January 2016 30 Day Rule/Focus Pic&Discussion Thread

I'll figure out something, I'll be trying this method. It's tough.

 

Day 8 - 90 Day Intro to SR

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Day 8. Add one little nick to the box score, but all in all a good day. I decided to take it easy, 1 and 1/2 passes then some FB cleanup. Practicing good grip, stretch and angle. I finally have the lather down, it needs to be wetter than with my DE shaves. The razor felt good today, and the shave was more relaxed. Digging out from under some more snow, had a quiet night with Mrs. Samurai and the dogs. Other than that...all is quiet in Colorado.​

Have a great weekend!
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Herm's back in the house!

 

Have shaved 3 times since my last post.

Our Leader 5/8
Semogue boar
Mystic Waters Lime
Citrus Musk AS

I take my razors to ChrOx and FeOx on balsa at least every week and before this shave it got 20 laps each plus 40 on leather. Did some good too. Near BBS with no after shave burn.

Our Leader 5/8
Semogue Boar
Proraso Green
Nivia Sensitive post shave balm

I was feeling shaky this day so I did 2 poorly done passes and ended with something good enough but not amazing. Irritation was rampent and that one stiff hair caused a bite again.

Our Leader 5/8
Semogue Boar
Arko
Lilac Witch Hazel

I used the Arko today. As always a great lather but It drys my skin some. I managed a DFS+ with only a little burn in the crease between my mouth and chin. The cold water rinse and WH fixed that right up but my face feels dry still. German steel CAN hold up to Arko, its safe to try @Bama Samurai and @NCoxSTL. If I had any Veg I would have used it but I haven't got any yet so I used the closest thing I had.

 

Brother I feel your pain.
You know I cracked two ribs in November. The pain was excruciating. Couldn't sleep without painkillers for a week. Had to sleep sitting up. Moving in bed was the worst.

Actually the worst was reading this thread! These clowns made it all the worse, what with the shenanigans and laughing and all. Take leave from this thread for a bit and heal up. It gets better in time.
Best,
Vince

 

Hey, the Goose has never been to Chicago!
After the way I spoiled your Aristocrat this summer with a trip to Canada, you could spoil the Goose as well!
Go on, you know you want to!
Cheers!
RT

 

Thanks, Vince! It's 2:16 am and I've been up for almost an hour because I couldn't get comfortable, I'm going to try to sleep in my chair for a bit. If I take a couple of pain pills I can sleep a little but not enough to where I'm rested.
Kerry

 

Wowzer!! Enjoy the ride! On my razors to buy in 2017!! Congrats!!

 

I've never cracked my ribs, I'm sounds very painful. Hope you get to sleep soon and recover quickly.

 

Congrats on the new razor. It looks great.

 

Thank you very much. My wife also has a fat handle that I had replated by RazorPlate. Thanks.

 

You are too kind. Thank you. Gotta keep you guys happy with the razor porn.

 

You make a great point, I never thought of it that way. I think you're right on with the size of the window. But, I'm going to work on it just to improve my technique overall.

 

Thanks! I'm glad I'm back! I was going through "Focus Withdrawal". Couldn't think straight!

(Thanks for the videos. How did you get hold of my family archive?)

 

Yesterday was shave four for my January focus. I was a bit rushed, and my shave was not as good as #3, but it was still a very nice shave indeed. My 37C with ASTRA blades is wonderful to use -- using it every shave for the month is making me more appreciative of this fine razor.

In fact, I think I will do a similar focus for a month with some other favorite razors -- maybe March or April will be a Mühle R41 month!

 

The additional passes (more than the typical 3-4) to reach the desired smoothness was the reason I gravitated towards more aggressive DE razors. Since I have fairly sensitive skin that irritated easy, I found the more aggressive DE razors accomplished my goal (smooth face, no irritation, rash nor itch) considerably easier than, say, the vintage Gillettes.
Inevitably, this quest for efficient, aggressive razors led me to the path of using straight razors—a path from which I have not wandered.

 

Who you calling clowns?

 

01/09/2016
Razor – Ikon B1 OC with Hempel Ti
Blade – Feather (2)
Brush – Rubberset 400 with Omega 49 Boar Knot
Lather – Chiseled Face Trade Winds
Post - Witch Hazel followed by Captain’s Choice Bay Rum



I love weekend morning shaves since I am not usually under a time constraint. The big boar whipped up the CF Trade Winds soap effortlessly. The scent of this soap is very hard to describe but the performance is top notch. With the lather taken care of, I went with a traditional 3 pass shave using the Ikon B1 OC razor. Since the soap has good residual slickness, I took care of most of the touch ups as I went. So with a final touch up on the chin I ended with a BBS shave. No nicks, weepers or irritation. Closeness A+ and Irritation A

I finished up with the usual witch hazel followed by a splash of CC Bay Rum with menthol added. A nice way to start a dreary rainy day. Hope everyone has a great Saturday.

 

1/9/16

Phoenix Double OC
Feather Hi-Stainless (2)
Vulfix Super Badger (660)
Mitchell's Wool Fat
Georgetown G12 Scuttle
Pinaud Clubman Original



Second shave with my Phoenix DOC loaded with a Feather.
2 full passes: Pass 1 XTG. Pass 2: ATG. Both with very good reduction. Followed up my second pass with a small amount of touch up with the lather already on my face. A cool water rinse and a considerable amount of touch up in a few of my trouble spots brought me both a weeper and the baby. The Pinaud Clubman stung a good deal today, but settled down quickly. The MWF left me with enough lather for at least another pass.

A nice comfortable BBS with the MWF, Phoenix DOC, and the Feather. Today took a lot more touch up than yesterday to get the BBS. It seemed during my passes that the shave was as close as yesterday, but when I found I needed to go over parts of my neck 3 times while doing my touch up, I began to wonder if the blade had lost some of its sharpness. I'll keep it another day and see if I can tell if it is the blade or perhaps a lapse in my technique. I’m pleased that 3 hours after my shave, my face still feels BBS.

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

 

When I run out of Veg, I find this the closest substitute.