30 Day Rule/Focus; May 2023. All Are Welcome!

Fine shave and a wise decision to boot Joe. Have a great day!

 

fabulous start to the day gents..

 

thursday
#21/platinum
wcs lantern silvertip
kaizen
legend



​

 

Thank you Gary.

 

Yaqi Sentinel 1.5mm stainless steel head.
Homelike Shaving Voevoda stainless steel handle.
Astra SP blade.
Shore Shave Cool Water Mint Ribbon synthetic brush.
Tabac shave soap.
Timeless Razor shave bowl.
American Tobacco by Andy Hilfiger.

Awesome Tabac shave this morning.

Happy Thursday everyone!

 

Classy setup and shave Gary! Enjoy your day!

 

The picture says it all Danny! Have a great day!

 

thank you Joe.

 

Hi guys! This is my video from my May 2nd shave. I am using my largest straight. It is my custom 13/8 ArtRazor 1000. I don't believe there is anyone on the internet that uses a 13/8 straight and videos it. During the shave, I was saying I was going with the grain, but I was going against the grain. I don't usually start against the grain on my first pass, but I did. Lol! Well, it kept me going along with the Mixing-It-Up May theme. I did a 3 pass shave, but the video is just 16 minutes. Enjoy.
Enjoy!

 

May 4th. 900th Open Blade Shave

Good afternoon.

Straight Razor Shave #450
5/8 F W Engels Special
JR #290 Cashmere Brush
Cella SS
Pinaud-Clubman Classic AS
Stirling Alum Block
Beard Growth: 25.5 hrs




This was a milestone shave of completely 450 traditional straight razor and 450 shavette shaves. Hence. it is my 900th open blade shave. I decided to use an old- ashioned early 20th straight razor. Yes, this razor is at least 100 yrs old. I decided to refresh the blade on my pasted strop and then hit it with the linen and finally the leather strop.
I picked Cella soap because it fits the barbershop roaring 20's theme. Of course, I had to bowl lather in keeping with the essence of this session. Here is the lather:



As you can see, the consistency of this lather was very rich and creamy.
This 100 yr old razor still cuts my stubble like it was butter. I got a nice smooth, close and comfortable shave, but got a weep on my left neck during my first pass. I will take that vs a big nick any day of the week.
Alum feedback was slight and the Pinaud-Clubman Classic aftershave was a great finishing touch. Looking forward to my 1000th open blade shave later this year. Take care.

 

Thanks Barry. Assertive, nice term, better than aggressive. Yes i like the audio feedback, when the Velcro feedback gets less I know I am getting close. Interesting that the Merkur Progress does the same for me, but not as loudly.

Yes, maybe it is still suffering my cleaning attempts. I did put baby oil in there, but will add some of the Wahl oil too. Hopefully with use it will loosen up.

Thank you, Joe, I won't stick my neck out and try the OC quite yet! Maybe later on in May? I will see.
(I am not familiar with the Feather you mentioned.)

Thank you Joe.

 

Today was about the same as yesterday. I had a Razorock match of soap and the brush. Seemed to work well. 2 passes. 1 cut, no Knicks, no Polka-dots. Cut happened at the NW corner of Cactus Nation. A bit nasty, but no dripping blood. I'll have to be very careful working that area tomorrow. Clean and fresh at cheeks&sideburns as well as North and South Porcupine Alley, and the rest of Cactus. Clubman again to finish. Very pleased, minus the cut. Very Outstanding.

 

5 May 2023

Still in keeping with the green menthol theme.



Growth = 24 hours
Prep = Usual
Pre-shave = Proraso Green Menthol. Should be finished with this by the end of the month.
Soap = Proraso Green with Menthol (allegedly!)
Brush = Old Vulfix Pure Badger, bowl lathering.

Razor = GEM Micromatic (bullet tip). These are late 1940 I think. Crazy thought that.
Blade = GEM (4) still going strong. Good audio feedback and not dragging yet, unlike my DE on day 4.

Passes: my usual 3 with touch ups. Managing XTG and ATG with this razor quite nicely.
Post = Warm and cold water rinses. Thayers.
Aftershave = Proraso Green (really mild). Added some Tabac for good measure.
Result: smooth shave, no damage. Still being a bit cautious with these SE razors. Still some leftover stubbled-troubled spots. Still want to work on that.

Razor Impression: I thought the blades were wider than the DE blades but they are of a similar length. No blade overhang or tab to scratch the odd earlobe or two, which is nice!

It's the shape of the head of the razor that means one needs to take care just under the nose! More sideways than N-S.
The flat shape of the head is quite nice, once laying this flat you can then come off this angle and find the blade edge quite nicely. Good for buffing ATG, maybe easier than finding that angle compared to some DE razors with large curved heads. This one is a keeper!

Blade Impression: it seems I can use these for longer than some of my DE blades.

Proraso Soap: I don't think this was quite as menthol-ly as I would have hoped for, it's Menthol May after. Also, it seems quite drying to the skin. Similar to the Arko in some ways. Might want to tweak this and start Mixing this up a little.

Have some super shaves and a wonderful weekend ahead.

 

Chris, it's nice that you dedicate your avatar to your current shave plan.

 

PS: poignant thought Micromatic Razor Holocaust Museum.
Who knows what we are shaving with when we are using these vintage razors. If only they could talk.

PPS: this site Coins and More seems to hint this particular model was only made for a short while in the late 1940s.
I somehow have two MMBT and both are in really good condition.

 

Terrific shave Chris! Proraso Green is slightly mentholated therfore you won't get watery eyes from it. However, it is a nice clean scent. If you want to feel the freeze, then Chiseled Face Cryogen is the way to go. It is marketed havings the highest concentration of Menthol. I haven't tried Barrister and Mann Artique and Fine Accoutrements Snake Bite, but they are also strong mentholated soaps.

As far as GEM blades and their knockoffs, they give more shaves then a DE blades because the edges are thicker. I find that they shave as close as a straight. That's why GEM razors are sometimes referred as a straight on a stick.
Enjoy your day!

 

SRS # 875 - Fougere Friday Shave- Brocha

Rating: 5 / 5

Razor: Thiers-Issard Super Gnome Extra
Brush: Shore Shave Cool Mint Water 24 mm Synthetic
Lather: Old Cahaba Shave Club Brocha
Aftershave: Los Jabones de Joserra Brocha
Additional Care:
Omega Alum
Dickenson’s Original Witch Hazel
Stirling Unscented Glacial Balm

Back with a straight razor shave today. The TI, my first straight purchased in 2002, delivered a flawless and close shave. My face is super smooth and irritation free.

 

Awesome shave Joe....love the brush.

 

Timeless Razor ALSB45 aluminum razor.
Rapira Platinum Lux blade (fresh).
Yaqi synthetic brush.
Mitchell’s Wool Fat soap.
Timeless Razor shave bowl.
Irish Chestnut by Andy Hilfiger cologne.

Lovely Fat Friday shave. Three very nice drama free passes.

Happy Friday everyone!

 

Fab Friday shave Giuseppe! Enjoy the beautiful Long Island weather today!