August 2017 30 Day Rule/Focus Pix & Discussion

Great photo, Jim! I agree, Gentleman is just a great scent.

 

Thank you, Jason! The other great thing about Stirling AS, they have great staying power. I can still get some if the scent 5 hours post shave.

 

Great set up, Clint! Is the 'trick' you mentioned the extra pass on your right neck? That is always my problem area as well.

 

Great looking (I excluded the Veg from that comment) set-up, Brian! The scales on that razor are beautiful.

 

Welcome! I'm sure your technique will improve significantly.
As for irritation on your lower neck, not everyone can do true ATG passes on their lower neck without irritation. Myself, I end up going WTG, XTG, opposite XTG on my neck. Especially on the right side.

 

I've been settling for one WTG pass and one sickle pass along my neck and dealing with only minor redness. It still mystifies me how I can go ATG with a straight and get no discomfort or irritation, but the DE is such a different result. By the end of the 30 days, I think I'll have a better idea .

 

Today's shave was brought to me by the following:

Razor: Gillette Slim (J1)
Brush: JR113
Blade: Astra Superior Platinum
Soap: Arko
Post: Nivea Post Shave Balm
A/S: Pinaud Clubman Classic Vanilla

Keepin' it Arko Adjustable August!
Normally, today would have been a day off from shaving, but since I just got the Arko in this week, I was gagging to give it a try. Yeah, I know - the Arko haters out there would certainly say that gagging and Arko go hand-in-hand!

I soaked my JR113 while I got my shower. After showering I rinsed my face off, dipped the end of the Arko in some water and commenced rubbing it on my face. Even though I've watched a number of shave videos where they used Arko, and saw the results they got, I was having my doubts that my experience would be all that great. Wow, was I ever shocked! After shaking off the excess water in the brush, I no more than started swirling on my face when - BAM! It just exploded into a beautiful, slick lather! I suppose it's just one of those things you have to experience for yourself to truly appreciate. Nonetheless, I'm sold on Arko. The scent is fine to me...sort of a clean, lemony dish detergent scent. Not as nice as the Cella that I just got, or a nice tub of TOBS - but, certainly not unpleasant either.

To much delight, the shave went beautifully. I wasn't really trying for a super close shave, but two passes and a tad bit of touch up left my face nice and smooth. Which, in itself is a lesson to me...it's best not to overthink/over-try. It's so easy to get caught up with trying too hard. Afterwards, a little witch hazel, some Nivea, and a generous splash of Clubman - ready to face the day!

As @Jayaruh would say, "I am clean, smoothed, and refreshed..."!

 

If I had know beforehand, I would have yelled, "Walk away from the light!" The Darkside awaits your return

 

Not before this DE thing is in my pocket! It could be a while lol.

I do find myself looking longingly at my straights and strops periodically, but this DE thing is pretty fascinating to me. I think I'm gonna stay a while .

 

Welcome to the 30 day thread. I can fully understand the allure of the Timeless. I have a Timeless 0.95 Open Comb that is my most efficient DE razor. Feel free to jump in and ask questions or request help. You'll find the people here very easy going and helpful.

 

Welcome Mike @entropy1049! When trying out a new type of razor I recommend (to Newbies which you are not) keeping the familiar one handy for touch-ups. There no shame in using the razor you know to clean up while learning a new style.

My shave journey was much like yours. I went from carts to shavette to straight. Later I got into DE & Schick SE. Just keep telling yourself,"It's only shaving..."

 

Thank you Jason. The trick was just the extra pass on my lower right neck. I was stretching the skin like crazy for the pass which helped as well. That one spot has always been my nemesis. It cost me so many push ups during boot camp.

 

I did a fair bit of research before settling on the Timeless in the configuration I did. The titanium is a wild card as there isn't a lot of data to peruse just yet, but I'm really fond of the RazoRock Baby Smooth in aluminum, so I don't think the lighter weight of the Ti (~2.6 oz. as ordered) is a bad thing for me.

One of my first purchases in the DE world was a Blackland Blackbird OC. Gorgeous razor, truly, and impeccable quality. She proved to be a bit too much for me, which was surprising as I'd thought coming from straights that I would prefer at least a mid-aggressive shaver. Definitely not the case, so far my best DE shaves have come from the RRBS, an ATT-M1, and a Slim set at 5-6.

Questions? Oh, you're all gonna get questions...

 

I have no shame in pulling hooks when the going gets too rough lol. Last week I started a shave with an MMCP a buddy had gifted to me. Made about 3/4 of a WTG pass and shelved the old girl until my skill set improves lol. Finished with my Slim at about 3

 

Beautiful razor Keith!

I feel like any middle of the pack sharp blade will get bad rap when placed in the hands of a newbie who has no concept of angle control.

You use more then 9 blades in a month ? How often are you replacing them ?

Great photo, Jim!

Fantastic setup, Clint!

Perry, did you use the Fuzzy cleanup method with only the Witch hazel for glide ?

Wonderful setup Brian! I'm glad you conquered The Fat!

Nice photos!

That new handle is super cool, Mark!

 

August 10, 2017

Razor: Schick M3 Adjustable (5)
Blade: Schick Proline B (3)
Brush: Razorock Plissoft 22
Cream: KMF fragrance-free
Post: Alum, Listerine, WH

Another one of what @RyX would call an "efficient" shave. Two passes to an issue-free near-BBS.

 

Haha! No way! That sounds like irritation central to me. I do one full pass WTG, then I relather my neck and jawline. I do a second WTG pass on my neck and a XTG pass on the relathered jawline. That's my WTG and touch-up.

 

Welcome @entropy1049! I think your hypothesis will be correct. If you can nail it with a straight, I would think a DE should be the same deal. Most of my irritation when starting was caused by either too much pressure and/or blade angle that was too perpendicular to my face (i.e. not "riding the cap"). Time, practice and focus fixed those issues, and I suspect it will fix your issues as well. Cheers!

 

Today's shave was my second with the Gillette Old Type and the Stirling Boar and the first with Jeeves of Hudson Street. The boar still needs some more breaking in before it receives any sort of verdict. Otherwise the shave was smooth and uneventful.

As many of you know, over the last few weeks I've taken time off from learning the straight razor in order to allow a couple of "filet o face" incidences to fully heal while I await the proper honing of the offending razor. (Clearly it was 100% the razor's fault, having nothing whatsoever to do with the fact that I'm not yet competent with a straight). Anyway, the Dovo is now back, and its dull blade has been honed into an edge that literally razor sharp again. Lesson learned - a $15-20 hone is cheap insurance on every BST razor you purchase.

In the meantime, I've been shaving with as many razors as I can in order to prove to myself that my RAD was not a hoarding disorder but a genuine quest to try, evaluate and master each razor. Unfortunately with only a couple of DEs, SEs, and injectors remaining (each), I now officially have razor fatigue. I've been able to dial in a comfortable shave on each of them relatively quickly so far (most took 1 stroke, some took a shave or three), but the exercise has become kind of like sleeping in a different hotel room each night; I'm ready to quit adapting and just be home. I think the remaining razors will need to take a back seat for a bit, while I just relax with my Slim. That is until the call of the straight becomes greater than my desire to exercise sound judgement. By the way, how many times can you reopen the same cut before a scar becomes permanent, anyway?

 

@Linuxguile Thank you.