Thank you for your kind words my friend.

My thoughts and prayers are with you.

Friday shave:
It is still a holiday here so I have plenty of time for slow shave.... so... time for the vampire razor. This razor has drawn more of my blood than all my other razors combined. The is the second shave since @DaltonGang honed it and the edge is very smooth and ultra sharp. If there anyone doubts a straight can be sharper than even a Feather DE or Feather Pro you should try this razor.

The shave went great and I was extra focused. No blood, no irritation and an extremely smooth face. An epic shave, I am on a roll.

Irritation A+ Closeness A+ Smoothness A+ Sharpness A++

Razor: Robert Williams Purist
Strop: T Miller
Brush: Simpson Polo 12
Pre: Proraso
Soap: L’Occitane Cade cream
AS: Edwin Jagger
Scent: Chanel Egoïst

OCtober!!!

October 5

Razor - Gillette New LC Delta Echo Raffle Winner
Blade - (2)
Soap - Soap Commander Courage
Brush - Jayaruh #46
Post - Alum

Well, as usual, the Feather is smoother on day two than one. At least that's how it works for me. Not that it wasn't smooth last night, just seems to lose that little harsh feel it has on the first shave. In other words, a very nice shave. When I replied to the favorite shaving gear thread today the New LC was one of the two or three razors in the running for my favorite. I settled on the Fatboy, only because of its versatility. I could shave with a New as my daily shaver and never complain.

Fantastic lather from the JR46 and Soap Commander and the alum was quiet. The baby is in the house. A very fine shave tonight with no complaints. One more shave on this setup and then I'll spend a few days on some fun stuff. Ok, ok, yes this is fun to get shaves like this but.....you know me. Or do you? Yeah, I'm sure you do. Have a great Friday!!!

I agree, that is a sweet shaving razor. I did get to use it once. It is a keeper.

The razor is just gorgeous.

OCtober 6, 2017
Wolfman WR1 OC
Feather
Shavemac LE with DO1 2 Band Flat Top
Reef Point Test Depth
Witch Hazel with Menthol
Cool Water EDT

​

This week has gone by so quickly. The big Shavemac quickly whipped up a mountain of slick lather. Sticking with a traditional 3 pass shave paying attention to my trouble spots and skin stretching left me very close to a BBS shave. A splash of witch hazel with menthol followed by Cool Water EDT and I am very satisfied with the shave. I hope everyone has a great Friday.

Translation: Let the Shenanigan's begin!

Off from work for the next 5 days, so I am going to give the shave a pass.

In lieu of a shave, here's a pic of my kit for the month.

New Improved, LC New, New Deluxe, Sheraton

SOTD October 6, 2017

Prep: Stirling mentholated pre-shave soap
Blade: GEM stainless
Razor: GEM Pushbutton
Brush: Omega 10049 boar
Lather: Mitchell's Wool Fat
Post: Witch hazel, Fine American Blend aftershave
WTG, touch up

The Fat was tremendous as usual. Suds on the brush look foamy and it doesn't lather up like other soaps I own. But when you face lather it becomes a beautiful, shiny, slick, and nourishing lather. I'm thinking people are put off by that foamy look on the brush. It's great soap! Just load and lather like normal and you'll be fine.

The Pushbutton provided a smooth ride. My SE technique with these GEM razors is certainly improving. I'm getting quality and comfortable shaves with the Pushbutton and Featherweight and 1912. I used to get a weeper or two each time I used those but haven't lately. They are fun little razors.

Arko shave stick tomorrow! I opened up the paper a little bit and set the stick aside. I get whiffs of that powerful lemony scent every time I go in the bathroom. My wife hasn't commented.....yet.

Enjoy your Friday!

Nice shave today with a gorgeous JWest. The soap is a good performer, but I’m not sure about the scent. I’ll have to ask MrsChick what she thinks.
PAA Big Shave Soap
Oscar11 Brush
Heart Columbia JWest Razor
Thayers WH
PAA Big Shave Splash
Happy Friday!

I must have gotten a closer shave yesterday than I first thought. When I looked in the mirror this morning I really didn't need to shave. By noon though I will have needed too. So no shave report today.

The question arose yesterday about how and why blades fit in the razor. I have taken some pictures that show how the carbon, stainless and injector blades fit my razor with its studs. From what I have seen Autostrop made the Valets with different stud locations so the buying public would have to continue to buy their blades. This is true even with in the same razor models. Not all VC2, which what mine is, have the studs at the same loctions.



The above photos are with the carbon steel blade.



The above photos are with the stainless steel blade.


The above photos are with the injector blade.



Lastly you have the razor shave ready with the injector blade in place. The blade is an old used blade that is why there is schmutz on the blade. But if you look closer at the blade you will see that the blade actually fits in between the blade stops. When I made my statement yesterday about being able to use an injector blade it was after a quick check to see if it was possible. Then last night when I was setting up these photo I found that yes it is possible to make an injector blade work in the Valet though I would not necessarily recommend it. The blade stays in place with no fear of it falling out of the razor but I was able to move the blade with my fingernail. I would not recommend using an injector blade in the Valet but there have been guys here that have shaved with blades taped to their fingers and to popsicle sticks, so maybe I will give it a try for Mayham.

Thanks for the Valet blade tutorial. That's very helpful.

Well, after a mere couple hours or so of reading, I am finally caught up with the thread. Leave reading it for a week and you're in for a marathon trying to catch up! I will have to get back to daily shaving if only so I can keep up with you guys!

By now many things I might have commented on are hundreds of posts in the past but there are a few I wanted to catch:

I used a vintage bladesaver - basically a strop for DE blades - on a 1940s PAL carbon blade and found it nearly tripled the number of shaves I could get.

Congratulations on hitting 1,000 posts, Jason! I hope to keep hearing from you for thousands more.

I will keep you in my prayers for quick relief and a good longterm result. It's always a little worrisome when your doctor's office calls to reschedule your appointment sooner...

Also @Paul Turner, I hope you find the upcoming Sunday service comforting and healing. My prayers are with you too.

And @RyX, good luck with the HR interviews.

Hope October is treating everyone decently so far!

Thank you @Screwtape . I think it's going to be really wonderful.

I didn't know the Captain Smythe was from PAA-thought it was from Crown King.

Crown King is PAA as well.

Beautiful collection of OC razors.

Great picture Perry.

Oscar made some truly beautiful brushes. Congrats on scoring one.

Thanks for posting the pictures with the various blades.

wwwweellll, I suppose that's true. I'm just not as "high" on PAA now, since reading about the "controversy".