously good) and I just performed an XTG & ATG passes with no touch ups or buff work involved. From the first stroke on it was obvious that there is positive blade exposure on the Guerilla which I always welcome. Not in an intimidating way as there is enough curvature to the blade where one doesn’t feel an initial bite or that the blade edge can potentially dig into the skin if one is not careful. I adjusted pressure slightly adapting to the lighter weight and just experimented with angles just to get a feel on what this lightweight whisker reducer was made of. Quite frankly, the cutting window is broad and easy to achieve plus maintain at every stroke. Ride the guard slightly, it cuts almost with a bit of a muted scraping sound. Ride closer to the cap and one gets a similar effect but, with a slight increase in audible effect. Find the sweet spot somewhere in the middle or neutral land and this pup sings with some really nice high notes. If you like blade music, this one delivers in that category in spades. I attribute that audible feedback somewhat to the razor itself. Aluminum alloy is much less denser than Stainless and Brass and acoustically the Aluminum alloy absorbs less sound effect or doesn’t mute it as much as the other more denser alloys do. Whipping this thing around one’s face and neck is really nice yet, with that positive blade exposure you can’t get to lazy or reckless because it can draw blood just like any other razor. Better than average smoothness or comfort of feel on the skin. Can’t give you an estimate yet on what razor or razors it assimilates to as I‘ve only this one shave but, it reminds me somewhat of the Timeless Aluminum. The Guerilla though offers better cutting ability thanks to its higher gap and exposure. One thing I thought about that could be a potential negative was on the anodizing itself. My experience in the past with using anodized products always had this micro abrasive feel to it and I was afraid that I was going to get that with the Guerilla and that somehow might affect the glide or smoothness that the razor could provide once on skin. No worries at all on that end as you can tell from the pics the finish is superb and the feel on skin is slicker than Llama snot once it hits lather & skin.
One shave does not nor should it tell a story of a razor. But, call me impressed with a very efficient performing razor and I look forward to putting in some more shaves with it and experimenting with some different blades in the coming days.
Great shaves to all…
Wanted to give the Aluminum .99 Guerilla a solid test today and I let the whiskers grow out a bit from my last shave on Sunday morning. So, that gave me at least nearly 3-1/2 days of some tough wirey whiskers to deal with. As an added bonus, I went with the sharpest steel blade in DE land, the Feather. I know, light weight razor with positive blade exposure & a Feather. You only live once and I have a pretty good idea of what I need to do technique wise. First stroke and it was evident that this was going to be an awesome shave but, some care was going to be required. Not Zen like focus, just be mindful at the task at hand. Feather’s are a bit harsh for me almost always on the first shave. But, on the 2nd & 3rd they come into play beautifully. WTG was the first pass and the Feather worked really well with the Guerilla and I just made a slight adjustment on the angle just to take a bit of the harshness & bite out of this combo. Superb first pass that brought the whiskers to skin level without much fanfare nor any struggles from this lightweight contender. Slightest increase in pressure with the angle slightly geared towards neutral and it was on to pass 2. ATG is where this thing really showed its pedigree from the Wolfman stable of razor thoroughbreds. Upward strokes were precise yet even with no chatter nor skipping of the blade & razor. It was just a fluid and smooth action where the razor never needed to be lifted nor repositioned on a well guided glide over the skin. Cleared it and a quick rinse and I noticed 3 tiny dots, one on the chin and two near the corner of the stache. A new Feather will practically always give me a weeper or three and it’s just the nature of this blade beast. Another cold water face splash and all 3 dissipated quickly. I could have honestly called it quits here as I was DFS at this point with just a couple of stragglers around the Adam’s Apple area and a couple of small tight patches around the chin and left jawline. You know me, I’m a BBS chaser. On to pass 3. XTG from ear to nose on both sides and the clean up at Sir Adam. Excellent audible feedback from every single stroke at every stage of all 3 passes. Another thing I haven’t mentioned is this razor clears lather & hair with ease and rinsing is a 2 second splash or run under the water. Great channels that give excellent drainage & exit for everything cut and removed. Cold water splash and face rub gave no doubt of what was accomplished. A quick alum run proved to be nearly useless as there was no heat or discomfort except for a tiny spot under the chin. That’s on me for being overzealous and not an iota of fault on the razor.
Superb shave when all was said and done. No blood after those 3 tiny dots from the 2nd pass and 98% calm and relaxed skin on both face & neck. This pup has teeth but, in a real nice way. Nearly 4 days worth of whiskers and the Alum Guerilla went through it like a bunch of 5th graders running through a wall of wet paper at recess. Am I surprised? Absolutely. This is going to be fun.
Great shaves to all….
Superb shave when all was said and done. No blood after those 3 tiny dots from the 2nd pass and 98% calm and relaxed skin on both face & neck. This pup has teeth but, in a real nice way. Nearly 4 days worth of whiskers and the Alum Guerilla went through it like a bunch of 5th graders running through a wall of wet paper at recess. Am I surprised? Absolutely. This is going to be fun.
Great shaves to all….
Two shaves in so far with the Aluminum Guerilla with this one being the 3rd and to be quite honest, this razor has shown me everything that it can offer in a lightweight package. I felt like getting another one in with the same Feather blade on its second use just for my own interest and to see if there is a difference in shave feel. The other two base plates won’t be here for another week or so and I have a couple new to me vintage Gillette’s that I want to try out in the meantime. Today was a 3 pass affair WTG, ATG & XTG. The Feather still felt nice and sharp but, there was a subtle increase in smoothness as the initial harshness from the first shave with the Feather was practically nonexistent here. Simply controlled easy strokes from every pass as the razor cuts through the whiskers with ease yet still giving an authoritative audible sensation to the ears that’s like listening to the great composers like Beethoven, Bach & Mozart (I’m not a big follower of classical compositions but, I have a few in my music library). If you like sound, this one delivers in huge helpings to one’s shave delight. An excellent finish that left no disturbance anywhere on the skin except for two tiny weepers under the chin. The Alum pass gave zero feedback on heat/irritation and the splash from RR’s X was a finishing touch that Zeus & the Olympians from their watchful perch on Mt. Olympus would approve of. Tremendous shave, tremendous shaver.
Sounds good right? Yes, it does and the Aluminum Guerilla .99 delivers in every aspect in terms of efficiency and total shave performance. However, if one is expecting that efficiency to be wrapped up in a bed of melted butter smoothness say like a Timeless Ti/SS .95, you will be slightly disappointed. The Guerilla is not a rough feeling shaver and is far from that. It delivers positive blade exposure coupled into a lightweight package that for some who traditionally enjoy a heavier razor may find some difficulty in balancing that lighter weight and applying the appropriate amount of pressure to find a happy balance between cutting and comfort. A great lather helps immensely as that goes for any and all razors but, dialing in the suds gives this razor a nice medium to help it deliver at its best. Pressure and suds can make this razor a stud or a dud. I’ll put it this way. If you’ve ever shaved with a Muhle R41 post 2013, the Guerilla will give you somewhat that relative shave feel (in the ballpark) in a lighter package with better face feel and a broader range of angle adjustment. It also offers better forgiveness if one makes a slight miscalculation during the shave process. I’m also saying this while using a Feather blade in the last two shaves. So, finding a blade to match with your cutting ability and skin tolerance will help substantially in mitigating any harsh or semi-aggressive feeling of the razor & blade combo.
More blade experimentation on my end will obviously tell a better story down the road in the long term and I will eventually get to that but, those other plates with their smaller gap sizes will definitely bring a softer or less aggressive feel (and by no means is this razor aggressive, mid level and a tic above at best) to the Aluminum Guerilla package. The .99 is great but, it’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea and that is perfectly fine. Those other gaps though might just do it for many others.
Stay tuned…..
Sounds good right? Yes, it does and the Aluminum Guerilla .99 delivers in every aspect in terms of efficiency and total shave performance. However, if one is expecting that efficiency to be wrapped up in a bed of melted butter smoothness say like a Timeless Ti/SS .95, you will be slightly disappointed. The Guerilla is not a rough feeling shaver and is far from that. It delivers positive blade exposure coupled into a lightweight package that for some who traditionally enjoy a heavier razor may find some difficulty in balancing that lighter weight and applying the appropriate amount of pressure to find a happy balance between cutting and comfort. A great lather helps immensely as that goes for any and all razors but, dialing in the suds gives this razor a nice medium to help it deliver at its best. Pressure and suds can make this razor a stud or a dud. I’ll put it this way. If you’ve ever shaved with a Muhle R41 post 2013, the Guerilla will give you somewhat that relative shave feel (in the ballpark) in a lighter package with better face feel and a broader range of angle adjustment. It also offers better forgiveness if one makes a slight miscalculation during the shave process. I’m also saying this while using a Feather blade in the last two shaves. So, finding a blade to match with your cutting ability and skin tolerance will help substantially in mitigating any harsh or semi-aggressive feeling of the razor & blade combo.
More blade experimentation on my end will obviously tell a better story down the road in the long term and I will eventually get to that but, those other plates with their smaller gap sizes will definitely bring a softer or less aggressive feel (and by no means is this razor aggressive, mid level and a tic above at best) to the Aluminum Guerilla package. The .99 is great but, it’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea and that is perfectly fine. Those other gaps though might just do it for many others.
Stay tuned…..
Well, Aluminum Guerilla is back on the throttle after a small shaving expedition with a newly acquired razor. As my previous posts have denoted, I ordered & received 2 more plates and decided to test out the .84 base plate gap for this mornings shave. Not heavy whiskers today but, enough for a 2 passer and maybe even 3 full passes. I had high hopes for this gap size as I just wanted to see how smooth it can get and yet still be nicely efficient and it delivered in spades. Loaded a Gillette Minora on its 2nd use, some Cedarwood shave cream by The Old Taylor, whipped up some nice suds and had at it.
From the first stroke it was apparent that this was going to be a very smooth shave while still having some blade feel to give good feedback to my ears & eyes. The blade feel is toned down ever so slightly but, you still get a nice friendly and calm helping of it. The .99 gives excellent feel with very good smoothness at every stage of the shave regardless of what pass your on, ATG, WTG & XTG with relative ease. The .84 provides just as good a feedback to the ears but, picks up the smoothness and comfort aspects a notch or two and really brings home the comfort with efficient feel to a real nice level for such a light razor. The ATG pass is where this set up really proves itself to be a champ with lightweight razor enthusiasts and myself. No skipping or deflection as it just mows through stubble with relative ease. I cleared both face & neck with solid passes and felt a DFS finish but, still felt very light patches of stubble around the chin, Sir Adam and along both sides of the sideburns. Relathered for a 3rd pass and the .84 Guerilla mopped up the rest of the stragglers with authority merged with excellent smoothness and overall great comfort. BBS finish that left nothing to look at except meself in the mirror with a poop eating grin. Irritation? Zero. Weepers? Nada. Heat from the alum pass? Zilch. A great, great shave with skin that felt uber smooth, relaxed and clean.
This was nice by the .84 gap. Still can cut with a bit less feel than the .99 but, it gives an extra level of smoothness & comfort over the .99. Feedback is more direct with the .99 at every level of a shave on both feel & auditory senses. It’s a sweet sound but, if you have a slight mishap go a little to hard with it, it can make one pay. The .84 takes that risk and tones it down substantially while still achieving efficient cutting prowes and increasing the comfort level with this set up. James at Wolfman did his homework here and did it very well.
Another shave or two with the .84 to confirm my first shave experience and then onto the .69 gap base plate to see what it can deliver.
Great shaves to all….
From the first stroke it was apparent that this was going to be a very smooth shave while still having some blade feel to give good feedback to my ears & eyes. The blade feel is toned down ever so slightly but, you still get a nice friendly and calm helping of it. The .99 gives excellent feel with very good smoothness at every stage of the shave regardless of what pass your on, ATG, WTG & XTG with relative ease. The .84 provides just as good a feedback to the ears but, picks up the smoothness and comfort aspects a notch or two and really brings home the comfort with efficient feel to a real nice level for such a light razor. The ATG pass is where this set up really proves itself to be a champ with lightweight razor enthusiasts and myself. No skipping or deflection as it just mows through stubble with relative ease. I cleared both face & neck with solid passes and felt a DFS finish but, still felt very light patches of stubble around the chin, Sir Adam and along both sides of the sideburns. Relathered for a 3rd pass and the .84 Guerilla mopped up the rest of the stragglers with authority merged with excellent smoothness and overall great comfort. BBS finish that left nothing to look at except meself in the mirror with a poop eating grin. Irritation? Zero. Weepers? Nada. Heat from the alum pass? Zilch. A great, great shave with skin that felt uber smooth, relaxed and clean.
This was nice by the .84 gap. Still can cut with a bit less feel than the .99 but, it gives an extra level of smoothness & comfort over the .99. Feedback is more direct with the .99 at every level of a shave on both feel & auditory senses. It’s a sweet sound but, if you have a slight mishap go a little to hard with it, it can make one pay. The .84 takes that risk and tones it down substantially while still achieving efficient cutting prowes and increasing the comfort level with this set up. James at Wolfman did his homework here and did it very well.
Another shave or two with the .84 to confirm my first shave experience and then onto the .69 gap base plate to see what it can deliver.
Great shaves to all….
Missed this post amigo. Yes, I’m in on the Osprey. Put a few shaves in with it this past week. It’s a player in the DE world.
Another shave in but, this time with the .69 base plate on the Aluminum Guerilla. And let me say just this, I would say that this in recent memory has got to be the easiest razor set up to use that is quite literally impossible to cut, nick, and even irritate your skin with. It’s so easy on the skin that I find it impossible how one can go on and have a bad shave with this tool & set up. Hold up, let me correct myself here on that last statement. I forgot that we are talking about shaving and ANYTHING is possible in the shave world as we have some shavers who shouldn’t have a tool with a sharp implement running it across their faces as they employ little to no logic nor common sense in a methodical and humanely coherent act. Just needed to get that out of the way. But, for the 95% of shave population land (that might be a bit high but, benefit of the doubt I guess) that prefer an extremely easy to use daily that requires little thought or precise shave technique, this is one that deserves considerable thought and consideration. Easy to use but, don’t confuse that with it not being effective because it is. Not as deep and effective as a shave as the .99 which offers considerably more blade feel and the .84 which is slightly less on blade over the .99, the .69 offers sufficient cutting ability and brings efficient to the masses in an absurdly easy to wield shaving implement.
The shave itself was uber comfortable and yet managed to bring down light growth in two passes plus a third as an extended buff & pick ups exercise. BBS quality finish? No but, certainly DFS+ that gives a good and respectable finish/presentation for the day. I don’t expect 8-10 hours of duration but that‘s ok as I just wanted to see how this iteration would do and it proved to be worthy of me classifying it as an easy go to daily where almost mindless action of shave can occur and one more than likely will be just fine without encountering any mishaps (for most, disclaimer here) or uncomfortable exercise. That being said for me, it will probably be the least used plate in the trio as I can perhaps only see it as either I’m late for work early morning and just need to look presentable or, I shaved earlier in the day and need to freshen up for a late evening outing with family, friends and coworkers. Travel razor is also a definite possibility.
Again, if one likes light and comfortable shaving implements that gets the job done with satisfactory results, the .69 is one to consider. It also would/could work, in my opinion with those who have very light growth on a day to day basis or have slower stubble growth from shave to shave.
Ultimately there are 4 important criteria on a shaving implement that will nearly always bring positive results in one’s shave regime. Shave geometry that is geared to the majority of shavers that makes the shave easy and very intuitive and Wolfman I think has it in the Alum Guerilla. Craftsmanship that unites quality and tolerances to near perfection and let’s face it, Mr. Dufour does that with impeccable precision. Blade rigidity & support is key and the Guerilla has that on lockdown. Nothing better in the shave industry when a razor & blade combo cuts through whiskers like nobody’s business regardless of weight or alloy. It’s a thing of beauty. Lastly but, just as equally as important as the other qualities is, affordability. Between $125-$135 US gets you a precision made tool in whatever configuration you desire with 4 optional plates to choose from. You get Wolfman quality at a very competitive price that as a bonus is readily available. That’s right, no waiting and putting your name on a list to order and receive a quality product. People tend to shy away from aluminum because it’s considered to be the cheapest of alloys in the shave world. Yes, it is a more commercially available alloy that is extremely economical to use & manufacture. It does not mean it can’t be made into something that is of quality & precision.
The Wolfman Guerilla works and I wouldn’t give a second thought in recommending this razor to anyone looking for a quality tool that is both affordable and effective. Soon color options will be available to customize to one’s hearts content. This is not only a good razor in the Wolfman stable, it’s an exceptional one that brings all of Wolman’s technical expertise and engineering to the masses.
Great shaves to all…
The shave itself was uber comfortable and yet managed to bring down light growth in two passes plus a third as an extended buff & pick ups exercise. BBS quality finish? No but, certainly DFS+ that gives a good and respectable finish/presentation for the day. I don’t expect 8-10 hours of duration but that‘s ok as I just wanted to see how this iteration would do and it proved to be worthy of me classifying it as an easy go to daily where almost mindless action of shave can occur and one more than likely will be just fine without encountering any mishaps (for most, disclaimer here) or uncomfortable exercise. That being said for me, it will probably be the least used plate in the trio as I can perhaps only see it as either I’m late for work early morning and just need to look presentable or, I shaved earlier in the day and need to freshen up for a late evening outing with family, friends and coworkers. Travel razor is also a definite possibility.
Again, if one likes light and comfortable shaving implements that gets the job done with satisfactory results, the .69 is one to consider. It also would/could work, in my opinion with those who have very light growth on a day to day basis or have slower stubble growth from shave to shave.
Ultimately there are 4 important criteria on a shaving implement that will nearly always bring positive results in one’s shave regime. Shave geometry that is geared to the majority of shavers that makes the shave easy and very intuitive and Wolfman I think has it in the Alum Guerilla. Craftsmanship that unites quality and tolerances to near perfection and let’s face it, Mr. Dufour does that with impeccable precision. Blade rigidity & support is key and the Guerilla has that on lockdown. Nothing better in the shave industry when a razor & blade combo cuts through whiskers like nobody’s business regardless of weight or alloy. It’s a thing of beauty. Lastly but, just as equally as important as the other qualities is, affordability. Between $125-$135 US gets you a precision made tool in whatever configuration you desire with 4 optional plates to choose from. You get Wolfman quality at a very competitive price that as a bonus is readily available. That’s right, no waiting and putting your name on a list to order and receive a quality product. People tend to shy away from aluminum because it’s considered to be the cheapest of alloys in the shave world. Yes, it is a more commercially available alloy that is extremely economical to use & manufacture. It does not mean it can’t be made into something that is of quality & precision.
The Wolfman Guerilla works and I wouldn’t give a second thought in recommending this razor to anyone looking for a quality tool that is both affordable and effective. Soon color options will be available to customize to one’s hearts content. This is not only a good razor in the Wolfman stable, it’s an exceptional one that brings all of Wolman’s technical expertise and engineering to the masses.
Great shaves to all…