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

Razor: Gillette Executive Gold Adjustable Fat Boy (F1) 1960
Blade: Astra Platinum (4)
Brush: WDC-8 TGN Finest
Soap: Route 66 Cavendish
A/S: Fine L'Orange Noir
Finished my focus yesterday and I'm thinking of what to do for April.
The Route 66 Cavendish is an amazing shave soap. It is lightly spiced cedar wood mingles with notes of bergamot, bay and fir; nicely balanced with the slightly sweet, warm aroma of Cavendish cut and cured tobacco leaf.

 

I am very interested to hear how your perceptions of aggressive vs. non-aggressive are after 90 SR shaves. Mine changed a lot, to the point that its not a factor for me anymore. I look at efficient or not.

 

Is efficient/non-efficient different from aggressive/non-aggressive? I'm looking for efficiency and I thought that meant look for aggressive razors.

 

I feel that they are. The DE I grab most often is a Pre-War Fat Handled Tech, which is considered a medium to mild razor. (Pre war is considered more aggressive than the post war techs.) I can get a two pass plus touch up BBS with that razor, including areas I can't shave well with a straight. (My chin strap is always my problem area.) Some razors, like the old type or any of my superspeeds (including the red tip) take me three passes or more to get to the same level of shaving. That's the difference in my mind between an aggressive and an efficient razor. Keep in mind though, some very efficient razors are aggressive, like a new short comb.

 

Thank you for the explanation

 

My March focus wrap-up. This is what I laid out at the beginning of the month:

__________________________
My March focus:

I plan to basically continue what I have been doing while focusing on technique and varying equipment slightly.

Mondays - Menthol Mondays with Proraso Green
Tuesday-Thursday - Same soap, same brush, same razor, same blade each of those three days
Friday - Mitchell's Wool Fat, option to change razor or blade or brush
Saturday - random selections
Sunday - Shave Den Sunday with TSD products; razor, brush, and blade could be new or continue with same combo

Generally either Saturday or Sunday may be a rest day where I do not shave.

This setup has worked pretty well for me since January. I like using the same soap in the middle of the week to help hone in on the lathering. It helps me to get to know that soap better. I'll continue to use one pass with touch-up and perhaps two passes on the weekends when I have a little more time.

I plan to use the Maggard V2OC for the most part. I'll use the Schick Injector some more as I prepare for the Bunny pass-around. I also need to use my Gillette Travel Tech some more to get used to it. I have some travel coming up in the Spring and will need to be efficient with the travel razor.
_____________________________

Looks like I was able to stick with this plan pretty well, and it has paid off. My technique is improving and I'm getting consistently good shaves. I haven't reached the nirvana of BBS yet, but I'm also not pushing or trying. I've had several DFS shaves but I'm pleased with CCS on work days. There is an area to the right of my Adam's apple on my lower neck that is just really pesky. I can't get that area really smooth yet without irritation or a stinging feeling. It's getting better in that area. I'll continue to work on it.

I only took two days off from shaving this month. That's probably a record. I used to always rest at least one day during the week. But I really enjoy shaving and all of the processes around it, so I guess I'm shaving more.

Cold water shaves developed this month and I've really enjoyed them. I plan to continue with cold water shaving wholeheartedly!

Next month's focus is not decided yet. I'll write about it when the next thread is opened.

I have enjoyed the journey with you all and look forward to a new month!

 

Teasing=Love
@Robyflexx

 

Thank you Kerry for the reassurance.

 

I haven't shaved in 3 days? Showered. Yes. In a couple of hours I will crank the Merkur Futur up, and post my SOTD.

 

You've taken the teasing like a true Friend.

 

Injector Focus
Last day with an Injector so I decided to close strong. However, I'm not a big fan of the soap I chose. I shouldn't have been unfaithful to Route 66
SOTD
Mystic Water Lime soap
Vie-Long horsehair brush
Bunny V3 with Notso comb
Chick blade (5)
Alum
Thayers Witch Hazel
Pinaud Musk AS
Have fun!

 

March Recap
My month of March focused on two Schick E type razors: a Canadian E and a US E2.



I also used three different blades with each razor for a minimum of three shaves with each razor:
Schick (China)
NOS Schick Platinum Plus
NOS Schick Platinum (Holland)

Both razors provided great shaves for me this month. So equally good, that I have difficulty discerning any big difference between them - even with side-by-side shaves.

The E2 appears to be slightly more aggressive than the Canadian E. I’d hesitate to use either razor in speedster fashion without running the risk of weepers or nicks. And don’t lose focus with either. I also noticed that a light touch eliminates any chance of irritation. I describe the light-touch stroke as one that essentially allows just enough pressure to provide skin contact as I guide the razor. It rolls over my skin as it exhibits shock absorber-like motion up and down over my dimpled face and broad chin.

Aesthetically, these razors are beauties. I just love the butterscotch handles, especially the darker color of the Canadian with the very dark vein running through it. I also like the added feature of the E2 with the head-opening lever. These two razors were great finds and will become part of my regular rotation (that is, if I ever stop buying razors and develop a rotation!)

As I reported already this month, most of the razors in my stable have been used maybe only a handful of times, while I dedicated the first few months of my indoctrination to wet-shaving with limited tools, in order to build skills (at least I tried to - HA!).

What I’m really noticing now, 10 months later, is that the quality of my shaves with those little used razors is much, MUCH different at the end of a month like this, than when I first used them the first few times 6 months or so ago.

Translation:
#1 - Technique trumps tools.
#2 - Unless you’ve done this for a few years and have focused on skill development first, tools second - don’t condemn a razor after just a couple of shaves - bring out those well-honed skills and spend a few weeks with the razor first.

I’m slowly getting to the philosophy that those with the best developed skills can shave with almost anything.

 

skipped shaving this morning. Probably make up for it tonight with the CJB.

 

Daily post, recap and new thread coming tonight. Things ran really late today. Catch you all soon!

 

March 30 day recap.

I wanted to thin the den and while I like these razors they did not make the cut and will find new homes:

Sight unseen Whipped Dog SR. This shaves great but I want to PIF it to someone who wants to get started with SR.

Merkur Vision - despite major coolness she can't compete with an aggressive Futur.

BBS-1 - Give my move to the dark side it is just not aggressive enough to remain in my DE stable. (sold)

Mongoose

Merkur 37C slant

So it is time to clean these razors up and get them ready for new homes.

TGIF

 

PM sent!

 

OK, my PIF for the Sight Unseen SR has begun. It is targeted to the participants of this thread.

I wish I knew how to make those cool imbedded links:

http://theshaveden.com/forums/threads/join-the-dark-side-sight-unseen-straight-razor-pif.50669/

 

Here is the code, remove asterisks

[U*R*L=htt*p://theshaveden.com/forums/threads/join-the-dark-side-sight-unseen-straight-razor-pif.50669/]Join the Darkside/Sight Unseen PIF[/*U*RL]

This is the general form for a hyperlinked text item. Text between bracket sets can be anything you like.

 

Remove asterisks and it does this:

Join the Darkside/Sight Unseen PIF