Next up in my razor comparison series I have again set two giants in the arena: The Blackbird against the Athena. What will the verdict be?
Blackland Blackbird
The Blackbird I have weighs 90 grams (compared to the 94 grams listed on Blackland's website) with (according to Kickstarter) a blade gap of .58mm and blade exposure of .101mm. The Blackbird is a true masterpiece in terms of design and design features. During the shaves I had so far no clogging at all, blade alignment is always spot on and the fit of head and handle is amazing. Its head design leads to an intuitive finding of the right angle and the Blackbird literally guides me across my face and neck letting me know if my angle is off or not. Nice level of audio feedback as well - although I definitely have razors that produce much more audio than this Blackbird. The 90 grams steel doesn't feel as such when shaving. It is very nimble and easy to manouvre around. I am getting better and better in obtaining stellar results.
Lambda Athena
The Athena hit the streets somewhere in 2022 and was/is an instant hit with wet shavers across the globe. It's design is one of the most gorgeous I have every seen. It is made of a nickel aluminium bronze alloy and therefore not just plain brass. I noticed some patina this morning on mine, but it is very slight and barely noticable. Theo has managed to be a staple in wet shaving and is on his way to becoming a household name similar to Blackland before him. It weighs 105 grams with a blade gap of .34mm and neutral blade exposure. On paper this might sound very mild. Even a Tech razor has some positive blade exposure. Looks can be deceiving as we by now know. Audio feedback is very present. No clogging at all thanks to the lather channels and Athena's special way of rinsing (which the Mühle Rocca also has to some extent). As with the Blackbird the Athena doesn't feel heavy during shaving. For this comparison they are in each other's ball park.
Summary of results
Notes
Both razors are daily drivers for me. I am in love with both their designs and the way their designers have managed to find their take on the perfect shave. The Blackbird has definitely grown on me with just 14 shaves to date compared to the 33 shaves I have had with the Athena. For both razors to come this close to each other says something about the Blackbird. I have had more consistent results with the Blackbird.
The Athena scores a weighted average of overall of 9.31 whereas the Blackbird scores 9.21. The difference is mainly due to a cleaner shave with the Athena in terms of weepers, nicks and the like during the shave. So overall the Athena wins this round, but the differences are very slim to say the least. When purely looking at the end result of the shave the Blackbird wins. In fact, based on my shave statistics the Blackbird is my most effective razor to date. There are a couple that score better, but that's based on too few observations. The Athena gets me almost the same great shave results with more comfort - although I do not mind a little blade feel (which by the way the Athena provides even though it has neutral blade exposure!).
Superb results with both razors and you cannot go wrong with either. I at least absolutely love both of them.
Blackland Blackbird
The Blackbird I have weighs 90 grams (compared to the 94 grams listed on Blackland's website) with (according to Kickstarter) a blade gap of .58mm and blade exposure of .101mm. The Blackbird is a true masterpiece in terms of design and design features. During the shaves I had so far no clogging at all, blade alignment is always spot on and the fit of head and handle is amazing. Its head design leads to an intuitive finding of the right angle and the Blackbird literally guides me across my face and neck letting me know if my angle is off or not. Nice level of audio feedback as well - although I definitely have razors that produce much more audio than this Blackbird. The 90 grams steel doesn't feel as such when shaving. It is very nimble and easy to manouvre around. I am getting better and better in obtaining stellar results.
17.03.2024
Blackbird SS • Tiger Platinum (1) • Razorock Big Bruce • Mike’s Natural Barbershop
Lambda Athena
The Athena hit the streets somewhere in 2022 and was/is an instant hit with wet shavers across the globe. It's design is one of the most gorgeous I have every seen. It is made of a nickel aluminium bronze alloy and therefore not just plain brass. I noticed some patina this morning on mine, but it is very slight and barely noticable. Theo has managed to be a staple in wet shaving and is on his way to becoming a household name similar to Blackland before him. It weighs 105 grams with a blade gap of .34mm and neutral blade exposure. On paper this might sound very mild. Even a Tech razor has some positive blade exposure. Looks can be deceiving as we by now know. Audio feedback is very present. No clogging at all thanks to the lather channels and Athena's special way of rinsing (which the Mühle Rocca also has to some extent). As with the Blackbird the Athena doesn't feel heavy during shaving. For this comparison they are in each other's ball park.
Summary of results
Date | Razor | Blade | Quality | Comfort | Effectiveness |
04.05.2024 | Blackbird | Rubie Plus | 9.50 | 9.00 | 9.25 |
05.05.2024 | Athena | Rubie Plus | 9.75 | 9.00 | 9.25 |
15.05.2024 | Blackbird | Minora | 9.75 | 7.50 | 9.00 |
19.05.2024 | Athena | Minora | 10.0 | 9.00 | 9.00 |
20.05.2024 | Blackbird | Nacet | 10.0 | 9.00 | 9.25 |
21.05.2024 | Athena | Nacet | 10.0 | 9.00 | 8.75 |
Average Blackbird SS | 9.75 | 8.50 | 9.17 | ||
Average Lambda Athena | 9.92 | 9.00 | 9.00 |
Notes
Both razors are daily drivers for me. I am in love with both their designs and the way their designers have managed to find their take on the perfect shave. The Blackbird has definitely grown on me with just 14 shaves to date compared to the 33 shaves I have had with the Athena. For both razors to come this close to each other says something about the Blackbird. I have had more consistent results with the Blackbird.
The Athena scores a weighted average of overall of 9.31 whereas the Blackbird scores 9.21. The difference is mainly due to a cleaner shave with the Athena in terms of weepers, nicks and the like during the shave. So overall the Athena wins this round, but the differences are very slim to say the least. When purely looking at the end result of the shave the Blackbird wins. In fact, based on my shave statistics the Blackbird is my most effective razor to date. There are a couple that score better, but that's based on too few observations. The Athena gets me almost the same great shave results with more comfort - although I do not mind a little blade feel (which by the way the Athena provides even though it has neutral blade exposure!).
Superb results with both razors and you cannot go wrong with either. I at least absolutely love both of them.