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

Focused February
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The plan for February is Injector! I will be using Chinese Schick blades, L'Occitane Plisson Synthtetic, Proraso (red, white, and green tubs), and as always a focus on Great Cheap AS!

This razor was the one my father used, I vividly remember it sitting on his vanity top. I will be visiting him later in the month...I have some razor plans for him too...

I will be using this setup within the hour, and will report back late night with my initial impressions!

Happy Tuesday!

 

Thank you for playing. Incorrect answer.

So far one person has got it right. In a private message. So two left.

 

February 3 (day 3)

Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanser
Feather Artist Club razor (If this thing is a Feather, what kind of bird did it come from?)
Feather Professional blade (day 2)
Two-band silvertip
Stirling Naked and Smooth soap plus a few bits of leftover soap & glycerin
One-pass plus touch-ups
Alum, Thayer's Lavender witch hazel, & unrefined shea butter

I enjoyed an SAS shave today, and I'm feeling more confident using a shavette. I'm pleasantly surprised that my muscle memory from last year still allows me to switch hands while shaving my cheeks. However, it will take time and practice for me to achieve a close and comfortable two- or three-pass shave with this set up.

I hope you all are having a fine week!

 

Very cool that you're using your dad's razor. Nice touch.

Two correct answers. One more free tuck is just sitting here waiting.

 

Getting on a plane in the morning, wanted to post my travel kit:

Razor: '52 Gillette Super Speed Black Tip (X2)- Steel Handle and Baseplate
Horsehide leather razor cover
Blade: Astra Platnium-Mailed to myself
Soap: Homestead Ranch Goat Butter Shaving Soap- Naked in the Woods Scent- face lathered
Brush: Omega 50014 Boar Travel Brush
Post Shave: Cold Water Rinse, Alum Block
Aftershave: Theyer’s Witch Hazel, Cucumber scent

I put that two inch blue cup into a ziplock, the Thayer's into a travel bottle, and pack the rest into my Dop bag. This brush is pretty awesome for travel. I have bowl lathered with it in a soap container before, and it works for that or face lathering. No blade in it, because I am getting on a plane, but the cover was made with the thought of taking a razor to the gym, or when traveling with a blade in. Still have a bit a gear, but usually get pretty good shaves too. Will post the shaves while I am out there, but won't be posting any pictures.

 

Today, (Tuesday evening) was spent focusing on blade angle and NO PRESSURE. The cheeks were great as ususal, but I thought I left the neck area a little rough. Once I put the aftershave balm on, I realized that the neck was really smooth, and no irritation. All in all, a DFS+ shave. The I1 injector seems so mild, compared to the GEM and EverReady, but in truth, it really does a fine job cutting those whiskers!. I had two passes, with a little touch up under the chin, for the great result.

 

Following your focus on the I 1. Have one on my way for my first experience with an injector

 

2/4/15 - Blade Focus/Face Lather February

Mornings are not when I want tuggy shaves, so I removed the Derby blade and used a Ladas Super Stainless. Night and Day! I'm going to have to look back at my records and see what razor the Derby worked well in because it doesn't seem to be the Weber. However, the Ladas was amazing. 3 passes and BBS without even trying to achieve it. The little BodyShop synthetic brush surprised me with how quickly and well it made a slick and shiny face lather. I may need to stick with it for a couple of days to see what I think of it with extended use.

Prep: warm wash and Cornhusker's Lotion
Lather: TSD Grey Vetiver type
Brush: BodyShop synthetic
Razor: Weber PH
Blade: Ladas Super Stainless
Post: warm rinse and Proraso green aftershave lotion

 

02/04/15 February Focus on Blades

Prep - Hot Shower
Razor - Mongoose Satin B2
Blade – Feather Pro (4)
Brush – Rudy Vey Rover Briar with Shavemac Finest 26mm/52mm
Lather – AOS Sandalwood Cream
Post - Witch Hazel and AOS AS Balm



Great 3 pass work morning shave. The Feather Blade was much smoother today. I've read comments that it gets better after several shaves and after today, I believe that is the case. The AOS Sandalwood Cream and Balm were gifts from my daughters. The cream proved to be easy to lather and very slick. I'm still more of a soap guy.

 

February Focus - Blades
2/4/15 - Day 5

Brush - Omega Pro 48
Cream - C.O. Bigelow
Razor - EJ89L
Blade - (2)
Post - RazoRock Alum and AV Musk

Day 2 of the Sputnik and the smoothness continues. No drag, no pull, just a smooth pass everytime, and today without the nicks. So, improvement there. I could have stopped after two passes with just a little cleanup with a DFS but went ahead with the third since I need to be consistent. Third pass caught the baby. Nice. Alum bit some on the neck but better than yesterday as well. Seems this blade may need a first run to settle down.

Grade - A on the BBS with no nicks/drag. The alum still stung some but was improved enough to save the 1. So, A1 today. Definite step up from yesterday.

The answer to the bonus picture yesterday.....the Soviet spacecraft was the VOSKHOD. @dbersh and @txskimo both got it right so they have Voskhod blades headed their way. Today's gratuitous Soviet space picture features two cosmonauts in the Voskhod. This craft only flew two times between the Vostok and the Soyuz-1. To say it was an engineering nightmare is to be kind. Interesting history.

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Day 4 Feb Focus with 66 Slim Adj
Very good shave today. Even with a blade at end of its life cycle, the razor provided a close comfortable shave.

 

Focused February


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Dad's Schick Revere Handle Injector
Chinese Schick
L'occitane Plisson Synthetic
Proraso Eucalyptus Tub
Today's Great Cheap AS™ Is AV Musk!


Yesterday was absolutely the easiest and most intuitve shave I have yet experienced. I can already tell that Dad's injector is a great shaver. Wide sweet spot on the angle and lots of gap/exposure make quick work of one day growth. the skinfeel after the shave was awesome, the alum block was quiet.

I can really tell that injector blades are thicker and stiffer than DE blades. Not kidding, I loved this setup! I am so happy I chose this after last month...

Happy Wednesday!

 

Talk to us about your dial settings...I did a 30 day rule on a Slim last month. Only nine really worked out for me, I would like to hear your thoughts.

Seems like Russian PTFE blades really like your face!

It's interesting how blades change over the week as they dull.

I would love to hear more about how you feel about that brush!

injectors are amazing!

Shaving like a hero!

 

Today I had it set on 4. I know that is pretty mild, similar to my Merkur 34C. Working with proper angle is my ultimate goal. Although I get very good shaves, at times it feels like I am scraping my face even though no irritation or feedback from Alum or AS. I haven't felt the "scraping" the past 2 days so I am going to bump to 5 tomorrow and see how it goes. The more comfortable I get the higher I'll adjust to find the best setting for me.

 

I agree. I have noticed that the Teflon blades tend to work very well for me, and also a couple Platinums I've tried, such as the Rapira PL. Stainless blades have not been as good for me, but we will see if that trend continues. Up after the Sputnick are two stainless Gillettes followed by a platinum Gillette.

I love that razor. Class and style. Now I have to start looking for one. Once again TSD has enabled my RAD. Love it here.

 

I'm going to say today was a horrible shave. Maybe no irritation and some minor nicks but from the start I knew it was bad. The lather just wasn't slick and instead of correcting the problem I just kept going. All in all it was a decent shave but horrible comparing it to the last two days. Now to find the culprit in my lack luster lather!

 

February 4 (day 4)

Stirling Sheep Soap
Feather Artist Club razor (aka Advanced Combat Razor)
Feather Professional blade (day 3)
Two-band silvertip
Stirling Naked and Smooth soap plus a few bits of leftover soap & glycerin
Two-passes - WTG and XTG
Alum, Thayer's Lavender witch hazel, & unrefined shea butter

I attempted a very light and careful XTG second pass, and I was rewarded with a pretty good shave today. The irritation on my neck and upper lip from my Sunday shave has calmed down, and I'm encouraged. I am taking baby steps toward a close and comfortable two- or three-pass shave with this set up. I just watched geofatboy wield this razor like it was a magic wand, and I'm reminded that I have a long way to go.

One cool thing about this razor is that the handle is very grippy, even with wet fingers. I'm also beginning to appreciate the stubby handle on my new two-band brush. I already love the feel of it.

We're expecting some snow tonight, but I know that Spring is in sight. I hope you had some fun and laughter today.

 

With an IQ approaching zero!

 

My Wednesday Afternoon shave was the equal of Tuesday's shave! (which turned out to be an amazing one, with less than normal whisker growth by the time I shaved the next day.) Two passes, with some chin touch-up, and I had another BBS day. I am really liking the "effortless" great shaves. My only worry is that this little sports car razor will spoil me for anything else in my shaving drawer. (except maybe the G razor) (Day 4)

 

Day 5 of my 30 day focus on blades and face lathering is in the books. The Ladas Super Stainless blade is simply amazing. The bad news is I only have 1 other Ladas blade among my over 400 blades! The good news is that I have a lot of different blades to try over the rest of the next couple of months. Today's shave was as easy as any that I've had in the past year. The lather came together quite well with the TSD Grey Vetiver and the Bodyshop synthetic brush. 3 passes just because I could. I think I could have stopped on 2 but everything just felt good so I kept going.