July 2015 30 Day Rule/Focus Pic & Discussion Thread

Friday focus shave 8.

I was able to squeeze one more straight razor shave in before vacation. Not much time this morning so I did 2 passes with my 'ugly dog' straight and the 2 passes with a DE. DFS and jut light irritation. My razor from Whipped Dog is ugly but it does have a great edge and shaves great. It will 10 or 11 days before I can shave with a straight.

Proraso Pre Shave
Caste Forbes Lime and AoS tallow super lather
Simpson Polo 8 Super
Ugly Whipped Dog straight
Dry Gulch strop
Alum block to keep my fingers dry
Spieck AS
Muehle ASB
Creed Aventus

 

Friday, July 10, 2015

Mongoose Shave #12
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Another two pass close to BBS shave today. The Mongoose is an impressive razor. It reminds me of the big lawn mowers that cut large fields of grass. The Goose cuts a large swath of whiskers efficiently with each stroke. The addition of the shorter Titanium handle allowed for better maneuverability and grip. Doug Korn’s Orange Swirl two-band badger is an outstanding face lathering brush. I hope you all had a wonderful shave today. Have a frosty weekend my friends.

Shower, Stirling Clubman Smooth, Neutrogena Face Scrub
B-3 Mongoose with UFO Godzilla Red Bronze
Feather Professional #5
Doug Korn Orange Swirl Banded Badger
MDC Le Bol En Bois – Fougere
Alum Block, Dickinson’s +Menthol, Unrefined Shea Butter
Myrsol Aqua Balsamica

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30 Day Rule - July 2015
July 9th
Razor - CJB/Gillette New LC
Blade - (6) (3 2/3)
Brush - Omega Pro 48
Soap - Mitchell's Wool Fat
Post - Cold Water splash, Alum, Nivea Original Post Shave Balm

Back to the CJB today and it was a good morning. First pass was with the CJB and Feather Pro and I kept the grip loose and the pressure close to non-existent. Very nice first pass, no blood or other problems. Did the second pass with the Gillette New LC and Voskhod and ended it with a DFS so let the third pass go for the day. I was a bit short on time so was happy to get DFS on two. Same routine tomorrow but with time for two CJB passes to try for DFS with it on two. Feel like it's coming back to me better now. Still having the most issues when I go to the left side with the right hand. 22 more days to get this thing DOWN! That's six shaves with the Feather Pro but not full 3 pass shaves so I'll stick with it for awhile yet. If I'm having problems it isn't because the blade is dull!

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Nominee: Best Handle July 2015

 

In general, as a new shaver gains experience, a wider range of blades will yield good results. I am actually hesitant to speak critically of or disparage a blade. The reason for this is twofold, I don't wanna make someone miss a potential fave, and many of my opinions were formed when I was brand new and had iffy technique. Now, 364 days after shaving for the first time in years, I can get a decent shave from almost any blade. This will likely be your experience too. When I say GSB is a fave, to me that simply means it's a AAA blade. With consistently good and replicable results. Astra SP is a forum fave, and at its low price point, I wish it were mine. I haven't tried one in ages but tuck or two resides in my blade stash. It may be time to revisit.

Sharper is usually better. Sharp and smooth is ideal. IMHO, lather quality, angle of attack, and pressure are the three factors in causing or preventing razor burn.

 

Day 9 - 9 July 2015

30 Days of Maggard and MITA!



Late post, long day, good shave!

Have a Happy Friday!
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I stretch the skin of the jawline upward toward the cheekbone and taut, turning a corner bend into a flat surface. Although, this may not be your issue.

Did you perceive the Derby as dull or experiencing tugging?

 

1956 Gillette Super Speed Flair
Vulfix Super Badger (660)
Georgetown G12 Scuttle
Proraso Sandalwood cream
Aqua Velva
Current Blade under review: Astra Superior Platinum

Shave #3 with 2nd Astra Superior Platinum blade. Fine BBS results, a great shave. Extremely close, smooth, no nicks, weepers, irritation or razor burn.
2 Full passes: Pass 1: WTG on my face (N/S), and XTG on my neck (N/S). Pass 2: ATG using my grain map. At this point, I could have ended the shave with a near BBS.
Lathered up again for touch up. I used some stretching in an attempt to get the last few hairs from my just below my jawline. Yesterday, I went over the areas several times and did some blade buffing. Today, I went over it once being careful not to add pressure so as to let the blade do the work. On my final rinse I could feel tiny patches of very short stubble, but I left them alone. While applying my Aqua Velva they seemed to be more evident, but once the A/S dried, everything felt BBS to me. 30 minutes later, I'm starting to feel hints of them. Maybe those spots would have surfaced later if I would have dug in, but I don't want to get in the habit of adding pressure during my touch up to "help" the blade.
Another satisfying shave from the Astra Superior Platinum. Tomorrow, I'll revisit the Gillette Silver Blue.

Happy shaving!

 

Phoenix Dbl OC Focus Day 9:

Homemade PS Oil
WD High Mountain Badger 30 mm
TSD Lanolin Egyptian Spice
Phoenix Dbl OC
Stirling Unscented PSB
Clubman

Another nice shave this morning from the Phoenix. It may be my favorite razor by the end of the month.

 

30 day rule
MDC Lavender Face Lathered
Ladas blade
Slim Adjustable set to 7

Day 10 of the 30 day rule and every day has been a great shave.

 

07/10/2015
Razor – Mongoose B2 with Jürgen Hempel Ti
Blade – Feather Pro (3)
Brush – Shavemac Silvertip D01
Lather – Soap Commander Renewal
Post - Witch Hazel and Myrsol F/Extra



Fantastic 3 pass BBS shave this morning. As usual the Soap Commander was easy to whip into a slick protective lather. Finished off with a splash of Myrsol F/Extra. The menthol is a nice touch for the hot Atlanta weather. Happy Friday.

 

Been continuing my search for the right blade for me. Have completed my time with the Voskhod blade. The first and second shaves were great shaves. Extremely smooth, no irritation, excellent shaves. My third time with the blade was not so good. It tugged like crazy and I had 2 weepers and a lot of irritation. I am hoping it was just my inexperience and the fact I am still getting technique down, but that third shave was just not pleasant. I plan to revisit the blade later this month with another 3 shave period, so maybe things will be better then. If not, the Astra SP is still my top performing blade so far.

On a side note, the Stirling soaps really are amazing lather producers. Every soap I have tried has produced an abundance of nice thick lather. Of course the smells have been amazing (I keep wanting to call them flavors instead of smells because with soaps like lemon chill, MITA, and gin and tonic, I think they are good enough to eat!).

Next blade for me will be the SuperMax Super Platinum to see how it performs. Tonight's shave will consist of

Razor Lord L6
Blade SuperMax Super Platinum
Brush VDH Boar
PSO Homemade PSO with Olive and Castor oil and lavender EO
Soap Stirling Gin and Tonic
WH Thayers unscented alcohol free witch hazel (I really need to put some EO in it)

 

July 10th, SOTD (Shave 6 of this focus)
Two days’ growth
Prep: Hot shower
Razor: W.R. Case & Sons “Registered No. 23 Warranted For Life” Purple Heart Wood scales
Strop: Drygulch Chromexcel Horsehide/ Linen (10 linen/ 10 leather pre and post)
Soap: Barrister & Mann Seville
Brush: Spalted Maple Brush with Badger Knot
Post Shave: Cold Water Rinse, Alum Block, Thayer’s Witch Hazel
Aftershave: Pinaud Clubman with M-Bomb added

Two and a half pass shave today. My over one hundred year old razor is a great shaver and very smooth. Making sure I leave my face damp before I lather has really improved the quality of my lather and shaves. I am building the lather in the bowl, then really working it in with the brush, so its like a combonation of bowl and face lathering. BBS on face, chin and jaw. The trouble spots on my neck are a little better, but still not BBS. Overall, I would call it a DFS Plus.

 

I like it! I have had a couple DFS Plus shaves so far. I am trying to take the advice of multiple people on here and not chase the BBS, mainly because like you my neck is my trouble spot. I find if I can settle for DFS or DFS Plus I have a much better shaving experience than chasing the baby.

 

I have given up on chasing the baby on my neck. I do my two pass shave, and will sometimes do another pass just on the neck, and a little touch up. This provides good shaves, without getting me a lot of irrititation, especially since I started using straights. With a DE, I have better luck chasing it, but I still get irritation.

 

Razor: Gillette SS, 1948-49
Blade: Personna Blue (1)
Brush: Semogue 1305 Boar
Soap: Proraso
A/S: Ecopure Man Balm
Day 10.

Day off shaving yesterday. Today I went back to my Semogue 1305. I know many here love this brush, however, I haven't been able to make it work for me yet. I'm going to use it for a week change to another brush and finish the month with this brush. Ended up with a good shave even though this is not my favorite soap. I like the Personna blade and the Gillette Super Speed.

 

Good setup. I had a great shave today also. Have a good weekend.

 

My Heros!

 

Nice set up. Have a good one!