March 2017 30 Day Rule/Focus Pix & Discussion

They got a video of my old high school baseball days! I am the third from the right!

 

Reminds me of one of my all-time favorite movies...

 

You know me too well.

 

Paul, I would not worry at all about which razor works best for you. It's your shave and you should enjoy it. There are many that use disposable razors with great results. I enjoy following your post regardless of the razor you are using.

 

My mini Trac II focus begins tomorrow and will continue through the end of the month. As I recall, I used either a Trac II or an Atra when I first started shaving. Nicks, cuts, and irritation were common in those days, as I shaved with: no prep, one pass in different directions each day as fast as possible, whatever bar soap I had, and never used any aftershave balm. And, no, I didn't know Neal when I was in high school. I came up with all this on my own. My general frustration with shaving this way led me to borrow a buddy's Norelco electric razor in college. It was a more comfortable shave by comparison, so I began shaving with electric razors and continued for 3o years before switching to DEs and SEs.

I plan to use the Trac II with proper technique to see if I can get good daily shaves over an extended period. I may also try some shaves using KMF cream applied brushless. If this set up works OK for me, it will be handy for air travel when I take only a carry-on bag. (If I'm traveling carry-on, I'm not interested in shopping for DE blades at my destination or disposing of used DE blades in the hotel trash.)

I'll start with a heavy chrome-plated Trac II handle that I picked up from Super Safety Razors. I've also ordered a couple of lightweight Gillette Trac II handles from a vendor in India, but I won't see them until next month. I plan to use Personna Twin II carts, and if they don't agree with me, I'll purchase the more expensive Gillette blades.

Should be interesting!

 

After seeing that picture, I'm completely speechless...and entering counselling.

 

Thanks so much, Clint.....messages like yours just now is(are?)one of the reasons I enjoy being here. .

 

There have been days where I feel like I look like that. I am usually clean shaven tho. And with a teenage girl in the house, I usually wear zubas.

 

It is amazing how much progress we make over time and having others who are following along and advising when asked does help! I keep thinking I could go minimalist. Fatboy, The Fat, Voskhod or Sharp Star, JR46 brush or Wolf, just keep it simple and shave. But....where's the fun in that?! That's what keeps me trying new stuff.

 

"Where's your Drill Sergeant soldier?"

"Buhlown UP Sir?!

That line always cracks me up.

 

March Madness & Spring Cleaning!!

March 19

Razor - '47 Gillette Aristocrat
Blade - (1)
Soap - Mitchell's Wool Fat
Brush - Semogue 620
Post - Alum

Well tonight's the night. In a little under two hours I'll draw three names to send 300 Russian blades on their way to new homes from the March Madness PIF. In honor of that I went to the Detente setup tonight. Aristocrat with Voskhod. One of my absolute favorite setups. American brass and Russian steel working together to make shaves better for everyone! I broke out the Fat and used the Semogue to whip up a huge amount of slick lather and did two passes and a slight touchup for a near BBS and a great finish. Alum was quiet, everything was awesome.

Hope the weekend was everything you wanted it to be! Mine has started and it's already a great start.

 

Not sure if this will ever catch-up on this month's thread. Today was my first shave in almost a month at home, and with my normal gear. Shaved off five day's whiskers. Good shave, and no cuts or irritation.

3/19/17 SOTD
Razor:Osiris Blades 6/8 Spanish tip
Strop: Drygulch Horsehide/ Linen
Brush: Dubl Duck M2/ Omega Boar
Soap: Stirling Pharoh's Dreamsicle
Post: Cold Water, Alum, Thayer's Rose Petal
Aftershave: Fine Platinum

 

Wrap up shave: Koraat 7/8 'Splash", Simpson Tulip 2 with Crown and Crane Lavender & Cedar.

The Tulip has a very soft knot but is working great with this hard soap. The C&C is full of tallow goodness and excellent performance, the scent is very nice too. I just touched up the Koraat and the edge was very smooth and very sharp. 4 passes and no irritation nor blood just a smooth face.

Irritation A+ Closeness A Smoothness A+ Sharpness A

 

I am hopelessly behind here. My focus fell hopelessly off the rails because this has been a hectic month and my heart wasn't in the competition. The result, however, has been some very pleasurable shaves, as I have simply picked up whatever felt right each day and enjoyed it for what it was. That in itself has turned into a series of mini-focuses. I picked up a new soap on a whim from Lisa's Natural Herbal Creations simply because I liked the ingredient list and the price was right. It was her Patchouli Sandalwood, which is much more the former than the latter. I spent a week straight on it, which is a record for me with any one soap. It has jumped way up my list as far in overall value, as the performance has far exceeded my expectations for the price.

I went flea marketing over the weekend with the kids and scored an Aristocrat, two Super Speeds (a flair tip and a 40's), and old style open comb frankenrazor for $20. They all cleaned up nicely and function well. Tonight the Aristocrat got the honors. I loaded it with a Feather, loaded up some Arko with my Omega boar (which I seem to be favoring a lot of lot) and went to town. I was rewarded with a very nice, smooth, close shave, the results of which were much more aggressive than the feel of the razor. It is a keeper for sure. I followed up with cold water and Florida Water for an easy win of a shave.

To top it off, my Gamecocks beat Duke tonight for their first sweet 16, the Lady Gamecocks took down Arizona St. to advance, and the Gamecock baseball team swept Tennessee, so March Madness has been a winner in that regard.

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

 

I've talked to him about DE shaving. But hadn't thought about the nut and bolt shaver. However, he has seen the guns

 

Use whatever works for you! Hang around and have fun!

 

Lure him in with those.

 

March 19 (Sunday - late night) - SE and soap focus

EverReady 1924 / Gem PTFE (8) + shim
Supply Provision synthetic brush
Kent MWF
Alum and Thayers Witch Hazel Aftershave plus styptic pencil

I was a bit stubbly and wanted to see how a 1924 worked with a shimmed blade so I shaved again tonight.

I have never used "the Fat" before (mine is the Kent-branded puck in a wooden bowl), so I started off with that. I put a bit of water on the puck to sit for a couple minutes, then loaded a damp synthetic brush and got to work in my lathering bowl. I had no apparent problems getting what seemed like a decently thick and slick lather.

Then I hauled out my brass EverReady 1924, loaded and shimmed the blade and tried it out. Again, shimming the blade turned an unpleasant razor into a fairly decent one. The razor didn't glide as smoothly as the 1914 or the 1912s - the cap almost seemed to stick a couple times. That was not due to the blade, however, but to (a) a razor with all the plating worn off the brass cap leaving a surface less slick than the original nickel or chrome and (b) not quite enough water in the lather. The blade itself was no longer noticeable and no longer almost "chattered".

Overall, the shave took me down to a near BBS. There was only one weeper on my chin, where I tore the scab off the scab off a pimple I cratered three days ago. That took a dab with the styptic pencil to go away, but I suspect I would have had the same problem even with a Schick Krona by now.

So the bottomline is that shimming the blade clearly makes the 1924s usable for me too. Mind you, even though I could make do with them as my daily driver if I had to, I still don't particularly like either the 1914 or 1924 design, I don’t particularly enjoy using them, and I doubt either model will become a fixture in my razor rotation. But at least I know I can get a decent shave with them if I have to...

 

March 20 SOTD:

Razorock Plissoft Brush
Cremo Cooling SC
Gillette New LC
Stirling Unscented PSB
Artique AS

 

Day 25 of 30 days of straights

Another DFS shave, this time with 3 passes. Only one weeper today.


DIY Pre-shave Oil
ABC
30mm High Mountain White set an extra 10mm deep
3 passes, WTG, XTG, XTG
Sampsons All Natural Aftershave Balm
6/8 Round Toe Henckel 17 1/2