***WINNER**Grudge Match: Old vs Old; Thin vs Thick
- Thread starter imatabor
- Start date
Funny you say that... today I shaved with the Thin and my intention is to shave tomorrow with the Thick... just to compare them this way too.
The shave today? impressive, outstanding, great!
I too have noticed that a Feather "seasoned" is even better than a Feather new, if it's possible!
- Thread starter
- #64
Great reading! I figured that this would be a tough battle.
We have:
1. @troy
2. @emwolf,
3. @Useless shaver,
4. @romsitsa,
5. @chongo gordo,
6. @DrAwkward,
7. @lloydrm,
8. @rudyt,
9. @MntnMan62,
We have:
1. @troy
2. @emwolf,
3. @Useless shaver,
4. @romsitsa,
5. @chongo gordo,
6. @DrAwkward,
7. @lloydrm,
8. @rudyt,
9. @MntnMan62,
Yes, yesterday's Single Speed shave was fantastic. I sometimes forget the first shave with a new blade can be a little rough.
Well, yesterday I decided to do a couple rounds with each before 50-50s since I haven't used DEs in a few weeks and these for a while ... No DE feather blade will touch my face though. Israeli Personna is my blade of choice for this one.
I must have a couple of Personna blades (don't remember where from) still in the deepest corner of a box... I used them years ago, but in the end they were not for me. Maybe now I'd like them again? YMMV indeed!
My two contenders, loaded with fresh Astra SPs and ready to fight.
- Thread starter
- #69
I love Voskhods in all my razors. Smooth, sharp and cheap, what else do you need?
Never seen a thin-cap ball-end. You're kind of busting out two-fisted Chow Yun Fat style.
R
romsitsa
Hello,
I figured my ABC razor would be a bit off, as it has the early pressed comb, even thinner than a thin cap Old type.
So my weapons of choice are:
thin cap Ball end (Khaki set)
thick cap Single ring (No. 202 Cambridge set)
Blade:
green Astra
Growth:
around two weeks
The scores for the first round:
Efficiency: Old Type Thin
Smoothness: Old Type Thin
Ease of the shave: Old Type Thick
overall experience: Old Type Thin
Adam
I figured my ABC razor would be a bit off, as it has the early pressed comb, even thinner than a thin cap Old type.
So my weapons of choice are:
thin cap Ball end (Khaki set)
thick cap Single ring (No. 202 Cambridge set)
Blade:
green Astra
Growth:
around two weeks
The scores for the first round:
Efficiency: Old Type Thin
Smoothness: Old Type Thin
Ease of the shave: Old Type Thick
overall experience: Old Type Thin
Adam
Attachments
Astras were my blade of choice for the OTs. And I got nice shaves with them. But unexpectedly (y'know, I thought... aggressive razor with not that aggressive blade...) Feathers are great paired with these ones. You only have to be a bit less "abandoned"...
Well, Feathers are great always (for me, that is), but you know what I mean...
Ok. I was able to do this comparison properly this morning. It always helps to follow instructions.
Shave #1:
I loaded each with a fresh Gillette Silver Blue blade. Lathered up with a super lather of Stirling Barbershop soap and Art of Shaving Sandalwood cream using a Omega 10066 boar. For this shave the thin cap was on the left side of my face and the thick cap on the right. I use my right hand to shave both sides.
Efficiency: I felt the edge on efficiency went slightly to the Thin Cap. My face on the Thick Cap side is not quite as smooth as the Thin Cap. Edge to the Thin Cap.
Smoothness: I found the Thick Cap provided a smoother shave as the razor moved across my face. I did get two weepers on the Thin Cap side of my face and none on the Thick Cap side. Edge to the Thick Cap.
Ease of the Shave: I'm not sure I can be objective about this one since one is a ball end, which is heavier and the other is a single ring, which is lighter. The weight provides a different feel. I will switch the handles during this comparison and to be fair, will do four shaves instead of three so I can get two shaves with each handle with each cap. But for this one with the ball end on the thick cap I felt it shaved easier due to the weight. Edge to the Thick Cap.
Overall Experience: During the shave I preferred the Thick Cap given how smooth it felt and how the razor felt in my hand. Edge to the Thick Cap.
Winner: Somewhat torn on this since I liked shaving with the Thick Cap better as it glided across my face pretty effortlessly. However, the end result was a much smoother finish on my face with the Thin Cap. Even though the Thick edge out the Thin in three categories, I have to give the winner to the Thin Cap due to the end result.
Next shave I'll switch sides of my face. Third shave I'll switch the handles and the fourth shave will switch sides of face again. That should over all the options and factors that could impact the quality of my shave.
Shave #1:
I loaded each with a fresh Gillette Silver Blue blade. Lathered up with a super lather of Stirling Barbershop soap and Art of Shaving Sandalwood cream using a Omega 10066 boar. For this shave the thin cap was on the left side of my face and the thick cap on the right. I use my right hand to shave both sides.
Efficiency: I felt the edge on efficiency went slightly to the Thin Cap. My face on the Thick Cap side is not quite as smooth as the Thin Cap. Edge to the Thin Cap.
Smoothness: I found the Thick Cap provided a smoother shave as the razor moved across my face. I did get two weepers on the Thin Cap side of my face and none on the Thick Cap side. Edge to the Thick Cap.
Ease of the Shave: I'm not sure I can be objective about this one since one is a ball end, which is heavier and the other is a single ring, which is lighter. The weight provides a different feel. I will switch the handles during this comparison and to be fair, will do four shaves instead of three so I can get two shaves with each handle with each cap. But for this one with the ball end on the thick cap I felt it shaved easier due to the weight. Edge to the Thick Cap.
Overall Experience: During the shave I preferred the Thick Cap given how smooth it felt and how the razor felt in my hand. Edge to the Thick Cap.
Winner: Somewhat torn on this since I liked shaving with the Thick Cap better as it glided across my face pretty effortlessly. However, the end result was a much smoother finish on my face with the Thin Cap. Even though the Thick edge out the Thin in three categories, I have to give the winner to the Thin Cap due to the end result.
Next shave I'll switch sides of my face. Third shave I'll switch the handles and the fourth shave will switch sides of face again. That should over all the options and factors that could impact the quality of my shave.
- Thread starter
- #74
Great read, keep it coming.
Just a reminder you should keep the razors, handles and blade the same through out the match. If you want to try different configurations feel free to continue extra rounds. But only the first three rounds go towards the winner.
I just realized I can't switch handles. The single ring has the tube that slides through the bottom of the handle while the Ball End screws in right at the head.
Following instructions is always good, yup...
I forgot to mention the different weight issue. My Thin is significantly lighter than my Thick and it definitely affected how I felt the razors... but not the shave? Not sure...
Today I shaved with my Thick (as I did yesterday with my Thin), the whole face... Result? Excellent as well... but it definitely felt "rougher" and ATG passes showed a more intense blade feel. More blade exposure? Anyway, these two extra shaves have confirmed my verdict... the Thin wins, but for a tiny margin.
But Juan Manuel, you are not following the instructions.Following instructions is always good, yup...
I forgot to mention the different weight issue. My Thin is significantly lighter than my Thick and it definitely affected how I felt the razors... but not the shave? Not sure...
Today I shaved with my Thick (as I did yesterday with my Thin), the whole face... Result? Excellent as well... but it definitely felt "rougher" and ATG passes showed a more intense blade feel. More blade exposure? Anyway, these two extra shaves have confirmed my verdict... the Thin wins, but for a tiny margin.
Tramposo!
I want to love Feathers and even thought I did for a while, but the more I use them (and other blades) the less I like them. I just spent the entire month of February on the same Feather blade in a Fatboy (set on 9). The middle shaves were were great, but it took until shave 7 or so to settle in and by 15 or so it started losing efficiency. I could go a month or an Astra and its great from the first shave by 3 I feel I can do no wrong with the blade and it stays that way until about 25 or so then starts to loose efficiency.
Shave #2
Efficiency: Thick
Smoothness: Thick
Ease of the shave Thick
Overall experience: Thin
Winner of round 2: Thick
Shave #3
Efficiency: tie
Smoothness: Thin
Ease of the shave Thick
Overall experience: Thin
Winner of round 3: Thin
I expected the thin to be more efficient and the thick to be smoother. Looking at all three rounds, the thick won by the tiniest of margins in the efficiency department while the two razors more or less tied in smoothness.
What does it all mean? The thick won two out of three rounds, but I still prefer shaving with my Bulldog. It will always be my favorite OT.
Efficiency: Thick
Smoothness: Thick
Ease of the shave Thick
Overall experience: Thin
Winner of round 2: Thick
Shave #3
Efficiency: tie
Smoothness: Thin
Ease of the shave Thick
Overall experience: Thin
Winner of round 3: Thin
I expected the thin to be more efficient and the thick to be smoother. Looking at all three rounds, the thick won by the tiniest of margins in the efficiency department while the two razors more or less tied in smoothness.
What does it all mean? The thick won two out of three rounds, but I still prefer shaving with my Bulldog. It will always be my favorite OT.
Round 1
Both Ball End razors loaded with Astra SPs
Head shave and beard line cleanup
Efficiency:Thin but only slightly
Smoothness: Draw There is less blade feel on the thick, but both razors provided a very close irritation free shave, and I don't mind a little blade feel.
Ease of the shave (grip, stroke and angle....): Draw I do like the weight and balance of the thick better, but the smaller head of the thin is easier to get into tight places.
Overall experience: Thin I'm giving it to the thin basically on coolness factor. It was the first and if you're using an old razor it seems a little cooler to say it's from the teens than the 20s.
Winner of round (one, two or three): Thin, but only by a hair
Both Ball End razors loaded with Astra SPs
Head shave and beard line cleanup
Efficiency:Thin but only slightly
Smoothness: Draw There is less blade feel on the thick, but both razors provided a very close irritation free shave, and I don't mind a little blade feel.
Ease of the shave (grip, stroke and angle....): Draw I do like the weight and balance of the thick better, but the smaller head of the thin is easier to get into tight places.
Overall experience: Thin I'm giving it to the thin basically on coolness factor. It was the first and if you're using an old razor it seems a little cooler to say it's from the teens than the 20s.
Winner of round (one, two or three): Thin, but only by a hair
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