A little delayed, but here is...
Supply Provision Single Edge V1 - My final verdict
Let's start with the looks of the razor: overall it's quite a handsome beast. I like the lines and the finish is quite good. I still think the top looks better than the bottom, but I could say the same about most injectors. However, I believe the razor would look better without the recessed bit on the bottom side. See one of my previous posts.
The size of the razor is very good. It's a bit shorter than my J and N type Schicks and a bit longer than the Bunny V3, but overall it's the shape of a proper injector razor. The Single Edge takes normal injector blades and not Feather AC style blades, which makes the head a decent width. In my opinion all heads for Feather AC blades are too wide.
Although I got used to the weight of the razor, I still feel it's too heavy for an injector. That's my own very personal opinion and other may like the heft. The choice of stainless steel is a bad one for this razor. It makes it too heavy and it also causes it looks to be compromised. May I suggest titanium, aluminium or (dare I say it? - I dare!) zinc alloy as better materials for this razor?
Let's look at the three plates supplied with the razor. The thing I like about them is that they actually make a difference. The plates on the Bunny V3 are all very similar, which is not a problem as they are all perfect for me. The
'Classic' plate is the one for me. It gives comfortable yet close shaves. The
'Mild' plate on the Single edge is
Mild, too mild for my taste and the
'Aggressive' plate is markedly more direct while not improving the closeness of the shave. Personally I'd be happy with the
'Classic' plate only, but I can see that some guys might want a choice and the Single Edge gives you that. Who's idea was it to put the dots indicating which plate you are using on the inside of the head? Really? WTF? Whoever came up with this - read
↪this book..
Changing plates is easier with the Bunny V3, but it's no a big issue. The screw is on the big side and partly obscured by the head. The design of the head is interesting though. It's the only injector I know where you can change blades without using a blade magazine. A real bonus if you want to use cut to size Feather AC blades.
Changing blades was a bit of an issue. Using a Chinese Schick magazine I had slight problems with the new blade not always ejecting the old one and being inserted above the blade already in the head. This is not good and seems to be a well known problem of this razor. Allegedly this has been fixed in the latest version of the razor. Amazingly I had no problems with Personna blades and their crappy plastic magazines.
The choice of blades is good, but for some reason twin blades won't work. Pity. My recommendation for this razor are definitely Personna blades. No problems injecting them and they were just as good as the Schicks for me in this razor. This is a big plus!
The most important aspect of a razor is of course how well it shaves. And the Single Edge doesn't disappoint. It gives easy and close shaves. For some reason it did struggle a bit with my difficult area just underneath the jawline. I always struggle there, but injectors normally work better for me, except this one. So while the shaves were not up there with the best, the results were certainly better than average. If this was the first injector razor I ever tried, I'd be mightily impressed. Unfortunately (for the Single Edge, fortunately for me) I have a Bunny V3 at my disposal and the Single Edge can't compete. Overall this is a very competent shaver and if you're after a modern injector razor I'd recommend it without hesitation.
Would I buy one? No. It's too heavy for my taste and the design of the underside of the razor would annoy me every time I'd use it. It would see little action as I'd prefer to use the Bunny V3 or my vintage Schick N3.
It's an interesting razor though and some will like the idea of a stainless steel injector and if you do, you can give this razor a go and join the pass around.
Thanks to
@Blademonkey for making this pass around possible.
