...without even knowing it? I'm closing in on 60, have bad vision and rely on reading glasses to see what I'm doing when shaving. I allowed myself to grow 48 hours worth so I could have a Christmas morning shave with my GC .84 OC on a halo handle with a brand new Perma Sharp Super. So this morning I lathered up Sterling sandalwood with a RR badger and started in to my usual two pass plus touch up shave. All through the shave I was marveling how smooth the GC .84 OC was. I could do anything with it. And it's efficient as heck. Finished the last touch up passes and started cleanup when I noticed the razor on the counter I just shaved with wasn't the GC .84 OC. It was the GC .84 SB on a barber pole handle with Perma Sharp Super on its 4th use. As I stared at the .84 SB on the sink counter I realized a few things. One is that there is a certain psychological element to the shave. This blade was on its 4th shave yet here I was thinking it was on its first, that's how good it was still cutting on two days worth. The other was that with prior shaves with my .84 OC I had learned to hold the razor head more shallow, so that I never see lather drag lines from the teeth. I automatically adopted this position with the .84 SB and I wonder if it helped. The whole time I was thinking how smooth this "OC" razor felt with a "new blade"! Lastly, if I'm going to keep two different razors in the cabinet loaded with a blade I should at least double check to make sure I have the right one before I start
I was thinking the same, brother. What the OP brought to mind is how an old used blade can perform if you think it's sharp. I contend that a skilled user can make up for a less than perfect edge.
Merry Christmas! It sounds like you had a very nice shave and maybe learned a couple of new things. I don't need reading glasses (yet) for shaving, but I usually only have one razor loaded up and ready to go. I have tried to shave with no blade in a DE razor, with the top cap improperly mounted on a three-piece razor, and with the silo doors not completely shut on a TTO razor. Maybe I do need to wear my reading glasses!
Once, but it turns out I was also in the wrong house. That lady just wouldn't stop screaming...It's a long story and I don't want to bore anyone. All I can say is the Bourbon made me do it. Sent from my LM-Q720 using Tapatalk
Not yet, but soon, I'm sure. One weird thing I've noticed is that I tend to focus entirely on my face rather than the razor itself. I discovered this once I started using SE razors because I'd estimate that at least once every two weeks I will continue a pass only to find out that, somehow, I've managed to bring the head of the razor up to my face with the blade facing out instead of in. I'd love to say it's the bourbon making me do it, but since I don't drink, it's probably more of a stupidity issue.
Yeah I really need to stop pouring that stuff over my corn flakes in the morning. It's never the start of a good day. One of these days I will tell you about the time Jack Daniels made me crash my car...I'm still thinking about suing him. Sent from my LM-Q720 using Tapatalk
My RR Jaws just arrived...woohoo! Now there is a razor I shouldn't be getting confused with another...I think. Another thing...the shave that morning from the .84 SB was so close, smooth and long lasting (without a nick or scratch to be seen) I just promoted it to "new all-time favorite daily driver". Now I must be off to hide all the Preparation H and bourbon
Well you can hide the Bourbon in my glass...an old-fashioned if it's not too much trouble for you, but seeing as how this is such a polite thread, I won't tell you where you can put that Preperation H. Sent from my LM-Q720 using Tapatalk
So I have to post this since I brought it up yesterday...first shave with the RR Jaws. I'm blown away. First, I verified I was using the correct razor (no family get-together to distract me this a.m., just a pending trash run to the dump) Loaded a brand new Perma Sharp Super which is my "latest most favorite-ist stainless DE blade" (seriously, they are good). The shave was amazing. It's counter-intuitive that a razor named JAWS would be smooth. You're supposed to come away from the shave missing limbs. Not anything remotely resembling that happened. Just a crazy close, smooth and efficient removal of 24 hours worth. I have two .84 OC's and the Jaws is smoother by a noticeable degree. RR is killing it with the GC lineup. They are relegating my other go-to's to the desk drawer.
Figured this would be as good a place to post this as any just because I had snuck in mention of the RR Jaws on the thread. My 2nd shave is down with the Jaws moments ago, and it was just as great as the first. To put this in perspective, I have to be a LOT more careful with the RR .84 OC during a shave than I do with the Jaws. The increase in efficiency the .84 OC brings comes with a small price if you aren't diligent. It is NOT an "auto pilot" razor in my hands. I have shaved with many OC's from numerous single ring and ball end OT's, the Schone, Micromatic SE and Autostrops and NONE have been as smooth as this RR Jaws is, while maintaining a high degree of efficiency. I don't know how RR did it and I don't know why the Jaws is smoother than their .84 OC, but it is. I expected the Jaws to be much more challenging to work with, requiring greater care, but no, it's one of those "auto pilot" shavers for me. I'll say this to random readers...if you have the .84 SB and are looking for a small step up in efficiency and are eyeing the .84 OC, my advice is to skip it and go straight to the Jaws.
