Tuesday Morning;
Futur Clone (1)
Rapira blade (1)
Maseto 2-band
P&B Citra Royale
Alum/cold/witch hazel
Penhaligon's Blenheim Bouquet EDT
First time using the Futur clone. I think I best start off by stating that curiosity got the better of me so I shaved 'only' 24 hours after my last. As a result, I'm slightly raw in places and feeling it a little. It should settle down quite quickly. Lovely slickness and scent from the P&B - the lime really comes out during lathering. Big, beasty b*stard badger brush did a solid job yet again. Penhaligon's Blenheim Bouquet exaggerated my limey start to the day; what a beautiful scent.
Onto the razor, as I'm sure you're more intrigued about. Loaded her up with a new Rapira blade (thanks
@nolisco!) and got to work. She's got a fair blade gap compared to the Wilkinson Sword (WS herein) I've used prior to it. That being said, as long as your lather is right, there's nothing to worry about. Yes, I know I had it on setting 1, but it still didn't give me much to worry about. Any rawness/redness is my own fault and, probably, as a result of not leaving it long enough between shaves. The razor didn't struggle with any of my stubble, and the heft/weight at 96.4g (compared with SR's and the WS DE, of which I'm more accustomed) was a change. I can't tell whether it was a welcome change yet, but I didn't face any issues either way. The head is quite large, again compared to the fine blade SR's I've used prior, and I found it a little difficult ensuring the angle was correct, or that I was making good contact with the skin, or in fact where the blade was in relation to my face. That being said, it's a DE and it's not difficult to keep track of where your 'trace' is during the shave, and hence where the blade is. The head is well seated and there's no slackness or rattles regarding any aspect of the razor. Setting 1 has given me a very respectable, quite close shave in 95% of places (well, my neck) and I don't see an immediate need to change this up to a higher setting, at least for the meantime. I will be having a day's rest and re-approaching this razor with a fresh blade - I know you can get multiple shaves out of it but life is short and I may as well have a fresh slate for learning. After a few uses I'll make a newbie's review of this nicely-finished shaver.
Happy Tuesday!