As of October 2016, all of our stainless steel OneBlade Razor units (including our limited edition gunmetal grey set) have incorporated two updates, specifically related to the tooling of our quick load blade system along with the stainless steel alloy used in our razor head parts. 

Before I dive into the details, I want to reiterate that these were general refinements to the original razor design and not core changes. The OneBlade team consists of engineers, industrial designers, and shaving enthusiasts... and therefore we'll always be looking for ways to innovate and improve upon the groundbreaking design of our original razor model if that means an ultimately better shaving experience. 

Now, let's get to the specifics...

Update #1: Incorporating an “Active Floating Blade Approach System”

The main finding from our latest round of R & D was that by changing our blade latching system from our original design whereby the blade, once latched into place, was restricted from moving in any direction relative to the razor — to a completely opposite design approach whereby the blade, once latched, is still able to move in all three dimensions (side to side, up and down, back and forth)— could equate to an overall improved shaving experience.

Achieving this motion allowance meant that we had to figure out how to not only allow the blade to float in all three dimensions but to simultaneously ensure that the relationship between the critical measures of blade angle, blade exposure, and blade gap were consistently maintained (in harmony) throughout the shaving experience.

Ultimately we were successful in our goal by slightly expanding the blade insertion area and by adding a longitudinal pivot point approximately half way back from the cutting edge of the blade which allows the blade edge to rock up and down during the shaving process.

This innovation is the creation of our patent-pending “Active Floating Blade Approach System” (AFBAS).

Through user-testing, we found that AFBAS affected a significant increase in the comfort and the effectiveness of the shaving experience with our OneBlade Razor, including a significant improvement in the ‘Forgiveness’ aspect of our razor.  So, in addition to the extraordinary ‘Forgiveness’ that comes from the pivoting head design of our razor, our AFBAS innovation gives us substantially increased ability to overcome many of the typical user errors as well as deal with the extreme differences in skin topography and skin types of our users.  We know that the comfort level experienced during shaving along with being able to avoid nicks or cuts are key drivers in overall customer satisfaction.

In essence, we have increased the mildness of our razor while increasing the efficiency and closeness of the shave - no other single edge or double edge razor can make this claim

Update #2: Updating Razor Head Parts to PANACEA Stainless Steel (Previously 316L)

Using a relatively new metal alloy material called PANACEA from our German supplier of stainless steel (initial applications were limited to only the medical device industry), we have significantly enhanced the performance characteristics of our OneBlade Razor.

Feedback from our users drove us to find a way to dramatically increase the strength and hardness of the head parts of the razor to protect against accidental damage. In short, we had to attack the worst case scenario of a 4 – 5+ foot drop onto a hard surface like marble floor. Given the weight of our razor and the complexity of the tool design particularly in the head parts, we initially thought that any enhancement would be impossible until we learned about PANACEA.

For the OneBlade Razor "2.0", we have changed the head parts from using 316L stainless steel to PANACEA stainless steel - the technical information below explains the differences:

Mechanical Properties of PANACEA vs. 316L materials

 
* Yield strength is the most important measure to us as yield strength is the minimum stress under which a material deforms permanently. So, when our razor gets dropped, the risk of it bending/deforming is dramatically reduced as we increase the yield strength of the material. 

Material Composition Summary

As you can see by the following charts, the significant differences between 316L and PANACEA are the alloys used to make each material and the concentration of certain alloys. PANACEA is nickel free. PANACEA has the addition of 0.73% of the element Niobium* which significantly increases the strength of the alloy, 3X more carbon, and 6X more Manganese, increasing the strength, corrosion resistance and hardness as well as improving the surface finish qualities of parts made using this alloy.

* Niobium is used mostly in alloys, the largest part in special steel such as that used in gas pipelines. Although these alloys contain a maximum of 0.1%, even this small percentage of niobium enhances the strength of the steel. The temperature stability of niobium-containing superalloys is important for its use in jet and rocket engines.

Composition of 316 Material

Composition of PANACEA Material

Ultimately we could not be happier with the results of this most recent production run. And we have no plans at the moment to make any additional refinements to this signature razor design. 

Have questions about the updates? Feel free to shoot us a message at support@onebladeshave.com and we'd be happy to discuss this in more detail.

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Additional Recommended Reading:   
Inside Look: OneBlade GENESIS vs. CORE
Inside Look: The New "Black Tie" Shaving Kit  
We Sit Down with Mark from Sharpologist