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Bourbon Country Shave Journal - Dave in KY

Wednesday August 26, 2020
Razor: Paradigm Diamondback
Blade: Wizamet (2)
Brush: Razorock BC Plissoft Silvertip
Soap: @Victory~Dale Victory Shaving Flak-Bait
Aftershave 1: Humphrey's Alcoholado Maravilla
Aftershave 2: Agua Velva
Fragrance: Tommy Bahama For Him

1st The soap. WOW, what a bargain this soap is for what you get. The scent was punch you in the face strength or me and just the way I like it. The rum and smoke are there a little but the Black Cherry is the main player and that's fine with me. Lathering was a breeze and the cushion/protection was great. A little drying in areas not long after scraping away the lather with the razor had me wondering what post shave stuff to use to hydrate my face. Bottom line is after applying my standard Humphrey's Maravilla 70 I saw there was no need so there may not have been residual slickness without some water to reactivate but the skin was nourished and feeling good. It just rinses off good and clean. Some Aqua Velva and called it good. Face feels great !!

The razor on 2nd use and I'm ready to declare it. @Dragonsbeard Frank and I can't be friends anymore because I AIN'T sending the razor back to him......................not true. But I now know that I NEED to find 1 for myself and will be selling ALL my other modern DE razors sans perhaps my 6s for travel. Yes it was that good today. It's my Vector of the DE world. Not only does this razor have the goods for efficiency and smoothness, it has the cool feeling factor the Lupo is missing with the DLC Coating and shaves better. Frank we need to talk when there's time !!!!!!! Have a great day Cadre !!!!
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Patelliott said:
Dave you are not helping my RAD...
That is awesome about the razor! I love the look of the handle. Do you know what the blade gap is?
Click to expand...
Proud to say I just googled it and 1st search return was TSC and @AJSharp AJ's review

"I recently obtained my 2020 Paradigm Diamondback and have used it with fantastic results. First off I am a big fan on Andy and his Paradigm Shaveware offerings over the years and have been fortunate to either buy or use all of his prior official releases. As a group they tend to be of exotic metals (all titanium and a 17-4 stainless steel), higher priced and of limited (50-200 units) production runs. They also cover the blade tabs, a personal preference of mine, and sport some sort of diamond pattern/knurling on the handle but without any engraving, logo or (gimmicky) serial number. This release is mirror polished to the degree that is comparable to a Wolfman (the unofficial “gold standard”) – see ShaveMD pictures. They have been available off 3rd party websites and through his Paradigm website. He offers a generous return policy and provides excellent customer service and communicates with us wet shavers.

The Paradigm Diamondback is no exception in these traits with its prior releases siblings: the uber rare Titanium 1, the short handled heavy 17-4, the polished Titanium 2 and the polished (Artist Club) SE.

Whereas the Titanium 1 was considered too aggressive (at the time several years ago) the 17-4 and Ti2 were created for a less aggressive yet very efficient shave. Nevertheless Andy has produced exceptionally smooth razors that can hold their own with the smoothest of the smooths (check out Dragonsbeard Smoothest Shave Off on that other board that removed most of the posts). The SE is a different razor entirely (accepting Artist Club blades with a creative slide off cap) and is very mild yet exceptionally smooth so I am not comparing it here to the other releases.

So how does this polished 303 stainless Diamondback work ? The short answer is that it is spectacular smooth, efficient and beautiful tool !

MANEUVERABILITY: This is a heavy three-piece 303 stainless razor at 114 gm but it is extremely well balanced making it very manageable and maneuverable feeling nimble like a sub 100 gm razor – I did not notice the heft while shaving. Furthermore the way the blade tabs are covered does not give the head that large bulky feeling like on a Tradere or Merkur Futur/Vision. One is able to easily get into those sharp “under the nose” corners. The characteristic triangular Paradigm patterns of the 90 mm (3.5“) handle allows for a secure grip even with wet hands.

SMOOTHNESS: A strength of Paradigm’s prior releases has been the smoothness of the shave and the Diamondback is no exception. Andy doesn’t publish much regarding the specs of his razors but the near “phantom” feel (even ATG) of the razor suggests a neutral blade or minimally positive exposure. It’s just smooth without the intrinsic smoothness of Titanium and this is in a Stainless Steel razor. It is just a super comfortable shave easily comparable to the now discontinued Raw Shaving RS10. It is as smooth as his prior Titanium releases with the differences between any of them in my opinion to be “a whisker” if at all.

EFFICIENCY: This 2020 polished Diamondback can cut your beard with efficiency and a 2 pass shave works well for me yielding an extended (8 hour) BBS/DFS quality result. Andy states the blade gap of 0.8 mm but we all know the exposure, angle, guard thickness and user skill all factor in. Although others have commented on the blade angle needing some dialing in for the optimal result I had no difficulty finding a good plane of attack and, as noted above, the weight is so well balanced that I did not find the razor “heavy”. I was able to easily get efficient shaves (using Personna Red, Polsilver and GSB blades) with nearly no blade feel yielding smooth results with only 2 passes.

PROS: 1. A great combination of smoothness and efficiency with long lasting results.

2. Although weighty at 114 gm it is so well balanced it handles like a much lighter razor.

3. The blade tabs are covered (I prefer) without the head being too large or bulky.

4. A true mirror polish.

5. Excellent customer service with a generous return policy.

CONS: 1. Some may not be able to justify the $240 price.

2. Unfortunately another Paradigm limited run – he needs to have a steady run available.

3. Still no engraving/branding of the Paradigm razors or complementary accessories.

OVERALL this is a great razor because of its extreme smoothness and efficiency. After the first pass I was unsure if I cut very much of my beard as it was that smooth. Other than the additional weight compared to the Titanium (Ti2) razor (70 gm) this Stainless Diamondback “felt” like his prior Titanium releases. It does not feel aggressive or harsh but provides a very smooth yet efficient shave. Like others I am enjoying this 2020 Diamondback and can’t wait for a Titanium (Javelin) version or Paradigm’s next release – maybe an even more aggressive tool beyond what was provided with the original Ti1 as we can handle it.

Best of luck AJ"
 
Oh wow I did not mean for you to google it for me, but I appreciate it! 0.8 may be a little too aggressive for me, but I figured that may be the case once I read your review and then learned who loaned it to you. Great read again, and I hope you are able to find one. Thanks Dave!
 
I'm glad to hear you're getting good shaves with the Diamondback! I'm sure there's one out there somewhere with your name on it.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk
 
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