The Holy-Grail-Experiment Razor has Arrived

This is the image associatedon the Amazon sales page
with my latest razor acquisition

The Chinese-made razor that I ordered on December 5th, arrived on December 20th.  My total cost including shipping was $3.19. The image at right is the one associated with its product-sales page on Amazon.com.

This razor, unlike a similar one I ordered months ago, was not in a blister pack. It was shipped in a small, square envelope. The razor was disassembled to better lie flat, I assume. The baseplate was nested under the top cap, and these two parts were in a small, transparent plastic bag. The handle was separate and loose within the shipping envelope.

The baseplate arrived bent out of symmetrical shape. I assume that it was not manufactured that way and was damaged in transit.

The handle of the razor is accurately represented in the seller's image. Here is my photo of the razor as it first arrived, but I assembled the razor, inserting a blade:

Below is a side view highlighting the asymmetrical bend of the baseplate:

Below is a view of the baseplate alone on a flat surface highlighting the twist in the baseplate and the slight curve of the edge:

Below are two photos contrasting the blade angle on each side of the razor:

I have sent an replacement-requested email to a seller identified as "happyshopping2014" with these photos attached. I will report on the progress of that issue.

Regarding the condition of the baseplate, strangely enough, the more extreme angle seems to be the blade angle from the factory. The smaller angle is on the side of the baseplate with the curved edge and appears to have been flattened a bit in transit.

I would be very cautious about using such a razor with such an extreme positive blade exposure and blade angle, but as shawnsel explained in comments on an earlier article, those guys who are doing "steep-angle shaving" (where the handle is oriented in a small angle to the face resulting in a large angle of blade to face -- a high, "scraping" angle) might like a symmetrical razor with large blade angles.

I'm going to proceed with the holy-grail experiment, trying to tune this razor to be a keeper, and I'll keep you informed of the progress on all fronts.

Happy shaving