Blackland Brotherhood (BB)

Discussion in 'Safety Razors' started by PLANofMAN, Dec 17, 2015.

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  1. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    I'll be trying a Russian blade in the Blackbird today. I'm not a huge fan of aggressive razors, and the BB pushes against the upper limit of my comfort level. Yesterday's shave was with a Personna Blue, which I probably should have passed on, at least initially. I know better than to pair an unfamiliar blade with an unfamiliar razor on it's first go.

    Since the Blue felt comparable to a Feather, I'm going to use a Voskhod to tone the razor down a little.

    Voskhod blades have always felt smooth, rather than sharp, to me. They tend to shine in aggressive razors, and perform so-so in milder razors.

    Okay, so the Voskhod did make a difference, and this shave, while a bit on the rushed side, was more comfortable than yesterday's shave.

    I'm still getting used to the Blackbird's strange...

    ...don't really know what to call it.

    Something about the geometry of the head design causes it to have a skin stretching effect. It pulls the skin tight as you shave, leaving one with an exceptionally close shave. Both times it rather felt like a layer of epidermis being peeled off, but zero sting and zero irritation to show for it. Not even a touch of redness.

    Quite a remarkable razor. Voskhod is definitely a good blade to pair with it.
     
    RyX, David Green, Troy M and 2 others like this.
  2. ShaneS

    ShaneS Well-Known Member

    Supporting Vendor
    Scott the Clean Shaver also had great success with Voskhods I believe. I've never used them.
     
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  3. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    They are Teflon coated, which doesn't make them all that different than the majority of other Russian PTFE coated blades. They are exceptionally smooth blades, but at the cost of sharpness, so some people find them rather dull feeling. Most people would probably find them a middle-of-the-road type blade, comparable to Wilkinson Sword or store branded Personna's.
     
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  4. 45auto

    45auto Well-Known Member

    This write up is done very well...thanks!
     
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  5. 45auto

    45auto Well-Known Member

  6. obturador

    obturador Active Member

    Yeah PoM is a wordsmith
     
  7. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    Well I am on the article team, so I have a reputation to live up to. :)

    Call me a failed writer, if you will. I wanted to be a novelist, until I found out how poor most of them are. I'd rather be a well paid welder than a starving artist.

    The forums offer an outlet for my creative energy, though I try to keep my writing factual rather than creative. ;)
     
  8. obturador

    obturador Active Member

    Keep honing them there skills with enough time and energy you could have your cake and eat it too.

    Write the great american shaving novel
     
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  9. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    Hah. I might write a book on wet shaving someday, but it would be more along the lines of "Leisureguy's guide to gourmet shaving," but more detailed and in-depth.

    When I retire...in 20 years. :D
     
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  10. rawfox1

    rawfox1 Well-Known Member

    Wonderful shaver, beautiful looking, be sure to use no pressure just the weight of the razor. My only complaint is I have the black version and I wished that it would have a little better glide on the face. It is a keeper and a must buy!
     
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  11. PickledNorthern

    PickledNorthern Fabulous, the unicorn

    Mine is currently being held hostage at our local post office.
     
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  12. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    I like the scent of the Blackbird shave soap, though I found it a bit one dimensional as far as scent. There's not a lot of complexity there. The lather was decent, but not slick enough (IMO), most shave soaps are not slick enough for my tastes. I gave it a boost with Kiss my Face unscented, and salvaged the shave and kept the scent.

    I think I've figured out why it feels so 'draggy,' for lack of a better word. The design of this razor puts quite a bit of it's real estate on the face. There's a lot of steel touching the face during the shave.

    On one hand, this makes finding the shaving angle quite easy, but on the other, it does generate some drag.

    If I could wish for one thing on this razor in a future redesign, it would be cutouts on the top cap, similar to those on the bar guard, to reduce drag.

    Anyways, finally did a trial run with the short handle. It ended up being less awkward than I thought it would be, but I prefer the balance of the long handle by just a smidgen. The short handle does seem to allow a bit more control and I was able to dial in the angle perfectly for this shave. Doing so seem to reduce the aggressiveness a tad, though that might also have been the fact that I was able to take my time today and use a lighter touch.

    Usually, by the third shave with a razor, I want to use something else, just to break the monotony of using a single razor. I am in fact looking forward to tomorrows shave with the Blackbird.

    There's just something about this razor that demands that I stop by my shave Den from time to time, just to fondle it. It's a very tactile razor in the hands, and has lots to feel.
     
    David Green, Troy M, DLP and 3 others like this.
  13. obturador

    obturador Active Member

    Last year ;) I used reefpoint soap which is super slick so I didn't really feel the resistance against my skin. I'm planning on soap commander tonight which is less slick. I'm curious to see if I experience the resistance.

    I think I'll be using the soap next week or maybe later as I want to reduce the variables as much as possible as I learn the razor... I learned that from a certain PLANofMAN.
     
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  14. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    As I learned from others here before me...

    I like the soap fine, it just doesn't provide enough slickness for me for this razor...my comment about "one dimensional" was not a negative...just an observation.
     
    Last edited: Jan 1, 2016
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  15. ajc347

    ajc347 Well-Known Member

    Following a fruitful discussion with Shane earlier tonight a long-handled brushed finish razor has been ordered and will be winging it's way to me in the next few weeks. I can't wait for it to arrive and would love to be added to the BBB if that's possible please. :)
     
  16. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    I think you'll really like your new razor...and I've added you to the list.
     
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  17. ajc347

    ajc347 Well-Known Member

    Thanks mate. :)
     
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  18. cmorris357

    cmorris357 catching flies.........

    I shaved with mine using a Gillette Yellow, and the Blackbird soap, and agree with Ryan on many of his observations. The soap, while easy to lather and pleasant smelling, is not slick enough for my taste. The Gillette Yellow was not a good choice for this razor either. The soap left my face feeling almost sticky instead of slick even though I added a good amount of water. The blade was a bit grabby in the razor too. The weight and balance of the razor ( I have the long handled version) was great, and the feel and grip were very nice too. I think with a smoother blade, perhaps Voskhod as Ryan said, along with a soap I'm more proficient with and I'll be very happy with the Blackbird. The shave I got was very close and lasting, just a little uncomfortable. I'll try out the new combination tomorrow.
     
    RyX, BeShaved, PLANofMAN and 2 others like this.
  19. Redfisher

    Redfisher Doesn't celebrate National Donut Day

    After reading everyone's posts about this razor I decided to order one! I went with the black long handle version. Should be here in a few days. I'm looking forward to it! What's even better I failed no buy 16 on day one :happy097: !
     
  20. DLP

    DLP Well-Known Member

    after a couple of shaves with the short handled version I'm liking the shorter handle. I don't usually like real long handles but most of my current handles sit in the 85-95mm range. I was a bit uncertain about the 70mm when I first saw the razor, but it actually is well balanced with the head if you tend to grip the handle close to the head anyway.
     
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