At the risk of sounding nitpicky , I want to clairify how spine width relates to blabe angle . I took a Joeseph Smith & Sons 6/8+ blade , and found that if I lay the blade on a flat surface , the line going from the edge of the blade , and across the top edge of the spine is 15 degrees . Meaning , that if you have the blade flat on your face , you're already shaving at an angle of 7-1/2 degrees . If you lift the blade 1 spine width (15 degrees) , the blade will be at an angle of 22-1/2 degrees . If you lift the blade 2 spine widths , you will be shaving at an angle of 37-1/2 degrees . Not 30 degrees , which I've seen stated on several posts . My general "rule of thumb" is 1-1/2 spine widths , max . YMMV