What puzzles me is that they shaved good and now don't. Unless damaged you are the variable that had to have changed.
I honestly don't see how a soap or cream could be that drastic a change in cutting ability compared to technique.
Not drastic, but I do find some soaps create a slicker lather than others, and it does affect the shave, especially with super mild razors like my blue tip. The razor just doesn't seem to "dig in" as well. Seems more to glide over the whiskers.
That's a new one to me. I always aim for slickness in my lather. Never had a sharp blade skip over whiskers due to it.
I'm gonna pull out the old superspeed for tomorrow's shave. I'll keep into account all the tips that were posted here. You know, I love vintage razors and I really do want these superspeeds to work for me. Otherwise, I would have just thrown them out and this thread wouldn't have even been created Everybody's Favourite Uncle
One other thing to consider, when you tighten down the handle do the doors on the top close evenly and are they tight?
So one side closes faster than the other and it closes at an angle, but when they are closed they are even on both sides and pretty tight. I'll try to get a picture of that Everybody's Favourite Uncle
You can barely see it but it's there. The right side of the doors are open while the left side is more closed. Everybody's Favourite Uncle
There is your problem right there unless it is trick of the light. The gap is uneven. Take a spent blade not a new one unless you don't care about ruining the edge and run a feeler gauge across the underside the of blade and guard. The right gauge for the gap should be snug from end to end. If it is not it is uneven and that is one if not one of more issues right there. You can try straightening it out with a butter knife or something similar if that is the case. If the opposite side is good then you can test that and if you don't feel like fixing it if it is indeed the problem only shave with the good side then.