Superb shave today. This is my 11th shave with this particular GEM blade and it still feels fantastic on the skin and very effective on the whiskers. The L3 guard plate so far has been the best compromise of efficient yet smooth action over the L2 and significantly brings superior cutting performance over the OG L2 Sabre. I’ve said it before and I’ll repeat myself again with this statement. The revamped Sabre with just the L1 & L2 guard plates are a nice improvement over the Original Sabre. And with the addition of the extra guard plate with 2 size options (L3 & L4), it puts this new Sabre into high performance cutting ability while still retaining refinement and more importantly ease of use. I truly believe that a novice can start very easily with this razor and in no time at all get acclimated to the shave characteristics that the new Sabre brings without much trouble at all. It provides excellent feedback at every stage of the guard plate offerings from daily shaver to seasoned vet shavers that want and desire the uptick in blade feel to tackle some really dense and tough whiskers. The changing of the plates has become practically second nature for me with tactile grip and comfort that rivals some of the best out there in terms of feel in hand plus maneuverability. Unfortunately, I can’t say an iota about the under the nose area as I maintain a mustache but, the solution is quite simple for most if the schnoze is a formidable obstacle in one’s shave regime. Just grab the beak with the offhand, turn or lift and problem solved. Some perhaps don’t feel comfortable with doing such a thing so, for them I don’t know if the new Sabre with its head design may prove to be a problem for that particular area. I have though read on a few forums and social media sites that many have found no issue with using the razor around & under the schnoze.
I can say without reservation that the new Sabre with its shave offerings has proven to be the best contemporary GEM razor I’ve ever used that combines the most important attributes that all wet shavers would require in efficiency, ease of use and ultimately providing comfortable shaves at any level of shave requirement per user.
I’ll keep going until this blade gives out for sure but, that could be quite a few more shaves. The blade has held up extremely well in this tool and also shows that the change in name/manufacturer has not changed a thing on how these GEM blades perform. New Sabre & GEM SS ptfe equals match made in shave heaven.
Innovation & performance. Hats off to Shane over at Blackland. They delivered the goods. I know, it’s not cheap and one can definitely get a very good shave with some of the great vintage GEM razors out there. However, stability & rigidity compared to this new Sabre & the OG can not be matched by the GEM’s of yesteryear. I can’t speak for the Wolfman Gem WR3 as I have not sampled it. The Vestige is an excellent shaver though it’s a very mild one (I only have the + plate version with maybe a +++ plate in the future) and is up there in the luxury price range that can cost 2 to 3 times as much as the new Sabre. I look at it this way. Blackland has made a 4 in 1 razor that in relative terms to today’s economy & shave market, one could argue that the new Sabre offers a very fair value in the exotic/luxury/performance field of razors and is perhaps the best bang for one’s dollar in not just the Single edge field but, in the boutique razor market regardless of format all together. As an investment in one’s shave regime, you could say and argue that it might deliver the soundest return in all of wet shavingdom.
It’s the best & ONLY 4 pc. razor that I own.
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