Henson AL13 vs Rockwell 6S
The two razors in this ledger that publish actual engineering, taking opposite positions on who should decide how aggressive your shave is.
By Sawyer V. · Published
We have not tested any of this. Everything below is compiled from published manufacturer specifications, and the arithmetic is printed so you can check it. This page carries affiliate links: if you buy through one we earn a commission at no extra cost to you, and it does not change the order of the picks. Full disclosure.
The short answer
Buy the Henson AL13 if razor burn is the problem you are solving. Henson fixes the blade angle at 30 degrees and machines to as tight as 12.7 micrometers, and at 37 grams it physically cannot be leaned on - the decision is made for you and it is made conservatively. Buy the Rockwell 6S if you do not yet know what your face wants. Three reversible plates give six published blade gaps from 0.008 to 0.031 inches, so you start mild, step up, and find the answer by experiment instead of by guesswork. Both publish the number nearly every other maker hides.
| # | Pick | Lasts | Score | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Henson AL13 Medium The lightest touch, machined to spec | 5,200 shaves* | 8.5/10 | $92.61 - view on Amazon |
| 2 | Rockwell 6S Dialing in your own aggression | 5,200 shaves* | 8.6/10 | $120.00 - view on Amazon |
Prices last verified October 19, 2026. They move constantly; the figure on Amazon when you click is the real one.
What each one publishes
| Henson AL13 Medium | Rockwell 6S | |
|---|---|---|
| Weight | 37 g | 118 g |
| Material | Aircraft aluminum, Type II anodized | 316L stainless steel |
| Made in | Canada (Ontario) | USA |
| Head | Fixed exposure, 30-degree blade angle | Adjustable, three reversible plates |
| Settings | One, fixed by model | 6 published blade gaps |
| Blade gap | Not published as a gap; machined to 12.7 um | 0.008 - 0.031 in, published |
| Blades included | Not published | 5 |
| Blade standard | Universal double-edge | Universal double-edge |
Two answers to the same question
Both makers are trying to solve the same thing - how much blade should meet your face - and they have taken opposite positions on who decides.
- Henson decides for you. The blade angle is fixed at 30 degrees, the exposure is set by which model you buy, and the machining tolerance is published because the whole argument is that consistency is what prevents irritation. You cannot adjust it and you are not supposed to want to.
- Rockwell hands you the dial. Six published gaps, swapped by changing a plate, so the razor covers the range from milder-than-most to genuinely aggressive. You find your setting by trying them.
If razor burn is the actual problem
Go with the Henson, and this is the clearest recommendation on the page.
Irritation at this level is usually caused by too much blade meeting skin at an inconsistent angle - and the AL13 removes both variables at once: the angle is fixed, and there is not enough mass to push with even if you tried. The trade is that you have to relearn your grip, and for about a week it will feel like the razor is not doing anything.
The 6S can get you to the same place by starting on R1, but it leaves you holding a dial you might fiddle with - the sensitive-skin roundup ranks the wider field on the same question, and the razor burn page puts the razor in its proper place on the list of causes, which is lower than most people expect.
If your beard is coarse or your results vary
Go with the Rockwell. A fixed mild razor on genuinely coarse growth means three passes where one should do, and three passes is its own kind of irritation.
The 6S is also the right call if more than one person will use the razor, or if your beard changes through the week - the plate swap takes seconds and costs nothing. The adjustable-versus-fixed comparison is the broader version of this decision, and the thick beard roundup covers the rest of the field.
Every pick, with the working
Each entry shows the published specifications, the axis scores they produce and what you give up. The order is the computed order, not a commercial one, and the arithmetic is open underneath every score.
Our pickThe lightest touch, machined to spec
Henson AL13 Medium
Henson's argument is that razor burn is an engineering problem, and it publishes the tolerances to back it: blade angle fixed at 30 degrees, machined to as tight as 12.7 micrometers at an aerospace facility in Ontario. At 37 grams it is by far the lightest razor here, which inverts the usual advice — you cannot let this one do the work, you have to let it float.
- Weight
- 37 g
- Length
- Not published
- Material
- Aircraft aluminum, Type II anodized
- Head
- Fixed exposure, 30-degree blade angle
- Blade gap
- Machined to as tight as 12.7 micrometers; exposure fixed by model
- Blades in the box
- 5
- Made in
- Canada (Ontario)
- Refill
- Universal standard
- Warranty
- Not published
- Assumed service life
- 5,200 uses
The arithmetic: 260 shaves a year x 20 years of assumed service life = 5200 shaves.
What it gets right
- Published machining tolerance of 12.7 micrometers and a fixed 30-degree blade angle, which nobody else in this ledger discloses
- 37 g aluminum body with a Type II anodized finish; nothing to chip or peel
- Five blades in the box
- Sold in Mild, Medium and Aggressive so the choice is made once, at purchase, rather than every morning
Flaws
- 37 g is very light, which removes the weight cue a cartridge user relies on
- The exposure level is fixed at purchase; changing your mind means another razor
- Aluminum will not feel like the heirloom object a stainless razor does
The working behind the 8.5
- How long it lasts: not scored
- Not scored. This is a durable item, not a consumable, so how long it lasts is an assumption about service life rather than something the pack size tells us.
- Ease of switching: 7.5
- Fixed geometry with a published 30-degree blade angle removes the angle guesswork (+), blades included (+), but 37 g is the lightest here and the razor's own mass supplies almost none of the pressure (-).
- Refill economics: 10.0
- The refill is a commodity standard that dozens of factories make, so the price is set by competition and no single maker can raise it.
- What the maker publishes: 8.6
- 6 of 7 specifications a buyer would expect are published: weightG, material, madeIn, headType, bladeGapNote, bladesIncluded. Not published: lengthMm. 6 / 7 x 10 = 8.6.
Axes with no published input are dropped and the remaining weights re-normalized, so a product is not punished for a category where an axis does not apply. Specifications compiled 3 September 2026 from Henson AL13 published specifications.
2Dialing in your own aggression
Rockwell 6S
The 6S is the one razor here that publishes the number everybody else hides. Three reversible plates give six blade gaps from 0.008 to 0.031 inches, so you can start on R1, find the setting your face tolerates, and never wonder whether the razor or your technique is the problem. It is 118 grams of 316L stainless and it ships with five blades.
- Weight
- 118 g
- Length
- 95 mm
- Material
- 316L stainless steel
- Head
- Adjustable, three reversible plates
- Blade gap
- 0.008 in to 0.031 in across R1-R6
- Blades in the box
- 5
- Length settings
- 6
- Made in
- USA
- Refill
- Universal standard
- Warranty
- Not published
- Assumed service life
- 5,200 uses
The arithmetic: 260 shaves a year x 20 years of assumed service life = 5200 shaves.
What it gets right
- Published blade gaps from 0.008 in to 0.031 in across six settings — the only razor in this ledger that discloses them
- 316L stainless, so there is no plating to wear through
- Five blades in the box; usable the day it arrives
- 118 g, the heaviest here, which suits a heavy beard and a light hand
Flaws
- Six settings is six chances to blame the razor instead of your angle in the first month
- Three loose plates are three things to keep track of
- Heaviest and largest of the group at 95 mm overall
The working behind the 8.6
- How long it lasts: not scored
- Not scored. This is a durable item, not a consumable, so how long it lasts is an assumption about service life rather than something the pack size tells us.
- Ease of switching: 7.0
- R1 plate is the mildest published gap in this ledger at 0.008 in (+), blades included (+), but six settings and three loose plates add decisions in exactly the month a new wet shaver has too many (-).
- Refill economics: 10.0
- The refill is a commodity standard that dozens of factories make, so the price is set by competition and no single maker can raise it.
- What the maker publishes: 10.0
- 7 of 7 specifications a buyer would expect are published: weightG, lengthMm, material, madeIn, headType, bladeGapNote, bladesIncluded. 7 / 7 x 10 = 10.0.
Axes with no published input are dropped and the remaining weights re-normalized, so a product is not punished for a category where an axis does not apply. Specifications compiled 3 September 2026 from Rockwell 6S published specifications (Fendrihan).
Prices last verified October 19, 2026. They move constantly; the figure on Amazon when you click is the real one.
Questions people actually ask
Who should buy which?
Henson AL13 - somebody with sensitive skin or a razor burn history who wants the aggression decision taken away from him, and somebody who is willing to relearn his grip. Rockwell 6S - somebody with a coarse or variable beard, or anybody who wants to isolate whether the razor or the technique is causing a problem. Also the better choice if more than one person will use it.
Is a 37 gram razor hard to use?
It is different rather than hard, and it inverts the standard advice. Every guide tells you to let the razor's weight do the work; the AL13 has almost no weight to lend, so you float it against the skin and let the fixed geometry set the depth. People coming from a heavy razor usually need a week. The technique guide covers the angle, which matters more here than on anything else in the ledger.
What is a blade gap and why does it matter?
It is the distance between the blade edge and the safety bar - the single figure that determines how much blade meets your skin, and therefore how aggressive the razor is. Almost nobody publishes it. Rockwell publishes six: 0.008, 0.013, 0.018, 0.023, 0.027 and 0.031 inches across three reversible plates. Henson takes a different route and publishes the fixed blade angle and the machining tolerance instead.
Can I just start the Rockwell on the mildest plate and leave it there?
Yes, and plenty of people do - R1 is milder than most fixed razors on the market. The adjustability costs you nothing if you never use it; you have simply bought the option. The practical case for the 6S over a fixed razor is exactly that: you can answer the "is it me or the razor" question in a week rather than by buying a second razor.
Which is better built?
Differently built. The 6S is 118 grams of 316L stainless made in the USA - the most corrosion-resistant metal in this ledger and the heaviest razor on this page. The AL13 is Type II anodized aircraft aluminum machined in Ontario to a published tolerance. Stainless is more durable; the aluminum is the reason the Henson can be as light as it is. Neither will fail.
Do either come with blades?
Rockwell publishes five blades in the box. Henson does not publish a blade count. Both take any standard double-edge blade, so the consumable is a commodity either way - the blade roundup covers which to try first.