March 8 SOTA

Schick I1 Injector Razor
Ted Pella Blade (2,3)
Omega Pro 49 Boar Brush
Stirling Executive Man SS
Pinaud-Clubman Classic AS
Stirling Alum Block
Beard Growth: 1 day
Dome Turf: 4 days



I definitely needed a headshave with 4 days growth and kicked in a faceshave as well.
I wanted to see how well this mild Injector razor would shave a thick lawn on my head. I am quite surprised that it did a great job. Three passes plus touchups and I am cueball smooth. Of course, the razor didn't have any problems with my 1 day face stubble so all in all I am very satisfied with the results.
The alum block was basically non-existent. Splashed on a liberal amount of the aftershave to cover the head, face and neck. There wasn't any alcohol burn. Take care.

We all need a good laugh and you are a good sport.

Take care!

Did you have a comment?

Oh no.....the next craze will be men wearing baseball caps SIDEWAYS.

It just so happens that I found this video on how to treat and prevent ingrown hairs while shaving. Matt Pisarcik is the proprietor of Razor Emporium and he has sensitive skin. He shares 10 things to help shavers overcome this problem. I thought that I would share it with all of you.
@Paul Turner

9th March 2023.



​

Shaving recipe for today.

Prep: Warm shower:/ Asda Tingly Mint & Tea Tree Shower Gel.

Pre:
Cold wet flannel to my face.
Pears Original Transparent Bar Soap.
Brush: Anbbas 24mm Tuxedo synthetic.
Bowl Lather.
Bowl: Home Bargains Stainless Steel Side Bowl.
Lather: Haslinger Aloe Vera Shaving Soap.
razor: Merkur 34C. -Silver Star Super Stainless. (D4)

Post:
Cold water face wash with brush squeezing's, Cold Water Face Rinse./Alum Rub./Cold Water Rinse. / Homemade (~Autumn/Winter mix~) peppermint lavender, eucalyptus, + Tea Tree essential Oils Mixed Together With 200ml of Care+Witch Hazel. /Cien X-Bolt ASL. / L'0REAL Barber Club Reinforcing ASB.

Greetings,

An enjoyable shave to finish my shaving week off superbly.

The trusty Merkur 34C has performed wonderfully throughout the week it was my first DE razor along with the Muhle R89 and both razors are still two of my firm favourites to date and will always have a place in my humble DE razor collection.

The efficiency & longevity of the Lord Silver Star SS throughout the week has been excellent feeling smooth & sharp with no indication of dulling. i feel as though the blade could give me another 2 shaves at least, but as I have such a vast amount of DE blades to contend with I will retire it as four good shaves from a blade is more than adequate for me.

A very comfortable 2 pass + pick ups shave with no errors to report. Finishing the shave off with a few small dollops of L'0REAL Barber Club Reinforcing ASB.

My face is feeling smooth cool, & smelling divine.

Keep safe, and enjoy your day ladies & gentlemen.

Thanks for the kind words, Joe. Mastery? hmm, maybe not after 2 or 3 days, still getting to know this soap, I will get there though!

Thanks for the comparison again Barry. I had thought of adding the Merkur 34C to my RAD (oh dear) but from what you say they shave similarly so I will hold off. Am liking my R89 a lot, even though it is a beginner razor. Quite reassuring as a razor, that could be a trap though

9 March 2023. Same set up as yesterday morning.

2 Mistakes today.
Growth: 32 hours, late afternoon shave
Lather Bowl: White charity store bowl again.
Brush: Puro Tasso boar
Razor: Muhle R89
Blade: Feather, day 2.
Face Prep: HWS x 3,
Pre shave: Proraso white
Cream: MWF.
Post Shave: HWR, CWR, Alum, Thayers, left over lather, then Nivea.

Passes:
1st pass: Mainly WTG, some XTG, losing my discipline. (2 coffees already today)
2nd pass: More WTG, more XTG, some areas ATG.
3rd and 4th passes: even needed a fourth to get nice and clean
Touch ups: Usual tricky areas. Lower lip and chin went better today. Top lip was harder for some reason.

Results:
Nicks: One slight weeper right cheek, felt it zing, minimal bleeding, stopped before end of the shave.

Alum burn: Minimal in the Right cheek area. General zinging elsewhere.

Overall Success: Another great shave, ready for tomorrow, as the end of the week nears. Should last the whole day tomorrow/Friday.

Lessons learnt:
1. I got the MWF a little less thick than I would have liked. Could really feel the difference in the shave.
I soaked the boar brush in tap water, then shook it dry and squeezed most of the water out. But I had warmed up the shaving bowl with hot water, and had left over water in the bowl: also I added too much water too fast. Still good though.
2. I loaded the boar brush 20 times CW then 20 times ACW and then went back for more. Too much soap! Next time, drier brush, less loading, no water in bowl, and add water more slowly. (When I add water to the TOBS I can add 2 ml at a time, with the MWF it seems I have to still go slower.)
3. Feather (2) starting to drag, or maybe it was the less than optimal lather, anyway I will ditch this and stick with 2 days per blade until I get myself sorted.

Residual stubble: Lower right neck, I guess this is as good at it will get down here, even XTG both ways. Good enough.

Areas to practice: Chin is getting better, coming up from below the chin, then outside to inside and slight angling of blade into and out of the cleft.
Holding the razor near the end of handle magnifies my slight tremor, so it is better for me to hold the handle near the head, more control especially for the buffing the tricky areas, less transmission of the tremor.

Plan: Try starting the MWF with dryer brush on Saturday, and use less water. I want to get the MWF nice and thick, it doesn't seem to clog the razor which is nice, will see how thick I can get this.

Mistake 1: slight nick right cheek.
Mistake 2: dropped the alum block on the bathroom floor. Man does that stuff shatter and fill the whole room. Broom and vacuum to the rescue.

The Muhle R89 is a great all-round performing shaving tool, which for some is the only razor you will need. "RAD MADNESS" get's us all with our shaving passion. The Merkur 34c is good, will it give you better shaves?..No better than the wonderful Muhlr R89. Shaving confidence & technique are the key to good shaving results. Keep on enjoying your journey with the R89. Yours- Barry.

Terrific Thursday shave Barry. Have an awesome afternoon.

Despite the nick you had a fine shave Chris. Enjoy your day.

Wonderful Throwback Thursday shave this morning. I'm feeling a pattern here that the most expensive shave products are those that are very skin-friendly. Bill Neumann, Hub City(the one I used this morning)and Zingari Man(I'll be getting a soap of theirs soon). Maybe others??? Anyway, speaking of patterns, I continued my loading pattern of making sure the brush was nice and moist AND inserting a drop of water into the soap after the brush work. It got a nice bit of soap onto the brush when all was done. Great jon all around. I got rid of the hairs on the sides of North Porcupine(man, that'd be a funny-looking mustache, just the sides). I combine North-to-South with South-to-North strokes there. Solid along the jawline, and at Cactus Nation. Tomorrow, I'm going to go North to South over the Ingrown Hairs to see what happens. Goose-eggs for the cuts, Knicks, and Polka-dots. 2 passes. The Clubman Special Reserve still feels the same, even though it looks different now with that green appearance. I still have a lot leftt so I don't need to re-order it, but when I do I wonder what it will look like. As Outstanding As It Gets for today.

DE Shave # 455

Rating: 5 / 5

Razor: Gillette SS Blue Tip TTO (1956 B-1) -Mug/G.E.Jones Shake Sharp - Dome
Blade: Gillette Silver Blue/ Shark Platinum
Brush: PAA Atomic Rocket 26 mm
Lather: Proraso Aloe and Vitamin E
Aftershave: Aqua Velva Musk
Additional Care:
Dickenson’s Original Witch Hazel
Stirling Unscented Glacial Balm
Great dual shave this morning. The Gillette SS Blue Tip delivered a close shave. It is on the mild side. When I first received it I was befuddled to why the shaves were not very close. It took a few shaves to get the angle dialed in. The end result of this shave was a close to BBS without actually declaring it.

The dome shave is a rarity for me as the missus does not like the feel of the dome post shave. She prefers a little peach fuzz feel on her hand when she decides to rub it, aka “I wish I had a watermelon”. The missus will be away with some of her girl friends to visit the Southern den until Sunday, therefore, I took advantage of the time to go cue ball.

This weekend I will be heading to snowy Buffalo with my son, Anthony, to root on the Nee York Rangers.

Hope you all have a great day gentlemen.

Very nice dual shave Joe.

Overall nice shave Chris. You will find each soap has its own sweet spot for adding water.

Wonderful shave this morning Barry.

i used the “@“ feature to draw attention to the comments between Joe, @Trigger and myself regarding the Williams Mug soap I have in both dens. You had mentioned as noted above “Zingari?”
Therefore, I hope I have been able to clarify any confusion.

Thank you, Joe.

Thank you, Joe. My mekur 34c focus this week has been a pleasurable experience. Enjoy your day.