NOV 30 Day Rule/Focus Pic&Discussion Thread

SOTD
November 29, 2015
Prep: Hot Shower. Axe Energizing Face Wash Boost
Razor: Gillette Aristocrat
Blade: Personna Lab Blue
Lather: Vintage Yardley
Brush: Semogue Boar 610
Post: Thayers Cucumber WH. Gold Bond Ultimate
Aftershave: Folsom & Co. Shambala
Superb shave. This vintage Yardley hits the mark!! I rotated a couple of brushes in/out, this Semogue 610 is surprisingly soft! I do now remember why I put it away, it doesn't hold a lot of soap but I'm OK with that as I don't have a problem going back to the puck. I really can't say enough good things about the Gillette Aristocrat, it's IMHO the best made Gillette ever. Shambala. Get it. It's fantasticO!
Never let the things you WANT
Make you forget the things you HAVE!

 

11/29/2015
Razor – Wolfman OC with Triad SS Helix
Blade – Feather (3)
Brush – Rudy Vey with Shavemac Finest
Lather – TSD Yin Yang
Post - Witch Hazel & Fine L’Orange



Today's shave is the last of the November Focus since I will be starting the December Focus a day early. The TSD Yin Yang produced a great slick lather. The scent of lime and lavender is very nice and the post shave feel of the lanolin is great. Going with a normal 3 pass shave produced a near BBS shave. Overall the shave scored an A for closeness and an A+ for irritation. Finished off with a splash of Fine L'Orange. I hope everyone has a great Sunday.

 

All your praise has me considering an Aristocrat.

 

Clint, it's the perfect razor, balance, weight, feel, shave. Right behind my Mongoose sits the Aristocrat.

 

That is very high praise indeed.

 

Pre December Focus Shave

Homemade PS Oil
Stirling Synthetic Brush
TSD Lanolin Pumpkin Spice
CJB Pain Stick with Kai Captain blade
Stirling Unscented PSB -- Mentholated
VI Bay Rum AS

After a little debate, I went with the Pain Stick this morning. I haven't had that much growth in almost two years. It gave me a good chance to confirm beard growth direction. It also gave me an opportunity to observe all the grey that has suddenly appeared. My neck is more salt than pepper now.

On to the shave, I got a great lather from the TSD Pumpkin Spice and liberally applied it trying to work up the courage to proceed with the Pain Stick. I finally picked it up and laid it flat against my face. I raised it to about a 15 degree angle and started making short strokes down my cheek to my jaw line. After getting my right side done, I checked the progress, and it was surprisingly smooth. I swapped hands and went the left side. I followed the same sequence, and struggled a bit with my left hand. As I moved closer to my chin, I went with my right hand again. I got my whole face done and rinsed to check how it went. All in all pretty good, as I had one small weeper on my neck.

So I lathered again to do a XTG pass. I found the mustache a little tricky, but easier than when I use a straight. The tricky part on my neck was no problem for the Pain Stick.

After finishing the XTG, I rinsed and found a few rough patches. I cleaned these up with a Schick C3. I would rate this as a CCS +, which I chalk up as a win for my first Pain Stick experience.

 

Way to go. With a start like this shave you should make great progress this month.

 

Don't you just hate it when that happens! I got there a couple years ago, and now I make sure I shave before I see too much of it!

Sounds like a great first shave with the pain stick! Reports like this make me want to try one for a quick second . . . but only for that quick second. Then Ivan shuts up and sanity returns.

 

NoVember 29, 2015 Shave Den Sunday



Hot Shower
Soap: TSD Unscented
Brush: Omega 31025 Scarlatti Boar
Razor: Mongoose B3
Blade: Feather Artist Club Professional (4)
TSD Witch Hazel
TSD Aftershave Milk
TSD Yin Yang

2-day growth, 3-pass shave.

Switched up my 30-day Rule just a bit to accommodate my usual Shave Den Sunday - with their fine brands of soap and aftershave products. Switched on a little Dave Brubeck for a real smooth Mongoose shave. Best of the month!



Cheers!
RT

 

Mild Guard? Mild? Original? Yeah I know, too many questions lol

 

Get yourself some of that!

 

NOVember - NO Variation

November 29

Razor - Durham Duplex Folding
Blade - (1)
Brush -Wolf Whiskers Custom Silvertip
Soap - Tabac
Post - Cold Water, Alum, The Veg

It's time to vary for the month. Twenty eight days of the Feather SS and I love the thing now. I learned an incredible amount about straight technique and technique in general using it daily. And, I also learned a couple of new ways to slice myself which is always appreciated around here. As it's Sunday it's head shave day as well and the past couple of weeks I've used the pain stick for a partial head shave. I put the Super Pro in yesterday so you know I'm not going to do that today. Oh who am I kidding, of course I did. I just can't help myself. I'm happy to say that there were no injuries as a result. I only used it above my ears and a bit to the back of my head. And I can say with confidence that the Super Pro is definitely a more precise blade. If it felt almost out of control on my face yesterday the feeling was magnified on my head.

On to the main event. I decided to cut No Variation short to try a razor I acquired at the beginning of the month. Also, my Wolf Whiskers brush has been gathering dust as it arrived just in time for NOVember. Can't let it sit any longer. The razor is the Durham Duplex, first patented in 1907 and likely on the market around 1908. In 1911 they modified the guards on the razor to open comb rather than a scalloped safety bar and it's been the same since. Not sure how long they manufactured these though the company was sold to Enders Razor Co, Inc. in 1935 and they were still making them through WWII. Along with aircraft parts. There is also a three piece version of this out there that I am working on acquiring. It is a straight razor with a guard making it, I suppose, the first and maybe only "safety straight razor". It uses proprietary blades that were nearly impossible to find until Personna began making some that are compatible recently. The blade design is the same as carpet cutter blades and some have used the carpet blades in it with far from good results. So having Personna make one is a boon to breaking them out of the dustbin.

The blades are double edged and quite thick. The hold on the razor is pretty much the same as any straight with scales, but the lack of a proper tang makes it a bit cramped. Acquiring an effective angle is a bit tricky but once you have it it's easy to hold. When passing it to the left hand you have to swing the handle vertically so the proper side of the razor is on the face. Like a Japanese kamisori shave you keep only one side to the face.

Went with Tabac to break from a month of the Fat. Tabac is every bit as good as the Fat but I've missed it so maybe I'm prejudiced a bit. Got the Wolf Whiskers soaked and loaded the Tabac and man does this brush rock. Loaded very easily. It's a Silvertip Badger, Grad A and really tore into the Tabac. And when I face lathered? Yeah, now THAT'S what I've imagined a real badger feeling like. Almost a cloud against the face feeling. The only other badger I've used was the cheapo Tweezerman. This knot is awesome! Great brush and great lather.

First pass on the right side and the DD isn't horrible. The feel is interesting I think because of the thickness of the blade. Quite noisy and a bit draggy but not bad. I actually have three original blades that came with the razor but I think I'll avoid them. The new Personna works fine but the result of the pass is not the same quality as a straight. Not even quite as good as a DE with a Derby. Second pass I worked XTG then went some ATG on the neck. Gave up after that and used my EJ DE89L and a Bic Chrome Platinum for a full third pass to finish with a DFS, but not the best DFS. I think if I had done the third pass with the Durham I wouldn't have made DFS at all. One thing I will say is I'm not sure what it would take to cut yourself with this. That comb guard is quite effective at forcing the angle and keeping the blade at bay. Which is why, of course, the quality of the shave lacks. I imagine this was seen as quite an improvement at the time as far as safety goes, and in fact in 1920 the company stated that nine million men were using them which accounted for a third of the shaving market in the States.

Interesting razor and piece of history. I'll use it again tomorrow then move on to the plan for December. Have a great Sunday and enjoy the last day of the long weekend!

​

 

Thank you!

 

Let's see, used the CJB, made two passes, one small weeper, all ears, nose and other parts intact and no bloody mess to clean up. Yep, I'd call that a total win! Awesome shave. You're on the way. Should be a great month for you.

 

Yep, it amazing at how somethings just seem to remind you that you aren't 25 anymore.

As far as the pain stick goes, it wasn't quite as bad as I had imagined. I have a few shaves with a straight under my belt, so I think this helped a bit, but in reality going slow and really focusing on angles seemed to help me the most this morning. Sounds similar to what happens with a DE.

 

If Ivan hasn't convinced you I'll send Boris. He's more persuasive.

 

We'll see what happens on a work morning. It may be a different story.

 

Just remember not to rush. And, don't think about anything but what you're doing. I had a tendency to drift off to work stuff and that seemed to be when I'd lose it a bit. The shave. The shave. The shave.

 

The pain sticks are such a different razor than most I think we get a bit psyched out by them. It's like shaving with a knife in our minds. Although it's really just the same as a straight without the scales. And, the CJB actually has a hole drilled in the handle so you can remove the rubber handle and add scales if you want.

 

If it's the one I think, it's an original.