Yaqi Telstar 316 Safety Razor Head Review

Since I needed another razor for my rotary razor shaving system, I bought the Yaqi Telstar 316 head.

It seems I did everything right: I earned money, looked for a razor, read customer reviews on sites, paid, and waited patiently.

I was guided by customer reviews and I don’t know what kind of mutants write reviews on heads and razors, but the reader might have noticed that I receive heads and razors that are exclusively so soft that I can’t shave the stubble under my cheekbones (the exception is Dscosmetic DS-Z0 и Muehle Rocco).

Anyone who enjoys classic wet shaving knows how much they eagerly await the arrival of their package and their first shave with a new razor / head.

As is typical for Yaqi, the head comes in a cardboard box (but can also come wrapped in paper). The manufacturer designated the SKU as SRH044. On Aliexpress, the shaving head is simply labeled as Yaqi Telstar 316. The number 316 denotes machines made from 316 stainless steel, which is suitable for marine applications.

The head is sold without a finish, it is not polished or sandblasted, and it does not have any coating.

This is considered good form, since the geometry is not violated, however, this fact does not prevent the Yaqi company itself from polishing or otherwise processing its heads and handles of other nomenclature.

Also, according to the developers, due to the fact that the internal surfaces are not polished, the blade contact area is increased, which reduces vibration during shaving.

This particular example has minimal milling cutter marks and a beautiful pattern. This is likely why the Yaqi Telstar head is so expensive compared to other Chinese heads.

This photo shows that the comb has significant, rough marks from handling. This results in the head glide being extremely poor—it literally bounces around in the lather, making a pressure-free shave impossible.

Craftsmen polish the surface of the comb themselves to make shaving possible.

As usual, YAQI places its logo on the end of the head, citing the fact that engraving or pressure when creating a logo and other information on the bottom plate leads to its deformation.

The bottom plate has extensive foam outlets.

The dimensions of the head are: length: 43.5 mm, width: 24.5 mm.

Weight: 41 grams.

The protruding strips ensure that the blade is securely fixed, and the through slots in the bottom plate make it easier to clean the head after use.

The guides do not have a through projection through the bottom plate.

The blade ears do not protrude from the shaving head, which reduces the risk of injury when shaving, especially blind, without a mirror.

The head has a large gap of 1.15 mm, but the blade extension is short. While the large contact area and short blade extension minimize blade vibration, making it comfortable and non-invasive, this also makes the head ineffective.

First, I used the Rapira Super Stanless blade and still couldn't shave my cheekbones. While the shave is comfortable, I'd like to shave as comfortably and effectively as with the Muehle Rocco.

I was furious. Having another useless razor head was not in my plans.

And only after I installed the Feather blade, the head began to play in a completely different way - it began to shave delicately and effectively.

Of course, this head cannot replace a Rocco clone, and even less the original from Muehle, but given a meager budget, it is quite good.