March 2017 30 Day Rule/Focus Pix & Discussion

C4 does make that a 1957, 4th Quarter. Nice. If there's no date code on the Tech then it's between 1938-1945. And it looks to be in great shape!

 

Doh!

I had conditionally surrendered to peer pressure assuming there'd be enough others to safely knock me aside. Then you went and ordered another round.

 

Thanks. That is too cool.

 

If we get more people, I will pop for five more razors. You got mail....

 

I wouldn't want you to be left out!

 

Besides... Chicks dig scars. What's the worst that could happen?

 

You need to try both of those, everyone should actually. The SS is iconic, and the Tech design is the most cloned razor ever. Both are mild-- use your sharpest fave blade and ride the cap a little, and both are really smooth shaves.

 

That's the spirit! Dark side!

 

Right. After homemade shavettes, there are no bad ideas, only risky ones.

 

So today I reached my final destination, and broke out the shave kit. I realized two things as I was unpacking. 1) I forgot a nick stick. Luckily Target is right next store, but when I went over to get a few things, I forget! 2) I didn't have a mug to soak my brush in while I showered. This one was actually easy to solve, and worked better than anything I've done so far. I used a Styrofoam cup in the hotel room that they give you for coffee. Kept the hot hotel water hot, and kept the brush hot.

So breaking it down, tonight's shave was the following:

-Maggard MR5 Handle + V3A Head + Polsilver Super Iridium
-Simpson Case Best Badger Brush
-Maggard PreShave Oil - Orange
-TSD Gunpowder soap
-Alum
-Stirling Margaritas in the Arctic Post Shave Balm

So tonight's shave, well just sucked. Which is too bad because it started out so well. I did shower, so my prep was back to normal. Like I said, I didn't have a mug so i used a Styrofoam cup to warm my brush. After I got out of the shower, I took the brush and gave it two flicks before going to work on the soap. And as soon as I started swirling, the lather just bubbled up on the Gunpowder soap, which gave me a hard time last time. So I went straight to my face and started lathering there (first time for that), and it worked well. Gave me a nice cover.

So I did the standard 3 passes (WTG, XTG, ATG), but after that it just seemed like there patches here and there. So then I just used water since it was still slick, and went to work with some touchups with the razor. But no matter how I stretched, I just couldn't seem to get rid of the last little bits, resulting in some more pressure, which caused some more nicks. And no nick stick!

The alum burned just about everywhere and what was supposed to be nice and refreshing with the Margaritas in the Arctic just set my face ablaze again.

I can't give it an F, since I did complete the shave. And with the post shave balm, it gives a faux BBS feeling. So maybe a D-, nothing higher than a D. So my new trouble areas are a patch at the corner of the lips, each side. No matter what I did, I just couldn't seem to make it smooth. And looking closely in the mirror, I'm not sure if it was hair, or just rough skin that I was scraping off.

Ah well. One more shave, then it will be April and time for something different.

 

Then they must dig me

 

Indubitably.

 

Sometimes the experience leaves us baffled. But, that's OK. Your beard is still growing, and you can try again real soon. Tomorrow will be more fun.

 

Of course. I saved my battle axe from last year and I'm considering using it again. Sort of an up the ante shave.

 

March Madness
Barbasol and Barber Blade Edition
Day Twenty-Seven



Awake for thirty one hours....long travel day. Easy shave....other than that...all is quiet in Colorado.

Edit: "Easy Shave" means two passes, no extra effort. Keeping the routine.

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

 

March Madness & Spring Cleaning!!

March 28

Razor - 1918 Gillette Old
Blade - (1)
Soap - Mitchell's Wool Fat
Brush - Jayaruh #46
Post - Witch Hazel

Tuesday evening so it's head shave night as well as normal shave. I changed over to Arko for the head shave soap as my VHD Deluxe used up last week. I noticed immediately how much slicker it was than the Proraso last night. Again, Proraso was slick for a few seconds then nothing. Arko has lasting power like the others I use. I'm pretty sure I'll be mothballing my Proraso bowls until I can PIF them. Anyway, with a fresh Astra SP in the Merkur 23c and Arko - head shave was awesome and I'm a cue ball again.

Moving on from the Fatip I upped the ante tonight to the only DE I have that is more aggressive. The 1918 Old Style. Chose the Fat and the Jayaruh #46 with Maggard synthetic knot. Loading the brush was super easy and the lather was even easier to get going on the face lather. For those who have had trouble lathering the Fat - try a synthetic. I have the routine down with all of my brushes but this one takes the least time and effort to get there. Good stuff.

Two full passes on the brand new Voskhod in the '18. I rode the cap like my life depended on it and still managed a couple of small weepers on the right jawline. Better than I sometimes get with this razor. It's incredibly fun to use. And, just knowing that next year it will be 100 years old and still performs like a new one - now THAT is cool.

Some touch up on the neck got the baby in the house, if you ignore the weepers and I"m going to. I hit it with witch hazel to create less of a burn than alum and called it a great shave!

Back to the grind in the morning. Just three more shaves in March and April will be upon us. Are you ready?? Anyone venture a guess on the theme? Anyone??

 

And ladies and gents... The blade gap got him for the weeper, and it was probably a loss of angle control of maybe only 5deg too high as he XTGd the jaw. (right eye is likely blocked here from hand, no depth perception, have to learn the feel) Literally milliseconds and millimeters from perfection in the stroke... New razor mass is the rest...

However, I read all of it. Sounds like you just drove an Old like you stole it, and you made the clean getaway.

Respect. That razor has a rep.

 

I thought I had it, in fact, until I finished and did the recheck. Still, very happy with the feel and result. This is the razor that nearly made me go back to carts in the first week of 2015. Now it's MINE! :ahem:

 

Techniques unlock tools.

 

Hero.

Get a tetanus shot. Still a hero.