Was resolved to having a day off today, but since I spent a few hours honing I had to test shave.
I have been struggling with the coticule on harder steel. Happy with the oh so smooth results on Sheffields but just not getting the same result on something like Solingens (some of my favourite steel). But some sterling advice from
@Mark , about spending more time working through dilutions towards clear water, and I had something far better looking under the microscope.
But how was it on the face?
Firstly though, my inaugural outing with the LEA Classic soap. The long and the short of it. Fucking great soap. No kidding fellas this is MWF good. ...and MWF temperamental too. But I followed some instructions online - charging it a little wetter - and KABOOM! Yoghurty goodness. Scent is manliness, glide is great for straights and post-shave feel is all there wetness wise. Seriously fellas, seriously consider the purchase. You don't even have to go OS for this, there's stock ready for despatch via
@Anthony at ShaverHeaven (
http://shaverheaven.com.au/lea-classic-shaving-soap-wooden-bowl/).
So set up well by the lather, first stroke with the Fritz Bracht Tennis (yeah that's what Dovo was once called

) and oooooohhhhhhh yeah! Smooooth as! Superb shave. I got a coticule edge on a Solingen. Took a hell of a lot longer than my first attempts but so worth it. Funny thing about these coticule edges is they seem to somehow skip over bumps and blemishes on the face rather than, as a Japanese edge, just go through it. I concede the shave doesn't feel quite as close, by a bee's foreskin, but no sting in this tail my friends. So nice.