I recently saw a comment (I thought it was on Reddit’s Wicked_Edge forum but I can’t find it now, otherwise I’d link to it) about a cheap all-plastic Weishi DE razor on Ebay. It piqued my interest, and for under $10 I thought what-the-heck, I’ll give it a shot and “take one for the team” if I have to. I received it recently and shaved with it a few times to “kick the tires.”
It is very, very light and as far as I can tell completely plastic (how they made a plastic TTO mechanism I have no idea). Unlike other Weishi’s I have shaved with this razor is fairly aggressive:
As you can see from the photo above there is a LOT of blade exposure (not as much as a Muhle R41 but quite a bit) and it’s a bit uneven too. However, used with care this razor can give me a quite decent shave. My first shave with it gave me one little nick, and an area on my neck below my ear wasn’t quite as smooth as the rest of my face, but my other test shaves were quite acceptable. So, $9.95 gets you a usable razor. However I would NOT recommend this razor for the new DE shaver.
A Plastic Weishi DE?
This isn’t a bad idea, a TTO that is cheap enough to where you don’t care much if you lose it on a trip. I find I get the best shaves from a Sik Bay plastic three-piece DE that cost me a whopping $1.75 from a Turkish online retailer. If my razor isn’t aggressive enough it nicks the **** out of my face, I even have to be careful with a Gillette NEW and a Gillette Red-Tip due to lack of aggression (those are known to be aggressive in nature themselves). I have been using the Sik Bay razor for at least six months now and it works as well as the day I first put a blade into it. I don’t expect it to last forever but I will use it until it breaks then probably have another shipped to me. I always have my collection of vintage metal DE razors to fall back on when the cheapo piece of plastic breaks.
I bought this razor from an Alaska eBayer and am very satisfied.
It gives a very good close and irritation free shave with 3 passes. Very difficult to cut yourself but not impossible. If only Weishi made this razor with the same blade exposure in metal.
Being plastic I’d imagine the small price tag would be a false economy. I can’t see a plastic razor lasting a lifetime but for just over twice the outlay you can have something like an Edwin Jagger that is a quality product and will last you a lifetime.
I haven’t used the Weishi, but I tell you the Wilkinson Double-Edge razor (http://www.italianbarber.com/wilkinson-double-edge-safety-razor) has been a great razor for a comparable price. I have some more expensive razors and this one shaves me as well with the proper blade.
I cannot imagine spending $10 for a plastic Weishi, when you can easily find the brass 9306 online for around $6-7. I love the size and TTO mechanism of my 9306B (satin gold – $7) and 9306F (chrome – $6), I only wish they were more aggressive. To be more accurate, I wish they actually provided a respectable shave without 5+ passes.
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