August 2016 30 Day Rule/Focus Pix & Discussion

Awesome Adjustable Arko August!!!!

August 7

Grand Blade Trial DAY OFF SHAVE


Razor - 1959 Gillette Super Speed
Blade - (1)
Soap - Tabac
Brush - BoS Omega 10066
Post - Alum, Nivea, The Veg

Day off shave before heading into an unknown on Monday. Decided to keep it simple and use the Super Speed and a Sputnik. Sputnik is, of course, the Voskhod clone over at St. Petersburg. Ok, so maybe not clone but they're both Teflon coated. Actually it's probably more like the little brother to the Gillette Silver Blue since they are both Teflon and come from the same place.

Only did a two pass this morning before work. Really worked the Tabac into a fine lather and got a great near BBS after two passes and a bit of touchup. Stayed with the Veg for work and can say it was a fun, relaxing and fantastic shave.

News from work I missed sharing earlier this week.....my District Manager has been looking for a new solution to the Dollar Shave Club razors. Heard I was a shaving geek so we talked about it when he was at the store Thursday. He has a Merkur 23c already and had tried it a little bit. Talked blades and he ordered a 100 pack of Voskhod while we were sitting there. He also already has an AOS brush and cream so I challenged him to a Rule once he gets the blades. I may have a new convert who would understand if I asked for a raise to pay for shaving stuff!

Hope you all had a great weekend!

 

Day off and no MWF.... I'm disappointed...

 

Well I used MWF last Sunday. And SWMBO complained she hadn't smelled Tabac lately so there's that.

 

Well at least Tabac is a great soap. Got to keep SWMBO happy. I think next Sunday you should revisit Marvy.

 

August Focus Day 8:

Stirling Synthetic Brush
Stirling Frozen Tundra
Ever-Ready 1924
Stirling Unscented PSB
Stirling Glacial Lemon Chill

A great shave this morning. The razor was smooth and did its job well. I focused on keeping a shallow angle and ended with a DFS. I got a little menthol cool this morning from the Stirling Frozen Tundra and Glacial Lemon Chill AS. It definitely provided a little kick to get my day going. I hope everyone has a great day!

 

Menthol Monday Shave

Brush- Semogue 620
Razor- PAL adjustable
Blade- Chinese Schick
Soap- Stirling Glacial Eskimo Tuxedo
Post Care- Crystal Alum
Thayers Witch Hazel
Osage Rub
Bombed Florida Water

Brrrrrrr! Freezing cold shave today to celebrate Menthol Monday. This Stirling Glacial Eskimo Tuxedo is fantastic! Great scent, slick, easy to lather and it's freezing cold. The PAL performed flawlessly today. Three passes and I'm completely smooth. No feedback from the alum, the Osage Rub chilled me down even further and the bombed Florida Water took it over the edge. Have a great day folks!

 

Sounds like a great shave Ben! I'm very glad you're enjoying the PAL Adj. ..............

 

Thanks brother! It's possibly the best razor I have!

 

I feel the exact same way!

 

August Straight Focus
Good morning. I am focusing on learning the proper way to stretch my skin to get a smooth shave. I'm seeing an improvement in the first pass but still need a lot of work on the second pass. All in all, I'm happy with today's shave.
Proraso Green Pre-Shave Cream
Proraso Green Cream
Wolf Whiskers Brush
Kikuboshi Razor
Osage Rub
Fine Snake Bite AS
Have a great week!

 

Brian, as you continue this focus, not only will your technique improve and become more consistent, but you'll also begin to detect the subtle (or maybe not-so-subtle) differences from razor to razor. This may be seen in the comfort or smoothness of the edge from blade to blade, or simply a preference you may develop for the size and style of the razor. Part of the pleasure of SR shaving for me is this variety from razor to razor not normally seen in DE shaving.

 

I am noticing that these babies are all different. I have a rack of seven shave ready razors and they are all unique. I am learning a little about my preferences this month. Still not a fan of spike points
Thanks for the encouragement Kevin!

 

Spikes DO come in handy for close, detail work but they do compel one to be fully attentive during the shaving process!
Some shavers mute (slightly round-off) the spike tips to lessen the risk, but personally I prefer not to alter the original shape.

 

After 15 shaves on the same blade (Sharp star) and razor ('54 tech) I broke my focus out of boredom.

One pass dorgo bb and cjb. Route 66 perfect storm and wd synthetic with a Russian aftershave balm finish. I'm not sure what it is but it has a cooling menthol thing going for it with the ease and comfort of witchhazel instead of alcohol. I'm starting a 3 day mini staycation tomorrow so I only shaved to a sas today.

 

I muted my $5.00 Adoration but can't bring myself to do that to my Otto Deutsch Hans. I'll keep working at it.

 

Rockwell 6S/ R6 Base Plate/ Ladas (2)
Whipped Dog 30mm High Mountain
MWF
Thayers
Veg


Up and at em bright and early. Effortless BBS shave with no nicks or irritation whatsoever.

Happy Monday guys!!!

 

you used BOTH Stoylins????

 

Yep. I always use the unscented balm as a base layer and then after it has been absorbed, I put some alcohol AS on.

I sometimes use a little Osage Rub before the balm, as I have found it to be a bit drying, but it seems to help the balm absorb faster, and it has some great menthol kick. When I use it, I even use it on my scalp.

 

Awesome Adjustable Arko August!!!!

August 8

Grand Blade Trial DAY OFF SHAVE


Razor - 1962 (H1) Gillette Slim (2)
Blade - (1)
Soap - Arko
Brush - Wolf Whiskers Custom Silvertip
Post - Alum, Nivea, Clubman

Onward and forward with the trials. Busy day today so a morning shave followed by doing too many other things on a day off, then finally home with the pork chops cooking. The shave started the day in pretty good style with a blade I had never tried before. The Silver Star Super Stainless from Lord. Made in Egypt this blade is related to the Big Ben, Lord (obviously) and a number of others. Working on the history of that now.

I have noticed that when I pick up an unknown blade now the first pass always starts with my eyes closed and a pretty good bit of angst until I have the first stroke in. Guess I've had so many bad blades around (usually my own doing) that I just assume the unknown will be horrible. In this case......not so much. Surprisingly smooth and nice first pass. With the Slim on the mild 2 setting that helps, and with a very sharp blade it helps even more. I don't think this blade qualifies for the "very sharp" category, but it might surprise me as we go along. The XTG pass was just as smooth and I was getting good reduction. Finished the ATG and Slide pass and ended with a near BBS without any real touch up. That's a great result for the blade.

Alum threw a few stings on my neck but otherwise no issues. Nivea to smooth it all out and Clubman for a change. Not sure why I bothered since the rest of the day was groceries, yard work, etc.

I'm looking forward to seeing what it does at the middle of the gap range tomorrow. Might have a surprise winner from Egypt on our hands! Hope your Monday treated you well.

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AAA
Day 6

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So. The GSB can handle dial nine for six days! Fairly pedestrian two pass affair, DFS with little irritation was the result. Tomorrow, day seven awaits. Apologies for my sparse appearances on the forum, but I am getting caught up ASAP amd will talk razors and technique tomorrow. Back in the nineties, no relief in sight out here on the prairie, still much work to be done. Other than that...all is quiet in Colorado.
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Have a terrific Tuesday!
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