VIKINGS BLADE Double Edge Safety Razor for Men + 5 Swedish Steel Blades + Luxury Case. Smooth, Reusable, Eco-Friendly (Chieftain “Odin”)

I started wet shaving with a traditional double-edged safety razor in June of last year—or rather, that was the first time I truly succeeded at it. I had experimented before with various razors, but most of them ended up shearing my face. The only one I found safe to use was the Merkur Open Comb 9104001 (https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R21LFY5ZNW75AS/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_ttl?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B00595BY6U). Once I got comfortable with that and my technique improved, I decided to try something just a little more aggressive.That’s when I stumbled upon the Vikings Blade Chieftain on Amazon. When I checked discussions on razor enthusiast forums like Reddit, I found the reviews to be mixed. There was some condescension towards the Vikings Blade brand, with speculation that it was just a dressed-up Baili product (but hey, isn't Apple a dressed-up Foxconn product in some sense?) but I felt that the positive reviews rang true. The brand’s presentation—while maybe a little over the top—somehow resonated with me as light-hearted pride for a good product, and I decided to go for it.Now, the Chieftain has become my daily driver. The build quality is outstanding—exceptionally solid and well-constructed. It provides a close and comfortable shave, and I almost never nick myself. That said, I do use Shark Stainless Blades, which are relatively mild, so that likely contributes to the smooth experience.Having gone from one Holy Grail to another, I think the search for the perfect razor is either never-ending excitement or pointless extravagance. I'm happy to call my Vikings Blade Chieftain a long-term solution for my simple needs: a quick, safe, effective and economical alternative to the cartridges I used before. It’s a well-made, forgiving razor that delivers a great shave, making it an excellent choice for those looking for something slightly more aggressive than an entry-level model without venturing into borderline weaponry.

I was expecting a crime scene. Because that's what all the ads tell us, right? "Get this plastic cartridge with 9 blades that foams itself and you won't hurt your sensitive skin!" But I was getting fed up with cartridges: crazy expensive, popping off the razor body every time I dropped it while in the tub (oh, I don't know why I would drop a razor with wet, soapy hands), and, quite frankly, the quality of their shave has gotten worse over the past decade. But they were the modern thing to get, right? Safer? Cleaner?Wrong.Turns out, Grandma and Grandpa had the better technology with DE razors. DE, for you newbies, stands for "double-edged": the razor blade is sharp on both long sides, instead of the kind that has one thick, blunt long side that slides into holders like paint scrapers, etc. It also refers generally to "safety razors"--- the "safety" being the enclosure of 90% of the blade instead of a straight edge razor, which is basically a 7" Swiss Army knife. (Also cool, and I'm considering getting one for self-defense. Seriously, who would attack a woman holding one of those?!)Thoughts of home invasion aside, Viking has come up with a great DE razor in The Chieftain. After reading a random article online about how much money per year I could save by using normal razor blades (we'll see), I decided to get out of my razor rut. I didn't just run out and buy the first one that came up in Amazon, though: research was required. YouTube of course had instructional (not porn) videos of women using DE's and they did go through the whole "lather with badger brush" thing. Putting aside my childhood memories of my dad using the same, I realized that it was a little surprising that women didn't spend more time on shaving prep. I myself use five hair products alone and I'm fairly low maintenance, but apart from a single foray into "women's shave gel", my shaving routine was to grab the Dove and hack away. I've never had any complaints, but still, I never felt like I got a so-called close shave.That would change when I went with Viking. I picked The Chieftain because of the "butterfly" opening. To get the razor blade on, one twists the lowest part of the handle and the sleek contraption opens out like swinging double doors, revealing a rectangular post. The razor blades have holes in the middle, and you just drop the blade onto the post, it lies flat, and you re-twist the handle for the top of razor body to close over that 90% of the blade that I was talking about before. Viking's other razor option was the other standard DE razor loading system: unscrew the top, take it off completely, drop the blade on the post, and screw the top back on. Eh, I liked the butterfly version better.So why Viking? Amazon has innumerable brands to choose from, and most were for half the price. Well, I picked Viking the old fashioned way: I read reviews. Lots of reviews. More reviews than I thought were possible to have about razors. But it came down to this: apart from their every-so-slightly excessive bro-language (dude, the -NFL- is more gender-neutral), Viking had the best quality-to-cost ratio. And, if you didn't know before now, "women's" versions of traditionally men's products are always made more poorly and of crappier materials. (I don't know why: I didn't make this rule. Look up "Le Car" if you don't believe me.)Moving on, I went to a chain pharmacy and bought a brush/cup/soap kit while waiting the two days for my razor to arrive. I'm sure you can buy that stuff online, but I wanted to smell the soap first and I refuse to use Old Spice because, again, not my dad. I found something unobtrusive and anyway, I figured I could switch out soaps while keeping the rest of it. (I did wonder a. When would it all stop, and b. If I went back to using my old razor, could I use this cup to microwave soup or something? If all else failed, I could keep it for my son to use in a few years.)The razor came, I followed the videos, and...no Sweeney Todd. Just a great shave. A really great shave. An "I am SO not going back to plastic again!" kind of shave. I suppose that I should have led with the "great shave" part, but honestly, it wasn't difficult to use at all. You kind of intuit the angle. And no bloodshed. Wow. I now realize why there are so many plastic razor ads: it's hard to fear such a simple, handy razor as The Chieftain. It's not crazy-heavy, it's classically designed, and it gives a great shave.Okay, so yes, the blades they give you are "starter" blades---you're supposed to buy sharper ones after you familiarize yourself, but they're plenty sharp. (You should know that there are as many brands of blades as there are cars.) And a bigger point is that my legs, as long and sensitive as they are, are nowhere near as sensitive as a guy's face. Even with all that taken into consideration, The Chieftain is the overwhelmingly superior product. I'm hoping to see the money I spent on it be "returned" in less expensive upkeep, but even if it isn't, I would still recommend making the switch. If you need it said to you in manly-man-speak, women will definitely be impressed by seeing it (The Chieftain) in your bathroom. And with your shave, too.Finally, let me state that I have not been paid for this review, nor do I work for Viking, a blade manufacturer or any ad agency. This is just me expounding on a product that I never expected to buy because of its "danger." Shave proud, people.