March '16 - 30 Day Rule/Focus Pix and Discussion Thread

pvtbanks (Seth) and I traded text messages today. He's doing well, working 70 hours a week , and says he misses everyone here. I encouraged him to stop by and say hello when time permits.

 

March 27, 2016

Just a brief update on my second straight razor shave. I performed a complete WTG pass with my PRC Hydra straight razor, followed by an ATG cleanup pass with my Mongoose. Overall, it was a good shave with no nicks, cuts, or irritation.

The straight razor pass felt more natural today. I was able to shave a couple of areas that were out of the question yesterday - under both sideburns and my upper lip. I checked my progress in a 10X mirror, and I'm amazed at how little beard reduction took place. I have a lot to learn. The blade edge feels dull, but that probably has more to do with my technique than anything else. The blade cuts, just not much. The razor, however, feels good in my hand. I shave carefully, but confidently, if that makes any sense.

Even the stropping movements before and after the shave seemed more natural on day 2. I did 20 roundtrips on nylon and 2o on leather, with the strop laying flat on the kitchen bar. I feel like a kid riding a bike with training wheels.

All things considered, it was a good shave! I hope everyone had a great Easter!

 

The end of the Kai.

CJB
Kai protouch captain original
Route 66 Black Pearl
Semogue 1438
Nivia sensitive cooling ASB

My sample of Black Pearl is effectively gone. My lather today after a near minute load was thin and hardly lasted 2 passes. Its hardly a ring around the outside of my container so I was impressed I got that much out of the dregs. I started the WTG pass and noticed that the Kai didn't feel as smooth as normal. Still decent reduction and even thin the Route 66 felt like it was doing the job. I think this is shave 5 or 6 for the blade.

with a relather I could see through I attempted a S/N pass on my neck and even though it is mostly XTG there I still ended up with blade chatter and blood. I called it quits on a visually nice shave that felt like it had a ways to go before a DFS. Styptic to stop the bleeding and the nivia to cool it off.

I changed out the blade for the Feather Guard blade so I wouldn't forget to change it before my next shave. I'll need to shave for work and since my work day starts at 6am I'll be shaving at night daily again so it will be easier to keep track of my shaves then it has been. I'll work through the feather progression then try the Canadian Kamisori blade before trying the dorco Barber Blade and the Sam Seong razor. I'm hoping to use the same progression in that razor to find the best blade for each.

 

Shave Den Sunday!

Shave 87 - 90 Day Intro to SR​

Ralf Aust 5/8
L'Occitane Plisson
Alum
TSD Barber Shoppe Shave Stick
TSD 2x Iced FW type AS

www.theshavedenshop.com


Hope you had a Great Easter Sunday!
​

 

03/28/2016
Wolfman OC with Triad Ti
Feather (3)
Ever-Ready 100 with TGN Finest
MdC Original
Witch Hazel
Fine Platinum
Whipped Shea Butter

​

Sine it has been awhile since I used this little Ever-Ready brush, I decided to give it a go for a few days this week. The lavender scent of MdC set the stage for a great work morning shave. Going with 2 passes and minimal touch ups, I ended with a near BBS which is more than acceptable for a Monday. Finished with a splash of Fine Platinum and maybe I am ready for the day. I hope everyone has a great Monday.

 

Thanks for the update. .

 

Great setup. Have a good Monday.

 

Thank you Doug. I hope you have a good day as well.

 

Injector Focus
SOTD-Menthol Monday
Proraso Green Pre-Shave Cream
Proraso Green Shaving Cream
Schick Stick
Chick blade (2)
Alum
Osage Rub
TSD Iced Egyptian Spice AS
Happy Monday!

 

Just a quick check in. The move is done. Well, except for putting everything in its place. Every muscle is screaming and I have a nice 3 day beard waiting for a shave. Looks like it will be a 4 day growth before I get it taken care of. Hope you all had a great weekend and for those who celebrate, a Happy Easter.

 

Nice work! This calls for a Rapira shave!!

 

Sounds as if the Wolfman is quite the efficient tool!

 

Charlie, Thanks for the news!

 

You might have the angle too high on the blade. Some people say 30 degrees, but it was more helpful to me to visualize 1 to 2 spine widths which is closer to 15-20 degrees. 30 degrees will give you a lot of noise, and very little reduction, the shallower angle will give a lot more reduction. I am typically at CCS after one WTG pass with a straight. Getting the angle right on the neck and jawline was tricky, but is much easier doing a side to side pass rather than a N/S or S/N one. Use the sound of whiskers being cut, rather than a specific angle. Get an idea of what it should sound like from your cheeks.

 

SOTD March 28, 2016
March focus shave 26

Prep: Warm shower
Blade: Personna lab blue
Razor: Vintage Gillette Travel Tech
Brush: Trader Joe's synthetic
Lather: Soap Commander Endurance
Post: Witch hazel splash enhanced with Fine Platinum, Nivea sensitive balm
WTG, XTG, touch-up



Pretty close shave with the Travel Tech and Soap Commander this morning. I started off with a lather that was much too wet. So I scrapped it and started over. Got a nice, thick lather, but perhaps needed a little more water because it dried just a little bit on my neck. But that wasn't a big deal. The Travel Tech is an efficient razor once you get used to the small handle.

I'm traveling so I have a little more time to go with two passes instead of the usual one with touch-up. That's leading to some closer shaves. I hope you all have a great Monday!

 

3/28/16 SOTD
Razor: Genco Easy Aces 5/8 square tip
Strop: Drygulch Leatherworks Chromexcel Horse/ Hemp Linen
Brush: 28mm Ubersoft 2 synthetic in Custom Aluminum Handle
Soap: Rt. 66 Sweeny Todd
Post: Cold Water Rinse, Alum, Thayers’ Rose Witch Hazel
Aftershave: Lucky Tiger Aspen

This is the last of the straights I have sent out to have work done on them. This one was honed by Glenn, but I am not sure if it was taken all the way to 30K or not. I did need three passes on the face and four on the neck to get a BBS on my cheeks, chin, and jawline, and a DFS on the neck. Some irritation, but no weepers. I focused quite a bit on the scything stroke on the neck, and got a pretty good result, but still no BBS on the neck. Second time using the Rt. 66 soap. Great lather and scent, and one of my top performing soaps. Normal burn on the alum, but the Lucky Tiger bit me.

 

Razor: Gillette Executive Gold Adjustable Fat Boy (F1) 1960
Blade: Astra Platinum
Brush: Mokume-Gane Carbon and Red Copper Silvertip 3 Band
Cream: Gillette Menthol
A/S: Fine Platinum
Old Spice Cobalt Blue 1985

 

Great picture. Love your watch band.

 

Thanks, Doug!

 

Also @wristwatchb

I followed Adam's advice about double spine width angle and sound. Once you experience what it's supposed to be like, you'll surely know it. Low angles, don't try to shave, just try to wipe the lather away. The bevel does the rest at the proper angle! Doing great, hang in there!