This Is the Best Razor I’ve Ever Used—Save Big With This Sale

razor is one The most heavily and competitively marketed products in American capitalism. Made of steel and plastic, costing a few pennies but sold at a thousand percent profit, the razor market is the subject of vigorous academic study and debate.

Gillette’s founder originally came up with a model of offering razor handles so he could sell blades. Canadian startup Henson has the opposite model, charging $79 for a razor that can give you an excellent shave with a cheap disposable blade that costs about 15 cents.

I’ve been using the Henson razor for the past three months, and it provides the best shave I’ve ever had in my life. Right now, Walmart is selling a tool with enough blades to last you two years for just $80. Razors are always a popular Christmas gift for dads, and this deal will fit nicely under your tree.

Henson is a Canadian company with roots in aerospace, which has contributed components to the Mars rover. The AL13 Safety Razor is made from aluminum machined at their shop in Ontario. It comes in half a dozen colors, including the classic copper I tested.

The razor head consists of two parts that are joined together and then compressed using a screw-on handle. The handle holds the blade in place with utmost rigidity at a precise angle so that the blade does not snap around, which could cause skin irritation. The blade barely clings to the head, its edge only about half the width of a hair – you have to look very close to see it.

Henson razors are manufactured with precision tolerances of 0.00025 of an inch, or about one-twelfth the thickness of a human hair. There are no plastic parts, just aluminum with stainless steel bushings. Henson specifically designed its tools to work with the cheap, generic double-edged blades that sell for ten or 15 cents each – the difference here is how firmly and precisely those blades are held in place.

I’ve been using the Henson for about two months now and have never had a better shave. I shave about every other day, and each blade lasts me about a week, which means the 100-pack included here will last you two years. The shave is very close but smooth, and I’ve only scratched myself a few times in that period. (The company paid for medical imaging that showed its razors cause one-third of the skin irritation caused by multi-blade razors.) The company sent me its proprietary $20 shaving cream, which I somehow lost before I could use it, but I’ve gotten extremely crisp and clean shaves with a $4 can of regular Gillette foam.

One tip I have is that you get the best results if you unscrew the handle slightly when rinsing the blade between uses, as otherwise shaved hair gets stuck in the space between the components and does not come out easily.

Did I mention this is a gorgeous razor? It comes with a machined handle that looks great and also offers a good, gritty grip when wet. If you’re looking to gift a grooming device – or just pamper yourself – the Henson is a great buy at this price.