JUNE 2015 30 Day Rule/Focus Pic & Discussion Thread

Welcome to the crew! 45auto in the building...

We have a few guys on SR this month again! Thanks for joining in!

 

Five degrees...that's what I'm talking about when I say low angle! Master the correct technique and scraping will be near impossible.

 

At that angle, slicing is a distinct possibility. Say if your toddler bangs on the door and startles you while doing the contours on your chin. Just sayin...

 

I think we are up to 6 straight razor shavers this month. Welcome aboard.

 

June 2, 2015

30 Day RULE - “Lather, Rinse, Repeat. Lather, Rinse, Repeat. Lather, Rinse....”

Prep: Lucky Tiger Lemon Facial Cleansing Cream
Morning Hot Shower
Pre-Shave Oil: The Art of Shaving
Soap: Arko
Brush: Omega Pro 48
Razor: Gillette Gold Tech “Fat Handle”
Blade: Blade: Gillette Wilkinson Sword Stainless (India) (2)
Mustache/Beard Trim: Schick Golden 500
Aftershave: Proraso Aftershave Splash Green



After posting my first-day shave assessment complaining about having difficulty with my jaw line, I received two great pieces of advice from Bama Samurai and CyanideMetal below:

I hope to try both at some point this month. For today I made a point of moving my head to get different points of observation instead of just focusing on contorting my arm to get my hand placed right to get that trouble spot. It was as CM said - move the head to see the angle better. What a difference. Who knew?!!

Anyway, calamity struck soon thereafter, as it should when one focuses too much on one thing and forgets a few of the most important techniques like - don't put too much pressure on the blade! My first blade etching onto my skin and right on the jaw! Who says learning doesn't hurt.

Tomorrow we'll see if I can walk and chew gum at the same time.
Cheers!
- RT

 

Day 2 - 2 June 2015

30 Day Rule with a OC Cadet!
(The Battle of Williams)




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Day 2 on the Derby was a bit smoother. I guessed I stropped it on my face yesterday. I really have to be conscious of the weight of the Cadet. It is much heavier than last month's injector, and more aggressive to boot. But, I was able to hold the angle sweet spot for most of the shave, and it felt way better than yesterday. I got 2 pass general smoothness with little touch up.

This Williams issue requires a little more work though. Better overall lather today. I may just try a full bowl lather tomorrow to see if it is better versus face lathered. Today's shave was finished with alum over usual, all cold water throughout. A splash of the Veg and a little Vitalis, and I am good to go until tomorrow evening.

Have a great Wednesday!
​

 

Is the boar brush with the hard puck a conscious choice?

And welcome back from your weekend!

 

It does appear I'm a glutton for punishment, however the more I use MWF on regular basis, the less temperamental the soap becomes. Combination of usage experience determining the just right balance of water and air, and the fact I just grabbed the brush because it was red...

 

Please stick with Cyanide's method if it worked! See if it solidifies into your main technique. The goal of this thread is to find YOUR best shave, period. Anytime I relate anything, it is simply what I experienced, offered as help. It's pretty awesome to read about new shaver skill progression on a daily basis! And if you don't bleed a little, are you really experimenting? Nice work!

 

"Stay on target Red Leader!"

 

lol I hear that. if I lived any closer I would be broke. its like a drug addiction only it is enjoyable. I took SWMBO up there with me one time because she wanted to go and she couldn't believe how many samples I picked up.

 

Just when I thought I would write off the Derby.... it goes and gives me a BBS, great shave! This was day 3 on the blade, and whether my face had calmed down after the sun it got, or I had a much better technique shave.... I'm not sure, but I am looking forward to tomorrow, to see if the great shaves continue with this blade..... Isn't this what makes this hobby so engaging?

 

Similar on day 2 for me. Also on Derby.

 

With all you guys using SR, the peer pressure to give one a try is increasing. I'm not quite there yet.

 

You're getting there. Just think how far you've come in just a few weeks.

 

Cold water shave focus day 3:

Homemade PS Oil
WD High Mountain Badger 30 mm
Stirling Bay Rum SS
'48 Gillette Milord
Stirling Unscented PSB
Clubman VI Bay Rum AS

Day 3 on the cold water shaves, and I am really enjoying it. The cold razor is feeling better, and it does feel like less irritation. so far, this seems to be working well for me.

 

06/03/2015
Razor – Gillette New LC with Triad SS Helix
Blade – Feather (2)
Brush – Rubberset 400-3 with WSP HMW
Lather – Catie’s Bubbles Santal Sensuelle
Post - Witch Hazel & Captain’s Choice Sandalwood AS



I have used and really enjoyed the razor in the past and have be frustrated with the last couple of shaves. I just put the last couple of days out of my mind and focused on today's shave. Fantastic near BBS shave with 3 passes and some touch ups. No nicks, weepers or irritation at all. Very pleased with the results. I had forgotten how nice Catie's Bubbles soap is to use being super easy to lather and very slick. I am happy I included it in the rotation for this month's focus. The sandalwood scent paired great with the CC Sandalwood AS. Hope everyone has a great day.

 

Shave #5 of my blade focus. I decided this focus may take a while to get through as I am going to simply use up each box of blades, consecutively, rather than bounce back and forth. Each blade will get at least 2 face shaves and one head shave before it is done. The first Big Ben blade provided 3 face shaves and 1 full head shave and felt great all the way through. It did a fantastic job on my skull yesterday evening. Rather than push it, I went ahead and put in a fresh blade for this morning's face shave and all was well. I will rotate razors after 2 blades, so next up will be the Gillette New SC with the Big Ben on or about Friday of this week.

 

June 3rd, SOTD (Shave 2 of this focus)
Two days’ growth
Prep: Hot Shower
Razor: Dubl Duck Satinwedge with Obnoxious Orange Scales
Strop: Drygulch Chromexcel Horsehide- 20 laps on linen, 50 on leather
Soap: The Shave Den Lime
Brush: Eveready 100T re-knotted with 22mm TGN Synthetic
Post Shave: Cold Water Rinse, Alum Block, Thayer’s Witch Hazel
Aftershave: Aqua Velva Classic Ice Blue


Note to self: This duck can bite. I was thinking to myself as I started shaving that square points weren’t that different from round points. Then I proceeded to cut myself with the spike point 4 times on the first pass, and twice on the second. Nothing horrible, but I had some pink lather for my second and touch up pass. Got the right amount of water for the soap and brush combo, and the lather was great! Got a great shave. I will call this one a DFS, becase I still have the trouble spots on my neck, and some irritation directly under my chin. As I get better at shaving with a straight, I keep raising the bar on what I consider a BBS. A few months ago, I would have called this one a BBS. While my chin, jawline, and cheeks are BBS, there is still some roughness on my neck.


I used a very shallow blade angle, and it worked very well. Did N/S on my cheeks and neck, and XTG on my chin for the first pass. Did S/N for the second pass, keeping the blade almost flat against the skin for the second pass. Did some touch up on my neck, but didn’t get it all. Wanted to stop before getting razor burn. I haven’t used this aftershave since they gave us free samples of it in the dorms in college. I forgot how much I like the scent. Hopefully SWMBO will be OK with it. I am trying to find a few scents that aren’t as powerful as Clubman or my Holy Black Gunpowder Spice, at least for the next few months. Happy Wednesday, all!

 

I really like the scales on the razor. Very colorful outside photo.