YMMV: Exploring the Collective

Discussion in 'Articles' started by PLANofMAN, Oct 6, 2012.

  1. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    Hear that sound? Like a quiet clink...clink...clink...it's the sound of a thousand blades dropping into blade banks...The heartbeat of our forum. Most forums have a common trend, something that binds them together. It's usually a narrow focus, like BMW motorcycles, cooking, politics, etc.

    Our forum starts off that way...

    We all share a common focus. Wet shaving. But from there we all branch out in a million directions. Modern, Vintage. Double Edge, Single Edge, Injectors, Straights, crazy one-of-a-kind razors that don't fit into any category. Boar, Horse, Badger, and Synthetic brushes all find their way into our collections. Blades from every corner of the globe-Russia, Japan, Turkey, Germany, the United States and more are all used by us. Soaps...and creams. I think just about every country in the world has at least one soap or cream worth trying.

    Just like our shaving products, our members are just as culturally diverse, followers of different religions, creeds and races. Here at The Shave Den we become a homogeneous whole. This place is a melting pot for wet shavers. Is there friction? Of course there is. There is also a camaraderie here, and a genuine sense of caring and sharing.

    The golden rule here is YMMV. Your Mileage May Vary is the whole of the Law. It's almost Holy Writ around here. For the most part it is true. There's a thread around here called "Shave Products Best Avoided." Even that thread has some YMMV stuff in it. If you are new here, and some respected member of the forum tells you, "This is how it is..." feel free to tell him or her that "YMMV." We won't get offended. We all have opinions and advice, but we are not you.

    We are here to help and encourage one another... It's one of the reasons we have a freebies section in this forum. At any given time there is at least one PIF (Pay It Forward) thread going on, with free stuff in the offering, It's not really because we are "paying it forward" but because we like to give and share. Stingraysrock does not come around very much anymore, but a large part of what this forum is, has been influenced by his generous nature. Many of us carry that tradition forward. Some share shaving goodies, others share advice, tips, tricks and experience.

    We don't live in a vacuum. There are other good shaving forums out there, and I encourage new wet shavers to try them all. We are by no means the only source of "Shaving Knowledge" on the planet. Many members here are also members "over there" in one or more of the other forums. The difference between us and them is tiny, but important. There you are a member...here, you are family.

    That's my opinion, of course.;)
    YMMV.
     
  2. macaronus

    macaronus Sir Nice-a-Lot

    Great write-up, Ryan! :happy096:
    I feel the same way about The Den. We're all family over here, with the same love: wet shaving!
     
    PLANofMAN likes this.
  3. Smoothy

    Smoothy Well-Known Member

    Very well said written, Ryan! Thanks! :signs107:
     
  4. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    Someone recently left (kind of) this forum because he was noticing a growing trend in the forum to move away from YMMV. I decided to write this to remind myself and everyone else why we embraced the YMMV "motto" in the first place.
     
    richgem likes this.
  5. macaronus

    macaronus Sir Nice-a-Lot

    I guessed as much. Thanks for the reminder!
     
  6. blanka

    blanka I will not eat my shaving products. Promise.

    Indeed, that's why this is my shaving home. Feels like I'm talking to close friends rather than fellow members.
     
    PLANofMAN likes this.
  7. Ryan B

    Ryan B Knight of the Soapocracy

    We aren't the biggest shave site, but we're the most close knit.
     
  8. richgem

    richgem suffering from chronic clicker hand cramps

    I, and many others here, were members at that large site. It's much better here.
     
    Med. Cheese and Ryan B like this.
  9. Ryan B

    Ryan B Knight of the Soapocracy

    I'm a member at a couple larger sites. IMHO, it just seems impossible to keep up with things there.
     
  10. Falcon43

    Falcon43 Active Member

    Although I am a part of other sites, this place is the one I call home. There is just something special here. I would hope that others feel this as well. Everyone, from the moderators to the newest members seem able to have fun and even poke some fun at others without"crossing the line". The people here are genuine and caring. Yes, we all have different views but respect is not lost. There are different levels of experience but no one talks down to anyone. What a great place!
     
  11. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    It's happened before. I misunderstood what a member posted one time, and was chewed up one side and down the other by that member. I apologized, and shortly afterwards a member of the mod team ripped into the original poster and locked the thread. Shortly after that the thread was deleted. I've had stuff that I've posted taken the wrong way by members, and the mod team steps in and deletes posts left and right to keep things from escalating. They work very hard behind the scenes to keep this forum civil and organized. I've noticed on rare occasions a member gets bent out of shape about something and four or five members will step in and settle things down. I've only seen the ban hammer used once on a legitimate member (not a spammer), and that was due to a deliberate act of fraud in the marketplace.
    Well said. On the whole, I agree with this. There is a level of teasing that goes on here, but it's not malicious. A person would have to have the soul of a stump to not wind up with some sort of sense of humor after being here for a few months.:)
     
    Falcon43, Switchermike and macaronus like this.
  12. gollum83

    gollum83 Well-Known Member

    Which is one of the biggest reasons why I switched and stayed after frequenting some of the other shave sites. Life's way too short not to goof off and have a bit of fun every once and a while.
     
  13. Switchermike

    Switchermike Active Member

    Love me some TSD!!!!! You guys are great here. Why would anyone go elsewhere?:)
     
  14. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    Buying, Selling, or Trading.
     
  15. JRod22

    JRod22 Well-Known Member

    stoked to be part of this family. its nice to recognize members going from thread to thread.
     
  16. NoobShaver

    NoobShaver BGDAAA

    The site has its moments.

    TSD would not be what it is without its moderators. The much lauded atmosphere is the result of an intentional decision and lots of hard work. Have you hugged a mod today?
     
    PLANofMAN and Queen of Blades like this.
  17. fishcrow

    fishcrow Birdman of TSD

    Ryan excellent write-up. Everyone here is family, what works for me might not work for some one else and vice versa. There is no reason to become upset.
     
    PLANofMAN and macaronus like this.
  18. KronaKid

    KronaKid Member

    very well writing and so true in any group be it a sport or a club or a group of people who shave using similar methods there sound be a sense of familyness vs just being a member and never really knowing or helping those others :') brings a tear of joy to my eye to hear such things
     
  19. feeltheburn

    feeltheburn Well-Known Member

    I'm not registered on any of the other shaving forums. When I was looking into traditional shaving, I checked all of them out and they do have some great info but nowhere else do you find the vibe you get here. I dig it and I do appreciate the effort the mods go to keeping it this way.
     
    AKASL, Leo K., JRod22 and 1 other person like this.
  20. Heloguy

    Heloguy Well-Known Member

    Im with you. I signed up on a different forum at first, but never even logged back on. This is where all the cool kids hang out!
     
    AKASL, Raven312, Leo K. and 1 other person like this.

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