Standard Razor

You are absolutely right Stan about the ATT - there is an incredible amount of choice with all of the different combinations. A slant head is on my 'to do' list...

Part of the fun of wet shaving is trying out all manner of various different types of razors / brush soaps / Cremes / EdT etc. Notwithstanding that, it is quite clear that the illusive 'one' - a razor (or software product) which does everything for everyman - is a pipe dream. We are all different and it is pretty nigh on impossible to design something that covers all bases.

I, myself, absolutely love trying out new products, mixing and matching razors / blades, soaps and scents - and a lot of folk on here appear to do as well. There are some others who have found a product or products which closely match their requirements and are happy with that - that is great too.

In terms of the Feather AS-D2, it really is a case of being one of those 'marmite' razors. Some think of it is an overpriced razor which doesn't do anything materially different to a vintage Gillette at less that a tenth of the price. Others, like myself, see it as an exquisitely engineered - and manufactured - precision instrument which is as close to perfect in both form and function as it can get. The detailing, the fit and finish, the weight, the feel are truly exceptional - it is a scalpel to the Weber butcher's knife!

The performance, for me, is incredible - yes, it is 'mild', but it can give you a BBS 3 pass shave without any irritation whatsoever. Whilst I do enjoy spending some time (up to 30 mins) on a decent shave using other razors from my armoury, there are other times when I need to do the needful fairly quickly - the AS-D2 is the perfect weapon for that, as it can be literally 'whizzed' around the face like a cartridge razor without having to take the absolute care that, say, an R41 Twist demands! Those who have one or both will know what I am talking about.

Good luck on your journey, it is clear that you are thoroughly enjoying it...
 
DevonStan said:
I'm starting to get a feeling for the this DE shaving caper and it's becoming very obvious that there's no pleasing everyone. So, no change there. The same the world over.

A few here might, now, know what my small collection or hardware consists of. And that I ordered a black 'Standard Razor' last night via the MassDrop and that it didn't cost a fortune....but also that I've shown interest in a diversity of other razors - cheap and expensive.

I can see that, on the forums, some regard the lower end offerings as the 'Spawn of the Devil'...for example my Braveheart was cast assunder (in a lighthearted way, I'm sure) and regarded as fodder for the lower classes :) and, equally, I can see that ATT are most highly regarded. But I really have been enjoying using all my razors...R89, R41, Progress, Braveheart, and none of them are top end jobbies. My soaps, oils, balms and pre-shave mixes are all modest (and/or subject to "modification") but seem to work well for me. Whether I move on to razors costing over £100 and soaps costing £20 a go remains to be seen. But, ultimately, it's just a sort of hobby and, essentially, a bit of fun isn't it...comparing experiences and sharing thoughts about a daily shave. And very helpful it is too and I appreciate the comments and help received to date. Thank you.
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Not just a hobby but a wallet emptier, you wait till you get into SE :icon_cry2:
 
Nico1970 said:
In terms of the Feather AS-D2, it really is a case of being one of those 'marmite' razors. Some think of it is an overpriced razor which doesn't do anything materially different to a vintage Gillette at less that a tenth of the price. Others, like myself, see it as an exquisitely engineered - and manufactured - precision instrument which is as close to perfect in both form and function as it can get. The detailing, the fit and finish, the weight, the feel are truly exceptional - it is a scalpel to the Weber butcher's knife!

The performance, for me, is incredible - yes, it is 'mild', but it can give you a BBS 3 pass shave without any irritation whatsoever. Whilst I do enjoy spending some time (up to 30 mins) on a decent shave using other razors from my armoury, there are other times when I need to do the needful fairly quickly - the AS-D2 is the perfect weapon for that, as it can be literally 'whizzed' around the face like a cartridge razor without having to take the absolute care that, say, an R41 Twist demands! Those who have one or both will know what I am talking about.
Click to expand...

An excellent sales pitch for a fantastic razor. I foresee a spike in sales once a few more have read this :)
 
Omp said:
Nico1970 said:
In terms of the Feather AS-D2, it really is a case of being one of those 'marmite' razors. Some think of it is an overpriced razor which doesn't do anything materially different to a vintage Gillette at less that a tenth of the price. Others, like myself, see it as an exquisitely engineered - and manufactured - precision instrument which is as close to perfect in both form and function as it can get. The detailing, the fit and finish, the weight, the feel are truly exceptional - it is a scalpel to the Weber butcher's knife!

The performance, for me, is incredible - yes, it is 'mild', but it can give you a BBS 3 pass shave without any irritation whatsoever. Whilst I do enjoy spending some time (up to 30 mins) on a decent shave using other razors from my armoury, there are other times when I need to do the needful fairly quickly - the AS-D2 is the perfect weapon for that, as it can be literally 'whizzed' around the face like a cartridge razor without having to take the absolute care that, say, an R41 Twist demands! Those who have one or both will know what I am talking about.
Click to expand...

An excellent sales pitch for a fantastic razor. I foresee a spike in sales once a few more have read this :)
Click to expand...

I'm not the Sales Director of Feather Safety Razor Co. Ltd - honest...:icon_redface:
 
Further to the above Stan, I would note that I'm not one for saying 'it's DE or nothing'. I have also been getting into SE recently - Schick, 1912, Mongoose. In the fullness of time, I'd like to try straights too, but not just yet.

The Mongoose with a Feather Super Professional blade demands the utmost respect - it certainly reminds the user that the first rule of wet shaving club is 'no pressure', the second rule of wet shaving club is NO PRESSURE; you know the score...

That extra 0.2mm that the Feather Super Pro blade presents over and above the 'basic' Pro changes the character of the shave absolutely.
 
My thoughts after the first shave:

Bond Cream
Omega 49
Standard Razor Black
Lab Blue [1]
Adidas Pure Game AS
BS Maca Root Face Protector
Milton Lloyd Success..

Hmm, don't know what to make of this standard razor... Definitely a very close shave, a couple of weepers, maybe the Lab is a bit too much for the razor? It's certainly more aggressive than I thought it would be - I'd say it's 4/5 on the Progress scale and you can "feel" the blade. It makes a nice noise in action, similar to what I remember the Futur makes. Definitely looking forward to another shave....
 
My PayPal acct. was debited, quite correctly, for 53.95 USD, which amounts to £35 or thereabouts.

I'm still uncertain if I (we) will get VAT slapped on top of that.

Anyone had experience of that?

Umar has obviously joined the follow on consignment on MassDrop. I wonder if this is a constant supply of (in this case) the razor or do things come and go...in which case who determines what is offered for sale. I'd never heard of MD before so am distincty unfamiliar with it.
 
I think for each item they need about 200 people to register an interest, which you do on the site, and when they get this they start the drop. Looking at another post they somehow send it into our postal system so that customs dont get it, and you dont get the £8 fee on top. Most people on here who have bought it via massdrop have got away with paying any customs charges, fingers crossed eh :)
 
Further to the above, a quick look on DutyCalculator.com reveals that VAT is applicable on imports from US (with some exceptions) over £15 goods value. It suggests (by my understanding) that duty isn't applicable in the case of this item as it's below £135 but that VAT is to be applied. Therefore if the razor is 49.99 USD plus 3.97 USD and that the UK equivalent is £36.56p (in my case) then the razor totals £43.87. There isn't any insurance mentioned in the Massdrop invoice and there was a mention of the possibility of further handling costs which MAY be applied. So presumably the transaction is being carried out with no shipping insurance and therefore we live in hope that it does arrive safely AND that no further handling costs apply.

I don't know if Royal Mail undertake to collect the outstanding VAT - and whether they make a charge to do so. Certainly if they collect Customs Duty there's an £8 fee to pay before they release it. I can't imagine them releasing it without the VAT being paid.

I'm not so sure I'd have paid over £40 for this....£36 sounded just about OK for, what is, a bit of an unknown buy...but I guess we (or, at least 'I') should add it to our sum of knowledge and not take it too seriously in the scheme of things.

Anyone else got a view on it?

I imagine, rightly or wrongly, some might say there's a chance it'll arrive without a VAT demand attached. For some of us it would seem to be a little bonus if it did. Otherwise there could be a view to be taken that if the VAT wasn't incurred then I/we are escaping our civic duty and should volunteer payment upon receipt. We will wait and see and do what we each feel is the right course of action, I'm sure.
 
From what you say, if customs do nab it then the total cost will be about £52. If you paid with Paypal and you dont receive it you can claim your money back through Paypal.
 
Rola, Yes, if they do charge £8 to collect the VAT you're about right. It is a bit of a bummer and I def. wouldn't have gone for it had I looked further into it before jumping in. A lesson for the future, methinks.
 
Yes, you can get them in the UK for £46 plus delivery, and you dont get the stand, so you are still probably a bit better off importing it, not much though! They do come up on BST for around the £30 mark now and again.
 
Enclosed an extract from a piece on the web by Chris Woods in August 2012. I hope it's OK to reproduce it...I would think he'd be OK given how irritated he was...it's a similar situation to ours so is particularly relevant.

I received an item I'd ordered from the US valued at $25. According to HMRC their July exchange rate valued this in Sterling at £15.88 - therefore liable (by 88p) for Import VAT of £3.17. That's not so bad, however Royal Mail then decided to apply an £8 international handling charge. Outrageous! Not only is this vastly disproportional to the value of the item, it doubled the eventual cost of my purchase. I write in and complained, writing that I felt this doesn't represent the amount of work required to process the item of post. I remember a time not so long ago when the handling fee was only £5, then it slowly crept up to £6... then £8... And I have a feeling it's going to increase again soon.

Bizarrely shipments from places like Hong Kong seem (for the moment) almost immune of these handling fees (courtesy initially of the UKBA and HMRC) yet almost every single rateable consignment from the USA now has fees enforced against it. Simple way of the Revenue earning some extra coin? I don't mind about that given the Import VAT was only £3, it's Royal Mail's secondary bandwagon gouging of the customer that's disgraceful - no alternative but to refuse receipt of the item and have it returned to sender. Monopolistic behaviour and borderline scam tactics. The fact RM don't even scale the handling charge dependent on the declared item value (or the amount of VAT levied) is frustrating, that would be a much more customer friendly solution (so of course they do the exact opposite).

Given the low value of the item and the high cost of the handling fee, I asked if a credit could be issued for some or all of the handling fee. An £8 handling fee is simply not justifiable when it represents half of the item's value. Let's see if they respond...



NB that all mail handlers including private couriers will usually charge a similar fee unless the overseas seller has an arrangement with HMRC whereby they can collect the VAT at point of sale - which would sidestep these additional charges. I wish there was a way I could declare a purchase to (and pay) HMRC the VAT directly, the current situation is nothing short of extortion.

rolatruck said:
From what you say, if customs do nab it then the total cost will be about £52. If you paid with Paypal and you dont receive it you can claim your money back through Paypal.
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I almost hope it DOES get lost in the post and that I can do as you say re. PayPal.

Mainly more miffed by the £8 Royal Mail handling fee than anything else. It's not as though any of us will go hungry over it, more simply we thought £36 was a bit of a bargin...and there's chance we'll have miscalculated.
 
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