This is a write up I had on another shave forum concerning Rockwell and its Model T razor that I wrote up today. I made no modifications or any editing as it was geared more to that particular thread. Anyways, first impressions below....
Well, I put in the first shave with the Model T yesterday and I was actually pleasantly surprised. Before I get to the inital shave report, I want to touch up real quick on the razor itself concerning the quality, fitment and finish.
Out of the box, as my previous post with the pics show, the presentation and packaging was flawless. No marks, streaks, loose parts or components on the razor itself. The mechanism for both the tto doors and the dial adjustment knob worked as they both should. That being said, there have been complaints across the shave forums including the KS & Indiegogo Campaign pages of inconsistent packaging and quality issues with the razor itself. Stains, marks, improper blade tray alignment etc, etc. There is a shave member here also, whom I will not mention for respect of his privacy had an issue with how his razor was received in an unusable condition. How this continues to happen with a company that has failed miserably in sticking to its scheduled production and delivery dates is completely unacceptable. We know that delays can happen during manufacturing processes which includes R&D, prototyping, pre-runs and what have you. Even more so with an upstart company that used crowd funding to get their project started. I get it but, to make promises and guarantees and time after time miss those dates and feed your backers/customers cow chips and baloney is down right embarrassing. You would think with all the setbacks and failed attempts for delivery timelines that Rockwell would tighten up their belts and commit to getting their product out the door with the utmost of care and quality control. Obviously that is not happening as product is falling through the cracks at a pretty substantial rate. Listen, the last thing I want is a razor manufacturer to fail and fold while the wet shaving world is in a type of renaissance with traditional old time shaving hardware and software. More manufacturers in the game, the better for us the consumer. Brings better products, higher quality which breeds competition for yours and my hard earned dollar from these producers of these said products. It brings better pricing overall as they fight and earn (try to at least) our business. This could be potentially devastating for Rockwell as they might survive but, will they earn the consumers trust after this debacle? I don't know, I just don't. Only time will tell.....
Anyways, that's the end of my consumer editorial for the month. On to the shave......
Unfortunately, this is where the negativity ends in my opinion. How was the shave? Absolutely fantastic. Not a single issue with the Rockwell Model T. Yes, it's only shave one but, honestly I was waiting for the tray to come loose or the tto doors to fall or something that I could harp on. Never happened. The doors opened and closed smoothly over the blade. The blade tray was precise in holding the blade with very little movement and blade alignment and exposure were nearly perfect. The adjustment dial did what it was supposed to do. Open or close the gap to your preference without fear of moving it during ones shave. I started on 2 and finished on 3 for a very satisfying 2 pass DFS. The shave was smooth and efficient with an effortless glide from the razor that was amazing. I only had 24 hours of growth but, the razor and blade went through my stubble effortlessly. I haven't shaved with the Rockwell 6s in ages but, from what I can remember the Model T feels more efficient and yet smoother. I might have to pull out the 6s soon just for comparative purposes just to be sure and compare. I know that on the 6s the plates from R1-R3 were way to mild for me. 2 & 3 on the Model T however felt really nice.
On a side note, I just finished a weeks worth of shaves with the VB Emperor Augustus and I can tell you with clear certainty that the Model T performed much better in its first go around vs the VB Emperor. I'm going to put in a solid weeks worth of shaves and see where the Model T takes me but, if the start was this good on the lower size ranges I can't wait to bump up the aggression and see what it can deliver. More to follow.....
