My First Shave With Rockwell's New SETPOINT Adjustable Razor
Hey, what’s happening? Mike here, back in the shave den, and I’m ready to get a shave in with the new SETPOINT adjustable razors from Rockwell.
I’ve got both versions in front of me. The 316L stainless steel, which comes in at four ounces, and the black aluminum, which is a featherweight 1.5 ounces by comparison. Both are adjustable, with settings one through six. If you caught my unboxing and first-impressions video, you already heard my initial take on these two. This isn’t that video. This is the first actual shave.
Thank you to Rockwell for sending these over for review. I want to be clear about what this is and isn’t: this is not my official review. The real plan is to travel with both of these soon and put real days on them before I say anything final. This is just the first pass, cold.
Loading the Blades
I’m putting brand new Personna Gem blades in both of these. That’s my blade of choice. I used to run Personna Comfort Coats, but the Gem has taken over the top spot for me the last three months of pretty consistent use, and it works well in everything I own. If I’m testing a new razor, this is the blade I reach for.
Loading is simple on both. Unscrew the bottom; the head splits into two pieces, blade goes in, screw it back down snug. I prefer a two-piece design over a three-piece. Less fiddling, fewer parts to line up. You can see the blade reveal on both once they’re closed up, and it’s clamped in close to the edge, which is supposed to cut down on chatter. Rockwell mentions that right on the box.
I set both razors to level six to start. I’ve got about five days of beard growth sitting on my face, so it’s a good stress test, and I tend to like an aggressive razor anyway. I don’t use adjustables much as a rule. I’d rather have one setting I trust and stick with it. But the whole point of an adjustable is what I’m doing here: start aggressive to mow down the growth, then dial it back for a cleanup pass later. That’s basically how I ran the Rockwell T2 back when I used one daily, level three for the clean-up end of things.
Quick gear note while I’m on the subject: I had the T2 for a while and passed it on to a friend getting into wet shaving. He loves it. I liked it fine, but I’ll take the Rockwell 6S over it any day. That 6S is one of my top razors, period. Great for beginners, great for guys who’ve been doing this for years, never gave me a bad shave. I usually run it on level five, not six. Five’s my sweet spot.
Building the Lather
Making this a full Rockwell shave. Cream, not my usual pre-shave oil, just soap straight to brush. I haven’t used this cream in a while and I’m reminded why I liked it: classic barbershop scent, nice cream consistency, lathers well. I’m using my Bruso and Dove barbershop bowl for this, a gift from David that I’ve shown on the channel before, beautiful piece of work. And I dug out an old Rockwell brush I haven’t touched in ages. Between the soap, the bowl, and the brush, this is about as complete a Rockwell shave as I can put together.
Lather builds up fast and thick in the bowl. This soap has never let me down in the handful of times I’ve used it, and it’s compact enough to toss in a dopp bag if you travel.
First Pass: Aluminum
Starting with the aluminum side because I want to see how that lighter weight holds up. Lining up the sideburn, cutting it off clean.
There’s blade feel here. Not harsh, still comfortable, and I’m not leaning on it at all. Zero chatter. It’s efficient, up there with the more aggressive razors I own, but I wouldn’t push it against the grain under the nose on level six. That tells you something. It’s got a bit of bite you need to respect. For mowing down a week of growth on the top setting, though, it does the job and gets close.
First Pass: Stainless Steel
Switching to the steel side. The weight difference is immediate, four ounces versus 1.5, and it changes the whole feel of the stroke. I’m not adding pressure here, letting the weight of the head do the work.
Smoother than the aluminum. Slightly less blade feel, same bite underneath it, just delivered differently. Different metal, different experience, and my gut says I’m liking the steel a touch more on this first pass. Checking both sides with wet hands after the pass, they feel about the same against the grain. Both did the job.
Early Lean, Second Pass
So far I like how both of these shave, and I wouldn’t talk anyone out of the aluminum. If I were watching this back without having shaved with either, I’d probably lean toward the aluminum just because of the weight. But that’s armchair thinking. Razor in hand, first pass done, I’m leaning stainless.
If you’re trying to decide between the two for yourself: the aluminum is the easier carry and still shaves well. The steel has more heft and, so far, a smoother stroke. Price is a real factor too.
Moving into the second pass now to see if either one changes my mind.
Thanks for watching. I’ll have the full extended-use review once I’ve put real time on both of these.