Face Wash : Shower
Pre-Shave : Myrsol Emulsion
Brush : Simpson Chubby 1 Best Badger
Soap : Mystic Water - Irish Traveller
Razor : Kenwa Kamisori
After Shave : Fine Platinum
The first shave with a new razor is always an interesting experience, particularly when the razor is something out of the ordinary. And this Kenwa is certainly that. I posted about it briefly in the Acquisitions thread a couple of weeks ago :
http://paste-and-cut.com.au/community/threads/january-2016-acquisition-thread.2208/ It's a full hollow symmetrically ground kamisori - the first and only one of its kind I've ever seen. Irresistible... At the time I posted about it,
@khun_diddy asked if I intended to knock off the incredibly sharp corner at the toe, to which the answer was yes. I gave the razor its inaugural honing a couple of nights ago, and got my first surprise - it started singing while I was honing it! No razor has ever done that to me before. I remembered to "soften" the corner of the toe, and finished the honing session with an amazingly sharp razor.
After the usual thorough prep, the moment of truth. As soon as I started to shave, the razor started to sing. It was every bit as vocal as any really hollow ground Western straight, which is impressive for a blade only 45mm long. I was conscious the entire time of just how sharp this thing was, and found myself shaving a lot more cautiously than usual. This turned out to be a good thing, as the toe of the blade that I had carefully softened delivered quite a nick towards the end of the first pass, requiring both styptic and pressure to staunch. I finished the shave a bit chastened, but with a very smooth face.
I'm now seeing this razor as a challenge to be mastered. I thought my technique with kamisoris and straights was pretty solid by now, but there is obviously still room for improvement if I'm to be as confident and competent with this razor as I am with the rest of the stable. I should be grateful I guess - I've just been given a great opportunity to improve my skills.
The journey continues....