Russian Tea is a spicy fragrance rather than the smoky fragrance I associate with Russian tea (the drink)—along the lines of Lapsang Souchong. But it’s a very pleasant fragrance (Strop Shoppe’s Russian Tea soap), and the lather I made with the Vie-Long horsehair brush was quite nice.
I’m using my iKon open-comb razor today. iKon razors differ from iKon Shavecraft razors in that the heads of the former are stainless steel and the heads of the latter are cast aluminum alloy. I believe that the head of the razor I used today is the same as the head of the current iKon open-comb head except the current head has a B1 coating.
I don’t have any razors with the B1 coating, but from all I’ve read, it’s an excellent coating: tough (doesn’t chip), durable (doesn’t wear), and looks good. I believe the reason for the coating is to avoid the “tea stains” that the regular iKon razors (and other stainless razors) sometimes experience with some brands of blades: small rust stains due to the blade’s interaction with the metal of the razor. It is pretty clear the fault of the blade and not the razor because the tea stains don’t occur with all brands of blades, and some brands are much worse than others. (I’m looking at you, Gillette Rubie.)
Customers naturally were dismayed to see rust stains on a stainless razor and tended to blame the razor rather than the blade (probably because the razor cost a lot more than the blade and so had to accept the responsibility). By using the B1 coating, the problem is finessed and everyone is happy.
I’m happy anyway. The brands of blades I use (goodbye, Gillette Rubie) seldom cause a problem, and the tea stains (if they occur) are easily removed by a little scrubbing and perhaps a pencil eraser.
And the iKon open-comb shaves extremely well. It is one of those razors that excel in both comfort and efficiency. Three passes, and a face totally smooth and nick-free.
A splash of Saint Charles Shave’s Woods aftershave, and I’m ready for my walk.
