February '16 - 30 Day Rule/Focus Pix & Discussion Thread

MY 30 day focus is evolving into something other than what I outlined in my original 30 day focus post. Part of my OP was to change razors every week for 4 weeks and experiment with different blades. But I realize that what interests me at this time is a blade trial. I change my blade every Sunday. I am a one-pass (sometimes 2) WTG shaver, therefore 1 blade = 7 shaves. First day I notice any new blade is a bit edgy and with each successive shave I notice it gets smoother. Even after 7 shaves most blades could go further, but I change it anyway. Best shave are days 2, 3, 4, and 5.

For the longest time I have been using Astra SP...mostly because they provided me the fine balance of smoothness and sharpness and it suited my skin. Just recently I have decided to experiment and I am going to do one-week trials with the following blades:
1. Gillette 7 o'clock Super Stainless (green)
2. Gillette 7 o'clock Sharp Edge (yellow)
3. Derby
4. Blue Bird
5. Gillette Silver Blue
6. Feather
7. Astra SP

My razor is a constant: Gillette Heavy Tech. And I am using a somewhat flexible 7 day rotation of soaps. I tend to match my brushes to my soaps.

I think what this means is my 30 day focus will spill over into almost 60 days (2 months) as I use each blade for one week. I may just add one more blade and make it 8 different blades (not sure which one yet)...this way I will cover the two months. I know...blades are the ultimate YMMV...but I am interested to see if Astra SP is still "king of the castle"...or if a new king is to be crowned. Just thought I would share my ever evolving journey...

Currently I am using the Gillette Sharp Edge (Week 2). Today was Haslinger.

 

Day 8 - Schick repeater focus


Just an average shave with the Schick B2 this morning. I could not seem to find the proper angle and found myself making short quick strokes that led to a less than stellar 2 pass shave. The razor is too aggressive to shave ATG and that doesnt help either. Although this razor is a beauty it may just end up being a display piece.

 

Great photo Roger. I hope you manage to get the B2 dialed in and start getting good shaves with it. It certainly looks fantastic.

 

That is the best looking B&B Essential Boar brush I recall seeing. Some of the release colors were a little to funky.

 

Mongoose Focus
I got a better shave today thanks to some advice about direction. I did two passes. WTG and ATG on the face and ATG and XTG on the neck. I got BBS on the face and close to BBS on the neck. I still got a couple of small weepers on my lower neck. I guess this is why I'm doing a focus. To figure this out
SOTD
Route 66 Sea and Citrus
Doug Korn brush
Mongoose
Kai Captain Titan Mild (2)
Alum
Ogallala Bay Rum AS
Have fun!

 

Yesterday's SE shave didn't quite go as planned. Lather was great, technique seemed solid with a shallow angle and no pressure. But face felt aggravated post shave and had more alum burn than usual. Will take a few days break from the shovel head to enjoy some quality DE shaves. Good day everyone

 

Refresh my memory. What blade are you using?

 

Thanks Clint. I agree. Of the entire collection so far, I like the Gold Flake handle the best. It's a nice travel brush.

 

SOTD
February 9, 2016
Prep: Hot Shower. Noxzema
Razor: 1932 Gillette Fat Handle Tech Made in Canada
Blade: Personna Lab Blue
Lather: Palmolive for Men Classic
Crown King Scuttle
Brush: Semogue 610
Post: Thayers Cucumber WH. Gold Bond Ultimate
Aftershave: Fine L'Orange Noir
Fabulous shave. My past experience with PH Tech or Tech's in general haven't been favorable up until this morning. This 1932 Gillette FH Tech Made in Canada shaves better than its American counterpart IMO. I've stated before I'd much rather have all made in England or Canada Gillette's.
Crown King Scuttle is great! Prefect size, the grooves inside help build a fantastic lather. Palmolive for Men Classic is a superb cream! Finished off with a splash of Fine L'Orange Noir.
Never let the things you WANT
Make you forget the things you HAVE!

 

First Week Update:

I have completed my first week of shaves with the Gillette 7 o'clock Super Stainless (green). I evaluate these blades as most do, in terms of sharpness and smoothness. I also tend to evaluate a blade in comparison to the Astra SP, since I am so familiar with this blade. I won't evaluate these blades in terms of cost, because as far as I am concerned they are roughly in the same ballpark, i.e. pennies per blade. In the grand scheme of things...very inexpensive.

After one week with the Gillette 7 o'clock Super Stainless I found it to be very sharp, even edgy and it remained that way during the 7 days. Normally, when I use a blade I expect that edgey sharpness on the first or second shave but then I expect it to get smoother with each subsequent shave, but this did not happen. The blade retained its edge all week and it was not smooth. It was very sharp and it gave a very close shave. No complaints there. I didn't draw blood all week, so I consider that a bonus. I did feel some irritation from the blade post-shave, much more so than I would normally get with the Astra SP. Overall, this lack of smoothness made it undesirable for me. I prefer a smoother shave. I throw away the blade after one week, but I am sure with this blade I could easily have stretched it to 10 days or more. But I don't know if it would have been any smoother. This would require a more detailed comparison and a longer trial.

Sharpness: 8/10
Smoothness: 3/10
Comparison to Astra SP in terms of overall performance and comfort: sharper than the Astra SP, but not as smooth. Astra is more comfortable.

This week I am on shave #3 with the Gillette 7 o'clock Sharp Edge. Will report next week after my 7 shaves are done.

 

Thank you for taking the time to write such a detailed report. I am looking forward to next week's report.

 

February Focus - German blades

February 9

Razor - Merkur 23c
Blade - (3)
Brush - Wolf Whiskers Custom Silvertip
Soap - Tabac
Post - Cold rinse, Alum, The Veg

Final day on the Wilkinson Sword. I'm already a believer, let's see if it can seal the deal. I'm always suspicious of a blade that gives two great shaves because I've seen a few that just died after that. The only way to find out is to give it another go around, so let's do it.

The Wolf and Tabac for the lather today. I've always been more of a boar and horse brush advocate but this brush really is awesome. Has me thinking of adding another badger to the zoo. I hate badgers. Grew up around them on the farm. I've been chased into the back of a truck by one. Gone to war against them. But they do make a good brush when done right.

Started with WTG as always and worked the first pass my normal way, spinning the razor at the jawline to use both edges on a side. Still so smooth I can't tell for sure the blade is there except for the result. XTG produced a very nice DFS, near BBS. So, a full third pass again today going ATG and Gillette Slide on the neck. It's close to the baby. Very close. Extremely close. If there's no burn I'm going to call it that. One spot is a bit of a problem but it's an area I traditionally have trouble with if I'm not paying attention. Hard to blame that on the blade but....it's there. Grabbed the alum and.........a slight burn on the neck. Nothing major but it's the first day I've felt a burn at all. Half stein reduction for that. As to the finish? I actually delayed a bit and rechecked to make sure. I have to go BBS again. That one spot is the only possible question mark and that is normally a technique issue. So, three days of BBS, only one of any irritation at all. 4.5 steins today so this blade is as near perfect over three days as any others I've used. What a great three days.

Tomorrow - Another very highly regarded blade and one a few have been waiting to come up in my rotation. It's the Bolzano Superinox. I'm expecting another three days of great shaves. Or hoping at least.

Edit to add cost - Best price I'm finding is $19.34/100 shipped. That's a reasonable price for this blade. Probably a bit of a steal actually.

​

 

Gem ptfe blades

 

February 2016 Focus -- Schick injectors

February 9 (Also known as Tabac Tuesday)

Razor: Canadian Schick Injector E Type
Blade: Chinese Schick Injector (1)
Brush: Stirling Kong
Soap: Tabac
Post: Cold water rinse, Witch Hazel, Fine Clean Vetiver


Today I made the switch to the Canadian Type E Schick injector (not exactly which version though of the E to be honest). I put in a new chick blade and set off to see if the angle and all is the same as the G type. The angle was basically identical so it was very easy to find and keep. This shave seemed a touch more aggressive but not significantly. The handle weight is very similar to the G, so again no pressure. Had a great first shave with the E. After my usual 2 pass shave and some basic touch-up, I ended up with near BBS and no irritation. No complaints at all.

 

Razor: Gillette Red Tip C2, 1957
Blade: Gillette Platinum (3)
Brush: Fendrihen Silver Tip
Soap: Route 66 Frozen Retro Spice
A/S: Old Spice Fresh Lime

I've been very luck with my shaves recently. I believe it comes down to good technique (thanks to SOTD and 30 Focus threads) and an excellent shave soap. The Route 66 soaps have been a game changer for me. I haven't tried one soap that I didn't like. The Route 66 Retro Spice version of the original, timeless Old Spice classic first introduced by Shulton in 1936. Top notes of orange, sage and lemon over a lightly spiced floral heart and a base of vanilla, cedarwood, frankincense, tonka and musk. Masculine, clean, refreshing and long lasting, slick lather, protective cushion, and glide soothing post shave conditioning. If you like Old Spice, and who doesn't, you'll love this soap.

 

Thanks Clint. Im commited to the B2 until the blade dulls, which will likely take me till Saturday.

 

That's the same blade I found to work best.

 

Great write up! Looking forward to your comparison with the Gillette yellows. I have used the yellow and found them sharp and fairly smooth. Have not had any green to compare.

 

I had to extend my focus on the shovel head by a further 15 days. I am getting it now but it's been a struggle full of success followed by failure. I think it is very unforgiving and either you get every aspect right for a beautiful shave. Or you make a slight error in the process, be it angle, pressure or any of the other variables and your gonna feel it. Because of this I've come to the decision that mine will be used when time is in abundance and I am focused. Keep with it, as I said it does deliver a beautiful shave.

 

Another great write up. I have wilkinsons in my sample pack. I have yet to open it due to other focus areas but when I change things up this month I may select it for the rest of the focus based on your report. Thanks