Apparently the ghost of Shavette Fu possessed me this morning-

Classy looking razor. Don't let @PickledNorthern see it though, he seems to believe that all good things end at the 49th parallel...

Great looking set up, Keith. I trust the meeting went well.

Love the birds eye pattern in that wood, John. Really nice.
That V2 seems to be working really well for you.

Another beaut, Clint. You keep saying 'little Rover' but it doesn't look super tiny in the pics. What size is the knot?

Nice combo this morning, Perry. The Blue Barbershop sounds like a winner. I can't remember- Do you have the hard soap as well? I'm starting to believe that Floid Blue is reaching mythical status amongst some. Even if products come very close (some say the same thing about Barrister's Reserve Cool), there will be others (who may or may not possess a bottle or two of the original) who will dispute that. To each their own.

Don't feel bad about moving on from Williams. Some would call it 'getting above your raising' and others would describe it simply as 'evolution'...

Have a great trip, Jim! If by going to 'Rick's part of the world' you mean Louisiana, I'm really excited for you and your family. We've talked about going back there with our kids. My wife and I went to Louisiana for a semi-honeymoon several months after getting married 15 years ago. That was pre-hurricane etc.
Although I guess not nearly as exotic a trip for you coming from Texas!

Great set up, Mark. I love the scent of Seville. Don't have the aftershave, and don't have any B&M aftershaves save the Reserve products. Would you recommend it?

Too bad about the knot in that brush, Andrew. The handle is certainly a looker.

Super! It seems like forever since we've seen the patented 'Bama Samurai' pic. Complete with Arko and the Veg even. Working alone today?

Thanks Jason, I have a Yaqi two band finest coming in a different color. If I like the knot better I will rebuy the brush with the finest knot and trade the silvertip off to someone who likes big fluffy knots. I'm finding I am really loving dense two band knots that have some good backbone to them.

Good looking setup Jim! I gave Gem type SE's a try but passed. Might pick up another one day. Maybe a less vintage razor since the originals have names like 1912 - mine may have been abused and out of alignment.
Have fun on your visit here near Lake Chuck. I'd advise avoiding the I-10 bridge because they are blocking a lane for repairs. If it's along your way do the I-210 bypass. If there were any vintage razors around I would point you to locations. I've scrubbed all the shops clean, so it's a waiting game for new old stock to show up.

Hey Paul! Don't toss that brush. You can list it in the Classifieds as FREE, but the new owner pays shipping. That way it's box it and drop off at the post office time, but no out of pocket cash. Bordering on a PIF and it keeps the equipment in the TSD family.

I think you already know this from my posts, Clint, but I cannot recommend Chatillon Lux splashes any higher. I don't have the toner or salve, but the splashes are my favourite aftershaves. More expensive yes, but original, memorable scents coupled with a soothing and satisfying face feel. There may be comparible products out there in terms of how they feel, but I don't own them.

You know, I had never considered that approach to disposing of items. Thanks, Rick!

For your information, my Willpower remains strong and undented by your blatant, obvious, gratuitous and even malicious Enabling!

Uhm... purely out of a spirit of Scientific Curiosity and not out of any desire whatsoever to own a Karve, how did you decide on the B and C plates for your new Karve razor? Looking at the website, that is the one thing I haven't been able to figure out -- it lists blade gaps but that is only part of the equation for how aggressive or mild a razor is. Do you have any other "standard" razors like a Fatboy or one of the very common fixed razors that you can compare your new acquisition's aggressiveness to?

You are right, John, we need this answered in the name of Science!

I like that shave bowl you have the soap in! Figured maple, yes? Made by anyone I know?

You know, looking at your photo this morning, I just realized to my horror that my matched set of Delta Echo refurbished Gillette adjustables is incomplete: I'm missing a short-handled Black Beauty. Did Gillette make them at the same time as the long-handled Black Beauties, sort of interchangeably, or was it an earlier or later model?

Absolutely! Doing Science While Doing Shaves is what this place is all about! In fact, that could be our motto... Hmmm...

I just happen to have a few bowl blanks cut and ready in that maple... gifts and trades are exempt from the NB...
This short-handled Black Beauty (SA-84) is a very nice shaver. I got it from the last TSD raffle. They were made at the beginning of the 'Black Beauty' run. '68-'75, I believe. This one is a '69.

APRIL Adjustable Smoooth

Proraso Green preshave soap
Proraso Green menthol eucalyptus soap
Semogue 1305 boar brush
Suribachi bowl & cool water
Ming Shi 2000S razor on 4-1/2
Astra Superior Platinum blade
Alum block applied and rinsed
Proraso Green AS lotion
Mmmm, glycerin. Tried the Preshave Proraso for the first time. I wet my face with cool water and rubbed a finger tip dab around. No lather? Nope, and it seemed to dissapear. So I dipped my finger in again and smeared more around. A couple times. By the fourth dab application I could tell it was covering my shave zone by the cooling effect. It's soft like a tubed cream and spreads easily. Taking advice from others I let it rest on my face as I built a lather using same scented tubbed soap. Applied my lather over the preshave product and installed a fresh blade in the clone so both the preshave and shave soap had some time to meld. With my eyes near watering from the menthol first WTG pass was most impressive. The Glide was in the house! Relathered for second pass and could still feel the added slickness. On third pass it still seemed to be aiding. Having enough lather for clean up duty, I tested the residual effect - the razor cap felt frictionless on my face. Rinsed with cool water and assayed the reduction; Close a shave as I hope for above the jawline. My neck even feels smother than the average shave. For twelve bucks I'd say this Proraso is good stuff. Being eyeballs deep in the vitamin M I slipped in a splash of Osage Rub for my face and scalp. Finished off with the Green lotion. Don't know if this setup would have Fuzzy running nekkid through the room, but I'm looking forward to my next time. Shaving, not unclothed Cajuns.
Good Shaves Y'all!

Nice green themed setup you got going there, Rick!

Thanks for that .

But don't I have to pay to ship it to the lucky person first?

Easy Peasy. PayPal is a painless electronic funds transfer method. If that's adds too much computer wizardry, specify they mail a check for around $10.00 and you can refund the change if it costs less to mail in CONUS. Might check with the post office for their shipping rates on a Small Flat Rate Priority box.

Just got a call, followed by a series of texted photos from a Thrift store 15 miles away. Couple shave mugs, four brushes, two DEs, and some AoS product about to hit the shelf. Networking my contacts, leaving my name and number works!
Being semi-retired has it's benefits like occasional jump and go shopping trips.

Me trying to enable, why I don't know the meaning of the word. However, in the interest of scientific inquiry, I will attempt a partial answer to your query.Basically, I just picked B and C because a guy on Reddit, said B and C were about equivalent to the Rockwell 6c plate 3 and "4.5". My first experience with it tells me it's definitely more efficient than the Rockwell on 4, I've never used the Rockwell plate 5 or 6. I will say it felt way smoother than the Rockwell plate 4. In fact a little too smooth, I nicked my self a couple of times because I didn't really feel the blade, and used to much pressure. I'm going to try the B tonight, will update. Then perhaps, I will try the 6c plate 5 for comparison.


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Partial answer supplied, more to come....


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Boar brush break-in continues. I’m also realizing that with more software inbound than my cabinet can hold and no “ring of death” appearing in any of my soap tins anytime soon, I’m gonna have to thin the herd of some pretty good software that has barely been used. Today’s victim - Catie’s LPV. Great lather and shave. Bon voyage LPV!

Thanks, Jason! I don’t have the soap but would like to try it. They also have that soap in a stick form as well as a tub. I’ve got to finish some soap before I get more!