Recently a 3-D printed razor, and a slant at that, became available: the Kraken 248. I decided to try it.
First, of course, the prep: My Semogue Owners Club boar brush is very gradually breaking in, and today I managed even to get a decent third pass from it without reloading. Unlike the Semogue 830 I used Saturday, this knot is, as you see, natural boar, which in general I prefer.
Time’s Soap Vintage has a fragrance that might well be called “Barbershop”: old-timey, pleasant, nostalgic. The lather was quite good.
In contrast, the Kraken 248 is quite crude. You have to go out and buy your own machine screw, nut, and washers, which I did. The nut fits snugly in the handle and will not come loose and fall out, so that’s good.
The finish seems crude, and the razor lacks a comfortable feel. It does do a good job if you’re careful, but frankly I cannot recommend this. The Fine Accoutrements slant, another plastic slant but one with much better fit and finish and requiring no trip to the hardware store, sells for $27.50, just $5.22 more than the Kraken 248. Perhaps it’s just a coincidence, but $5.22 seems a much more suitable price for the Kraken than $22.28 it costs. (Indeed, the $3.48 Dorco PL-602 blows away the Kraken 248 in terms of fit, finish, ease of use, comfort, and efficiency.) I should note that I just discovered that you can get the Kraken in white plastic for $15.38, an option I didn’t at first see. (The default option is the $22.28 metallic finish.)
I would never have purchased this razor without an on-going interest in exploring shaving products, but now that I have and I’ve used it, I can make a strong recommendation: if you want to try a slant in the $20-$30 range, get the Fine slant and not the Kraken. I’m making an exception to my rule of getting accustomed to a razor: I don’t think I’ll be shaving again with the Kraken.
I applied Esbjerg aftershave gel and look forward to tomorrow’s shave. Live and learn.
BTW, I have no personal animus against the maker, whom I don’t know, and I agree that the experiment was worth trying. I just don’t think it’s worth selling.
Filed under: Shaving
