FEB 2015 30 Day Rule/30 Day Focus Pic and Discussion Thread

february 2015 focus ... blades ... still in pre-"30 day rule" mode

every-other-day shaves, two shaves per blade, two pass, ...

pre: n/a
brush: EJ best badger medium
lather: proraso green soap
razor: EJ89lbl
post: n/a

02/17/15
blade: (2)

one nick between chin and lip during E/W XTG pass ... some irritation in one section of the neck during XTG pass which turns out is more like ATG in that section. i was always a one WTG (mostly S) pass shaver with the fusion cartridges. obviously still relearning growth patterns.

02/19/15
blade: (1)

the derby did me right today! i was pleased as punch with my two pass. one nick on the lower neck, and i know exactly when it happened ... just got a bit careless for a moment. i didn't learn from two days ago as i had some irritation in the same section of the neck. practice, practice, practice ... fun, fun, fun!

 

February Focus - Blades - BUT NOT TODAY
2/19/15 - Day 20
Brush - VDH Boar from the premium kit
Soap - Arko
Razor - RAPIRA
Blade - (1)
Post - RazoRock Alum

After yesterday's extremely disappointing one and out with the Gillette Rubie I found myself two days ahead of schedule and with a new toy in my arsenal. When I got my last order of Russian blades I had my supplier throw in a Rapira razor. Yes, they do make one and it is a marvel of Russian engineering. Well, maybe compared to Soviet era engineering or, well, maybe not, or, well here's the truth...........



This is the mighty Rapira razor. You can see the incredibly high quality metal the head is made of....definitely high grade tin can. The handle is a rare cheap plastic that absolutely feels like it in your hand. The blade is held in place, sort of, by the corners of the razor head and trust me, after only about 10 minutes of aligning the blade it was very nearly aligned. Close enough for Kremlin work. After getting the blade just right, or as close to it as I had the patience for, I realized what an opportunity I had in front of me. This was my chance for the legendary RUSSIAN ROULETTE SHAVE!! How could I pass up the opportunity? After looking at the blade in the razor and realizing how little the razor bent the blade and how it was sort of even and not, and how it might actually slip during the shave I knew it was my destiny. Load that baby up with a Voskhod and put it to my face and may the odds be ever in my favor. And, just to make it a truly unique experience use the mighty Arko to help keep things slick and try to avoid disaster.

How to describe the result? Several adjectives come to mind. Rough, uneven, rough, tuggy, nick city, weeper heaven, ouch, oh that's gonna leave a mark.....well you get the idea. To say the alum had a bite is to say a great white shark is a little nipper. What amazed me is how badly this razor made the Voskhod perform, and if you can make a Voskhod rough and dangerous you have accomplished something. Kudos to the Russians for such an unbelievable accomplishment.

I skipped the AS due to the desire to avoid anymore pain and went to work satisfied knowing I had done something few others have had the courage to. I had stood up to the Russian Roulette Shave and walked away unscathed. Sort of, well, so not so much. It was fun though, to be honest, to try out something like that and see what I could make out of it. I'm not saying I'll ever use the mighty Rapira razor again, but it definitely has more the makings of a conversation piece than a regular spot in my rotation.

Tomorrow it's back to the trials with the Polsilver Super Iridium in the EJ89l. For now, a tribute to Mother Russia and the best and brightest she has to offer!

​

 

I laughed so hard that I might have a hernia...

 

In case of hernia...let me know the surgeon who will be fixing it...I'll loan him the Rapira as a scalpel. I'm sure it's precision enough for that.

 

If he's out of rusty butter knives, I will hit you up!

 

02/20/15
Prep – MR GLO
Razor - Mongoose Satin B2
Blade – Feather Pro Guard (6)
Brush – Rubberset 400-3 with WSP HMW
Lather – Soap Commander Passion
Post - Witch Hazel and Dove AS Balm

 

Focused February

Still on the road...

Dad's Schick Injector
Chinese Schicks
L'Occitane Plisson Synthetic
Proraso Eucalyptus
Mennen Skin Bracer

Another Great Shave! Preparing to try to beat a storm to Owens Cross Roads, AL.

Lots of good stuff on the thread this week guys! I have really enjoyed Focused February...educational and hilarious all at the same time. You guys rock!

Have a great weekend!

 

February Focus - Blades
2/20/15 - Day 21
Brush - Omega Pro 48
Soap - C.O. Bigelow
Razor - EJ89l
Blade - (1)
Post - RazoRock Alum & AV Musk

This is the final Russian blade for the month. The next two are Indian and Japanese. This is a blade that gets some love, although some say its predecessor was better.

Three passes this morning, first one was very smooth and finished well. Second pass, XTG, was also good though the neck wasn't quite as smooth as I'd like. Third pass, ATG showed just a hint of drag on the face and I had quite a few touch up areas left on my neck afterwards. For some reason the non-PTFE blades seem to have a problem with my neck. No weepers, no nicks, no cuts, actually a nice contrast to yesterday's walk on the wild side.

Alum produced a minor amount of irritation but after yesterday I'm probably lucky it wasn't still burning like fire. So, I'm giving the SI a bit of a pass on that today. I did get to DFS and will give it an A1. I'll be a bit pickier with it tomorrow on the irritation factor.

I got a call yesterday from a long lost aunt in Russia who offered me a better solution than the Rapira razor, although it costs more I'm sure.

​

 

February 20th SOTD (Shave 10 of the challenge)
Two Day's growth
Prep: Hot shower
Razor: '52 Gillette Super Speed Black Tip (X2)- Steel Handle and Baseplate
Blade: NOS Shick DE blades- Super Stainless (From 70s or 80s, I think), stropped 30 times per edge.
Soap: Dirty Deeds Beer Soap- I can't remember the scent.
Brush: Vie Long Horsehair
Post Shave: Cold Water Rinse, Alum Block
Aftershave: Something my wife got at the hippie grocery store.
My focus on this challenge have been the razor and the brush. I get good results with the horse hair brush, but honestly think I prefer my boar brushes.

I think I have this razor figured out as far as technique. I have tried several blades, and gotten decent results with them. I have Shick Super Stainless blades I got last year that came with a '63 Slim. They were still in the cardboard and plastic packaging when I got them, and all the dates on the packaging were in the 70s. I have shaved with these before in several razors, and they are normally very tuggy and uncomforatable. I don't know if it was the stropping, mild razor, or my technique is getting better, but I got a BBS on face and chin, with a DFS on the neck. One nick, minor irriation. I did a three pass shave, and some buffing on the neck. This feels like one of those shaves that is going to feel freshly done for a day and a half. I am very happy with it. I will see how it goes on shave number two tomorrow.

Happy Friday all! I am going to have a hard time staying focused on this razor for the rest of the month. I have a Feather Artist's Club SS that should be here tomorrow. I think I know what my March Focus will be.

 

Shave 19 - Feb Focus Slim Adjustable
I found the limit on the GSB in the adjustable, 4 three pass shaves. I pushed it to 5 today and although started out good, ended with 2 weepers...
Overall an OK shave.

 

Going to jump in a bit late as I did not see the thread in time.

I ordered some Arko sticks that I want to use for travel. I have been using it exclusively for the last three shaves, and will continue for 30 days. I will get a picture up with tonight's shave.

I am going to switch up razors, brushes, etc as I will be simulating travel and not necessarily having my preferred tools on hand.

Methodology so far:

Brush- Face lathering with Semogue 1305
Tools- Shaving with Gillette Silver Blues in a pre-war FHT
Pre Shave- Face wash with artisan glycerin soap and hot water. I usually get to running around during business travel and can't count on a shower right before.
Post Shave- Splash of cold water followed by Razorock Don Marco AS splash.

So far I am really enjoying the Arko. The lather is thirsty and takes a few extra minutes to get perfect. Having said that, it is incredibly dense and protective. Actually quite amazing given it's price point. Have not had so much as a single weeper or irritated spot so far. Some find the small unpleasant, and some clean and lemon fresh. Fortunately, I fall into the latter category.

My focus will be on really dialing in this incredible lather. I think, as good as it already is, that I have only scratched the surface of it's potential.

Since I have more time to shave on Fridays, I am going to change a few things around, and really see what I can pull out of the stick tonight. Will check in later with some results...

 

I'm a big fan of GSB's.

Are passes four and five actually getting any beard reduction, or was this just to see how far you could push it?

 

Just to see how far. Four worked great, the 5th pass did give me an acceptable shave but not as close as 4 which was DFS. I hadn't used the GSB since my initial 30 day Rule in my Merkur 34c and after checking my notes I was getting 3-4 shaves in it as well. With Astra SP and Ladas I get 3 good shaves so about .03 per shave. The GSB although a very good blade works out to .057 per shave. just my OCD kicking in.....

 

Totally understand! I have been "three and out" with every blade I have tried, so that leaves my calculation purely at "price per 100 blades". Shave four always seems to start getting tuggy, which reminds me of cartridge shaving. Needless to say, that is the kiss of death for any shave related product lol....

 

Yesterday's birthday shave ( number 19 for the month, was a great shave on a new blade (approximately 20 shaves on the old blade!) The two pass plus touch-up returned a DFS. AS I was getting over the flu, I missed one day in the week, but generally, the shaves have been easy, clean and close. And, again, I wonder why the Schick injector did not have a greater impact, as good as it is?

 

Happy belated birthday @jakie55

 

02/21/15 February Focus on Blades
Prep – MR GLO
Razor - Mongoose Satin B2
Blade – Feather Pro Guard (7)
Brush – Every Ready with TGN Finest
Lather – Strop Shoppe Baker Street
Post - Witch Hazel and Dove AS Balm



Fantastic 3 pass shave this morning. The SS Baker Street is so slick that I caught the baby. On to the last test blade, Feather Super which has greater blade exposure and gap than all the other blades. Glad I waited to the end to try it out. Have a great weekend.

 

February 21st SOTD (Shave 11 of the challenge)
One Day's growth
Prep: Hot shower
Razor: '52 Gillette Super Speed Black Tip (X2)- Steel Handle and Baseplate
Blade: NOS Shick DE blades- Super Stainless (From 70s or 80s, I think), second shave on blade, stropped 30 times per edge.
Soap: Dirty Deeds Beer Soap- I can't remember the scent.
Brush: Vie Long Horsehair, bowl lathered
Post Shave: Cold Water Rinse, Alum Block
Aftershave: Pacific Shaving Company Caffeinated Aftershave

Focus: Razor and Brush

I usually try to go two days between shaves, but I picked up this aftershave yesterday and wanted to try it. One day's growth for me is as course as 80 grit sand paper, and is very rough. Did a three pass shave, S/N, E/W, S/N, plus buffing. NOS blade worked great again. I caught the baby this morning! The razor is a now brainer at this point. It is mild and easy to use. The brush is not as easy to use as the boar, but works well to make lather, which has to be painted rather than worked in.

This aftershave is supposed reduce redness and irritation. Only way to test that is to produce extra irritation, right? I chased the baby more than I normally would, and could feel razor burn before I did my cold water rinse. The Alum block lit me up this morning. The aftershave smells like a mild spearmint gum. It lists menthol as an ingredient, but the effect is very light. It is a lotion consistency, rather than a liquid. It did calm down the razor burn immediately. 10 minutes later, the burn has come back, but there is no redness, and the intensity is much less than it should be based on the Alum. I think this is going to be my go to aftershave when I over do it with the buffing.

 

Shave 20 Feb Focus - Slim Adjustable
Overall a good shave. Tried an new blade and the results were good, I would say to me seems to perform very similar to the Ladas in the adjustable.

 

Saturday night shave. Focus on using an Arko shave stick for 30 days

Changed up the razor and aftershave tonight. Will keep this consistent for the next week.

Brush- Face lathering with Semogue 1305
Blade- Gillette Sikver Blue
Razor- 1967 Gillette Black Handle Super Speed
Pre Shave- Face wash with artisan glycerin soap and hot water.
Post Shave- Splash of cold water followed by Kramparts Bay Rum


Did a leisurely two pass shave tonight. I am really getting the Arko dialed in now. Here is a brush pic. Keep in mind that no bowl was involved and my face was already covered with rich, thick lather.



Shave ranged from DFS to BBS with a mild razor and no real effort on my part. Zero weepers or irritation and my face feels great. I still can't believe that I got three stick of this product for $5

Will check back in next week when I switch up gear again.