NOV 30 Day Rule/Focus Pic&Discussion Thread

I see we have all reached the same conclusion. My daughters are well practiced at it already.

 

11/30/2015 - Last day of NOVember

And what a glorious shave it was


Hard- and Software:

- D.R. Harris Sandalwood
- Semogue 620
- Mühle R89
- Gillette Silver Blue (#7)
- Myrsol Agua Balsamica

One of those days, ya know. The soap lathered up easily and in abundance (would have been enough left in the brush for a third pass), the razor and the blade did a fantastic job in 2 passes WTG and X/ATG. Just one tiny touchup at my right jawline and voila - BBS shave Finished with cold water rinse and Myrsol Agua Balsamica - just perfect.

I have to admit: 4 weeks ago I would not have been able to achieve such great results. In small parts because of the hardware (my Semogue brush had to be broken in properly), but mostly because my technique improved tremendously over the course of this challenge. So a big Thank You to @Bama Samurai who started and accompanied this challenge. And of course to all of you guys who made this a fun and educational four weeks. I followed your struggles, mishaps and successes with great enjoyment!

What I have learned:

- The R89 is a great razor, capable of very smooth and irritation-free shaves. I put it in second place because initially I thought it wouldn't shave close enough, but again, that was just me.
- I love Boar brushes. Great mixture of softness and massage, they just need a little time to show their full potential.
- D.R. Harris is a great soap - though I'll probably use it a little less in the foreseeable future
- I got to know my growth pattern better, so now I am capable of really close 2-pass-shaves.
- Cold water shaves are not for me. Call me wussy, but I just love warm water.
- Angle matters!

And probably the most important lesson: Menthol can be more dangerous than a Pain Stick

Really looking forward to the next focus, but for now I just have to go crazy on all that nice new stuff that piled up here the last few weeks!

 

11/30/2015
Razor – Schick Type G
Blade – Chinese Schick (2)
Brush – Rudy Vey with Shavemac Finest
Lather – Barrister & Mann Seville
Post - Witch Hazel and Myrsol F/Extra



I am starting my December Focus on vintage razors a day early. Up first is my recently acquisition, a Type G Schick Injector. This is only my second time using the razor. The B&M Seville from a shave stick provided a wonderful slick lather. I really like the classic scent with a touch of citrus. I went with a normal 3 pass shave with touch ups and ended up with a near BBS. Closeness A- and Irritation A+. I hope to get better results as the week goes on. Finished with a splash of Myrsol F/Extra. Hope everyone has a great Monday.

 

11/30/15

Gillette Super Speed Y3
Rapira Super Stainless (1)
Vulfix Super Badger (660)
Strop Shoppe Baker Street
Georgetown G12 Scuttle
Pinaud Clubman Original

Shave #3 with the Rapira Super Stainless in my Birth Quarter Super Speed.
Another great scuttle lather today using Strop Shoppe Baker Street.


2 full passes: Pass 1 XTG. Very good reduction. Pass 2: ATG. This gave me a near BBS. Did a small amount of touch up using the soap on my face, then a cold water rinse followed by some minor touch up in a few of my trouble spots and caught the baby. I had a huge amount of lather left over today. At least enough for a couple more passes. The Pinaud Clubman was mild.

Another nice BBS from the Rapira Super Stainless in my Super Speed. The scuttle generated a ton of great lather from the Strop Shoppe Baker Street. It was slick, thick and protective and went on smooth. I'm a little torn between face lathering and scuttle lathering. I like both but find the lather I generate with the scuttle to be thicker and richer, at least so far. I guess I have something else for me to work on in the future.

Have a great Monday!

 

November Focus Summary



My plans and goals for my November Focus:

• Unique photo each day
• Focus choosing my preferred workday razor. Shave off between Mongoose and Wolfman
• Brushes used will be three of my favorites. Rubberset 400 #3, RV Shavemac and RV TGN Finest
• In an effort to finish up some soap, I will use 3 soaps for all shaves except TSD Sundays. If one is finished during the month, I will add another.
• Continue my effort to master using a shave stick.
• By the end of the month, I hope to have picked one of these razors as my preferred workday razor.

In summary, I stuck to some of my goals and went off track on others. I did use a unique photo each day. In the end, I am unable to pick between the Mongoose and Wolfman OC as my preferred workday razor. However, I was able to dial in the preferred setup with each razor which is the Mongoose/Feather Super Pro and Wolfman/OC with Feather. I fell of the wagon on sticking to 3 brushes and 3 soaps. However, I did master using a shave stick this month. I can see using shave sticks a great deal going forward.

I would like to thank @Bama Samurai for putting these monthly focus threads together. I have participated in all the threads this year and will continue to do so. I would also like to thank all the participants. I get a great deal of enjoyment following your progress and hi jinks throughout the month.

 

Pre December Focus Shave:

Homemade PS Oil
Stirling Synthetic Brush
TSD Lanolin Iced Sub-zero
CJB Pain Stick
Osage Rub
Stirling Unscented PSB -- Mentholated
Fine Fresh Vetiver

I got myself up a bit early this morning (in reality, I just didn't use the snooze), just so I could have a little extra time for my shave. I followed much the same process as yesterday, and had a very similar shave. I had one small weeper, this time on my chin. But, my face is pretty smooth. There are a couple of small spots on my chin and neck I could have cleaned up a but over all I am pretty smooth. I actually kept the Schick in the drawer, as I just didn't need it. So far, I am feeling good about my shaves with this razor.

 

November Wrap Up

I started November by continuing my blade evaluation. The first 3 days was with an Astra SP in my New LC, then I switched to my birth quarter super speed. I had intended to shave with a number of blades in that razor, but only ended up shaving with two: the GSB and the Rapira Super Stainless. The anticipated arrival of the Nationwide Box Tour III encouraged me to switch gears and use the soaps and creams that I had so that I could be in a better position to compare the new arrivals.

I had 10 shaves using the soaps and razors from the travel box. I went back to doing 2 passes and touch up to allow myself more time with the soaps and razors. I only had 3 BBS shaves, but I wasn't trying very hard to get them. Once the box was packed up and ready for shipping, I met @clint64 for lunch and he generously gifted me with more soaps to try. I really enjoyed his Strop Shoppe Baker Street, and plan to use it some next month. @clint64 also gave me plenty of Michaels Wool Fat which I will also try in December. Thanks very much Clint!

Even though I didn't do much with my blade focus this month, I have updated my results for my top 4 blades. I did not count the shaves during the period of my soap trials since I was not trying for a BBS then and the purpose of my blade focus was to determine how often I was capable getting a BBS shave from a given blade in various razors while limiting irritation. Here’s a summary of the blades I’ve found so far to work the best for me:

Gillette Silver Blue – 48 shaves in 6 razors – 81% BBS, Only 1 shave had irritation. 100% BBS results achieved in Old Type and New LC.
Rapira Super Stainless - 15 shaves in 5 razors - 87% BBS. No irritation. Had 11 BBS in a row. 100% BBS results achieved in Tech, Old Type and New LC.
Astra Superior Platinum – 20 shaves in 5 razors – 75% BBS. Only 2 shaves had irritation. 100% BBS results achieved in Tech and Super Speed.
Lord Platinum Class – 13 shaves in 4 razors – 77% BBS. Only 2 shaves had irritation and those likely due to poor lather or rushing. 100% BBS results achieved in Tech.

Thanks to everyone who has offered encouragement this month. You are all great folks and it has been a privilege being part of this group. Thanks to @Bama Samurai for continuing to put together these rule/focus threads. I’ve learned a lot through them and suspect everyone else has too. I'll see you in the December tread.

 

I shave very late in the day so in case I miss the day by a few hours my planned shave tonight will be Gillette Sterling, GSB, Semogue boar, Hydra soap. Probably going to try Nivia regular AS balm. There really aren't any more razors I want to try in the Box tour Box so I'll give my least loved DE a try with a good blade now that I've developed better technique. Looks like I'll be able to start my straight razor focus on time tomorrow if I can get some razors stropped well tonight and tomorrow. I don't have any hones finer then 6k so I'm just going to do my best on a duel sided pasted board one side is cro-ox and the other is iron-ox. after that I'll strop it until my arm falls off. both razors are rough shave ready one is better then the other.

 

Monday, November 30, 2015

Mongoose with TRIAD Helix Hex Ti
Feather Pro Super #7
Simpson M6 LE
Krampert’s Soap Frostbite
Alum, Witch Hazel + Menthol, Whipped Shea Butter
Krampert's Frostbite Aftershave

Had an excellent Monday shave, two quick passes with a new blade and I paid the reaper with a few weepers. End result wasn’t even near BBS but close. Closeness: A, Irritation: A-. Added Gold Bond Menthol Lotion for some extra cooling along with the Shea Butter and I’m good to go. Finished with Krampert’s Frostbite Aftershave, nice and cool with excellent skin care. Have a good work week everyone!

 

End of November

Everyday blade for the Mongoose is the Feather Pro
The Schick I-1 Injector worked the best with the Japanese Twin Injector II blades
All the brushes I used this month were suited for face lathering
All my SOTD photos were saved

Focus for December
· Save all SOTD photos
· Use badger, boar, and synthetic brushes
· Use SE and DE razors
· Use various SE and DE blades
· Use Straight Razors to even sideburns

Thanks to Chris for moderating the 30-Day Focus again this month. I improved my technique with the Black Mamba this month. I'm looking forward to more fun in December.

 

Another great photo. I don't recall you using this Simpson brush much. It sure looks good.

 

Thanks Clint! This one is not getting the attention she deserves.

 

oh - it's a she? how did you figure that out?

 

This is what makes the den different from the rest.

 

I understand how that goes. I am thinking of doing a "Brush A Week" (BAW) rotation next year. All in all, having several very nice brushes is a good problem to have.

 

I use an app on my phone and keep all my shaves with notes. Short and simple.

 

I like this.

 

Great pic. Shave. Mark you have awesome gear. Awesome.

 

November Wrap Up:

This month was like a squirrel with ADHD, and kind of all over the place. I used three different razors that all had different techniques. My DE choice was a Pre-War Fat Handled Tech. And I got a BBS every time I touched it. It’s a great razor. Second razor was a pain stick, CJB handle with KAI Original blade. I got a few low grade DFS shaves from this, but at the cost of irritation. I got a few cuts, but not really bad ones. The last razor I used was a straight I had purchased on the bay and honed from bevel set up to done. I was attempting an advanced shave method with this, a scything cut, which is similar to a Gillette slide, but with a straight. It gave me the worst cut I have ever had with a straight. I don’t shave every day, so I ended up using each of these razors five times in the month. Between the cuts I gave myself and changing razors, I really didn’t get to focus on anything, and didn’t see an improvement.

I also added three new soaps this month. The only area I did feel improvement was with the brush. My conclusion is that I may be looking to put this brush up for adoption. (I only keep brushes I love. I am down to four now.) I might have to track down another handle like this one, because I love the handle. Bought a new soap and aftershave from Jabonman in Spain. It’s awesome. Traded a pain stick for two Sterling soaps, and have used each once. Need to play with them some more to determine if they are going to stay in the rotation or not. That puts me up to 15 soaps, which means everyone gets used once per month. Now I just need to work out matching aftershaves for each of them.

Thank you to everyone for participating, especially @Bama Samurai for hosting the thread. My two main take aways from November are that if you don’t narrow down what you are trying to focus on, you won’t get improvement, and menthol doesn’t always feel nice.

 

Thank you Kerry.