New Razor Recommendations

[muzichead]

Could be but it really isn't the blade feel that is the problem for me. I just don't find the razor to be very efficient gong ATG.

For example, I get the results I am looking for consistently, and with minimal fuss, with the Rockwell... I just have to rely on muscle memory, audible feedback and faith to get me there. So in essence I really don't have an issue with that razor at all in terms of the results (on plate 5/6) I'm just left wanting more feel.

With the BB I get all the feel I could possibly want, and I enjoy the feeling. The problem I'm having is that once I'm on my second pass, going ATG, I find the razor less effective, despite feeling more aggressive. As a result I find I'm doing more work and feeling more skipping, pulling, biting, chattering as I chase that BBS.

So it may not be the razor for me, or, as others have suggested, I may not have figured it out yet.

Going back to the Rockwell at this point is a jarring experience, where I once longed for more feel, I go back now and can't feel anything at all: it's like a ghost shave... I can totally understand why people love that razor, but it's just too mild for me... It certainly gets the job done though.

After some of the comments here I'm hopefull the BB will start to click.

Does this make sense? I think if I were to get the BB lite plate I'd just be giving up some feel, but I can't imagine it is more efficient than the regular plate?

Sorry for the long winded answer, I should probably just work on my technique! =)

First off, not all razors are meant for everyone so don't feel bad if you find ultimately the BB doesn't work out in the end...

My suggestion at first was to ask if you've considered the Lite plate? You won't be giving up much blade feel from what I understand as its designed with a smaller gap to be more comfortable overall. Besides it does carry the same 30 day warranty that everything else Blackland does and overall would probably be the cheapest alternative.

Then was thinking about angle, when I started with mine almost 3yrs ago it seemed most used a steep angle and for a brief moment that worked but was short lived and results were lagging so I made the switch to shallow and just like earlier it clicked but then it didn't and wasn't until I saw Shane's video and read a few posts from him that I found the natural angle built into the top cap was what made the shave perfect for me. The only thing I would add that I've found is I find the Blackbird very blade dependent in that blades that used to work for me in other razors haven't worked for me in the Ti Blackbird. The blades I find that work best for me in the Ti Blackbird are Perma-Sharp, Shark SS, Shark Platinum, Silver Star, and Lab Blue CC's...

Anyway, I wish you luck and hope you find what will work best for you...

eta... In the almost 3yrs I've had my Ti Blackbird I've never experienced any type of blade chatter at all but I have had the razor skip on my neck that made me think it was possible until I realized the razor was skipping... I learned to slow down some and that went away!!

 

[GalacticBlades]

Here’s what helped transform the Blackbird into my best-shaving DE:

Thank you. I am going to play with this a bit. I feel like I am doing as you say here but I am probably not.

For me it "feels" like the sweet spot is just a little more shallow than what I was used to with the Rockwell but not a ride the cap type experience. This seems to align with your recommendation.

However, after reading your reply carefully I've realised that I am naturally orienting the razor towards the angle where I feel the most blade and this may not be most optimal angle to shave at, particularly if I'm getting alot of tugging and stuttering ATG.

Maybe my technique ATG is just ****! lol.

Seriously though, I am going to try and focus more on your advice here. Thanks!

 

[Phoenixkh]

Thanks for your reply. I hope you are right as I'd love to make it work. First pass, going WTG it feels like a vacuum cleaner. I just struggle going the other way. I do understand the skipping sensation you are talking about, and I do get some tugging and pulling, which can be mitigated somewhat by blade choice, but then I can easily get into nick territory.

They say 50 million Elvis fans can't be wrong, and I am certainly the outlier here in my experience. I'm glad to hear it took you a while to click with the BB, that makes me feel like there is still hope for me and my bird too!

Thanks!

I don’t know if you intended to include a John Prine lyric in your post but I enjoyed it nonetheless. <eg> evil grin

 

[nav]

Maybe @nav will chime in with his technique using the Blackbird. He has that dense Indian beard growth and has mentioned he's very sensitive to blade chatter but the BB is currently his favorite razor.

I've grown to love the BB recently but it took me a while. I used to get a strange skipping sensation (not chatter) going ATG from under my jawline. I started trying a bullfrog (puffing out my cheek) while simultaneously skin stretching down from my upper neck. Works like a charm for me. The Bird has moved into Top 3 status and gives me super close shaves. For me, the BB is the textbook definition of efficiency.

Plenty of other razors that use clamping vs bend to get blade rigidity.
Lupo, Karve, Gamechanger, Wolfman, Salient, Blutt, etc.

A Lupo 95 might give you the feeling you're after as there's blade feel and it's a very intuitive razor. I don't get much blade feel from the Blackbird just to show you how our perceptions can vary. I find it smooth as butter compared to my Wolfman WR1 .74
You just have to find what works for you. I wouldn't give up on the BB prematurely though, I had real eureka moment with mine.

cheers

I use the blackbird with just a hint of shallow angle.

Nothing like an actual shallow razor like karve CB for example, but only just slightly shallow.

Reason being that the huge exposure on the blackbird increases the scraping feel of the blade if it gets a little steep, which feels more rough than other razors that have smaller exposure.

For years I thought the blackbird would be a very chatter prone razor as it has minimal clamping but the blade bend and the smaller blade show combine to prevent blade chatter so even on my toughest spots where most other razors fail, the blackbird excels.

It really is a marvelous razor!!

 

[GalacticBlades]

First off, not all razors are meant for everyone so don't feel bad if you find ultimately the BB doesn't work out in the end...

My suggestion at first was to ask if you've considered the Lite plate? You won't be giving up much blade feel from what I understand as its designed with a smaller gap to be more comfortable overall. Besides it does carry the same 30 day warranty that everything else Blackland does and overall would probably be the cheapest alternative.

Then was thinking about angle, when I started with mine almost 3yrs ago it seemed most used a steep angle and for a brief moment that worked but was short lived and results were lagging so I made the switch to shallow and just like earlier it clicked but then it didn't and wasn't until I saw Shane's video and read a few posts from him that I found the natural angle built into the top cap was what made the shave perfect for me. The only thing I would add that I've found is I find the Blackbird very blade dependent in that blades that used to work for me in other razors haven't worked for me in the Ti Blackbird. The blades I find that work best for me in the Ti Blackbird are Perma-Sharp, Shark SS, Shark Platinum, Silver Star, and Lab Blue CC's...

Anyway, I wish you luck and hope you find what will work best for you...

eta... In the almost 3yrs I've had my Ti Blackbird I've never experienced any type of blade chatter at all but I have had the razor skip on my neck that made me think it was possible until I realized the razor was skipping... I learned to slow down some and that went away!!

Thanks. I've been using an angle that is a little shallower than what I'm used to with the Rockwell, but I'm starting to think that perhaps I'm not aligned quite shallow enough and that is why the shave is a little off.

I did try feathers the other day and much of the stuttering and tugging went away but at the expense of quite a few little micro weepers.

Yep. The Red Tip and Slim are two of my go to razors. The Gillett Super Adjustable ( Black Beauty) is supposedly the most aggressive of the Gillette adjustables and can be had without breaking the bank.

A Black Beauty was just sold in my local marketplace... I didn't jump on it because I had never heard of it.

I use the blackbird with just a hint of shallow angle.

Nothing like an actual shallow razor like karve CB for example, but only just slightly shallow.

Reason being that the huge exposure on the blackbird increases the scraping feel of the blade if it gets a little steep, which feels more rough than other razors that have smaller exposure.

For years I thought the blackbird would be a very chatter prone razor as it has minimal clamping but the blade bend and the smaller blade show combine to prevent blade chatter so even on my toughest spots where most other razors fail, the blackbird excels.

It really is a marvelous razor!!

Well, I read everyone's replies and, apart from the suggestions for a razor (thank you!), quite a few of you mentioned your "learning curve" with the BB. Specifically, the word "shallow" came up so much that I started to wonder if I was indeed shaving more shallow than normal at all.

So last night, standing upon your great wisdom, I had a little shave. I loaded the Blackbird with a brand new blade and proceeded to ride the cap the freedom.

Now I understand that it was never suggested that this is a "ride the cap" type razor. But I did realize, reading through your comments, that I'm generally shaving much more steep than I realize, and that adjusting that steep angle to be more shallow is likely still leaving me shaving steep.

Moreover, I realized that I have no idea what "riding the cap" feels like, and if I am going to train myself to shave with a more shallow angle, I should probably start there, get a feel for that, and then gradually more steeper rather than starting from where my muscle memory would have me go.

I noticed the following things:

1. It was hard! My brain kept trying to pull me back into my habits (duh!!)
2. The razor, at a more shallow angle, is much more "smooth" for lack of a better word, without losing it's feel altogether.
3. It was indeed more efficient for me, I got a near BBS on a quick 2 pass shave where I was more concerned about time than the smoothness of my face. I guess the most efficient angle is not the angle that maximizes blade feel, which is where my hands intuitively went.
4. I was left with the impression that, as I learn the razor, I will be able to sorta lean in to how aggressive I want the shave to be by starting shallow and adjusting my angle.

All in all, I have more work to do; I don't think I have figured this beast out yet but I sure do feel much more hopeful about our future together than I did yesterday!

So thank you all for your comments and for sharing your experiences.

 

[gdawg55]

Thanks. I've been using an angle that is a little shallower than what I'm used to with the Rockwell, but I'm starting to think that perhaps I'm not aligned quite shallow enough and that is why the shave is a little off.

I did try feathers the other day and much of the stuttering and tugging went away but at the expense of quite a few little micro weepers.

A Black Beauty was just sold in my local marketplace... I didn't jump on it because I had never heard of it.

Well, I read everyone's replies and, apart from the suggestions for a razor (thank you!), quite a few of you mentioned your "learning curve" with the BB. Specifically, the word "shallow" came up so much that I started to wonder if I was indeed shaving more shallow than normal at all.

So last night, standing upon your great wisdom, I had a little shave. I loaded the Blackbird with a brand new blade and proceeded to ride the cap the freedom.

Now I understand that it was never suggested that this is a "ride the cap" type razor. But I did realize, reading through your comments, that I'm generally shaving much more steep than I realize, and that adjusting that steep angle to be more shallow is likely still leaving me shaving steep.

Moreover, I realized that I have no idea what "riding the cap" feels like, and if I am going to train myself to shave with a more shallow angle, I should probably start there, get a feel for that, and then gradually more steeper rather than starting from where my muscle memory would have me go.

I noticed the following things:

1. It was hard! My brain kept trying to pull me back into my habits (duh!!)
2. The razor, at a more shallow angle, is much more "smooth" for lack of a better word, without losing it's feel altogether.
3. It was indeed more efficient for me, I got a near BBS on a quick 2 pass shave where I was more concerned about time than the smoothness of my face. I guess the most efficient angle is not the angle that maximizes blade feel, which is where my hands intuitively went.
4. I was left with the impression that, as I learn the razor, I will be able to sorta lean in to how aggressive I want the shave to be by starting shallow and adjusting my angle.

All in all, I have more work to do; I don't think I have figured this beast out yet but I sure do feel much more hopeful about our future together than I did yesterday!

So thank you all for your comments and for sharing your experiences.

Nice. I find with the BB the angle of the top cap kind of sets the proper angle. For me it's a more neutral angle than shallow or steep....but I tend to go steep naturally. Keep working at the Bird....I bet you find it a favorite over time.

If not, you may like the Lupo 95 or Muhle Rocca R94.

 

[StewB]

My experience with the Blackbird is similar: It works best for me when used at the angle suggested by the top cap, and for me this is a shallower angle than feels "natural" to me. It can deliver a nicely efficient shave, but it just somehow feels awkward to me. This is just my own personal experience, of course, and many others love the Blackbird. If you stick with it, I'm sure you'll be able to adjust to it and get great performance.

If you decide you don't like the Blackbird, I can suggest the Yates 921-H. For me the 921-H is easier to use (the angle feels a lot more natural to me) and just as efficient (in fact, even a bit better) as the Blackbird.

 

[nav]

Thanks. I've been using an angle that is a little shallower than what I'm used to with the Rockwell, but I'm starting to think that perhaps I'm not aligned quite shallow enough and that is why the shave is a little off.

I did try feathers the other day and much of the stuttering and tugging went away but at the expense of quite a few little micro weepers.

A Black Beauty was just sold in my local marketplace... I didn't jump on it because I had never heard of it.

Well, I read everyone's replies and, apart from the suggestions for a razor (thank you!), quite a few of you mentioned your "learning curve" with the BB. Specifically, the word "shallow" came up so much that I started to wonder if I was indeed shaving more shallow than normal at all.

So last night, standing upon your great wisdom, I had a little shave. I loaded the Blackbird with a brand new blade and proceeded to ride the cap the freedom.

Now I understand that it was never suggested that this is a "ride the cap" type razor. But I did realize, reading through your comments, that I'm generally shaving much more steep than I realize, and that adjusting that steep angle to be more shallow is likely still leaving me shaving steep.

Moreover, I realized that I have no idea what "riding the cap" feels like, and if I am going to train myself to shave with a more shallow angle, I should probably start there, get a feel for that, and then gradually more steeper rather than starting from where my muscle memory would have me go.

I noticed the following things:

1. It was hard! My brain kept trying to pull me back into my habits (duh!!)
2. The razor, at a more shallow angle, is much more "smooth" for lack of a better word, without losing it's feel altogether.
3. It was indeed more efficient for me, I got a near BBS on a quick 2 pass shave where I was more concerned about time than the smoothness of my face. I guess the most efficient angle is not the angle that maximizes blade feel, which is where my hands intuitively went.
4. I was left with the impression that, as I learn the razor, I will be able to sorta lean in to how aggressive I want the shave to be by starting shallow and adjusting my angle.

All in all, I have more work to do; I don't think I have figured this beast out yet but I sure do feel much more hopeful about our future together than I did yesterday!

So thank you all for your comments and for sharing your experiences.

Great to hear you're honing in on the optimal use of the blackbird.

It's the one and only razor that took me a week's worth of shaves to get it right.

In the first 3 shaves, I questioned the hype and even came close to selling it!
I persisted for a few more shaves ONLY because it's the sexiest razor I've ever come across!

I'm so glad I did because it became my most favourite razor of all time!
(Merkur Progress being my second favorite)

The blackbird is tricky because it really exaggerates even slight scraping (due to slightly steep angle). Once I got the angle, I just couldn't use any other razor!...and this is in the literal sense, I've used the blackbird just about daily for the last 2 years!

 

[cpcohen1945]

Have you considered changing the blade(s) you're using?

I recently got a Pearl Flexi, and found it too aggressive with Feather blades, even at low settings. My shaving technique was questioned (by me and others), but I couldn't find anything to change, that helped much.

. . . With Astra SP blades, it is very, very nice.

So a change of blades (which is very cheap) might save you from a change in razors (which is not cheap, not in this thread anyway).

. Charles

 

[Umma2gumma]

A cheap yet efficient razor is Baili 171 (the one with exposed blade tabs).

https://www.amazon.com/BAILI-Classic-3-Piece-Platinum-Mirrored/dp/B01M1LFKPE/ref=rvi_d_sccl_1/139-3444762-2555811?pd_rd_w=sleM0&content-id=amzn1.sym.f5690a4d-f2bb-45d9-9d1b-736fee412437&pf_rd_p=f5690a4d-f2bb-45d9-9d1b-736fee412437&pf_rd_r=2AXNMCJYZ7E2CGH5248N&pd_rd_wg=nU6OF&pd_rd_r=7d0e3693-b921-4aa1-befb-d8d98a2463ab&pd_rd_i=B01M1LFKPE&psc=1

I like it a lot, especially paired with a heavier handle.

If you don't like it, you're out $10. Or less if you buy it on Ali.

 

[Cannon Cocker]

I had the same problem as you when I first got the BB. I had read several people suggesting a steep angle and my shaves were uncomfortable and far from smooth. I then read Shane’s comments about the razor‘s design for a more shallow angle, and that did the trick. If you look at the angle of the top cap along with the sharp comb edge, when you go steep that sharp comb will dig into your skin.

If I remember correctly the Rockwell on plates 5&6 run a negative blade exposure with a fairly large gap which should promote a very smooth shave. The BB runs a rather small gap with a positive blade exposure.

Once I made the change to a more shallow angle my BB was smooth a very efficient. This may also work for you.

 

[catfish1969]

Game Changer fan here after years of thinking adjustables were the only way to go. Consistently good reviews, quality stainless steel construction, multiple plates available, and affordable for a quality razor. What's not to like???

 

[cf1]

My experience with the Blackbird is similar: It works best for me when used at the angle suggested by the top cap, and for me this is a shallower angle than feels "natural" to me. It can deliver a nicely efficient shave, but it just somehow feels awkward to me. This is just my own personal experience, of course, and many others love the Blackbird. If you stick with it, I'm sure you'll be able to adjust to it and get great performance.

If you decide you don't like the Blackbird, I can suggest the Yates 921-H. For me the 921-H is easier to use (the angle feels a lot more natural to me) and just as efficient (in fact, even a bit better) as the Blackbird.

I agree with this comment! Keep at it but the Yates H is a bit easier to use.

 

[Steve_in_CT]

Like you I found the Rockwell unsatisfactory, although perhaps for different reasons. I did not find it to be as efficient as I liked, and I did not find it to be as maneuverable as I like. I also did not enjoy using the Blackbird, but maybe that was because I never did find the proper shave angle with that razor.

It seems as if you are making progress at mastering the Blackbird, so maybe you'll decide that you don't need (or want) another razor. But if you do, I have these razors that I can recommend. All are efficient, and I have listed them in decreasing amount of blade feel:

Blackland Dart (if you can get one used, as they are no longer in production)
Karve Christopher Bradley with G plate (tied with Dart for amount of blade feel)
RazoRock Lupo .95 open comb
RazoRock Game Changer 1.05
RazoRock SuperSlant L3

 

[Quaznoid]

Gillette Superadjustable on settings 8 or 9, or a Slim on 9 will give you plenty of blade feel along with quality and heft. Always go vintage.