The Goodfellas’ Smile Shibumi Kamisori Shavette Review – Style over Substance
The Goodfellas' Smile Shibumi Kamisori Shavette
The Goodfellas’ Smile Shibumi Kamisori is a Japanese style (non folding handle) that’s a straight razor with a blade. This type of straight razor is known as a shavette which a user has to change its blades.
Pros
Great for touching and cleaning up around various areas
Good price
Looks good
Cons
Difficult to adjust to using (learning curve)
Blade insertion might be tricky at first
When you start getting into the shaving and beard culture, one of the ideas that looms not-too-subtly over every conversation and discussion is the feel of shaving with a straight razor.
Honestly, once you move on from canned shaving cream, grab yourself a good lather brush, and start using pre-shaves, the next step (if you aren’t married to safety razors) is to graduate to a high quality safety razor.
Unfortunately, straight razors are almost prohibitively expensive. Especially if you are looking for something that you don’t have to sharpen after every swipe down your face. They also require some skill to get used to.
There is a relatively new class of razors coming out that combines the cost efficiency of a safety razor and the style of a straight razor. That is known as the Shavette, and today, we’ve got one of those on the docket for review.
The Shavette up for review is the affordable Goodfellas’ Smile Shibumi Kamisori Shavette.
About the Brand
The Goodfellas’ Smile is an up and coming brand in the shaving world. Their catalog is mostly Shaving soaps, pre-shaves, and aftershaves made with some really innovative scents. They have recently gotten into the “hardware game” with this Shavette and an Open Comb Safety Razor.
The Goodfellas’ Smile is based in Northern Italy, as if that name would fool you. Their products are in their own words, focused on modern designs with traditional styles.
If you want my honest opinion, keep looking at this space while I try to convince my editor to let me review some of their other products.
What Do You Think About The Design?
So I will freely admit that I really like the way this item looks.
I have a natural affinity for traditional Japanese design. The elegant curves and teflon coated metal of this piece look sleek.
It’s smaller than I would have originally thought. Based on the pictures from the websites I grabbed this from, I did think it was going to be larger, but that is more a small gripe.
It fits the hand fine and does the job.
Handle
The handle looks like it would be a nicer wrap of something like paracord. However, the material it is wrapped in is something like a hard plastic. It almost looks like the handle is wrapped in twist ties. While this isn’t completely off-putting, it is very smooth and slick, but the moment it gets wet it feels like the razor will slip out of your hands.
Loading Mechanism (blade replacement)
The process for loading a razor is actually pretty easy. There is a metallic insert you can slide out to load a razor blade inside.
You break the razor in half while inside of the normal paper wrapping, then drop the half razor into a pair of hooks in the metal insert. From there, you just slide the insert back into the hollow blade housing.
If everything works correctly, you have a loaded shavette with an inexpensive disposable razor.
Which brings us to…
How Does The Shibumi Kamisori Shavette Perform?
It performs adequately. It will cut the hair on your face no question, but that isn’t the only thing it will cut.
Obviously learning to use a straight razor has a curve to it. However, a disposable razor does not make a high quality straight razor, even if you put it in a nice housing. Disposables are going to dull quicker and not even be as sharp when you start because of the steel in them. Even if you get the highest quality blades on the market, it’s not going to stand a candle to the sharpness and aggressiveness of a really straight razor blade.
Design Flaw
Shavette Razors are not completely new, but they seem to have one large design flaw as opposed to a full straight razor: the points of the blade are exposed while you shave.
I don’t know if you’ve ever seen a disposable razor, but those things have a serious point on them. There is a reason they are wrapped in wax paper when you get them. These things can and will carve the hell out of your skin if they catch on a wrinkle or a bump. That’s why when used in a safety razor, there is a lip or guard about 1/8th of an inch on the sides.
With this Shavette, those corners are exposed and if you will forgive my graphic retelling, if you are off by even a few centimeters, they will cut your face. The area for shaving is deceptively small on this thing, so it is very easy to mess up and accidentally drag that corner over your skin.
My first time using this thing left my face looking and feeling like I had gone on a hunting trip with Former US Vice President Dick Cheney. The second time a few days later was not so terrible, but there was still a major amount of blood and irritation.
How Easy Is This Shavette To Use?
Coming from the perspective of someone who is not totally practiced with straight razor use, there is a massive learning curve by nature of this beast’s design.
If you are practiced with using a straight razor, then there are very little new things to get used to, but even then there are still a few hiccups. There is the exposed point issue I brought up previously, but at the same time the actual space for shaving is much smaller.
A typical straight razor blade is between 7 and 9 centimeters in length, while an average disposable blade is about 43 mm. While it may not seem like much, that is a massive difference in size. It can take some serious getting used to know and remember where your razor dimensions are to keep from flaying your face.
Redemption Factor
There is a really good redeeming factor of this shavette that does really bear mentioning.
The small size of the blade is actually REALLY good at getting into places you might miss with a safety razor or a cartridge razor. Cleft chins, mustache area, the edges of a goatee, and even the sideburns are really awesome places to use this razor.
Because of the size and shape, you can easily get into the smaller parts of your face to touch up where you need to after a quick shave.
What Is The Price Point?
This here is one point that no one can really argue with. Honestly, this is a great price for a Shavette. The Shibumi Kamisori typically goes for about $20 USD plus shipping and handling. Most of the shavettes on the market typically run much more. Some even go as high as $270 USD!
This Shavette is pretty much a steal comparatively, and it is often on sale on West Coast Shaving. If you are looking for an excuse to try it, then you really cannot argue with this price. Though, I wouldn’t skimp when it comes to disposable razors.
Issues, Consumer Complaints, and Reviews
Most of the issues I have seen discussed in reviews (other than my own), is finding the right razor blade for this shavette. While the blades are pretty standard in America, in Europe there are more variations, and you sort of need to find the right ones to work.
In addition to that, there are some complaints about how the blades are inserted. While I like the way it works, it does take some trial and error to figure that out. During that trial and error there is a great deal of chances you can cut yourself.
Finally, there is a real problem with the blade being left exposed when you are done. The blade is not guarded like a safety razor or a cartridge razor. It also doesn’t fold away for easy protection. I put it in the same cup I keep my toothbrush in and accidentally ended up cutting myself on the exposed blade. While that probably wasn’t the smartest decision, it was still something that could happen to anyone who isn’t careful or in a hurry.
Final Thoughts – Who is The Goodfellas’ Smile Shibumi Kamisori Shavette?
Overall I would say that while this product looks really cool and slick, it lacks in the function department. It would be nice if it could fully replace a razor, it only really excels in simple touch ups after a full on shave.
Over time you could get used to it and make it your main razor, but that would require getting time to really practice with it and get used to its many quirks. While really a simple safety razor could do the same job in much less time.
I would pick this one up if you are just semi-interested in the brand or style. The price is really great for just demoing it on your own. If you are seriously looking for a shavette to invest in though, I would say save your money.
It does look really cool though, I will give it that.
– Related: Best Shavettes for 2023 – Our Top 10 Choices on the Market
