April 2015 30 Day Rule/Focus Pic & Discussion Thread

Discussion in 'Shave School' started by Bama Samurai, Mar 29, 2015.

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What soap is Charlie gonna use in April?

Poll closed Apr 1, 2015.
  1. Arko!!!

    45.5%
  2. Arko!!!

    9.1%
  3. Arko!!!

    45.5%
  1. NCoxSTL

    NCoxSTL AAACK!

    Good. I can't be the only one.
     
    wristwatchb and Bama Samurai like this.
  2. Bama Samurai

    Bama Samurai with Laser-like Focus

    Mayhem... Must retain 1 and only one element from previous day (blade, brush, razor or soap), no repeat setups the whole month, unique pic each day, and commentary on the daily shave. And Mayhem.
     
  3. Jasman

    Jasman Well-Known Member

    Wow. Project Mayhem has really changed since Brad Pitt left.
     
  4. Bama Samurai

    Bama Samurai with Laser-like Focus

    Where is my mind? The state of Colorado frowns upon their soap recipe.
     
    Douglas Carey, txskimo and NCoxSTL like this.
  5. jakie55

    jakie55 Well-Known Member

    February was a great month, with the Schick I1. March of course, was the venerable Eveready 1914, and this month was Arko April, utilizing my Lord L6, SuperSpeed, and Krona. I was starting to feel that maybe I gave the Schick injectors too much credit, and so thought I should do a shave with myI1, and Arko, to compare shaves using the same soap.... WOW!!! If I wasn't convinced before, I will say that I am an ARKOLITE, an ARKO ADVOCATE, ARKO ADDICT... well, you get the idea. I had a two pass, no irritation, nothing but net, shutout, BBS shave. In my mind it is offical.... Arko delivers!
    injector arko.jpg
     
  6. wristwatchb

    wristwatchb wristwatch "danger" b

    April 23

    Stirling Sheep facial soap
    Merkur 37C slant bar razor
    Feather blade (day 2)
    Omega 10098 Professional boar brush
    Arko & glycerin
    Three passes
    Alum, Thayer's Lavender witch hazel, unrefined shea butter, and Nivea Sensitive Post-shave Balm

    I've enjoyed some fantastic Arko lather and a run of great shaves this month! I hope you all have as well. I can't say enough good things about sticking with the same set-up for a month. For example, I have greatly improved my lathering skills over the past few weeks, and cuts and irritation are becoming fairly infrequent. I'm looking ahead to MdC May! It will be fun to compare the MdC with the Arko.

    Tomorrow is Friday!


    SOTD_042315.jpg
     
    Last edited: Apr 23, 2015
  7. Seabs

    Seabs Well-Known Member

    Couldn't wait! I had to switch up today! Gem customstar DFS straight came in!!!
    Prep: Hot shower
    Pre: Stirling Orange Chill Preshave oil
    Soap: Stirling Orange Chill Soap
    Straight: Gem custom Straight
    DE Cleanup: Ikon 102
    Blade: Voskhod
    Post: Stirling Orange Chill witch hazel and aloe

    I wanted to make sure that my first experience with a straight was as protected as possible so I knew that I knew that I knew if I used my Stirling Orange Chill, I'd at least have lube and oil taken care of. So the rest was up to me! Many thanks to @gssixgun for the amazing razor and patience listening to my questions.

    After getting comfortable with the blade in my hand, I decided to dive in. First couple of strokes, I was needlessly to say, I was very nervous. As Glen suggested, I started slow and small. I was able to get both cheeks, lower chin, one small section on neck. Happy that I didn't cut myself, I cashed out my chips before doing any real damage Finished up the 2 passes with the ikon 102. Not the best but definitely not the worst! Super excited to get more comfortable with straight. Razor photo courtesy of @gssixgun via facebook.com
    _20150423_192446_result.JPG 10440873_10152907858666263_8264635634767557885_n.jpg
     
  8. NCoxSTL

    NCoxSTL AAACK!

    Very nice! I am rather impressed by the number of us who have attempted our first straight razor shaves this month and last, whether it was with an Artist Club or a Traditional. I definitely know how you felt the first time you were putting the blade to your face. It's rather nerve wracking until you realize that the first small pass didn't result in your death! Welcome to the wonderful world of bare steel on flesh!
     
  9. NCoxSTL

    NCoxSTL AAACK!

    Very nice. And also very ambitious! A lot of moving pieces in that plan but a lot of great variability plus the challenge of daily pictures as well. That will be rather chaotic at some point and that is the definition of MAYhem! :bounce017:
     
  10. txskimo

    txskimo Well-Known Member

    Congrats on the success and very nice looking razor
     
  11. Norcalnewb

    Norcalnewb Magnanimous Moos

    image.jpg

    FB focus day 24:

    Homemade PS Oil
    Stirling Bay Rum SS
    Vie-long Horsehair Brush
    FB w/Rapira PL set on 7
    Stirling Unscented PSB
    Stirling Bay Rum AS

    Ever had one of those shaves where you just felt off? Today just seemed like everything I did was just a bit different than normal. The shave was not quite as good as I normally get nor as comfortable. But the Stirling AS still felt good going on, so it is off to tackle this Friday.
     
  12. clint64

    clint64 Blind Squirrel

    @Norcalnewb We all have those days. Hope your Friday goes better and you have a great weekend.
     
  13. Douglas Carey

    Douglas Carey Wildman

    I didn't shave yesterday afternoon. I'll shave this afternoon. I guess that make two that are in the plotting mayhem mode.
     
  14. txskimo

    txskimo Well-Known Member

    It happens to the best of us
     
  15. clint64

    clint64 Blind Squirrel

    04/24/2015
    Razor – Mongoose B2 with Jürgen Hempel Ti
    Blade –Feather Pro (8 )
    Brush –Shavemac Silvertip D01
    Lather – Soap Commander Passion
    Post - Witch Hazel and CC Bay Rum

    [​IMG]

    Very near 3 pass BBS this morning. First time using this new to me Shavemac Silvertip DO1. Managed to get a good lather but the knot is very dense. I'm sure I'll get it dialed in after a few uses. Finished up with witch hazel followed by a splash of Captain's Choice Bay Rum. Happy Friday! Hope everyone has a great weekend.
     
  16. Drygulch

    Drygulch Snowballs

    I noticed that PSO seems to make it harder for some lathers to adhere to my face. If the soap and oil are fighting each other on my face, they keep either one from wrapping around a whisker. I have noticed that PSO and some Creams work really well together. I like soaps, so have pretty much stopped using PSO.
     
    Troy M, Bama Samurai, jakie55 and 4 others like this.
  17. Drygulch

    Drygulch Snowballs

    April 22nd , SOTD (Shave 10 of the focus)
    Two days’ growth
    Prep: Hot Shower
    Razor: Wade and Butcher 5/8 Square point (post 1890)
    Strop: Oiled Red Latigo and Linen- 20 laps on linen, 30 on leather
    Razor: Gillette Red Tip- B2 (1956)
    DE Blade: Dorco Stainless- Stropped 30 times per edge (1st shave on blade)
    Cream: Babasol Original Canned Goo
    Post Shave: Cold Water Rinse, Alum Block, Regret
    Aftershave: Pinaud Clubman
    IMG_1279.JPG

    Sorry for the delay, and the long post. Was traveling for work and didn’t get to post an update while on the trip. Had to give a couple of presentations, and needed to make sure I was professional and presentable. You know how you always forget one thing on a trip? This time is was my shaving soap. I had everything else. The drug store I finally found did not have any soap, or creams that could be used with a brush. I grabbed a can of my old faithful Barbasol. I used this stuff for a long time, and it worked better than other canned stuff. This is the first time I have attempted to use canned goo in over three and a half years. It didn’t go as well as planned.

    The canned goo pulled all the water off my face, so when I went to shave with the straight, it was like dragging the razor across a face with no prep. I did one WTG pass with the straight, and skipped my chin. Then I grabbed the Red Tip. I made a comment in this thread about being able to get good results with a Dorco blade if I stropped it, so that’s what I had loaded. Maybe I get comfortable shaves with it on a well prepped face, but it was not comfortable on this shave. I did one ATG pass, cleaned up my chin, and called it good. I then proceeded to light my face up with an alum bar, and splash Clubman alcohol on it. My boss commented on how irritated my face looked. Sigh.

    April 24th , SOTD (Shave 11 of the focus)
    Two days’ growth
    Prep: Hot Shower
    Razor: Wade and Butcher 5/8 Square point (post 1890)
    Strop: Oiled Red Latigo and Linen- 20 laps on linen, 30 on leather
    Razor: Gillette Red Tip- B2 (1956)
    DE Blade: Dorco Stainless- Stropped 30 times per edge (2nd shave on blade)
    Soap: B&M Latha, Bowl Lathered
    Brush: Tulip Wood Brush- TGN Best Badger Knot 22mm x 54mm loft
    Post Shave: Cold Water Rinse, Alum Block
    Aftershave: B&M Latha/ Pinaud Clubman
    IMG_1280.JPG

    Back home. Have all my gear. Grabbed the Latha soap and aftershave I won in the PIF to use today, because it makes a very nice and slick lather. Working on some different grips on the straight, and think I found the one that gives me the best control. I am holding it like I hold my Feather Artist club. With the handle extended. Except for the ATG pass on the neck, where I fold the scales out of the way, and can actually get where I need to. Did two passes, N/S and S/N with only one nick on the chin. Did a third pass ATG with the Red Tip. There was almost nothing to clean up! I heard it trimming on my chin, but my neck, cheeks, and jaw were smooth! BBS 95% of my face and neck, with just a couple of DFS spots. Alum had a bit of bite, but not too bad. Splashed on the Latha aftershave. It is non-alcohol, but is soothing and works well.

    Finished my shave and asked my wife to touch my face to see how smooth it is. I do this because she is annoyed by the time I spend wet shaving, and thinks me asking her to touch my face is silly. When I found that out, I made it a part of my shaving routine. She commented on the smell of the Latha, and said she much preferred the Clubman. She asked if I really needed to use the Latha stuff, since I had so many options. I think the Latha just got removed from the rotation.
     
  18. txskimo

    txskimo Well-Known Member

    Since you travel so much why don't you make a travel kit and keep it in your luggage. A good cheap soap you know you'll have good results with an extra brush, razor etc. that way you only have to worry about what extra you might want to bring. Just a thought so you'll never be stranded again.
     
  19. Drygulch

    Drygulch Snowballs

    Yeah, I have a travel brush, and cases for all my razors. I keep them in my shave bag, ready to grab the other stuff. I have a smaller soap in a steel mug that I use a lot of times when I travel. This was a case of just forgetting to grab the soap and aftershave. I think I will build a kit, and if I decide to take something specific, I will take the soap out only after I have put a new one in.

    I will be quite happy to not use canned shaving cream again for at least another 4 years.
     
  20. clint64

    clint64 Blind Squirrel

    @Drygulch I only have the Latha soap and the best thing I can say about the scent is it's gone by the time I finish lathering. Not sure I could take the AS Splash
     

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