Timeless Ti Razor

[slapo]

Now that I've had the Slim SB on loan from @Boycie83 (thank you kindly ) for a while, I think it might be of interest to some to write things down.
I'll break each shave down into its own post.

Shave #1 (also posted on ATG as SoTD):

Two days of growth.

Brush: Frank Shaving G4 synth
Soap: Ariana & Evans Asian Plum
Aftershave: Murphy & McNeil Granuaile
Blade: BiC Chrome Platinum (3rd or 4th use)
Razors:
- Right side of my face - Timeless Slim SB 0.5.
- Left side of my face - Timeless Bronze OC.
Timeless Crown handle.

I've been using the brush for a few years, and it's been very nice. Prefer it to most Plisson-style knots.

The soap performed well, although I'm not too keen on the scent. It's OK, but sweeter than I'd like. Fortunately, once lathered up, it isn't as bad as it was out of the tub. Also vastly better than the the Asian Plum aftershave, which I'd thought was vile load of cloyingly sweet overload and ended up pouring it down the drain rather than have some unsuspecting sould try and use it.

The aftershave is... interesting. Sweeter than I'd like, but it's more in the top notes, and fizzes out somewhat in a few minutes. Then it smells sort of like watermelon with a dash of... perhaps vetiver. There's also something in there that gives it a sort of a "creamy" smell. It kind of smells like a non-offensive after sun lotion.

BiC blades are some of my favourites, and the one used has proven itself.

The Timeless Slim surprised me a little, as it seem to have a reputation for being aggressive, but I didn't find it to be the case. There's certainly a bit of blade feel, and the exposure seems to be slightly positive, but there's a fairly generous range of angles when riding the top cap that allows to get the extra exposure out of the way so it serves the shave rather than annoys. It was also very smooth, and efficient, too.
It reminds of of the Homelike Colibri, dscosmetics AX and Stando Chors I have.

The Timeless Bronze OC feels like it has a lot more blade exposure than the Slim. It isn't as smooth either, and the range of angles where it's a smooth shaver is much smaller than on the Slim. That extra exposure combined with a smaller range of "tame" angles also means that while it's a little more efficient than the Slim, it's more difficult to drive and I usually get a bit of irritation on curvy parts of my neck, where worse the driveability shows the most.
I still need to perform three passes due to different directions my hair grows in on different sections of my face and neck, so I get about the same amount of blade time on my skin with most razors.

It's worth bearing in mind that it was my first shave with the Slim, and I've used the Bronze OC a few times since I bought it.

I did not enjoy using the Bronze OC that much. While it's relatively smooth for the amount of blade exposure, it I have a bunch of razors that are smoother and easier to drive at nearly the same efficiency.

It could be a razor for someone who likes a lot of blade feel, but I think I'm a few years past that phase and the Bronze OC is likely going to be up for sale.

 

[slapo]

Shave #2:

Two days.

Brush: Frank Shaving G4 synth
Soap: Palmolive Sensitive shaving cream
Aftershave: Eclat aloe vera gel
Blade: BiC Chrome Platinum (likely 3rd use, but a different one from the first shave)
Razors:
- Left side of my face - Timeless Slim SB 0.5.
- Right side of my face - Greencult 1.0.
Timeless Crown handle

I whipped up a silly about of creamy, hydrated lather, and I used it generously.

After a few strokes, it became clear that the are much closer to each other than the Slim and the Timless Bronze OC I used during the previous shave.
Compared to the Greencult 1.0, the Slim had a little less blade feel, was a touch smoother, and a little less efficient. However, it also felt a bit more pleasant on the face during the shave for me.
I think the Slim needed one extra pass to make both sides as even as I could muster, but after the shave, its side still felt a little less abraded.

The lather flow-through didn't seem as good as that of the Greencult, but perfectly fine for a few days' worth of growth.

Of the two, I prefered the Slim, but not by a large margin and the Greencult held its own very well.

I should probably also add that it felt very safe as I shaved skin with moles on it, whereas the Greencult made me more wary.

I don't think I've had any nicks or weepers, other than what I think was a little pimple I didn't see.

 

[slapo]

Shave #3:

Two days of growth again.

Brush: Frank Shaving G4 synth
Soap: Palmolive Sensitive shaving cream
Aftershave: Eclat aloe vera gel
Blade: BiC Chrome Platinum (4th use)
Razors:
- Left side of my face - Timeless Slim SB 0.5.
- Right side of my face - Greencult 1.1.
Timeless Crown handle

I generated too much lather again, but I was fun whirling it around, so I didn't care.

Compared to the Greencult 1.1, the Slim had a little more blade feel, was a little less smooth, but comparably efficient. Face feel was good with both razors.

Greencult 1.1 was closer to the Slim in most aspects than the Greencult 1.0 was. However, 1.1 had noticeably better flowthrough than the Slim. Not too much of a factor in this shave, but worth noting.

Oddly, the Slim still felt a little safer than the Greencult 1.1, despite feeling a little more blade forward, but the margin here was slimmer than with the older 1.0.

Three passes and a few pickups where hair grows funny on my neck with both razors for effectively the same result, except that the Greencult 1.1 side actually felt better this time around.

I think I'd call this one a tie, all things considered.

 

[slapo]

Shave #4:

Three days of growth.

Brush: Frank Shaving G4 synth
Soap: Palmolive Sensitive shaving cream
Aftershave: Eclat aloe vera gel
Blade: BiC Chrome Platinum (5th use)
Razors:
- Right side of my face - Timeless Slim SB 0.5.
- Left side of my face - Yaqi Telstar (stainless steel).
Timeless Crown handle.

I haven't used the Telstar in a while, but I remember coming around to it a few shaves back, when I came to really like it.

In comparison, the Slim has noticeably less blade feel (even though the Telstar doesn't feel very blade forward). On the whole, the Slim actually feels quite mild for me, but hits a pleasant efficiency/blade feel spot while being very smooth.
The Telstar isn't quite as smooth, but still very good in that regard.

The biggest difference turned out to be in efficiency - the Telstar needed one whole pass less than the Slim, while both sides of my face felt about the same when I was done, achieving about the same closeness on both sides.

This shave was trickier than previous shaves with the Slim, because for me, the Telstar enforces a shallower angle than the Slim by default.

This was probably also my best shave with the Slim, too.

I'd call this one a tie in terms of enjoyment, too, because the Slim felt a little safer in use, but the Telstar got the job done faster.

 

[slapo]

Shave #5:

Two days of growth.

Brush: Frank Shaving G4 synth
Soap: Palmolive Sensitive shaving cream
Aftershave: Eclat aloe vera gel
Blade: BiC Chrome Platinum (6th use)
Razors:
- Left side of my face - Timeless Slim SB 0.5 (first).
- Right side of my face - Stando Chors.
Timeless Crown handle.

Stando Chors has almost as much blade feel as the bronze Timeless OC, but feels smoother. It's somewhere in-between the Slim and the bronze OC in that regard, perhaps a little closer to the Slim.

Efficiency-wise, I think the Chors was better, but at the same time, the blade was feeling somewhat spent and getting a somewhat rough even in the Slim, and a little blunt in the Chors, which I used after having done three passes with the Slim.

The Chors had noticeably better flow-through, which I also tested on my upper arms and shoulders - that hedge needed some trimming.
An open comb would still beat the Chors, but as far as safety bar heads go, it's very good in that regard. The main thing that was bringing it down there was the lather hole splitter. I realise it's there for extra blade support and to improve durability of the safety bar in case of a fall, but that could probably be offset by clamping the blade closer to the blade edge.

One point down for the Slim due to the top cap not meeting the base plate quite at its edge, and as a result, some hair and lather got in there. In this case, it only made cleaning a bit annoying.

Of the two, I prefer the Slim, but if I were to buy one, I'd probably be leaning toward the open comb. However, the design of the comb being what it is, I'm not sure it would really improve flowthrough, which is what I'd typically expect from an open comb plate.

I've had the opportunity to try out the Timeless master kit a few years ago, and wasn't all that impressed. Very nicely made, but the shaves weren't as good as I'd been hoping for.
The Slim has been more impressive, and had it been less expensive, I'd probably have one on the way already.

Thanks again to @Boycie83 for lending me the razor, it's been very enjoyable.

 

[ashwinbalachandran]

I have used the Slim OC and the .95 OC for a while now. I first got the .95 OC and I really enjoyed it but it took my sometime with it to get a BBS. That was not the case when the slim arrived. The slim with it's aggressive blade exposure offered me an alarmingly close shave. The best part about Ti and an aggressive razor is the fact that you can apply as much or as little pressure you want and it won't hurt you. Plus the slim is made out of wire cut EDM process and the precision it offers is amazing

I wanted to try something a little more aggressive and spoke to Matt about it and asked him about the bronze .78 OC. I assumed more blade exposure would mean more aggression. He disagreed and said the bronze is not as smooth and forgiving as titanium and the heft mean one needs to be careful with it, esp atg!

So i decided to give it a miss. Something that needs to be said about Timeless is their OC design. It is essentially a SB plate with cuts between them and the OC bar is curved just like the SB. This make it the smoothest and safest OC out there! While I was on the fence picking up the solid / scalloped base plate , a gentleman from another forum said, if you are getting a timeless, just get the OC ! And he has absolutely spot on and that's the advise that I would give anyone. If timeless, just blindly pick the OC

Now here comes the most interesting part - a close friend loaned me the R41 4 days back. Having read about the 41s aggression in various forums, I was very skeptical since I already had the slim and was thoroughly enjoying it every 3rd/4th day!

But i decided to try the R41 and it blew my socks off as to how efficient it is! For the first time, I finally understood the difference between an efficient razor and and aggressive razor . The R41 is nowhere close to being as aggressive as the slim but still managed to give a BBS in about the same number of passes! Better still, I have been able to use it daily with absolutely no irritation whatsoever ! I have absolutely no idea why people fear the R41! It is smooth and super efficient and acted like any other razor I have used!

In the end ,it blows my mind as to how someone can design something as simple as a DE razor with dramatically different feel!

Hope this helps someone who wants to make decision on his next razor!