January 2015 30 Day Rule/30 Day Focus Pic and Discussion Thread- All are Welcome

30 Day Rule - Day 7 BSG

ATT S1 Kronos

Rapira PL

Plisson

Cade soap

Cade balm

2 pass DFS today. No irritation. No weepers. I'm finding that my first two passes have become much more effective and I have been able to drop a pass. This was one of my goals. Cade soap was really great, but my lather was initially a little to dry. Added some water and everything was great. I have started using Cade balm as it is so cold up here. This has been a really nice skin care product thus far.

 

January 7th SOTD (Shave 8 of the challenge, forgot to post on shave 7)
Razor & Blade: '63 Gillette Slim and Gillette Platinum
Two day's growth
Second shave on this blade, stropped on kangaroo
Setting 5 on the razor
Brush & Bowl: Semogue 1460 brush and soup bowl
Soap & Aftershave: Maggard Orange Menthol, alum block
Prep: Hot shower

I have failed my wetshave brothers, forgot to post shave seven two days ago, and have no pictures. As punishment, should I use the same blade for (gulp) six shaves?

Today's shave is the best I have gotten with this razor. I changed the setting to 5 to see if that would help with the tugging. I also stropped the blade for 30 laps on each edge. Two pass on face, WTG and ATG, and three pass on neck, N-S, S-N, ATG/ buffing. I think buffing is the right term. I am basicly rocking the razor back and forth over my trouble spots with zero pressure until the audible feedback stops. No cuts and I would call today BBS on the neck and face, with the chin and jaw line a DFS. Only feed back from the alum block was on the chin and jaw. Zero irriation on the neck by the Adam's apple.

This setting was just completly different than the milder settings, or the harsher ones. I need to try dialing up the setting for each pass, but am basking in a good shave right now. Going to repeat with the same blade on Friday.

 

Yeah, baby! That's what it's all about, right there! Good on yer!

 

I'm going to break up the monotony Friday. I have a local old timey barber shop a mile away. Gonna go in and get a hair cut and a straight razor shave for under $20.

 

I'm not dead. (yet)

Had some problems with a big machine @ work.
Been lots of hours getting things figured out and going again....
Hopefully all the Duct tape, bailing wire, and JB weld will hold
until the next scheduled shutdown.........


Day 7 of my 30 Day Rule!

Setup:

Razor: Merkur 45 (Red & Black)
Blade: Derby Extra (1)
Soap: Van der Hagen Deluxe
Brush: Omega 49 boar
AS: Thayers Witch Hazel
(and sometimes a splash of Osage Rub, just for fun!)




Warm shower and face wash w/Ivory bar soap, and I
soaked the brush and soap in warm water whilst showering.
I have to say, it's beginning to come together.
Getting used to this razor has taken a bit longer than I thought.
There are several things about this setup that are considerably different
from my usual or typical routine. I've been using razors with more heft,
and not so steep a blade angle. I really like the super lightweight 45.
It's easy to maneuver around the 'stache, and because it requires a much more shallow
hold angle, I've been trimming with it too. Holding the razor nearly vertical has proven
surprisingly beneficial. I'm getting on well with the Derby blades. I know this may seem
a bit odd to some who have not a good experience with them, but I chose them because
I wanted to find out if I could adapt to a blade that at first seemed less than optimal,
and get along with it. My answer to this would be yes, at least in this instance.
As long as I do my part, it's actually proven to be quite comfortable.
I'm not quite at the BBS level, but DFS's are becoming normal now, and that's really what I
had hoped for. Who knows, maybe another week or two and the baby will appear?

Anyhow, a good shave this morning. I'm having to be mindful of keeping the lather a bit
more wet and thinner than what I'm used to. It certainly makes the difference with this
light razor. My neck left of center still requires extra attention for some reason. I'm going
to try a different pattern or two as the days go by. I'm having a time getting it as clean as
I'd like, but things are much better now than on day 1, so I'm heading in the right direction hopefully.

Well, I'm home today unless the phone rings again.
Hopefully not. If it does I'll have to round up the jumbo hot dog tongs
and a very large Zip Lock bag. Somebody will have to go in and pick up the pieces......

Happy Shaving Everybody!!

 

Day 4 Lab Report - 30 Day Rule with a Slim BSG

Day 4 started out with a plan to reset the Slim to 4 and try again. After yesterday's soreness around the neck left me pondering whether I have made a poor blade selection, or if my prep routine needed work, maybe this Slim was just a little tricky, or if I had simply a bad technique day. I really was not looking forward to Day 4.

I decided to use some TSD Preshave balm. I applied it to my wet face and let it sit for a few minutes to condition my skin. I loaded up a fresh Kroger Personna. I washed off the balm with sandalwood soap, and face lathered the TSD stick and began to shave. I paid close attention to blade angle and noticed that everything was better than yesterday. No tugging, and my skin seemed fine when I shaved my neck. Pass one was NS and then for pass two I went XTG and did a little touch up. Compared to yesterday, this felt like a like a different razor. Or a new blade, or something.

Here is what happened. I did not realize it, but when I adjusted the dial I carelessly set the razor to six. So as I was getting a great shave I actually had no idea I was using a way more aggressive setting than I believed. I think the more aggressive setting matched the moderate sharpness of the blade much better, and it reduced my desire to lean in and apply more pressure to the razor. It resulted in a good blade/razor setup (from a technique viewpoint) and also more closely suited the technique I learned on heavier razors, allowing me to get a comfortable shave. I will try it today without preshave and see how it goes.

 

Day 5 of 30
BSG
30 Day Rule with a Slim


​

J2 Gillette Slim Adjustable
Kroger Israeli Personna
VDH Kit Badger
TSD Lanolin Shave Stick - Barber Shoppe Scent
Today's Great Cheap AS™ is Skin Bracer

Gonna go for another try on 6! Only by design this time...back with a lab report later! My skin and neck feel so much better than yesterday, I am no longer considering a reset. On with the show...

Today's Great Cheap AS™ is Skin Bracer. Your uncle used it in the seventies. Powdery smelling menthol goodness. Available almost everywhere, under $8 a bottle and approved by Mrs. Samurai. That makes it Great Cheap AS™!

 

You got this sewed up!

 

I like you writing about the reasons for Derby Green. I am doing the same thing. I decided I was using Kroger Personna to see if I could "get along" with a commonly available blade. So far...like you, DFS is normal and it's working out.

 

Just bask in that shave and keep on keeping on!

 

Congrats on hitting a goal. Nice work!

 

Chase that little rascal down! Spank 'im if you have to. He likes it!

 

January 30 Day Challenge
5 Month noobie.

Prep: Hot shower Nivea Face Wash
Brush: WD 22mm
Soap: C.O. Bigelow
Blade: Personna Lab Blue
Razor: Gillette Ball Tech 1951
Post: Alum Block, Captains Choice Bay Rum

After yesterday's three pass shave today's was a two pass WTG, ATG with XTG on neck passes. It't was a rushed shave I thought the alum was going to sting from to much pressure which happens when I rush. But there was no sting and was left with one of my better shaves with my Tech. I do find I have to work the ATG pass's a little more than than my Slim and Sheraton. The Tech feels mild like my MTO for comparison.

 

01/07 – Day 6 with the Weishi

Objective: Survive a month using low end entry level products.

• Music: I hummed The Imperial March
• Growth: 1 day
• Prep: Hot shower; Corn Huskers Lotion
• Lather: Arko – Face lathered
• Brush: Escali Badger
• Razor: Weishi 9306/Microtouch One
• Blade: Derby Extra (2)
• Post: Alum; Aqua Velva Ice Blue

Today’s Results: Nice shave today. I took it easy with just two passes. The blade that seemed sharper than normal yesterday was tamed a bit today and I was really smooth. It will get a third turn. Did you ever notice how clean cut The Empire was? Makes me think they had an exclusive contract with a certain beef fat we all love.

 

Wow, some great pictures already in this thread.

I'm still in. Shaving with Gillette NEW, Astra, and RR Mougette de France.

I've even dropped down to only one brush for the month, a 22m 3-band synthetic set in a vintage RubberSet 153 It's not my favourite brush, but since I'll be travelling this month it seemed like the good choice.

 

Hummed the Imperial March. I like it.

Now, if a light saber suddenly shoots out of that Arko stick I will have to bow and order my own supply. I wonder if an Arko-saber would give a close shave by itself?

 

SOTD January 7, 2015

This is the sixth day of my 30-day adventure to improve my shaving skills using the Mongoose. No significant news to report on my two-pass plus touch-up shave. The Mongoose provides a suprisingly mild and consistent shave, and the Feather blade on day three performs at its best for me.

Happy Shaving!

 

Day 5
Three passes was too many today. Still learning. One chin nick and some burn on the neck.
Merkur progress set to 3
Merkur blade
Bigelow shave cream
Three plus clean up.
Cold water splash.
Maybe I'll take tomorrow off.

 

Day 6
Prep: Hot shower, Clean and Clear deep action exfoliating scrub
Brush: Van Der Hagen (the one from the premium kit)
Soap: Van Der Hagen Luxury
Blade: Hill Country (rebranded Personna)
Razor: Edwin Jagger DE89
Post: Nivea Original, Old Spice

Nothing new just slightly improving each day. Apparently I nicked myself on the back of my head and didn't realize until I rubbed on the Nivea and noticed a tiny amount of blood on my finger. Also today was the first day my youngest semi watched me shave and he wanted in on the action.

 

Judging by the books in the background...... You are getting waaaaaaaaay too serious about the way you analyse your shaves