May 2015 30 Day Rule/Focus Pic-Discussion Thread

For the arm hair test (no lather necessary!), I lay the razor practically flat on the forearm with a slight downward pressure on the edge. I draw/pull the razor towards me, not push it away, with short, repetitive strokes. Hairs will or should pop as the edge strikes them.

Watch this: I'm not nearly as hairy as this guy, but you get the idea….

 

Try try again. if they don't pop, a rehone is in order?

 

Good picture!!!

 

Thank you Doug

 

Brush Focus: Day 3
Brush: Fendrihan Sliver Tip 2, 22/49
Gillette Super Speed, 1947 Birth Razor.
Gillette Platinum Blade
Bowl: KO Shave
Soap: Jack's Soap
AS: Clubman Mush
Old Spice Coffee Mug.

This brush is supposed to be the same as yesterdays brush with a different handle. It has been different since I received it. Never lost a hair and hold lots of lather. Although it's not my favorite brush it is right up there. Some brushes are very similar in apply soap, some are not.

 

Rotating through the blade sampler. Each will get 3 consecutive days so they all get a chance.
Run through the lineup again.

Variables:
Lord
Shark
7 am Durablade
Sharp Durablade
Astra
(Already tried the Dorco, Derby, and BIC.)

Constants:
Pre: Hot washcloth
Soap: Nivea gel
Brush: Vie-long horsehair
Post: CW and WH

Learning goals:

1. Which blades suit this face
2. Better lathering
3. Manage the curve of the jaw
4. 3 times through the grinder - WTG, XTG, ATG

 

MAYhem & Mercy
May 4, 2015
Prep - Hot shower and towel
Brush - Tweezerman Badger
Soap - Williams (I see bubbles...any lather in there?)Mug Shaving Soap
Razor - Rapira
Blade - (3)
Post - Alum, Nivea Replenishing Post Shave Balm

Third and final day with the unimpressive Zaza from Turkey. Decided to throw it in the exceptionally cheap and poorly made Rapira razor. And, I was a bit surprised at the result. I discovered that the Rapira is a rather aggressive razor. I've only used it once with a Voskhod and didn't like how it worked at all. Seemed like it turned the normally sharp and smooth Voskhod into a killer. Well, it took the Zaza with its lack of sharpness and turned it into an actual functioning blade! Two passes to a very good DFS, the best I've had with the Zaza. A full third pass and the baby would be caught. Hmmmmmmm. Decided to take a look at the razor close up.



Notice the even but wide gap on the blade in the top picture and the angle in the second? The head doesn't bend the blade much in this razor and that creates an aggressive setup not unlike the Gillette Old Style OC. In fact the shave felt a lot like the 1918 I use sometimes. Apparently pairing this blade with the more aggressive Rapira (compared to the Soyuz 1) helped it perform. So, in the MAYhem portion of the Zaza trial it appears it can function well in an aggressive razor. Even a cheap one. Does technique trump tools in this case? I would prefer to say that technique allows the tools to work, even if cheap and low-tech. I'm eager to see what happens in a couple of weeks when I put the Zaza into some much better gear.

I'm also looking forward to using it with much better soap. The Williams just foams and bubbles but doesn't seem to ever get to the lather stage. Here's a picture of the soap tonight after sitting all day. Notice the bubbles around the edge? That's the size I see when trying to lather.


Still working on finding a way to make this soap work better. It is so far the most frustrating part of the shave aside from the floppy badger. I already miss my boars. But, we press on to tomorrow where the 7 a.m. blade from Bangladesh takes center stage in the Soyuz 1. Happy Monday everyone!

​

 

Several places I read that a drop of glycerin will really help Williams soap to lather. I have not tried this, just read it several places.

 

I think I've seen that. Hadn't thought of it. I will be chasing some down in the near future!

 

oooh! Lucky Tiger! Old school classic.

 

Shaves two through five this report:

Razor: 1951 Fat handled Canadian Tech
Blade Voskhod
Soap Arko
A/S varied

Voskhod (1) a very smooth shave, with no irritation. I know I like the Teflon coating on the SE blades I use. I got a close 2 pass shave (DFS) but not as close as with the feather
Voskhod (2) again, smooth shave, but not as smooth as with the feather. The neck was a bit rough.
Voskhod(3) same neck irritation, or so I thought. It was gone with the use of the aftershave balm. Ended up with a BBS shave
Voskhod(4) a very nice "slippery" 2 pass shave. BBS result. The aftershave was 2 drops of Mbomb with the Nivea aftershave Balm. Happy menthol Monday! No irritation today...

All in All, I really like the Voskhod, and understand why so many like this blade. I can imagine that it would work quite well in a little more aggressive razor. I am happy with it in the tech.

I will try it again in an adjustable, later this month.

 

Blade Focus Day 5:

Homemade PS Oil
Vie-long Horsehair Brush
Stirling Barber Shop
EJ Chatsworth Barley
Feather Blade
Stirling Unscented PSB
Clubman Vanilla AS

The Feather is proving to be a good blade for me, as I got another good shave. One more day on this one, then I'll try something else.

 

05/5/2015
Razor – Mongoose B2 with Jürgen Hempel Ti
Blade –Feather Super Pro (9)
Brush –Rudy Vey with TGN Finest
Lather – TSD Yin Yang
Post - Witch Hazel and Myrsol Limon Sample



Fantastic near BBS 2 pass shave with touch ups this morning. This was the first time I have used the TSD soap. The scent was very impressive with a mixture of lime and lavender. The soap was very easy to lather and super slick. Finished off the shave with witch hazel and a splash of Myrsol Limon Aftershave from a sampler pack. The combination of the TSD soap and Myrsol made for a fantastic post shave feel.

 

DAY 4
VARIATION!
Contrary to the established 30-day rule, I made an exception this morning by switching out the Böker (my one of four German-made razors to be used in this 30-day period) for a razor I had just finished restoring and honing.
Using the same routine and soap of the previous 3 days, I introduced a significantly different straight razor into the mix. I always test-shave the razors I restore and hone, and so I took the opportunity to give this big Sheffield blade a test drive this morning. This Wade & Butcher is considerably larger ( nearly 1" wide vs 5/8") and heavier than the typical straight razor, with a slight smile.

Despite the additional heft and width, the razor feels comfortable in maneuvering about the face. Audibly, the shaving feedback is considerably less prominent than the thinner, full-hollow Böker, but the noise is still present (unlike the 'silent whisker killer' effect when using a large wedge blade). I did notice that it required more effort (strokes) to effectively remove stubble on the nose (tip) end, meaning I'll probably take this razor back to the hones and touch-up the nose to bring it to the same level of keenness and the rest of the blade. This is one of the reasons why I test shave a razor and don't simply rely on thumb-pad or hanging-hair tests.

Not quite a DFS result, and I have some tenderness in the areas that required multiple passes. This type of result is not uncommon when the razor it not as sharp as it need be. As with DE razors with old blades, shaving with a blade that isn't sufficiently sharp leads to more effort and potential skin aggravation. A keenly-sharp SR removes hair quickly and effortlessly, leaving the skin feeling BBS after a single pass.

 

So glad you're doing a focus this month. Learning so much on the straight experience!

 

MAYhem & Mercy
May 5, 2015
Prep - Hot shower and towel
Brush - Tweezerman Badger
Soap - Williams (Hmmm.....maybe there is hope)Mug Shaving Soap
Razor - Soyuz 1
Blade - (1)
Post - Alum, Nivea Replenishing Post Shave Balm

If I had to choose one shave as the worst I've ever had.....this is the one. First WTG stroke was all it took to get nicked. And the drag on this thing was horrid. Went ahead and finished the first pass and noticed a couple of things. First of all, extremely draggy, even sticky as it went across my face. The fact that I only got one nick was probably a miracle. I also noticed that when I changed edges the second edge was working a little better. Not much, but a little. I took a minute to examine the blade and I'm almost certain from its performance that, while it does have a bevel on both sides, they are not ground the same and, in fact, one side may not be fully sharpened. Debated what to do and threw caution to the wind and started the XTG using what felt like the "sharper" edge. Two strokes, two nicks. DONE!!! Grabbed my emergency exit razor, the Aristocrat with Voskhod and finished the shave. Alum was harsh where I had doubled up on the right side trying for the second pass, not too bad everywhere else.

As to the Williams issue...progress? I tried bowl lathering and got no real benefit other than letting the puck stay wet while I lathered and shaking it out before returning to reload from the puck. When I lathered for the second and even more on the third pass I started to get a better, slicker lather. Wet puck, drier brush....is it a clue? Going to work on that tomorrow. As for the blade and razor.....I will put the blade in the Rapira tomorrow and try it. The Soyuz does hold the blade slightly at an angle so maybe that will improve it. I doubt it, however, as the Zaza was at the same angle and worked better than this waste of steel. Bangladesh is not exactly known as a bastion of fine steel works. This blade seems to demonstrate why!

 

Prep- Hot shower, facial scrub
Razor- Genco Henry XX
Brush- Omega 48
Soap- Caties Bubbles LPV
Post- Pinaud Bayrum

It's been awhile since I've had time to shave but it finally came last night. It was about on par with my previous shave with the same issues. Again for some reason stretching my skin is a problem especially for something that should be very simple. Three passes which left me with an acceptable shave but nowhere near what I want to call acceptable at the end of the focus. It's been a hectic last week so I have some catching up to do on the forum.

 

What is the problem you are encountering?

 

Aggressive Apri...errrr May? - Day 24 (5/5/15)

Prep: Hot shower
Soap: Arko
Brush: Omega 13522
Razor: Cadet OC
Blade: Sputnik
Post: Witch Hazel, Nivea Sensitive Balm
Scent: Tommy Bahama Very Cool

Tried a quick 1 pass ATG shave this morning since my shave was so good yesterday. Decent shave but not great. I really can't go ATG 2 days in a row.

 

Late post for Monday...Day 4 - 30 Day rule with a Schick!

I had a crazy afternoon yesterday and had no time to post, but I got in another good shave. Will try and get caught up later!