30 Day Rule - July 2015
Razor - CJB/Gillette New LC
Blade -
Brush - Omega Pro 48
Soap - Mitchell's Wool Fat
Post - Cold Water splash, Alum, Nivea Original Balm, Styptic and a few cuss words.

Okay, so we have established after two shaves that I'm rusty with the CJB. Fortunately, the Feather blades are not. However, they are amazingly sharp and unforgiving as another day of blood proved. I also remembered, a bit too late probably, that when I start a pass with the CJB and have that nervous feeling that causes me to hesitate, it's time to put it down and grab the DE. That's what it's there for.

Lather is great still with the 48 and MWF. However, one other change today from yesterday was the location of the shave. I normally shave in the shower but have always shaved AFTER my shower at the sink with the CJB. Thursday, though, I tried it in the shower and didn't have a horrible experience, though I had to adjust the grip due to the wetness. Still, a couple of nicks but not a bad return. The passes were, overall, very smooth and slick even on some clean up with it. Today, however, I returned to the sink and found the lather felt less slick and the blade seemed to stick a bit. I realized, again probably half a pass too late, that I hadn't put enough water on my face prior to lathering. MWF is slick, but if the face is too dry no lather will perform as well as it can. So, I'll start wetting my face just prior to lathering each time from here on out and stay at the sink so the grip stays the same.

Total passes with the CJB today? 1.5. Then I finally, after counting 5 nicks during that time, picked up the New LC and finished it off. Ended with a DFS, not the best but not bad. The alum was quite insistent that I was an idiot today, and I actually skipped the Nivea and went straight for the Veg. If it's gonna burn might as well make sure it burns enough to remember the lesson. I did go to the styptic first though to stop a couple of nice ones. One was a rehash of the worst one yesterday. Everything calmed down over time and I went to work looking not much worse for wear. I'm off the next two days (an amazing thing to happen in my line of work) so I'll have time to set things up a bit better and focus on improvement in technique from hydration to grip and angle. I'm looking forward to two more concentrated shaves with more focus.

Happy 4th to everyone!

Mark, I did this today with Tabac and Pen's BB. I rubbed the Tabac on my face like a stick and then swirled my brush on the Pen's for a few seconds. Terrific stuff. Glad it worked for you!

I like Vintage Williams but the puck is a tad bit awkward to handle especially when wet. So I grated it into a stick and it's one of my favorites. Glad it worked for you, Charlie!

Impressive.

Fantastic set up and photo.

Happy Independence Day!!
I hope you all have a wonderful time with your families​

My shave today:
Shave #3 with my 3rd Shark Super Stainless blade. Nice BBS results, an excellent shave. Very close, smooth, no nicks, weepers, irritation or razor burn.
2 Full passes: Pass 1: WTG on my face, and XTG on my neck. Pass 2: ATG. At this point, I was really close to a DFS. Much closer at this point than yesterday. Lathered up again for touch up of my typical spots. Using my updated face map, I paid particular attention to them and believed that I had succeeded as well as I ever have of taking care of all of them. But - about 30 minutes after the shave, I did find that one of them could be felt. So, more improvement in my technique is needed. Lucky for me I'm getting daily practice.

I've decided to change my shaves per blade plan for this focus from 4 shaves to 3. I know the shark has many days left (I got 10 shaves out of my 2nd Shark Super Stainless) but I want to compare the blades at their best. I even caught myself pressing down on my skin during my touchup, so I think the blade may have lost some of its sharpness even though I haven’t felt any pulling.

I'm still not sure whether or not I prefer the Shark Super Stainless over the Astra Superior Platinum blade. My impression is that both work well for me and that the Astra is smoother, but not as sharp as the Shark. So, for the moment I'll give the edge to the Shark and move on to the Gillette Silver Blue. I'm sure I'll come back to the Astra another time.

Have a great 4th!

30 day rule
MDC Lavender Face Lathered
Ladas blade
Slim Adjustable set to 7

3 passes and it feels BBS

One of the reasons I wanted to do the 30 day was to see how much I really needed to load my brush. It seems like I always have lots of left over soap, especially when using MDC. On the 1st, I was swirling the brush on the MDC while counting to 20. I have been reducing the count daily. Today I counted to 5. I still had more than enough for 3 passes. While I am not interested in using the very least amount of soap that I can, I also do not want to be foolishly wasting 3 times as much as I really need. I am going to assume the same holds true for when I bowl-lather as I always seem to have a huge amount left over. I will look at that after the 30 days is done.

Do this, and you may turn a one-year daily use jar into two year…which makes the investment into MdC clearly justifiable.

Used new handmade strop, only 10x, and new handmade pre shave oil unscented
Dovo Ebony Spike
AOS Lavender soap
WD HMB 24mm brush
AOS Lavender post balm.

Single pass with the SR. No nicks or weepers.
I did break down and order a sample of M-bomb from TSD last night.
Still getting a good shave, but my sensative skin is starting to rebel. Have tough time cooling it down and keeping razor burn at bay.

Thanks Clint! Have a great Fourth.

Happy Independence Day !!!

07/04/2015
Razor – GEM FW @JR Reyes
Blade – GEM Stainless PTFE (9)
Brush – EL XL STF
Lather – Lo Haiku @Darkbulb
Post - Witch Hazel and Fine Platinum



Continuing the theme of using items I have received as a PIF from forum members, yielded another great shave. I really enjoy shaving with the FW and using the Lo Haiku soap. Finished off with a splash of Fine Platinum. I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable 4th.

And you too Mark.

Plan for July 4th late afternoon

30 Days of Maggard and MITA!



Have a Safe and Happy Independence Day!

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Continuing on with the Stainless Steel Blade focus. 2nd shave on a Gillette Nacet stainless blade in this Gillette Tech. Great 2 pass shave. I'd forgotten how mild the Tech is but it delivered a DFS with no nicks or weepers. The Dusy Kabinett was outstanding as usual the TGN synthetic knot. The Captain's Choice Cat O'Nine tails was fantastic as well. The Nacet blade seems to be as good as any blade I have tried. I could exclusively use it and be happy. But I don't have to!

Have a great 4th of July!

Since I have been stroping my blade during my shave my edge is kept polished and keen,this is something barbers did back in the day. Kevin this sounds like an interesting challenge.

30 Day Rule - July 2015
July 4th
Razor - CJB/Gillette New LC
Blade - (3) (2)
Brush - Omega Pro 48
Soap - Mitchell's Wool Fat
Post - Cold Water splash, Alum, Some improvised dancing, lots of colorful language, Nivea Original Balm

Day three and it's a rare Saturday off so lots of time to have a great shave! So what do I do with it? Make it a memorable experience that's what! After yesterday's shave I spent some extra time making sure my face was well hydrated. Showered, spent some extra time under a hot wet towel and used a brush to add water to my face just prior to the lather. Definitely felt like a slicker base. So, here comes the CJB which has done a fine job of nicking and slicing so far.

First pass was actually pretty nice on the right side. I didn't even reopen the cut on my cheek so progress there. The drag was non-existent on the wetter base so that problem seems to be solved. Went to the left side and ran into a couple of issues, mainly hand position. Using the razor as a true kamisori the pass starts by the ear on a downward stroke, but the razor is held backwards to keep the same side facing the left as did the right. A bit awkward to master but I got it in place and got the pass done. Not happy with the result but we'll let the XTG take care of that. Re-lathered and went to the XTG on the right. This stroke goes nose to ear and it wasn't bad again. On the neck it's ear to chin for the XTG. Seemed to go ok. Went to the left side where the XTG goes ear to nose and ran into some issues. Had trouble getting and holding the blade angle. Got a bit too much angle a couple of times but didn't see blood until I was on the jawline. Then, well I just screwed the pooch and did some minor butchery on my neck where that pass turns mostly ATG because of hand position. Yeah, need more work there as a couple of bloody marks showed up.

At that point I decided the CJB was done for the day, grabbed the New LC and finished the second pass then relathered an did a complete third pass. A minor nick showed up by my right ear from the CJB and the areas I had nailed on the XTG started to flair up. Rinsed well and went to the alum. Yeah, kind of what I was afraid of........hit the alum and got.........

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When the dancing and "singing" stopped I used the Nivea Original Balm. Usually it stings ever so slightly but today the overall burn swallowed that and it just felt good as it cooled down. Debating whether or not to take Sunday off from the CJB and just use the New. Only morning will tell. For now, it's a DFS and I'm good with that. One thing I did notice is that the left side is far less smooth after the CJB and before the DE. Clearly I need work on that! I'll be watching a few videos today to remind myself of the blade and hand positions as well as doing some blade-less practice with the razor. What better to do on a holiday, right?

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Happy Independence Day!

MdC facial soap
G-3 Gillette Fat Boy
Feather blade (day 1)
Shavemac two-band silvertip brush
A.J. Murray's Lincoln shave soap
Two passes
Alum, Thayer's Lavender witch hazel, unrefined shea butter, and Pinaud Clubman aftershave

For my July focus, I'll use a Gillette Fat Boy and a Slim for my introduction into vintage wet shaving. Timing is everything: Independence Day, first time using a vintage razor (my birth quarter at that), and using a new soap made in Kentucky!

I set the FB on 3 in order to begin with a mild shave. I'll increase the setting over the next few shaves to get a feel for the range of aggressiveness. The razor is rock solid, feels great in the hand, and it reminds me of shaving with my dad's razor without the blade. In fact, I could barely feel the blade during the shave. I ended up with a pleasant DFS+ shave with no irritation, cuts, or nicks. However, it required a fair amount touch-up on my neck.

My shaving soap is locally made, and this was my first time using it as well. Depending on how things progress, I may work the companion pre-shave oil and aftershave lotion into my routine as well. It was OK out of the gate and had a very pleasant light scent. I will need a few shaves to dial it in before I can make a fair assessment.

I hope everyone has a happy and safe 4th of July weekend!

Neal, hang with the CJB and you'll master it. I'm glad to see you revisiting it during the July focus. I'm amazed how fast some folks progress with straight razors and shavettes. It took me six months using my Feather SS to consistently get a good shave. And even then, it was easy to get a nick or weeper.

I enjoyed the music video. I may still have a shirt with collars like those guys wore. The last time I heard that song, which was just a few weeks ago, I hummed it for days. It just gave people another reason to think I'm nuts. Have a happy 4th and enjoy your day off.

Thanks. I'm not giving up that easy. I have my henkotsu waiting in the wings and this is the warm up to switching. I'm counting on the actual kamisori blade to be a bit easier to live with, especially if I have the hand positions and grips mastered, or at least very familiar by that time. And yeah, when I looked up that video I was instantly delivered back to Shenanigans.....the disco I used to go to in Lawrence, Kansas waaaayyyyy back in the day when I was first in college. I drank many a pitcher of beer there in my blue leisure suit, popped collar, heels....and long hair. Wow. I had hair back then.

Not that you need to justify your purchase, but after all we are all only human, and it seems you keep your den as a minimalist so this was more a case of need than want!
Cheers!
- RT