The Vie-Long horsehair shaving brushes and the new iKon razor
The two brushes shown are horsehair brushes, which I bought from Bullgoose Shaving: here and here. I tried them both this morning, just experimenting. Initially a strong odor from the knot, but that will fade in time. I tried both on soap, and both worked up a good lather in the test. I’ll have to actually use them to be sure, of course.
This morning I used the larger brush, which did a fine job with the Speick shaving cream: good lather and good capacity.
The two razors shown are both from iKon Razors. The one in front is the newer model, a Deluxe Classic High Polish. Greg sent it to me for the price of shipping, a kind gesture. I slapped in a previously used Swedish Gillette blade and gave it a go. Very nice—much smoother and kinder than the earlier model, which in the photo is behind the newer model. The old one was toward the harsh end of the spectrum (at least for me), and even the knurling was rather sharp. The new model is much more civilized and indeed I rather like it. You’ll note a slight change in head design, so that in the new one the blade doesn’t sit directly atop the comb. He adapted the “coat-hanger profile” quite well.
Three passes, no nicks or burn, and quite a smooth finish. A splash of the Speick aftershave, and I’m ready to tackle some kettlebells.
