August 2016 30 Day Rule/Focus Pix & Discussion

August Focus Day 25:

Stirling Synthetic Brush
Stirling Electric Sheep SS
Gem 1912
Stirling Unscented PSB
Florida Water AS

I had a great shave this morning with the 1912 and Stirling Electric Sheep. I had such a great lather with this soap, and it was super slick. Since it is a sheep tallow soap, it has plenty of Lanolin, and my skin feels soft after using it. The 1912 gave me an easy DFS. A little citrusy Florida Water to pair with the lemon scented soap, and I am ready for my day. I hope everyone has a great day!

 

August 2016 Adjustable August

August 24

Razor: 58 Executive set on 9
Blade: Rockwell Stainless
Brush: Maggard 24mm
Soap: Stirling MITA
Post: Cold water rinse, Alum block, M-bombed witch hazel with Peppermint EO


Well, I think I have figured out what is up with this blade and what factor may have contributed to Neal @NCoxSTL and I having a divergent second shave. The Rockwell blade seems fine for me when there is no more than 24 hours growth on my face. My shave with the Executive set on 6 I had roughly 40 hours of growth. With my thick, coarse beard, and the fact that 40 hours of growth for me is about 3 days worth on some people, I think it just was too much for the blade given that it is not the sharpest out there. The GSB, feather, Bolzano, and others that are super sharp can all handle multi-day growth because they are just so sharp. This blade just is not in that category.

With the Executive set on 9 and with only 23 hours of growth, I set out on my WTG/XTG first pass. I noticed an almost immediate difference in the smoothness and the ability of the blade to get through the growth. It was almost as if I had put in a new blade and was very similar to the shave I got first off (again with only about 24 hours of growth). The pass ended with good reduction and no irritation. Started the second pass ATG and again it felt much more similar to day 1 than day 2. I ended the pass, did some minor touch up on my chin and had a near BBS shave. I could have done a little touch up on my jaw and around the Adam's apple, but there was no real need. I was very satisfied with the near BBS.

 

Day 11
AoS best badger brush (broken in)
Proraso Green Shaving Soap Jar
Gillette New Long Comb
Astra Superior Platinum Blade.
Alum
Old Spice After Shave

Made a nice lather with the Proraso and a a dash of florida water. Did a standard 2 pass, first pass north / south and second pass east /west. I bumped my lower lip which would have caused a bad nick, but since i was riding the cap, no problems. Shave ended with no nicks, cuts or weepers, very little feedback from the alum and after applying the venerable old spice I would say it was a DFS. Not bad for a Thursday.

 

Interesting idea. I'll have to try that with soaps that are light on scent.

 

So my last two shaves have been with the same razor, a Cattaraugus Seneca. I got this razor last year, and it has been one of my favorites. When I got it, I worked on the edge a little bit with my Welsh Slates, and did some polish on a translucent Arkansas. The shaves this razor gives me are very consistent, they final result is very smooth with very little irritation. The weird part is, while shaving, the razor doesn’t feel all that comfortable. It is a harsh edge that feels like it is pulling. That’s why I am always so shocked when it is a great shave with no irritation. If I ever get the edge dialed in, I am sure this razor will be one of my best shavers, but even as it is right now, it is completely safe from my razor purges. This one’s a keeper.

 

I just give the brush a good shake before I load it and then add it to the lather bowl. It's quite nice with the proraso green. It just adds a little scent with a nice menthol soap. Tomorrow I may try some lime sec.

 

August Straight Razor Focus
This was my first straight razor and it is time for a touch up. Today was not a smooth easy shave. No blood though
Mickey Lee Soapworks Drunken Goat
Wolf Whiskers Brush
Faultless Razor
Alum
Lucky Tiger
Myrsol Blue AS
Have fun!

 

Maybe the edge is dialed in? I have a couple of razors, DE and a straight that feel jars during the shave but the result is a close shave with no irritation. That is not the norm but I guess it's possible. Maybe it has to do with the geometry and angle that's on the edge?

 

Tabac Thursday!!!

Mongoose/Feather Pro (5)
Whipped Dog 30mm High Mountain
Tabac
Thayers
Fine American Blend


Overall decent shave. Achieved a DFS with no irritation however there was some blood. Kind of rushed todays shave as I was running a little late and needed to get to the restaurant to start prep and all that good stuff. I learned today not only should you not rush a shave...but especially don't rush a shave with a Feather Pro in the Goose. 3 nice cuts on the neck and one near my goatee. Alum burned but by the time I throw on my aftershave the burn was minimal. Respect the Goose or prepare for its wrath....

 

Interesting take on that. I would say you're right. The Rockwell isn't going to be able to run with the sharp dogs, but in the right conditions it delivers a decent shave.

 

Awesome Adjustable Arko August!!!!

August 24

Grand Blade Trial


Razor - 1962 (H1) Gillette Slim (2)
Blade - (1)
Soap - Arko
Brush - Semogue 620
Post - Alum, The Veg

Onward and forward to the next blade. The Treet Double Edge Blade, otherwise known as the "Black Beauty". This is a carbon steel blade that I have always liked so I'm interested to try it in the different settings. Back to the Semogue 620 for another great Arko lather. Still amazed at how well this brush is performing.

First pass and I noticed a difference from past uses of the blade. Where's the audible? No velcro sound, or very light sound. What's up? This blade usually sings since it's a carbon. The next thing I noticed was....where's the reduction? Didn't really feel any different at the end of the pass. Something is up here.

Second pass XTG and the same thing. Quiet and only minimal reduction it seemed. Third pass ATG and Gillette Slide and other touch ups and I managed a CCS. Well, I would say the carbon blade doesn't like the mild setting of the razor. I know there is a constant debate on which is sharper, carbon or stainless, and I'll be doing some deep research into that. From a practical standpoint, though, CCS was the best I could do at a 2 on the Slim. Looking forward to the 6 tomorrow to help verify my thinking.

Hope you all had a great day!

 

AAA
Still GSB 2



It's 50F and all is quiet in Colorado.

Have a fantastic Friday!
​

 

Friday Shave

Brush- AOS Fine Badger
Razor- Schick Adjustable/PAL Adjustable
Blade- Chinese Schick/Chinese Schick
Soap- Stirling Ozark Mountain
Post Care- Crystal Alum
Thayers Witch Hazel
Osage Rub
Bombed Florida Water

I swapped out the twin blade for a Chinese Schick, it felt like a completely different razor. First I lathered up a fantastic bowl of Ozark Mountain. I really like the scent of this soap and the performance is tops. I used the Schick on my left side, the PAL on the right. The Schick did not pull like it did with the twin, but I also got considerably less reduction. I did my usual three passes and I was BBS on the PAL side, I needed to do some touch up on the Schick side. The alum definitely burned in the Schick side, completely silent on the PAL. I finished up with a fantastic Osage Rub and Florida Water combo. Have a great day folks!

 

August Focus Day 26:

Stirling Synthetic Brush
Palmolive Classic Shave Stick
Gem 1912
Osage Rub
Stirling Unscented PSB
Aqua Velva Ice Blue/Musk

Another great shave this morning. It was a bit rushed, so a little user error led to a few missed spots. I would rate it as a SAS, but the razor was super smooth and comfortable. The Palmolive shave stick is better than the cream, which is pretty good in its own right. My little blend of AS works well and helped to wrap up this shave. I hope everyone has a great day!

 

Interesting on the carbon blade at 2. Sounds to me like it would not be the sharpest if it cannot handle the mild setting. I like several of the Treet blades I have tried (Treet Platinum and Treet King). Neither are top of my list, but both are solid B to B+ blades.

I don't have any of the carbon blades, so I will be moving on to another blade I have not tried. I am trying to decide between the Concord or the Vincent. Right now I am leaning toward the Concord because it is from Turkey as opposed to the Vincent which appears to be another Chinese blade.

 

Vincent is made for salons so isn't as bad as some.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Tapatalk

 

So were the "baldes" by Royal Red and we know where that got us.

 

I have a Kinfolks razor that was made in the same time period in the same area. Members of the Case family were involved in both companies. The thought is that the steel used for the razors was all sourced from the same place. My Kinfolks gives the same kind of results when shaving, but is completely smooth while using it. Glenn honed that one up to 30k on Sharpton stones. I don't have the same skill level or stones as he used, but that razor and the Case Brothers razor I have that Glenn also honed are my benchmark for what this razor should feel like. Hmm, I might have an idea for next month's focus.

 

I can see September's Focus shaping up.

• B-V3.1 courtesy of Tom @twhite
  
• J-1 obtained through a trade with Chris @Bama Samurai
  
• L-7 a scrappy little unit found in the wild
  
• L-1 (possibly ?) a yet to be identified and needs-a-handle Project
• G-1 incoming, a trade with John @John Ruschmeyer
  
• M-1 Adjustable Schick injector Pass Around courtesy of Tom @twhite

Should be fun and overlaps well with Drug Store After Shave theme.

 

SOTD August 26th


G.E. Jones Shake Sharp
Astra SP
Stirling Executive Man
Satin Tip The Purest
Lime AS

A wonderful last shave with the Shake Sharp before I rotate it out. There is a noticeable difference between shave #1 and #2 per edge on the blade. This mornings shave was the first on the second edge and resulted in a fabulous BBS finish.