March 2017 30 Day Rule/Focus Pix & Discussion

what power did you set your Slim on?

 

March 8, 2017

Gillette SA w Astra SP (2)
First Canadian Soap Co- Maximo Gomez Cuba
TGN synthetic/mahogany handle
Thayers
Stirling Gentleman balm

Day 5 of the SA, day 2 with the Astra. Kept the razor at 5 for all 3 passes. That was probably a mistake as I got a series of weepers on the ATG pass to end. Really close shave, though! Tomorrow I'll look to go something like 6,5,3 on the 3 passes. The Astra has, as always, produced a couple of smooth, efficient shaves.
This was my 2nd time on this soap, and man does it make for a great smelling, slick lather. The Thayers took care of most of the weepers, and I finished with the Gentleman for a full tobacco overload! Have a great day all!

 

Razor: Supply Provision Custom 3 dot head
Blade: Chick
Brush: That Darn Rob silvertip
Soap: L&L Grooming Marshland
Post Care: Thayers Witch Hazel
Osage Rub
Alum
Aftershave: Tallow and Steel Rainforest

A couple of firsts in this mornings shave. First use of L&L and Tallow and Steel and my first use of a silvertip brush. I really enjoyed the Marshland soap; easy lather, slick, protective and with a great scent. The Tallow and Steel complemented the soap wonderfully and has great post shave feel. I really enjoyed using the brush; the handle has a nice feel, it's a perfect size for face lathering and lots of backbone. Very different from my synthetics but worth getting nailed down. All in all it was a great way to start the day.

I'm officially kicking off my focus for this month with today's shave. I'm exclusively using the silvertip to learn it's ways as well as determine if I want to keep it or swap for a synthetic. Have a great day folks!

 

SOTN March 7th


Ever-Ready Shovelhead
Gem Stainless(3)
Ever-Ready 200T
Arko
Italian Barber Amici AS

Another shave with the 200T that I re-knotted with a 24mm TGN finest. I'm really not very happy with this brush and I think I need to set the knot a little deeper. I feel like it splays too much when loading and is a bit on the floppy side. The Shovelhead however is turning out to be an excellent performer. Its very efficient and is really providing very close long lasting shaves. Finished up with a spray of IB Amici. I really love this spicy grapefruit scent, I hope they never stop producing it. Have a great day my friends.

 

That sure is a beautiful brush handle, Ben.

 

I don't know why I thought that scene, but a little Spaceballs always brightens my day!

I honestly don't remember, Paul. I think it is on either 6 or 7. In my experimentation, both the Slim and Fatboy really seem to do their best in this range. I have used other settings with good results, but I like this range the best for each.

 

It really is. I need to get some pictures taken, it's got a great contrast from one side of the handle to the other.

 

March 8, 2017- And now for something completely different...

Razor: M3 Schick Adjustable (4)
Blade: Personna Mini Hair Shaper (1)
Brush: Razorock Plissoft 22
Soap: Cella

The last time I was at the local beauty supply store, I noticed that they sold the Personna Mini Hair Shaper blades for what seemed a decent price. I ended up going back last night and picking up a pack, *carefully* transferred several over to an empty Schick injector, and loaded up the M3 for today's shave.

Plenty of lather from the Plissoft and the Cella. This is one of my last chances to use a soap for a while as wife and daughter are coming home Friday evening. (DD's therapy/rehab has gone very well. Thank you all again for your thoughts and well wishes.) All-in-all, a pleasant, effortless shave. Two passes and the baby (or was it the dolphin) was in the room. Cool Alum and a splash of Witch Hazel and I'm set for the day.

I'm definitely curious to see how the Personna blades work out over the long haul. Until now, I've only used the Chicks so I don't have a lot to compare with. (Some day I'll get around to picking up some Twins.

 

I bought this razor NOS recently. It was still wrapped in the factory packaging. It had a nice looking factory edge, so all I did was strop it with CrOx on felt followed by my normal stropping routine. I'm getting very nice shaves with it
Stubble Trubble Pirate Cowboy Soap
Culmak SM2 Brush
Heart Columbia Razor
Thayers WH
Chiseled Face Ghost Town Barber AS
Have fun!

 

I like the Personna's, I dislike the injector box. If you buy them in the hair shaper package, they are super cheap.

I think they are maybe not quite as sharp as the Chicks. Still worth it for the price difference.

 

Kung fu

 

Are they the same as the Ted Pella blades ?

 

Yes. AFAIK, all of the white plastic boxed injectors are just Personnas in one branding or another.

 

March 8th - The Beast has been beaten back!!

Fendrihan Scientist (chin: Merkur 34C)
Derby Extra
The Phoenix brush
Tweeked DIY PSO
Stirling: EM
Alum/ TWH
Nivea SPSB
​

I do not take defeat well. Quit is never an option. I was determined to break this beast. I had more time today and so the F. Scientist was coming out and I would have the Merkur 34C in as backup. I am having a hard time with The Phoenix. It retains a huge amount of water. I needed to grab more soap to compensate for how much this brush drinks. It has originally thinned out the soap making a watery solution even though I shook out and squeezed out much of the water it held. I would love to know is this because it is a Silvertip that it holds so much water or is it because it needs more backbone. Both times I had a nice pasty mass on the top 1/2" of the bristles. I also wet the soap at the beginning of the shower to further soften it.

I have never been so fearful to shave. I decided to choke up on the handle to reduce leverage and only use the safety bar side leaving the comb for another time. this is one heavy razor and increased force is not needed. I decided to leave the injured chin to the Merkur, for now, until my skills improve. Everywhere else I did with the Scientist. I was rather impressed. I did 3 passes with it (WTG, XTG and ATG) and got a nice shave. I did have a weeper or two but nothing that didn't turn off as soon as started. Alum was biting but calmed pretty quickly.

I found a smooth methodical stroke worked great! Also, the handle angle resembled more like the Fatboy than the 34C. I do wish they made the handle on the Scientist lighter because I think the weight is a detriment. a little lighter weight and it would be more easy to tame. I am even toying with the idea of dropping the handle in the drill press and dill a hole up from the bottom to lighten it. I doubt I will do it but that would be an easy fix. 34C took down the mouth region and I resulted in a DFS+. The Scientist did cut closer with a Derby Extra than the 34C with an Astra. The only downside was that the Derby blade was that the 'zipper' feel was increasing and I think this was it saying it had enough. I turned the blade around and it was better. I have some blades on order, due end of the week so this razor might need to wait till then for more use.

For now, the Scientist produced a great shave. I think I will continue using two razors until I fully heal and get more proficient with the Scientist. I can see it being my weekend blade when I just want a closer shave or when I have a bit more time and can devote it to it. In all, pretty happy.

 

Glad to hear that you got back on track. Don't let a bad day wreck your confidence. Nice work.

 

I'm glad to hear that the rehab has been beneficial.

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

 

I am not exactly sure what the problem is that you are having with the brush. A nice pasty 1/2" deep mass on your brush sounds kind of like a well loaded knot. Paste usually means not enough water. Do you take it straight to the face and work it up from there, or to a bowl? Can you post a picture?

The brush you are using is also pretty small, on average. If it seems like you aren't getting enough lather out of it, it could be a size issue. I only have one brush that small, and I pretty much only use it to bowl lather. I take that pasty mass and sluff it into the bottom of my bowl, then go back to the puck for a little more soap. Then I work the lather up in the bowl.

FWIW, even with my biggest, densest badgers, I just give them a couple hard flicks of the wrist, and they are good to go. A dense badger can trap a lot of water, but that knot isn't overly so, and it is small enough it shouldn't hurt a lather.

 

Thank you Jared. My wife uses the tray with black stones to display ear rings at her jewelry shows. I just took the pic really quick with the phone so the lighting in her craft room was too bright.

 

Thank you Andrew. It is a big beast but I like it already.

 

Thank you Jim. The lighting was not that great but the brush is ebony and ivory. Here is another pic of the brush as I took it out of the box.