Review Rocnel DE-P

[Darkbulb]

Rocnel DE-P​

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Razor specs
Manufacturer: Rocnel
Country of Origin: Turkey
Manufacturing: CNC machined
Material: 316 Stainless Steel
Finish: Hand polished high reflective head
Weight: 121gr
Handle: 85mm
Blade gap: 0.21mm according to Rocnel
Vendor: Yourshaving.com
Availability: Currently (Oct 12, 2016) out of stock
Update Oct 13: Batch 2 should be available already next week
Price: $188 / £133

Looking back
The Turkish company Rocnel made quite a name for themselves by coming out with a series of rather well priced stainless steel razor offerings that often sported an innovative - or 'quirky' depending on how you look at it - blade loading mechanism.

The Rocnel DE-P (the "P" is the Rocnel identifier for "mild-medium" and that is how most of their razors so far have been branded) is however a very straight forward, traditional three-piece DE design. It harkens back to their very first DE razor offering but now in a simplified offering (sans box, stand, multiple base plates).

Another thing that is different with this Rocnel razor is its price. This is the highest priced razor in their current product line. The increase in price has been somewhat of a trend if you look back at their line of razors;

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Hopefully the soon to be released Barbaros-Rocnel adjustable razor won't continue on the upwards trend

Now, there are of course reasons why the original half-DE-blade razors were priced lower. Rocnel were very open about that the one-piece head allowed them to come out with a low-cost razor that could be affordable to many people.

The razor was released on the Yourshaving site on October 5, 2016 and sold out in about twelve hours. At this point I don't have any confirmation that there will be a second batch of DE-P razors made. The reason for that might be a combination of trying to come out with both the DE42 as well as the B&R adjustable before Christmas. Don't read too much into it though as there might very well be a batch around the corner. We shall see.

Fit and Finish
The DE-P has an absolutely gorgeous base plate.
It's completely free of any blemishes (take note Rx Asylum...) and the polish is just outstanding;

The inside of the top cap has a, well, 'less refined look'. I'm torn between saying "I expect more for $188" and "Well, even the Timeless razors have less than perfect finish on the inside of their topcaps". I guess I end up feeling somewhere in between.
(Note: the red specks you might see is residue from the red wax seal that the razor came with. It cleaned up right away after I took the photo).

The two parts do come together and present a very attractive head;

Here's a one minute video by Rocnel showing off the razor a bit:

..and if you want to see how the head is hand polished here's a 25 minute video showing that:

Design
I was, admittedly, a bit disappointed in that the handle that the razor comes with is the exact same handle that has been sold with previous Rocnel razors - a polished, knurled handle. The handle can be bought for about $12 on Extrashaving. With some simple math that means the razor head ended up being (188-12)= $176.
To put that number somewhat into perspective a Timeless razor head (smooth top cap and scalloped SB base plate) would run you (65+95) = $160.

It would had been nice to have a handle especially made for the DE-P - or at least the ability to buy just the head (and save the $12 I guess).

Update, see post #7 for some updates on the handle

In the end it's hard to take too much away from the razor though as it does end up looking really nice - and it's shiny;

The drain holes in the base plate should theoretically help with lather buildup/clogging and I like the scalloped safety bar design.
Note: I'm not sure about the blade gap but have asked and will update when I have it.
The blade aligns well in the razor;
(Mental note..next time clean off fingerprints before taking photos)

How does it shave?
I don't know yet but it's on deck for tomorrow's shave as I'm sneaking a shave in w/ it before I return to the Hawks and Asylum.

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[Holyzeus]

Disappointing that it ships with that handle

 

[Nishy]

Disappointing that it ships with that handle

Not to mention the look of the top cap (underneath). Basically paying for the base plate. DB on the edge of the baseplate are those scratches from sanding? Or just fingerprint marks?

 

[Snuff]

Thanks for the review!

 

[Darkbulb]

Disappointing that it ships with that handle

Yeah...I would have liked to see a new handle for this price.

Not to mention the look of the top cap (underneath). Basically paying for the base plate. DB on the edge of the baseplate are those scratches from sanding? Or just fingerprint marks?

I think I see what you mean - the small lines on the left in the second photo?
I'll check it out when I get back.

 

[Darkbulb]

Not to mention the look of the top cap (underneath). Basically paying for the base plate. DB on the edge of the baseplate are those scratches from sanding? Or just fingerprint marks?

Seems like those lines were indeed fingerprints. Cleaned it up and couldn't see them again. Nice and shiny.

 

[Darkbulb]

Three updates to the original review after messaging with Murat at Rocnel;

1) Batch 2 of the Rocnel DE-Ps should be at Yourshaving already next week,

2) The blade gap is, according to Murat, 0.21mm - which seems low but he should know,

3) The handles on the DE-P is the same design as the old knurled handles but for these handles extra effort was taken to produce a higher quality handle.
To quote Murat "Handles are better in workmanship".

I've attempted to show the two things that I can notice myself in the picture below (sorry no macro lens).
Handles shown in the image: Old handle, New DE-P handle Old handle

a) the top of the handle has now a more rounded curve and not the more abrupt sharp edge as can be seen on the other two handles. It's almost as if that top part is an added piece on the older handles.

b) Improved finish on handle-neck removing minor things like the thin line that is evident a few mm's above the knurling line on both of the older handles

Apart from that I can't find any differences as the actual knurling looks and feels the same and the size/weight appears to be the same.

 

[Nishy]

Seems like those lines were indeed fingerprints. Cleaned it up and couldn't see them again. Nice and shiny.

Nice crisp profile

 

[Darkbulb]

Shave Report # 1

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Decided to sneak in a shave with the Rocnel DE this morning before I return to the Asylum and Hawks.
Popped a fresh Astra SP into the razor, lathered up some Tabac and put razor to face.

First pass (WTG):
The razor balances well in your hand. The knurled handle, 'DeLuxe version' or not, feels like the other knurled Rocnel handle's I've used which means 'solid and provides a very secure grip'.
The angle is intuitive to find and the first impression I have is that it really mild.

(Clarification:
- By "Mild" I mean a razor that doesn't feel like it will bite you. A razor that feels smooth and comfortable against your face and allows you to move around at increased pace if you want to).
- By "Efficient" I mean a razor that is capable of giving a clean and close shave w/in a few passes - including in your trouble areas)

It reminds me a bit about the Barbaros TR-1 as I shave.
I notice that it clogs up rather quickly and I find myself rinsing the razor out more often than usual. It might have to do with the Tabac soap as it has a tendency to get rather thick depending on how much or little water I add.

Second Pass (ATG):
I am now noticing the nice audible feedback which is something I appreciate in a razor.
The blade glides very smoothly over my face to the point where I wonder if it's doing anything.
It does clog up quite a bit. Need to try it with a different soap next time to see if that's the culprit.

The razor is very mild when you shave and I was prepared to feel quite some stubble after my second pass - but just like the Barbaros TR-1 its mildness is not to be mistaken for inefficiency.

So in the end a great shave was had and I truly enjoyed using the razor. I will have to see if the clogging had to do with the soap of the day or not.

Looking forward to getting to know it more.

Is it a buy?
Considering that more stock is coming in next week one question to answer, in a very subjective way, might be if it's a buy or not.

I think this is the first Rocnel razor that I have some hesitations about. I've loved their quirky designs in the past and truly enjoy the shaves I get from the SE50 and the OC SE one. This razor is different - it's significantly more expensive and has a much more traditional DE design. Couple that with that it comes with a 'DeLuxe' version of the old $12 handle you are in essence paying $176 for the head. It's a great razor head but that is still a significant amount of money for it.

I would say that if you already have a high-end, milder DE razor such as the AS-D2, Barbaros TR-1, one of the milder ATT heads, etc then there might not be enough here to justify the price tag.
If you however is looking to augment your razor arsenal with a very beautiful, mild and efficient razor then this could absolutely be a contender. The challenge it faces is going to be the competition from manufacturers like the Timeless that have mild offerings at a lower cost but at an equally - or better build quality.

As always, choices and options is a good thing.

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[Nishy]

Great review thanks @Darkbulb

 

[slantman]

As always a great write up and beautiful pictures. Thank you. I should be getting mine soon. If I find the razor too mild and not efficient enough for my taste will probably sell it. But I don't want to jump the gun. I have two very aggressive Charcoal Goods razors so it might be like night and day.

 

[celestino]

Thank you for your impressions and photos.

 

[bakerbarber]

Interesting.

Looks very refined and well finished. Not the most intriguing handle design. I'm surprised at the price frankly, but being hand polished I can understand the labor involved to achieve the final finish.

The drain holes seem set back a bit too far from the edge. I wonder how much that really matters in the long run though. Muhle's new razors don't have any holes at all. For those of us that shave in the shower it doesn't make much of a difference.

The weight is not what I expected after seeing it. It seems as though it ought to weigh more. Nice final weight for sure.

I can't help but do a double take of the side view. Reminds me a lot of what the ATT razors look like.
It's a cross between an ATT and a Barbaros.

For the price, and whatever shipping is on top, I would have loved to have seen a different handle. Part of what I like about the Barbaros is the great looking handle. I appreciate function built items, but at this price I think it deserves something more than subtle finish improvements to stand out from the $12 version.

I agree that buying the head only ought to be a standard option now.

All in all a very attractive looking and appealing sounding razor to me. If I didn't have so many similar sounding and looking razors, (and the price was more attractive) I'd be much more excited here. I'd go for one of these before an AS-D2 or ATT M1 or R1 simply for the nice finish. If my choice was this or the Barbaros though I think I'd pick the Barbaros for the Helix handle. It would be a tough call though as this looks to have a superbly superior polished finish despite the ho hum handle. In the end I prefer the blade alignment solution Barbaros went with like Tradere or Pils or Triangle Techs. The round posts always seem to have more play for me.

Do the blade tabs hang out much?

 

[Darkbulb]

For the price, and whatever shipping is on top, I would have loved to have seen a different handle. Part of what I like about the Barbaros is the great looking handle. I appreciate function built items, but at this price I think it deserves something more than subtle finish improvements to stand out from the $12 version.

I agree that buying the head only ought to be a standard option now.

/.../

Do the blade tabs hang out much?

Including shipping to the US and whatever the x-rate was at the time of ordering the total came to about $194.
Yeah, with so many razors now in their product lines it doesn't make sense to always have to buy it with one of their handles. Hopefully their offerings will become more modular going forward. There will be a fresh batch arriving next week to Yourshaving. I wonder if there will be any difference in how they are being offered.

There is a slight overhang on the sides. I actually didn't notice it until tonight when I put a blade in to check so I guess it doesn't have any impact on the shave
You might be able to tell from this cropped section of a photo showing the razor with a loaded blade:

 

[Missoni]

Great review; thank you.