April 2020 30 Day Rule/Focus Pix and Discussion

Welcome Brian to the 30DC crew! Finally, I have a fellow New Yorker on this thread. I live on Long Island so we need to stay strong during this time. We usually go by our first names. I am Joe! Again, welcome aboard!

 

Welcome to the shave den sir!

 

Way to go Tim. You've really made a lot of progress in the last 35 shaves.

 

Welcome to the 30DC. Excellent shave lineup.

 

Thanks Jim. That is cheaper than buying and shipping from the UK.

 

hello and welcome Brian ..

 

Always happy to help!

 

I was thinking more of @b1hart Blair, so it would be easier for him to order.

 

I wonder how long it will be for Maggards to get the T3's in stock? Simpson's is running kinda slow due to Covid 19. The brush I ordered on the 26th didn't ship until yesterday.

 

Hey Jeff. Hope you are doing OK!

Do you think there's a chance that doing a focus with each of your razors would close the gaps in performance between them? I think of it this way: steel cuts hair (ref: War on Keratin), and each razor is simply blade holder of a certain design. Regardless of razor, if you can manage to get the plane of the blade edge parallel and sufficiently close to the skin surface, one razor's gonna cut the hair as good as the next. In my world, epic shaves should be possible with any razor lacking mechanical problems or design flaws.

It all gets back to technique, IMO, and that's where a focus could help. I understand that everyone has preferences, or that some razors may be inherently easier to use than others, but I'm not ready to write one off just because I can't initially get a great shave with it. Unless the razor has a problem of some kind, I'm inclined to believe my technique is lacking until I have information to prove otherwise.

Just my opinion and everyone's here for a different reason, but I get the most fun out of working on my technique. I love seeing all the cool new gear, but I've given up chasing the latest and greatest.

 

April 7th
Anything goes April

Razor: Parker Variant
Blade: Astra Superior Platinum
Brush: DS Cosmetic Tuxedo
SS: Palmolive Shave Stick
AS: Old Spice Classic (the new stuff)

Easily influenced by Jason @jtspartan... After hearing how much better Palmolive Shave Sticks are over Arko, I had to buy some and give it a try. Also had to give Astra SP's another shot since the last time I used them I had only been DE shaving for a few weeks. Well, I'll say my harsh judgement of the Astra SP was due to user error. The blade performed quite well giving me a BBS shave with the Variant set on 3. I did have a small group of weepers on my chin, but again I'm willing to claim user error. I flicked my wrist and bam, weepers. I may have to do a Arko vs Palmolive vs Derby shave stick showdown at some point. I'd say the Palmolive vs Arko performance was too close to call, especially using different razors and blades on different days. I will say I liked the Palmolive. It lathered well enough and it's cheap. Not as cheap as Arko but still, and it doesn't start with an A. In fact, I'm having a difficult time finding a day or date that starts with a P. We already missed Palm Sunday. I expect a reminder next year Jason! The next Palm Sunday is March 28th 2021.

Finishing with the Old Spice worked well too. The new classic is well... new, but I liked it well enough.

 

cool shave and pic Evan..

 

Just need a little H2S to paralyze the olfactory nerve and you're golden.

 

Thanks, Gary! I'll definitely keep that in mind.