February '16 - 30 Day Rule/Focus Pix & Discussion Thread

Yup. Believe that!

I believe you'd be up first.

 

I have faith in you! Plus it couldn't be worse than the shave that shall not be mentioned . . . could it?

 

If you just share how it was for you on the L6, you'll help him master it.

 

I'm in, do I get a logo on the razor or on e brush?

 

Where I am from they are known as a posh one

 

Thank you Primo and yes I did manage to get myself in the photo.

 

Straights Focus February 9:

Stirling Synthetic Brush
Mitchell's Wool Fat
Johan Engstrom
Stirling Unscented PSB
Florida Water AS

A nice comfortable shave this morning, if not the closest. I would rate this a CCS, and I spent a little time cleaning up. I also had a little issue with the MWF drying out, which was disappointing, since I had never gotten so much lather from it. Still, it was a good way to start my Tuesday. Have a great day.

 

2/9/16

Gillette Old Type
Feather Hi-Stainless (1)
Vulfix Super Badger (660)
C.O. Bigelow cream
Georgetown G12 Scuttle
Pinaud Clubman Original



Gillette Old Type loaded for the first time with the feather. Continued with C.O. Bigelow cream. 2 full passes: Pass 1 XTG. Pass 2: ATG. Both with very good reduction. Followed up the second pass with some light touch up using the lather still on my face. A cool water rinse and a bit more touch up in a few of my trouble spots captured the baby. The Clubman stung a good deal, but settled down quickly. The C.O. Bigelow was slick and plentiful with enough left over for another pass or two.

A nice comfortable BBS delivered by the Gillette Old Type and the Feather with an assist from C.O. Bigelow cream.

Hope everyone has a terrific Tuesday!

 

Thank you, Keith! It has been fun learning. Having guys like you on this thread has really helped make this easier for me.

 

02/09/2016
AlumiGoose with Triad SS
Feather Pro (2)
Rubberset 400 with Omega 49 Boar
Chiseled Face Trade Winds
Witch Hazel
Myrsol F/Extra
Whipped Shea Butter


​

A great 2 pass near BBS shave this morning. This combo is pretty much dialed in a near automatic great shave. I really like the AlumiGoose with the Feather Pro blade. It's almost as efficient as the Mongoose with a Super Pro but much less aggressive. The big boar whipped up the CF Trade Winds into a mountain of lather quickly. The soap is very slick but I'm still not sure about the scent. Finished off with Myrsol F/Extra. I hope everyone has a great Tuesday.

 

February 9
Edwin Jagger DE89
Feather (2)
PSO, Hot Shower, Nivea Face wash
Omega 10066 Boar Shaving Brush
Route 66 The Black Pearl soap
Alum, Nivea Balm

Love the Route 66 soap, lathers really nice and slick. The Black Pearl smells really good too. Getting much more consistent shaves when I do skin stretching. Alum barely had any bite at all today, DFS, almost BBS except a bit on my neck.

 

Tuesday, February 9, 2016

Soap: Tabac
Brush: B&B Essential Boar
Razor: The One Blade
Blade: Gem Stainless #8
Post: Tabac Aftershave

 

MY 30 day focus is evolving into something other than what I outlined in my original 30 day focus post. Part of my OP was to change razors every week for 4 weeks and experiment with different blades. But I realize that what interests me at this time is a blade trial. I change my blade every Sunday. I am a one-pass (sometimes 2) WTG shaver, therefore 1 blade = 7 shaves. First day I notice any new blade is a bit edgy and with each successive shave I notice it gets smoother. Even after 7 shaves most blades could go further, but I change it anyway. Best shave are days 2, 3, 4, and 5.

For the longest time I have been using Astra SP...mostly because they provided me the fine balance of smoothness and sharpness and it suited my skin. Just recently I have decided to experiment and I am going to do one-week trials with the following blades:
1. Gillette 7 o'clock Super Stainless (green)
2. Gillette 7 o'clock Sharp Edge (yellow)
3. Derby
4. Blue Bird
5. Gillette Silver Blue
6. Feather
7. Astra SP

My razor is a constant: Gillette Heavy Tech. And I am using a somewhat flexible 7 day rotation of soaps. I tend to match my brushes to my soaps.

I think what this means is my 30 day focus will spill over into almost 60 days (2 months) as I use each blade for one week. I may just add one more blade and make it 8 different blades (not sure which one yet)...this way I will cover the two months. I know...blades are the ultimate YMMV...but I am interested to see if Astra SP is still "king of the castle"...or if a new king is to be crowned. Just thought I would share my ever evolving journey...

Currently I am using the Gillette Sharp Edge (Week 2). Today was Haslinger.

 

Day 8 - Schick repeater focus


Just an average shave with the Schick B2 this morning. I could not seem to find the proper angle and found myself making short quick strokes that led to a less than stellar 2 pass shave. The razor is too aggressive to shave ATG and that doesnt help either. Although this razor is a beauty it may just end up being a display piece.

 

Great photo Roger. I hope you manage to get the B2 dialed in and start getting good shaves with it. It certainly looks fantastic.

 

That is the best looking B&B Essential Boar brush I recall seeing. Some of the release colors were a little to funky.

 

Mongoose Focus
I got a better shave today thanks to some advice about direction. I did two passes. WTG and ATG on the face and ATG and XTG on the neck. I got BBS on the face and close to BBS on the neck. I still got a couple of small weepers on my lower neck. I guess this is why I'm doing a focus. To figure this out
SOTD
Route 66 Sea and Citrus
Doug Korn brush
Mongoose
Kai Captain Titan Mild (2)
Alum
Ogallala Bay Rum AS
Have fun!

 

Yesterday's SE shave didn't quite go as planned. Lather was great, technique seemed solid with a shallow angle and no pressure. But face felt aggravated post shave and had more alum burn than usual. Will take a few days break from the shovel head to enjoy some quality DE shaves. Good day everyone

 

Refresh my memory. What blade are you using?

 

Thanks Clint. I agree. Of the entire collection so far, I like the Gold Flake handle the best. It's a nice travel brush.