Need For Speed

Considering the chatter every new $200 razor gets, don't you think someone -- anyone? -- would notice a new TTO that rivals the classic Super Speed in quality AND price? The Baili BD177 (179 in chrome) is big news, in my book. Maybe it's because I once used an inflation calculator to assess the real original cost of the classics. Guangzhou Weidi Commodity Co., Ltd. isn't a small machine shop, or a kickstarter project. The Chinese are actually in a position to fill the gigantic shoes of Gillette. The only question now is, how the products are received.

BD177 is nowhere near as gentle as my black-handled SS. I'd guess it's more like a red-tip, though I've never encountered one personally. Again Baili has wisely chosen a revered, not so easy to find design upon which to build. Beginners will fare somewhat better here, though I certainly don't think they are being catered to. (BT171 is still in the catalog.) It's technically easier to burn myself with a steep pitch bias, and no protection to adjust compared to the BD191. But I am not so easily fooled into doing so.

So far, Ruby's seat on the "modern" shelf is secure, because she never burns me. And I find the BD191 more intellectually stimulating. But this one's too pretty to go in the bucket.