Great photo Mark. Love the look of the brush. Luckily, I avoided the temptation of their Black Friday sale long enough for the Chubby 2 Synthetic to be sold out.
Charlie, their Chubby 2 Handle is awesome. The Simpson prices really do reflect the difference between the two. Their Synthetics are very nice but...Simpson's Best is better, and their Super is way better. If you can afford it, get the badger.
Anybody who will willingly pick up a Soviet razor and try to make a shave out of it deserves a membership. While they aren't as potentially deadly as pain sticks and such they have their own unique dangers and twists. I keep looking at a couple of mine thinking I need to give them another try but so far sanity has prevailed and Ivan has been quiet.
NOVember - NO Variation November 28 Razor - Feather SS AC Pain Stick Blade - (1) Brush -BoS Omega 10066 Soap - Mitchell's Wool Fat Post - Cold Water, Alum, Nivea Well boys and girls this is it. The final NOVember shave. I won't start my December plans until Tuesday but I am going to use a different setup for Sunday and Monday. Since @wristwatchb was going to the Super Pro blade today I joined in to keep the BOPS solid as a rock. After a month of some really nice shaves with the Feather SS and Feather Pro blade I was curious to see the difference in the Super Pro. I've seen varied reviews. Some say it's an uncontrollable beast, some say it's just a more efficient version of the Pro, and some say it's just harsher. Most users of the Artist Club series razors, I've noticed, seem to prefer the Pro. More than the Super anyway. One other point of order, while I have really enjoyed this month I still think a Kai blade is a bit more to my taste. I need to spend a few shaves with the Kai Captain Original to see how it compares to the Feather Pro, but in the milder versions of the blades the Kai has always been a bit smoother than the Feather. Same for me with DE blades as well. Kai fits me better than the Feather. Well, on to the shave. Another great lather from BoSFat. I have really been able to zone in on the optimum lather this month with just this brush and soap. I find myself spending less time loading and getting more lather out of it. Once you get the water and MWF right it's absolutely a magnificent soap. I'm not sure I would ever find one I like better. Not that I won't try some to find out, I'm sure. Those AD's kick in you know. The Super blade looks just a bit different in the handle. Definitely a bit more exposure and just looks more like a ground edge instead of a machined one. So, without further ado, let's try to cut something. Hopefully just my beard. I set down flat against my face on the right cheek by the ear and took a stroke down as I adjusted angle. As soon as I felt it start cutting I held that angle. Definitely a bit shallower than my angle with the Pro. I probably use an angle between 15 and 20 degrees with the Pro but I held it much closer to 15 today. Got a really nice first pass on the right cheek and down the neck. I will say, though, the feel is enough different to make you hold your breath a bit. It's almost as if you add just a minute amount of angle you'll be in trouble. Very fine line to hold, or so it seems. Went to the left hand for the left side and again set down flat, rotated into the angle as I took a stroke and that side went equally well. And equally on that fine edge. Rinsed and lathered and went XTG. Working around and against the edge of the goatee was rather interesting. Again, it's just that feeling that any error will be too much of one. Finished the second pass with a near BBS. I will say this, hold the angle right and pay attention and this blade definitely delivers a close shave. Scary close, as some have put it. Some touch ups and I would have BBS but I decided near was good enough. Bloodless and really a nice shave to end the month on the pain stick. Hope you all have a great weekend!
Thank you, Charlie - and I loved reading the daily episodes of "Pain Stick and me - the story of an unusual friendship" The R89 was my first DE razor as well, and I kind of rediscovered its qualities over the course of the last few weeks. Great Razor for sure. I thought about getting a R41 head, but that will have to wait until next year ... I still have quite a few Razors in my den that I haven't used yet. And I'm a little bit afraid of that OC beast On the other hand: What's the worst that could happen?
It has been a fun month. Given the early days I wasn't sure it would turn out this well but I can honestly say the Artist Club razors definitely have a place and are very functional and effective razors. For those who don't want tot invest in strops, honing needs etc. they are definitely a way to experience straight razor shaving. I'm even considering buying one of the folding SS's or a Kai perhaps. I could see myself with a small collection of different AC's. Yeah, just what I needed. Another budding AD. Let's see....there's SAD, RAD, BAD, RBAD, now ACAD. When will the madness end!?!?!?!?!
Congrats on a great month. I enjoyed following your progress through out the adventure. And no the madness never ends.
Nov 28 Focus shave 28 Cathie's Bubbles and some liquid lanolin for my travel day shave. I know this is good stuff and I need a long lasting BBS so 2011R41 with a new Super Iridium blade. 4 smooth passes and one super smooth BBS. Alum test and zero reaction. Epic shave this morning, a perfect start to my vacation. Off to Macau now. Irritation A+, closeness A+ Cathie's Bubbles Ocean Breeze + liquid lanolin Thäther 3 band silver tip 2011 Mühle R41 with Super Iridium Luck Tiger AS L'Occitane Cade ASB Chanel Egoïste
I had another no shave day, which makes three in a row for me. This is a personal record since I started wet shaving. I am thinking of moving on to next month's focus, since I have so many days off from the Aristocrat and we are so close to December. Here is a little preview of what I am thinking for tomorrow. I reserve the right to change this up, but I would like to get my first Pain Stick shave in on a day when I have a bit more time and when I can let any mishaps heal. So, right now, this is my planned set up:
I like it. Good idea to start on a less rushed day. Take your time and don't feel the need to go three passes. If you get a pass done and feel confident keep going but don't be shy about switching to a DE or something to finish. Build up the technique over the month. You'll be right there with the pros in no time.
