Blackbird Owners

[GalacticBlades]

Hey guys,

I'm starting to think about a new razor. I went through a King C. Gillette and Rockwell 6C before finding the my Blackbird.

I've been shaving with the SS Blackbird now for about 4 months and I'm quite happy with it. The blade feels leaves me feeling confident and connected with what I'm doing and I get consistently great shaves with it.

I don't want to replace the Blackbird but I find myself wanting more... more what?! I'm not sure. Maybe a bit more efficiency? Maybe a touch more aggression or gap.

I just want something to compliment my Blackbird for days where I just want to step it up a notch.

Again, I'm totally happy with the Blackbird, I just want to try something with a bit more bite.

 

[corlay]

with a Wolfman WR1 or WR2 you can dial-up the aggression/gap 'til your heart's content.

another maker that BB owners seem to like (including me) is Yates.
I use the MH (medium-heavy) plate in OC Brass, but there is also the H (which is more aggressive)

For *really* aggressive, lots of folks like the Bronze Timeless? or an Italian Barber 'Wunderbar'?

A simple option: just get an OC plate for your BB. ;-P

 

[tiberius]

Maybe a bit more efficiency? Maybe a touch more aggression or gap.

It's ... not easy to be more efficient than Blackbird.

Three random (?) razors that I bought after Blackbird and think it's fun to use: Yates 921 H, Karve Christopher Bradley D OC (G is too scary for me back then, you probably would want to try D or E; I get the aluminum version for this one), and TGS Styletto Aluminum (perhaps with the black aggressive baseplate).

If I'm shaving daily I would use Styletto.

 

[JimL911]

Ikon Tek or R41.

 

[Howlelujah]

Titianum Blackbird with the OC plate could be an option.

 

[Guido75]

Lambda Razors - either one will be a notch more effective than the Blackbird while also being more comfortable. But they are very close to each other I must say.

 

[Hannah's Dad]

Get the OC plate and ride it steep. It will be all the blade feel you’d ever want.

 

[jesseix]

Hey guys,

I'm starting to think about a new razor. I went through a King C. Gillette and Rockwell 6C before finding the my Blackbird.

I've been shaving with the SS Blackbird now for about 4 months and I'm quite happy with it. The blade feels leaves me feeling confident and connected with what I'm doing and I get consistently great shaves with it.

I don't want to replace the Blackbird but I find myself wanting more... more what?! I'm not sure. Maybe a bit more efficiency? Maybe a touch more aggression or gap.

I just want something to compliment my Blackbird for days where I just want to step it up a notch.

Again, I'm totally happy with the Blackbird, I just want to try something with a bit more bite.

Do you shave with the Blackbird on a daily basis?

 

[Guido75]

Do you shave with the Blackbird on a daily basis?

I don’t, but I could if I wanted to. It’s a great daily shaver.

 

[jesseix]

I don’t, but I could if I wanted to. It’s a great daily shaver.

My skin can't handle it as a daily, but I love the razor and get great shaves out of it.
I was asking the OP if they do use it daily because if they do and that works well for their face and they're still looking for more oomph, I think that says more about what kind of recommendations will help (compared to if it's more of a shave every 3-5 days and use a Blackbird but want more oomph, then that scenario I think calls for something that is purely more efficient and doesn't need to worry as much about comfort/smoothness because it's not needed every day).

 

[Guido75]

I was asking the OP if they do use it daily

Ah I see now! I misread your question, sorry.

As to @GalacticBlades - you might want to research Greencult 2. It has multiple baseplate similar to Karve and in my experience are near the Blackbird. Maybe a III or IV plate will give you that extra effectiveness. The II plate for me is very close to the BB.

 

[GalacticBlades]

Do you shave with the Blackbird on a daily basis?

No I don't sha e daily normally. I shave every 2-4 days depending on how busy I get. I do use the blackbird exclusively and don't see any reason why one couldn't shave daily with it. I've certainly shaved back to back days before...

 

[GalacticBlades]

No I don't sha e daily normally. I shave every 2-4 days depending on how busy I get. I do use the blackbird exclusively and don't see any reason why one couldn't shave daily with it. I've certainly shaved back to back days before...

I tend to get more irritation the longer I go without shaving though and not the other way around.

 

[N6GQ]

I have 4 'Birds, and love them. The only thing more efficient in my humble opinion is the Yates 921EH. Fantastic razor - super efficient. My Yates (3 of them) and my 'Birds are my favorite razors for daily head/face shaves. I find that a Gillette Platinum is my go to blade for both...

 

[jesseix]

No I don't sha e daily normally. I shave every 2-4 days depending on how busy I get. I do use the blackbird exclusively and don't see any reason why one couldn't shave daily with it. I've certainly shaved back to back days before...

Trying the open comb like someone mentioned might be an option, and has the added bonus of not needing to buy a whole new razor (I actually have an OC plate if that’s of interest).

You could also look at something like the Rex Envoy, which is aggressive and efficient but not at all as comfortable as the Blackbird at least from my time with it. A Karve with one of the higher and/or open comb plates might work well too, they definitely mow it down.

I haven’t used any of the newer twist-adjustable razors yet (Flexi, Ambassador, Oliworks etc), but that might be a consideration as well. Ability to use a toned-down setting for daily shaving or amp it up if you need more aggression for longer growth.

 

[DesertIguana]

Hey guys,

I'm starting to think about a new razor. I went through a King C. Gillette and Rockwell 6C before finding the my Blackbird.

I've been shaving with the SS Blackbird now for about 4 months and I'm quite happy with it. The blade feels leaves me feeling confident and connected with what I'm doing and I get consistently great shaves with it.

I don't want to replace the Blackbird but I find myself wanting more... more what?! I'm not sure. Maybe a bit more efficiency? Maybe a touch more aggression or gap.

I just want something to compliment my Blackbird for days where I just want to step it up a notch.

Again, I'm totally happy with the Blackbird, I just want to try something with a bit more bite.

You said, "I just want to step it up a notch" meaning what?

 

[GalacticBlades]

You said, "I just want to step it up a notch" meaning what?

Honestly, I'm not even sure, I think I'm looking for more efficiency, but I also think I'm just bored and want to switch something in and out. I'm really happy with the blackbird, mostly because the blade feel suits me and I do get good shaves. At times I want more gap I think, it's just an intuitive thing, not a lot mind you, but just a bit more.

I'm actually thinking pretty hard about getting the open comb rather than a new razor at the moment. I'm really attached to the blade feel and I don't know of anything else that has that as a design philosophy.

 

[GalacticBlades]

You said, "I just want to step it up a notch" meaning what?

Ok I've thought about this some more and I really think it is gap I want.

I have all the blade feel and "aggression" I could ever want.

The razor is pretty efficient, I could use a touch more I guess.

I recall when I got my Rockwell 6C I started on 4 and it was pretty efficient, but too mild. I stepped it up to a 5 and it became a touch more efficient, but still mild. The increase in gap was noticeable. I stepped it up to 6, it didn't really get much more efficient, it was still mild, but I could feel the gap increase again. I stuck with 5 for a bit because it felt right, but kept sneaking up to 6 looking for something... namely blade feel, which just wasn't there. I could feel the gap change though.

I abandoned the Rockwell after realizing that none of the plates would increase the blade feel.

So to me the BB ticks all the boxes, but I'm aware of the gap when I'm shaving, it feels too small. Maybe the open comb will change that. The only thing I miss is the feel of a more "open" experience if that makes sense...

... and a touch more efficiency wouldn't hurt.

 

[GalacticBlades]

Hi everyone. Thanks for your input!

I think Wolfmann and Athena are out due to price/waitlist etc..

So Yates is in play...

What about Tatara Nodachi or Aylsworth Apex and Drakkant with plus plate?

 

[Cannon Cocker]

Hi everyone. Thanks for your input!

I think Wolfmann and Athena are out due to price/waitlist etc..

So Yates is in play...

What about Tatara Nodachi or Aylsworth Apex and Drakkant with plus plate?

I would high encourage the Tatara Nodachi. I have it in both SS & Ti along with with a Blackbird in SS. I also have SB and OC combs plates for all of them. I would say they are equal in efficiency, but the Tataras are smoother and more maneuverable. I believe it would give you the different feel you are looking for.

I would make one other suggestion. You can order a Muhle R41 head for around $25 from Maggard and just use a spare handle or get the whole razor for around $40. I hesitated doing this because of all the horror stories attached to the R41, but it has become one of my favorite razors.