A couple of comparisons, and we’ll do brushes first. I like a knot that is soft and fluffy because (a) it feels better on my face (personal preference) and (b) it makes lather at least as efficiently as a stiffer, denser knot—e.g., deeper set, shorter loft—(objective fact). So I worked up an instant good lather from Strop Shoppe’s Barbershop Special Edition soap. I was ruminating on Wicked_Edge that, really, with the latest generation of artisanal soaps, we’ve never had it so good: absolutely first rate soaps, better than almost all commercial shaving soaps (certainly Creed makes a good shaving soap—but at 5 times the price).
The Barbershop fragrance is very pleasant, and the lather was wonderful. Now to the brushes:
The Omega S-Series Beehive model did the usual excellent job, and felt very nice on my face—but it could not match the feel of the Omega silvertip badger. Now that Omega is one of the fluffiest, nicest badger knots I have, so it may be an unfair contest: the caress of the fully loaded badger brush is unmatched. I think this one was not so expensive at the time ($45-$55 range). For daily use the S-Series is great, and probably if I didn’t have the side-by-side comparison I would just say that both brushes are quite good. But side by side? The badger clearly is better. For me.
Next, the shave. I used two different iKon razors:
The one on the left is the iKon Shavecraft #101, made of cast aluminum. It’s an asymmetrical brush, but the look and feel is that of an open-comb. The one on the right is the iKon matte stainless open comb. Currently this head seems to be available only with the B1 coating. I believe it’s the same underlying head design. Both razors reflected excellent fit, finish, and workmanship: these are top quality razors (as, given the price, they should be: $80 for the #101 and $135 for the open comb with B1 coating).
iKon runs through models pretty rapidly, and some of my treasured iKons from the past seem unlikely to return (the S3S, for example). This particular plain stainless open-comb iKon may yet return, though, and I note that the OSS—his very first asymmetric razor—is still going strong.
Both open combs were extremely comfortable (i.e., felt as though they would not nick and lived up to that) and extremely efficient (completely BBS after 3 passes). I would say that for me, I like the plain stainless open comb a little better, but really, they were very close in feel and performance. Blade was a Personna Lab Blue in the #101, a Kai in the open comb, both blades previously used.
So: clear winner in the brush category (though even the second-place finisher, the S-Series brush, is really excellent and cannot be beat at the price), pretty much a tie in the razor category.
A good splash of Chiseled Face East Street aftershave finished the job. Again, too much menthol for my taste, but I like the fragrance. I’ll have to check to see whether he offers non-mentholated aftershaves.
Filed under: Shaving
