April 2020 30 Day Rule/Focus Pix and Discussion

thank you Jim,good morning..

 

I'm the simple-minded type muhself. In the race between the tortoise and the hare, I'm the tortoise. .

 

Thanks, Jim. It’ll probably be fine for you and Clint. Neither of you are head shavers. I know you don’t have a beard, not sure about Clint. The face shave for me was ok, but the bulkiness of the head made trimming my facial hair problematic. That and the dome shaving issue made it a deal breaker.

 

very cool Joseph....and yes..

 

my self included last last couple of years..used to chase the buck,but always had to spend it too.now i work helping clients instead of repairing their cars and enjoy life a little more,retired from the benches.mostly more home time,not running around..simple is good..

 

The box turned out great Gary.

Wow. The Sheraton looks fantastic Gary.

 

It may be clipper time for me again....but I always mess up. Aaaahhh, I figure the pro barbarettes are well aware of this fact....that their customers blow it when trying home haircuts.

 

Excellent shave report and photo Jeff.

 

April 26th

Wholly Kaw - Fougère Mania SS & AS
Phoenix Artisan Accoutrements p400 w/TGN 2 band badger
New Azuma - 'Yasuki Steel' Kamisori

Another fougère day, using Wholly Kaw's new Siero shave soap base. Fougère Mania is an aroma that grew on me. First couple uses, it was a bit flowery overpowering, much the same note as Tabac cologne to my nose, with a hint of the fougère (fern, earthly) in the background. Today, not so much....it's evened out. Maybe it needed to sit (or was feeling the pressure of being put in a BST thread ). WK's new Siero base....easy lathering, quite slick, cushiony goodness. Peaky yogurt in no time while bowl lathering with a new TGN 2 band badger loaded in PAA's 'Switchback' P400 handle. This little kamisori is traditional grind, so requires an uneven number of strokes for each side while honing and stropping, but then a 1:1 ratio for the 'finish'. It performed beautifully after it's round last night through the strops. It's a very light razor, dainty looking....but set downs bite if you aren't paying attention. 3 passes, 1 set down mishap on the upper lip (which caused a line of 4 slow weepers). No biggie, they were minor, but reminded me this thing is a beast in it's mind, and never set a open edge down without it in movement to shave. No alum or styptic needed. DFS results today. Finished off with WK's matching aftershave....still catching whiffs of it. Reminds me of a fresh morning walk or ride through a wooded area, and passing a heavily blooming honeysuckle bush.

Hope everyone has a wonderful Sunday!

 

Wholly Kaw appears to have some nice products but a little too expensive for me. I mean...not out of the question, but I'd really have to budget some.

 

If they sell the new one in Korea I’ll be first in line as long as it’s the one with 600 ponies.

 

Thanks, Clint! I think you’ll like this razor. You know cart technique, you’re not a head shaver, and you don’t have beard trimming issues.

 

thank you Clint,have a fine sunday sir..

 

..very cool..are you able to import cars there?

 

Yes. The Siero base is spendy in my mind too. I’m a sucker for fougère though, love his first two. Had a little buyers remorse with Fougère Mania. It’s the reason I haven’t bit off on another purchase since the release of the Siero base, facial serums and other products. Most things on his site got a price bump when that happened. There’s plenty of other brands seen here daily with a better price/performance ratio. Sales at some of the online retailers are what I’ll do for WK in the future.

 

I'll do a "re-review" anway, but won't buy anything....always good to stay on top of things.

 

April 26, 2020
Broman
Feather
30DC LE with Zenith Boar
A&E Dirty Ginger
Shave Soap & Aftershave

​

A couple of new items up for the shave this morning. First I bought a Zenith Boar with a plastic handle and transplanted the knot into the @jtspartan 30D LE handle. Second was the Broman Razor which just arrived yesterday. The knot was already soft on its first use and should continue to improve with use. The 30DC did a wonderful job whipping up the Dirty Ginger soap into a rich slick lather. I did add several drops of Terrorade for a refreshing chill. Of the 7 A&E soaps I have tried the Dirty Ginger scent is among my favorite. You can pick up the ginger and rum over a floral tobacco flower note. The is a very strong and complex scent. The ladies of the house gave an unsolicited thumbs up during breakfast.

Now onto the Broman razor. I read several reviews of the razor last night, so in general I thought I knew what to expect. Following the advise of several reviewers I went with a Feather blade snapped in half. The loading is a little fiddly. I can see where someone with very shaky hands might have an issue getting the blade loaded. Once loaded you can see the designers went with comfort over efficiency. I do not think it would be possible to get a cut or nick with this razor. As @jgreenepa Jeff noted, the pivot mechanism is loud. Much louder than the OneBlade Genesis or Core. I was able to just ignore the noise. The razor head is wider than the blade and for those that need to trim close to a beard or goatee this will be a serious issue. The Broman does not reward a light touch. You have to throw caution to the wind and press down on the sucker hard. I did say PRESS DOWN HARD and go. After the first stroke, I decided to just go ATG for the first pass including the fool's pass above my lip. I really did not get any audible feedback from the razor. At least none louder than the pivot noise. I ended up going three passes, ATG, XTG and ATG. I did buff my jawline and neck. The end result was a DFS. I just could not get one spot on my jawline despite some serious buffing.

So where does the Broman razor fit in to the scope of things. I would place it in the group of razors including the OneBlade series and the Focus R48. With its pivoting head, it should appeal to those that are satisfied with a cartridge razor but want to save money on blades. These same folks might want something more green with less plastic waste. The Broman uses readily available DE blades unlike the OneBlade which is a positive. Even though the blade loading is fiddly, it is not as involved as what I have read about the R48. My results of the today were about the same as the OneBlade Core but well short of the SS OneBlade Genesis. I could also see my wife and daughter using the Broman before touching a DE razor. As for me I can see using this razor on my motorcycle trips. Honestly a lot of those shaves are done with a touch of hangover so the bloodless aspect is a big help. For shaving at home with a razor in this group, I will stay with one of my OneBlade Genesis razors using either a Feather FHS or modified Gem blade.

I apologize for the long winded post. I am off to pick up lunch for my mom and deliver it to her home. I can't go in and visit but at least I can say hello at a distance. I hope everyone has a great Sunday.

 

i just pm'ed you..

 

awesome shave and pic Blair,good morning..

 

Excellent photo and shave Blair.