Hello TSD

Shave #10 of my October Focus



- Mystic Water "Bay Rum"
- WD High Mountain/Maggard Synthetic
- Feather Artist Club SS
- Feather Professional Super (#2)
- Tüff sensitiv Rasierwasser

Guys - I am a little embarrassed right now

I wasn't able to get a good lather from this MW soap with my WD brush - it looked like beaten egg white and dissolved quickly. Probably used too much water. So I gave it another shot with my dry Maggard brush and voila: thick, creamy lather in abundance. Maybe I have been spoiled by my Synthetic brushes and forgot how to lather properly with a badger

In my opinion the name of this soap is a bit misleading - it is nothing like any Bay Rum I have ever smelled before. There is a bit of spicyness to it, some lemon/lime notes, it even smells a bit powdery to me. Don't get me wrong ... it's a fantastic scent - but for me this has nothing to do with Bay or Rum.

Performance was fantastic as usual though. I guess you can never go wrong with a MW soap. And no problems whatsoever with the Feather shavette. I guess I have tamed the beast The Professional Super blade is very effective, but I think I prefer the regular Professional. The shave is similarly close but it feels more comfortable.

Two passes, WTG and XTG, after that a few touchups - chased the baby and caught it

Cold water rinse, Aftershave kept quiet - that's what I call another great shave.

I too think MW makes some fantastic soaps. I have found I get consistently good results using MW in shave stick form. It just seems to work better and insures I have enough soap loaded for the job.

Welcome Dave!

Friday, OCtober 14, 2016

Simpson Chubby 2 Synthetic
Mike's Natural Soap - Sweet Pumpkin Spice
Wolfman WR1-OC with Darwin Deluxe Titanium
Personna 74 #12
Fine L'Orange Noir Aftershave


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He speaks quite highly of the process and even of their abilities with chroming zamak and such. Not the specific company but the Chinese as a group. Obviously, given the quality issues we've run into with other Chinese blades, I was surprised as well, unless cost is a driving factor. Like you said, if they follow the processes and stay committed to the quality needed it may be ok. But if they go rogue it could be a very bad thing.

Congrats on a great first shave! looks like a very nice setup! What soap are you using there ?

I tend to wonder if part of the problem that we've run into with other Chinese blades is really with the resellers/middlemen. Basically, we are at the mercy of a (usually) Chinese resellers selling us blades intended for internal Chinese consumption. We are trusting that they are stocking and sending us the real deal. There have been cases, however, where even respected resellers (DX.com) have sold counterfeit Gillette blades, believing them to be real. (This is part of why it is so hard to get the Chinese Gillette Super Blue Blade in the US.)

I think Rockwell is probably good in this case assuming they can maintain control on QC and logistics chain. As you say, though, if the supplier goes rogue it could get very bad very quickly.

October 14, 2016- OC Focus

Razor: Gillette 160 Goodwill / DeFitch DE91 handle
Blade: GSB(4)
Brush: VdH Boar
Soap: VdH Luxury

I was running late yesterday so no shave. For today's shave, I decided to step things up a bit by swapping the stock ball-end handle on the Goodwill for the heavier brass handle from the DeFitch. It definitely seems to make a difference in aggressiveness for the razor, even though it feels a bit on the heavy end of the spectrum for me. (I think my optimal weight is coming in somewhere around the Slim Adjustable.)

The VdH took a bit of work today but was worth it. As I suspected from various comments, it seems to be a thirstier soap than the Deluxe.

First pass was a little rough, mostly from the extra day's growth, but with excellent reduction. Second pass was quick and easy for a DFS+ overall.

SOTN OCtober 13th


Gillette New Standard
Super-Max Platinum (3)
Satin Tip The Purest
Crown King Scuttle
Stirling Executive Man
Tangerine AS and Nivea Sensitive ASB

Good morning friends! Last night I got to use my new Crown King scuttle for the fist time. I started by filling it and the bowl with hot water and let my brush sit in it while I got my setup ready. Once I was ready I loaded the brush for 10 seconds with the Stirling Executive Man and began to build my lather. The lather quick became foamy and it was thin with large bubbles. I though that I didn't have enough soap so I went back and loaded some more and begin to work the lather again. This didn't help at all. I put the lather on my face and the bubbles quickly dissipated leaving a very thick dry lather. I worked some more water into the lather on my face and it quickly became the thick yogurty lather that I love. I finished the first pass and then knowing that the foamy lather left in the scuttle was too dry I added some more water and began to work it some more. With the additional water the large bubbles quickly died down and the lather thickened up nicely. After about 30 seconds I had a great lather that was shiny, and yogurty, and smooth! I painted that lather on my face and ahhhh, warm lather. It felt so good! It was actually a better consistency then the lather I built on my face for the first pass. I finished my last two passes with the luxurious warm lather and ended with a DFS. 3rd day on the Super-Max and its done for, at $0.026 per shave I think they are a decent value. I finished off with my homemade tangerine AS and Nivea Sensitive ASB to make things silky smooth. Have a great day my friends!

I haven't posted a shave in a bit. On Tuesday and Wednesday, I was traveling for work. I used a Harry's cartridge, Route 66 The Perfect Gent, Thayer's, and Clubman with M-Bomb. I think my technique has gone so low pressure that I have a hard time with carts. I feel like I am pressing so hard I should have tons of razor burn, but I'm not getting all the stubble. Its also harder to line up my facial hair. Both days gave me a two pass CCS. The biggest thing I notice when I go back to carts is that the shave isn't as long lasting. With Carts, I really have to shave every day to keep things clean. With straights or DE, I can usually start day two already at a CCS. I am really hating that my company has asked me to stop checking bags when I travel.

Perhaps a twin blade with a non-pivoting head would work better ? An Atra or a Trac II, or even the good ole Gillette Good News disposable (This is what I first shaved with as it was what my Grandpa used at that time and he had a massive stash of them)?

I tried that on my last trip. Pretty much same results. I have been spoiled by the awesomeness that is a good straight razor edge.

I have to admit I was hoping for better news than Chinese manufacturing, but I guess it isn't surprising. At least it did not turn out as the Rockwell Flying Eagle.

I have a solution. Toss the carts

Maybe by using someone who had never produced DE blades was smart. No past disasters to correct.

This morning I realized that I have actually learned a lot hanging out with you guys. This was the first time I shaved with this particular razor, trying to stay with the OCtober theme.
The first thing I noticed after loading the blade was that it has some serious blade exposure. Having lost my fear of sharp things, I lathered up and started my first pass. The first thing I noticed was that this razor is noisy. It almost sounded like an SE. I did two passes with a little touch up and am dolphin smooth. This one just might stay in the DE rotation.

Route 66 Casablanca Soap
Jayaruh #84 Brush
Success Safety Razor (Germany)
Gillette Silver Blue Blade (1)
Alum
Lucky Tiger
Ogallala Bay Rum
Happy Friday!

Yes, and the Russian supply chain has had its problems in the past as well. Seems like they've got it back under control but with a dead economy it's easy to see why the bad guys would get involved in counterfeiting things us crazy Westerners want. Gotta buy vodka somehow. Fortunately it seems Mostochlegmash and Gillette have sealed that problem off. Not surprising it can still be rampant in China.

Is it a good thing that we lose our fear of sharp things here? I mean, it allows for some awesome shaves with awesome razors like that.....I'm just thinking long-term survival.

Anybody else get a shiver up their spine from that? I'll check back in tomorrow to see how that jinx plays out.

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Hi Guys, I bought 2 of these small batch soaps. They are handmade by some Lady named Lisa, out of Ogden, UT, and has a store on eBay. Fast shipping and very reasonable in price. I was mistaken on the Shea, but the bentonite and French green clay really do make this a good soap. It smells pleasant, with the tobacco and Bay.

On getting a softer badger brush to lather up, I soak mine in hot water for about 6-10 minutes. Give it a quick shake, then will pinch the top of the bristles, in order to break in the soap with some stiffer bristles. It only takes a couple of swirls, then back and forth. I then dip the tip of the badger brush back into the hot water and go back to the soap puck and just continue the back and forth as the lather builds quite nicely. I personally love tallowed soaps. I see that while brushing my face I take the time to restroke, if the lather isn't to my liking. I can always add a touch of water on the tip again if I feel the soap puck is drying out, but usually don't have a problem with this.

It has been a good 10 hours since my shave and my cheeks are still taut and stubble free with that very smooth factor. I'm really impressed with that last shave. I will most likely not shave again until late Friday night or Saturday morning. I like shaving at night as nobody is up, it's very quiet and the extended Feather blade really does sound quite similar to the hollow ground straights, which gives me great audio feedback on my angle other than just the facial feel and mirrored visual.


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