Blackland Blackbird - Finish Options

[BelfastBlade]

Hello folks,

I'm thinking about a Blackland Blackbird (well, either a Blackland, Timeless.. or a Lambda. I still haven't decided!) I was just wondering what people's thoughts are on their finishes and if there are any pros or cons to each one.

I see they actually have three finish options for stainless steel now.

Machined - Which I assume is just the metal surface left mostly untouched after machining.. maybe showing some little machining marks and so on. Little grinds, swirls from the lathe or whatever they use.

Polished - As the name indicates a professionally polished/high shine finish.. hand polished giving a mirrored finish. It costs more than machined or satin.

Satin - This seems to be a relatively new option. I guess it is given like a matte finish. Maybe something like Tatara where I believe the parts are sandblasted.

Machined and Satin are both work out at the same price however the polished option costs about £40-ish more.

Are there any pros or cons to these finishes? Which seems to be the most common/most liked on here? I'd seen some talk about drag on some.. not sure which, I think in the posts I read most people thought the polished worked best for them.. on the other hand, maybe some finishes will look better for longer. I don't know how the polished would hold up in the long run.. maybe makes minor wear and tear etc more visible?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Many thanks!

By the way, I'd thought about the new Osprey but I'd watched some reviews and I'm not so sure right now. It looks lovely but I think maybe the Blackbird with both combs both the SB and the OC might be a nice choice and a bit less expensive too. There's currently a November sale on with 20% (I think) off.. still should have plenty of time, I think it runs until the 30th. I think now is as good a time as ever to order one. I availed of the Halloween Tatara sale for my Muramasa and got a good deal so I'll maybe get Blackland with this one.

The only other thing you have to choose apart from the finish and base plate choice is the handle length. You can get standard or long and I pretty much always opt for regular length handle so I'll probably choose standard.

 

[Island]

I haven't found drag on the blackbird satin finish. I have a polished timeless titanium razor and it looks prettier but the finishing has no functional importance.

 

[DesertIguana]

I do not like Machine Finish, in my world it is unfinished.

 

[BelfastBlade]

Thanks for the posts, guys!

I've another 9 days to try and make my mind up as the sale runs to the 30th. Currently I think I'm leaning towards the Polished but I've never actually had a polished stainless razor before so I dunno if there's any pros or cons over machines or satin or if it's merely aesthetics at this point. I wonder would the high polished surface be drag more than the satin or maybe pick up scratches more.. or at least make them more noticeable.

I'm definitely leaning for a Blackland over Timeless now quite simply as there are so many options with Timeless I can't make my mind up on everything. Solid bar or open comb, which blade gaps, scalloped non scalloped cap, scalloped or non scalloped base plate, which finish, which handle. It's just too much trying to choose the "right" option on everything.

At least with the Blackbird it's just a matter of choosing solid bar, open comb or both and then simply choosing your finish. Admittedly there is a extra long handle option but I always go with standard handle anyways.

But on the Blackland finishes.. I do have a Rex Ambassador in the Standard Stainless finish.. I like that.. I'm assuming it hasn't much done to it and would it'd probably be like Blackland's machined or possibly satin. I really don't know. The Tatara have sort of a matte finish which I believe is sandblasted, presumably like Blackland's satin.

I'll try find some more info around the boards. Sorry for these questions it's just it's quite a big purchase for me so I'm trying to get it right! I hope it's understandable.

Best wishes,

 

[DesertIguana]

I was at Razor Enpourium not long ago, they had a Machine Finished Razor that owner want Gold plated.

Well the high gloss plating on magnified the machine marks.

Apparently custom did not like, Razor was for sale.

 

[Billhanna]

I’d rank them Polished, Machined, then Satin; from an aesthetic point of view. And even then, with SS it’s a toss up between polished and machined. The machine marks have an interesting look that I like.

For the Brassbird, it’s polished all the way just to get that beautiful patina. It darkens to a kind of butterscotch, in my eyes. I don’t like the feel of the satin. As soon as I acquire all three plates, I’m sending them to Back Roads Gold for polishing.

 

[IdLatherShave]

My Blackbird is as machined and I prefer that finish. Only 2 polished razors I have are the Dart and Tradere, they look great but with wet/soapy hands the polished surface can get slippery. The Blackbird lines/groves on the handle of my as machined provide good grip, more than I expected from the photos I saw.

 

[Blackland Razors]

Apart from aesthetics, which is personal preference, here are the maintenance pros/cons of each. There are no discernible performance differences between the finishes that we have found via testing.

Machined:

• Pro: Tough to scratch. Dings and scuffs don't show readily. Robust and easy to keep looking good.
• Con: If the finish does get scratched, you can't fix it while keeping the machined finish. You would have to covert it to another finish.

Satin:

• Pro: A robust, consistent finish. Scratches are hidden easily. Can be restored (multiple times, if needed) if there are scratches or light damage.
• Con: Less visually interesting than the other two finishes.

Polished:

• Pro: Can be easily polished again and again to remove light scuffs and scratches.
• Con: Scratches show immediately, especially on the flat surfaces. It's a pretty vulnerable finish.

 

[Ugmug]

I've used a Blackbird in every finish and I liked the look of the polished the most (by a hair), but I prefer the feel of the satin and machined finish in hand. The non-shiny handles are just more tactile. While I never dropped it, the polished handle was harder to hold onto with soapy fingers. The shaves were identical between the three for me. Unlike some, I quite like the machined finish as well.

 

[thombrogan]

I got a from-parts Blackird from @Officers Match with a polished handle and baseplate and machine finished cap.

Over the months, the cap has traveled with me to the creepy part of the basement where I wore my respirator and goggles and used a felt wheel loaded with chromium oxide and wax and slowly proved I’m not as good as Blackland’s polishers even with no deadline.

Factory polished handle is secure in use and the factory polished open comb baseplate was just what the doctor ordered when shaving at a steep angle. My garbo finish on the cap feels lux when used shallow and probably felt better before I slowly eroded the finished surfaces.

 

[AlphaFrank75]

For me, satin is a non-starter. I had a satin BB Ti. Never really liked it so I moved it on and picked up a polished Ti. I also have a machined finished Vector and I love this finish on this razor and would not want a polished version, maybe. When it comes to pricing, if my budget wasn't big enough for a polished version, I'd be perfectly happy with a machined finished. It's too bad there's not a machined finish for the BB Ti. I don't worry about scratches or dings because I don't have a clue how you get either just shaving.

 

[RAD patient]

Apart from aesthetics, which is personal preference, here are the maintenance pros/cons of each. There are no discernible performance differences between the finishes that we have found via testing.

Machined:

• Pro: Tough to scratch. Dings and scuffs don't show readily. Robust and easy to keep looking good.
• Con: If the finish does get scratched, you can't fix it while keeping the machined finish. You would have to covert it to another finish.

Satin:

• Pro: A robust, consistent finish. Scratches are hidden easily. Can be restored (multiple times, if needed) if there are scratches or light damage.
• Con: Less visually interesting than the other two finishes.

Polished:

• Pro: Can be easily polished again and again to remove light scuffs and scratches.
• Con: Scratches show immediately, especially on the flat surfaces. It's a pretty vulnerable finish.

Pictures say more than ....

 

[RAD patient]

Joking aside, I would love the blackbird in satin. Seems to be made of unobtanium here in Europe..

 

[Blackland Razors]

Joking aside, I would love the blackbird in satin. Seems to be made of unobtanium here in Europe..

It’s brand new so it’s pretty rare everywhere.

 

[RAD patient]

It’s brand new so it’s pretty rare everywhere.

Ah, thanks. Of all the new expensive razors that are on this forum yours is the only one that has actually peeked my interest.
Don't know where I could buy one in Europe and maybe that's all the better for my bank account.
Thanks for your reply!

 

[Blackland Razors]

Ah, thanks. Of all the new expensive razors that are on this forum yours is the only one that has actually peeked my interest.
Don't know where I could buy one in Europe and maybe that's all the better for my bank account.
Thanks for your reply!

We don't sell our products via retailers or third parties, but we ship worldwide every day and can help reduce international costs. Shoot an email to [email protected] if you have any questions!

 

[Mr Konrad Dundee]

Hello folks,

I'm thinking about a Blackland Blackbird (well, either a Blackland, Timeless.. or a Lambda. I still haven't decided!) I was just wondering what people's thoughts are on their finishes and if there are any pros or cons to each one.

I see they actually have three finish options for stainless steel now.

Machined - Which I assume is just the metal surface left mostly untouched after machining.. maybe showing some little machining marks and so on. Little grinds, swirls from the lathe or whatever they use.

Polished - As the name indicates a professionally polished/high shine finish.. hand polished giving a mirrored finish. It costs more than machined or satin.

Satin - This seems to be a relatively new option. I guess it is given like a matte finish. Maybe something like Tatara where I believe the parts are sandblasted.

Machined and Satin are both work out at the same price however the polished option costs about £40-ish more.

Are there any pros or cons to these finishes? Which seems to be the most common/most liked on here? I'd seen some talk about drag on some.. not sure which, I think in the posts I read most people thought the polished worked best for them.. on the other hand, maybe some finishes will look better for longer. I don't know how the polished would hold up in the long run.. maybe makes minor wear and tear etc more visible?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Many thanks!

By the way, I'd thought about the new Osprey but I'd watched some reviews and I'm not so sure right now. It looks lovely but I think maybe the Blackbird with both combs both the SB and the OC might be a nice choice and a bit less expensive too. There's currently a November sale on with 20% (I think) off.. still should have plenty of time, I think it runs until the 30th. I think now is as good a time as ever to order one. I availed of the Halloween Tatara sale for my Muramasa and got a good deal so I'll maybe get Blackland with this one.

The only other thing you have to choose apart from the finish and base plate choice is the handle length. You can get standard or long and I pretty much always opt for regular length handle so I'll probably choose standard.

Just think, as much as I like the Blackbird, I have 2 of them
Polished steel and brass
The differences in shaving are imperceptible, if you have difficulties with the razor it depends on your use not on the finish

 

[muzichead]

I own the Ti Blackbird in the standard machine finish which is my favorite. Although I like the look of the satin finish, its just not that appealing in person to me and very dark. I once owned 2 Timeless Ti95DC razors in the machined and high polished version and 2 things stood out for me with those, the 1st was there was absolutely no difference in the shave at all and never experienced any drag at all and 2nd, more importantly, the polished showed every slightest scratch or blem immediately and even after I polished the razor and drove my OCD absolutely crazy!! You couldn't give me a polished razor!!

 

[lasta]

I do not like Machine Finish, in my world it is unfinished.

I completely agree with this!

All razors should be shiny and the relative advantage of one razor over another is how well it is polished while still staying in spec.

I'm not a fan of the bead blasted/matte look. RazoRock's chemical polishing + light buffing is a better option for a minimally destructive finish. At least it looks almost shiny.

Straight off the lathe shouldn't leave the factory！

 

[Iridian]

Straight off the lathe shouldn't leave the factory！

Hm yes, I quite agree with that, but have you seen a Yates 921 in machined? That head is flawless. They use the same CNC machinery as Timeless, they seem to sell more machined and bead blasted versions than polished. Sure, polished is nicer to look at, but the Yates finish in machined is up to par with Razorock if not even better.
I don't know about Blackland, my Bird is polished.