July 2015 30 Day Rule/Focus Pic & Discussion Thread

30 Day Rule - July 2015
July 29th
Razor - Feather SS AC
Blade - (3)
Brush - Omega 10066 (BoS)
Soap - Mitchell's Wool Fat
Post - Cold Water splash, Alum, Nivea

Three days left in the month and I'm going to finish them with this setup and accept the best result I get. No extra clean up with the DE for these three days. I figure if it isn't perfect my natural good looks and personality will overcome any roughness left by the shave for a few days at least. Well, as long as I'm not horribly scarred and bleeding by the time they're done. We all know that is a possibility with this razor. Shoot, it's a possibility for me at random depending on the stupid ideas I get for setups and trials anyway.

I rushed the lather a bit this morning I think, either that or didn't have the brush dry enough. Struggled a bit but ended with a workable lather. The Fat can be a bit finicky but with the BoS it is fairly easy to get it good enough to work with even with a mistake. First pass was good with one minor weeper that showed up as I applied the second lather. That was near my goatee line which is a common area for me to nick with an Artist Club razor. XTG was nice but a bit uneven as I switched grip on the left side. I started to touch up prior to relathering but came to my senses. Third lather and ATG plus some XTG touch up of my neck and left face and I had an overall near DFS. As I said, I'm accepting that as good enough and moving on. Those cars aren't going to sell themselves. Cold water, a nice burning alum proved I spent more time than normal and had a few angle issues but the Nivea cooled it back down. Back to the Veg for the body splash today. Two days left and July is in the books!!

 

Not even operator error can foil the BoSFat. More EOM good fortune to you!

 

Day 29 - 29 July 2015

30 Days of Maggard and MITA!



Blade Re-Test for @Douglas Carey
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Earlier in the thread, @Douglas Carey adamantly praised Gillette Platinum. I firmly believe that old Marines don't blow sunshine around just to hear themselves talk, so I needed another look at this blade label. His fave was retested today with great results. I don't know why I was not impressed in the first test. Today I could have sworn it was GSB because it felt really smooth and sharp. Maybe I had a dud, maybe my lather was poorly made, maybe I had a bad day...that's all I can come up with. This is a top tier blade. I will do it again tomorrow to confirm, but I already know how this ends. It will be great.

2 pass automatic smoothness, calm Alum and the sublime burn of Pinaud Clubman left me feeling great on another beautiful day. Other than that...all is quiet in Colorado.

Have a triumphant Thursday!


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Wednesday shave #17
Today it was 3 passes with a straight and a fourth with my Cobra. Smooth 3 passes, no blood with light irritation. Finished with the Cobra and despite everything being dialled in ended with just DFS... just short of BBS.

Homemade Pre Shave
QCS Frozen Key Lime cream
Thater 3 band
Rasurpur western kamisori, Cobra Classic
Dry Gulch bench strop
Alum block to keep my fingers dry
Speick AS
Speick ASB
MDCI Chyphre Palatin

Thursday shave #18
Today it was 3 passes with a straight and a fourth with my Cobra. Smooth 3 passes, no blood with very light irritation. Finished with the Cobra for BBS. I had one weeper but the irritation was the least amount ever with a straight. This maybe the last straight shave of the month. Tomorrow I will do a 'reference' shave with my R41 (2011) to see how far I still have left to go with straights.

Proraso Pre Shave
Razorock XXX
M&F blonde badger
Dovo Bismark 2, Cobra Classic
Dry Gulch bench strop
Alum block to keep my fingers dry
Razorock XXX AS
Speick ASB
Aqua di Parma Colonia

I enjoyed following everyone's progress and appreciate the support too.

 

1956 Gillette Super Speed Flair
Vulfix Super Badger (660)
Georgetown G12 Scuttle
Proraso Sandalwood cream
Aqua Velva Ice Blue
Current Blade under review: Lord Platinum Class

Shave #4 with the Lord Platinum Class blade. Fine BBS results, a nice shave. Very close, comfortable, no nicks, weepers, irritation or razor burn.
My lather was good today. After putting a dab of Proraso cream in the scuttle and while working my lather, I dipped my brush for more water a few times (5 times today). I liked the results.



2 Full passes: Pass 1: WTG on my face (N/S), and XTG on my neck (N/S). Pass 2: ATG. At this point, I had a near BBS shave.
Lathered up those areas that needed touch up. I used stretching, some blade buffing, and in one area j-hooking to get the remaining four spots. The Aqua Velva was pretty calm today.

An easy BBS shave from the Lord Platinum Class blade both yesterday and today. Tomorrow, I'll put in another Gillette Silver Blue and see how it compares.

 

07/30/2015
Razor – Mongoose B2 with Jürgen Hempel Ti
Blade – Kai Mild (1)
Brush – Rubberset 400-3 with WSP HMW
Lather – Jabonman Citricos
Post - Witch Hazel and Fine L’Orange



Traditional 3 pass shave this morning with touch ups got me a BBS shave. First time using the Kai Mild since February. It really gives a smooth forgiving shave in the Mongoose. The Kai Mild does not seem as sharp or harsh as the Feather Pro and no where near as aggressive as the Feather Super Pro. Finished off with a splash of Fine L'Orange and I am ready for the day.

 

30 day rule - Day 30
MDC Lavender Face Lathered
Ladas blade
Slim Adjustable set to 8
4 passes

Another excellent shave. 4 passes and I am smooth as silk. This 30 days has really refined my techniques.

 

July 30

Gillette Fat Boy G3
Feather blade (3)
Edwin Jagger XL Synthetic
Trumper's Coconut cream
Two passes
Alum, Thayer's Lavender witch hazel, unrefined shea butter, and Trumper's Coral Skin Food

 

Razor: Merkur 34 C
Blade: Merkur Super (4)
Brush: Semogue 1305 Superior Boar
Soap: Razo Rock XXX
A/S: Osage Rub
Day 30

Finished my 30 day boar brush focus. Learned much about boar brushes and how they react to different soaps. Learned how much water they take to whip up a good lather and how different they are from badger brushes. My Semogue 1305 finally work in and produced a good lather, however, it is still losing hairs. Still not my favorite brush among by boar brushes. It was an excellent focus for me and very informative.

 

30 Day Rule - July 2015
July 30th
Razor - Feather SS AC
Blade - (4)
Brush - Omega 10066 (BoS)
Soap - Mitchell's Wool Fat
Post - Cold Water splash, Alum, Nivea

End of the month madness. Now, if only sales would be as good as the shaves I've gotten these past few days. Next to the last day and the lather came back into line today. I do believe I had the brush too wet yesterday. Funny thing about MWF - it likes to be soaked prior to the shave but doesn't like the brush to be very wet. So I made sure to shake it a few extra times today before starting to load. Right on the money. Two passes with the Feather and no problems. WTG and XTG nice, though as always not as close as I can do with a DE yet. The ATG on the neck produced a couple of nicks as I set down slightly wrong. Still have to work on that. Overall it was a burning Alum and produced a CCS on the neck, DFS on the face. Again, good enough to head out to figure out where all the customers have gone. Too quiet for this close to EOM. Maybe they're waiting to see if I finish in one piece with this razor! Happy Full Moon!

 

Friday, July 31, 2015
Day 24 with the Mongoose

B-3 Mongoose with Triad Rolling Hex Titanium
Feather Kai Captain Sharp #1
Whipped Dog Boar
Mike’s Natural Soaps Barber Shop
Witch Hazel ++Menthol, Unrefined Shea Butter
Stirling After Shave Barbershop
Brooks Brothers 1818

Today’s shave was an outstanding two passes including clean up. The first shave for Kai Sharp blade was very smooth and deceptively sharp, not as forgiving as the Kai Mild. The alum sang some high notes, but no blood. The Shea Butter felt especially soothing today. The Whipped Dog Boar is an excellent bowl or face lathering brush. Using my Captain’s Choice Bowl, and Mike’s Natural Soap, the WD boar cranked out a ton of creamy slick lather. Set at 30 X 53mm, it has better backbone, a denser knot and softer tips than my Omega boars. Finished off this wonderful shave with generous spritz of Stirling Barbershop Aftershave.​

After 24 shaves with the Mongoose, my technique has improved and I've gotten used to the weight and size of the razor. I started shave 1 with the same routine as I used with DE razors, WTG, XTG, and some ATG in three passes. I soon adjusted my routine to AGT, XGT with some WTG in two passes plus clean up. My routine after 24 shaves involves only two passes including clean up. I'm shaving closer, more efficiently, faster and still getting very comfortable shaves.​

Needless to say during this 30-day Rule I added several shave brushes to “The Armada". Perhaps the most stunning and my first vintage brush, a Rubberset 400 #3 Brush. This was expertly restored by @clint64. Gracias mi amigo! Also added was my first Wolf Whiskers brush, a DWW-3 Green TGN Finest. The "Deal of the Year", a huge $19.95 Stirling Synthetic Brush. Plus the brush that knocked me OUT of NBJ. A Limited Edition Paladin, #33 out of 100 brushes and perhaps the prize of my collection. As @Holy Rollah said, "Falling off the wagon has never been so sweet!" ​

I finished my first 30-day rule today. It was a worthwhile endeavor. I was able to evaluate several different blades for the Mongoose. The Kai Mild lasted 5 shaves and was smooth and forgiving. The Kai Sharp was smoother, sharper and less forgiving than the Kai Mild blade. Of the two the Kai Sharp gave a closer shave. I also tried the Feather Pro and the Feather Pro Guard blades. The Pro lasted 10 shaves, the ProGuard seven. The Pro gave a more comfortable, smoother shave than the ProGuard.

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July 30, 2015

***COMPLETED***
30-Day Focus - Blade Trials for Gillette Tech

Wrapping up the month using my Gillette New LC

Hot Shower
Pre-Shave Oil: Gingers Garden
Soap: Stirling MITA
Brush: Omega Pro 48
Razor: Gillette New LC
Blade: Gillette Silver Blue (1)
TSD Witch Hazel
After Shave: TSD Lime
Mustache Wax: Dirigo Blue

Back from my Canadian island getaway. Great trip and great shaves with the Aristocrat. Thanks @NCoxSTL

Decided to use a Gillette New LC today - one of my latest acquisitions (from June - NBJ).

What a pleasant shave. 2 passes on a 2 day growth. Was going to do a 3-pass but the razor and blade cut like buttah on the first pass! So I chose to go right to a ATG second pass - so clean. A few touch ups and that was one nice shave.

First shave as well for MITA soap ( another real nice soap) and the TSD Lime matched up well as you'd expect.

Ended with my new favorite mustache wax - Dirigo Blue. Thanks @swarden43 ! 95 degrees in Seattle today. Wax held up well - even after a 30 minute soak in Lake Washington to cool off!

Stay cool all!
Cheers!
RT

 

Day 30 - 30 July 2015

30 Days of Maggard and MITA!

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The second verse was the same as the first! Automatic two pass smoothness. The Alum was quiet and the Osage Rub thanked me for being alive! I plan on writing the wrap up for posting tomorrow, and will open the August thread tomorrow as well. Back to the oven in Denver. Other than that...all is quiet in Colorado.

Have a Fantastic Friday!


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Sweet pic!

 

Today was the proverbial "proof in the pudding." You picked up a medium aggressive razor and made it work like it was designed to work. Congrats on a great two months! Nice work!

 

Thanks !
Couldn't have done it without 'riding the cap' and all the other great bits of advice from you and all the 30-day Denizens!

Here's to you all!

 

Mark-

What is your evaluation of WD Boar knots?

 

We are in business.

!NEW! August 30 Day Rule/Focus Pic & Discussion Thread

 

I finished my 30 day rule yesterday. During that time I used only MDC face lathered with a Ladas blade and my slim adjustable. Since I am no longer on the 30 day rule, I moved to a different soap today and what I thought would happen, did happen. Magically, the same soap I have had for about 2 years was somehow transformed from a mediocre lather producer to a great lather producer and I ended up with the best shave using this soap that I have ever had. For me, the 30 day rule produced great results.