A very nice shave today, Fine all the way except for a comparison with the Holy Black’s slant. (I was criticized for comparing the Fine to the iKon stainless slant, a comparison that was requested. The Holy Black slant, at $40, is the production slant closest in price to the Fine slant, so I assume this comparison will be okay.)
First, though, the prep. I used my Fine Classic synthetic brush (and recently I saw a photo of this same brush with the silver knot, and it did look good) and Fine American Blend soap, for which I have purchased a jar, thanks to a suggestion in comments. The lather from Mr. Fine’s soap is quite good, and I worked it in well.
Initially I found the Holy Black slant to shave more comfortably, but then as I experimented with the shaving angle of the Fine slant I realized that I had been using too steep an angle: moving the handle a little further from my face made it feel much more comfortable and smoother shaving. So I finished the shave using just the Fine, playing with the angle. I could feel the change quite distinctly, and I somehow have a tendency to hold its handle too close to my face: it would drift back, the blade feel would increase, then I’d move it away to increase the comfort and smoothness of cutting. So you do have to experiment. (Not exactly breaking news, but in using razors that one’s familiar with, he can forget that new razors demand experimentation, and experimentation beyond blade choice.)
A Fine shave indeed, and a splash of Fine’s American Blend finished the shave in Fine style.
Filed under: Shaving
