Yuma The infamous Yuma arrived today. Actually, it arrived Saturday but instead of delivering it to me the postal carrier took it to my apartment office and left it there, so I wasn't able to get it until tonight. I picked it up, went to the gym, came home, showered, and prepared to shave... Let it be known there will be no pics as Mr. Droid did an awesome photo exposition of this razor already and I can't top or add to what he's posted. I will say his pics are 100% accurate. It definitely looks galvanized, like it was made out of melted bolts, which it could've been. I got ready for my shave. I loaded up a Shark SS in it as I regularly use that blade. I decided to use the homemade shave soap that was included. It smelled very nice. It lathered awesomely. Everything went downhill from here. I covered my face with the homemade soap lather and began my shave. After a couple of strokes, my face began to burn like crazy. I have random skin allergies, and that's what it felt like. I re-read the ingredients at the beginning of this thread and no idea what would cause it, but something did. I immediately got it off my face, and I felt like the guy in Poltergeist. However, I couldn't be stopped. I grabbed some TOBS Eton College, relathered and restarted the shave. OUCH. No matter how little pressure I used, I felt like I Was shaving skin off. It felt like my 2nd or so shave ever with a DE. I'm not sure if it was the razor or the burn from the soap, so I'm remaining open minded. I made it through a 3 pass shave. I experimented with the two uneven sides of the head, and it felt about the same. I did start getting a better shave when I played with my angle of attack a bit, which was probably due to the odd blade exposure. I had to to use my Proraso White post balm to calm my face. Not a good experience, but I'm not sure how much was caused by the razor and how much was caused by my reaction to the soap. So, I'm not giving up. I'll keep using it for the next couple of nights and see how it goes. I'll be sending it out this weekend. Nightly updates to follow!
Thanks! No, not a bad blade. I think it's more likely that my face was already burnt from the soap so there's no way I could have had a decent shave with anything at that point. To be on the safe side maybe I'll toss the blade for a new one tomorrow.
Ooh! Hate to hear that your inaugural Yuma shave was a disaster! Unfortunately, it is part of the experience when you use your face as as testing ground. But still, not fun. Not at all
YOWZA! Man, I'm sorry to hear about your reaction to the soap! Since the soap itself was stearic acid, coconut oil, and cocoa butter, I point the finger of blame at the fragrances! They are supposedly skin safe. I am very sorry for the trouble. Hopefully, the Yuma beastie will be calmer... should you decide to try again. Erm... I'm thinking I used a low blade angle with the Yuma. Not quite "riding the cap" low, but in that general direction. Good luck!
I test lathered the soap that arrived. Will post pics tomorrow. I think my lather skill may leave a bit to be desired. I thought it smelled pretty good, and am gonna try again tomorrow. I could not test shave as I had already shaved earlier in the day. Everything in the box arrived as pictured. My impression of the Yuma is that the QC seems low value. The geometry of the safety bar is off, and I also note the quite uneven blade exposure. The fit if the cap to the razor plate is a little off as well. The razor feels significant in my hand, not too heavy or too light. Speck smells interesting too. Am I permitted to use any blade I like or one from the box? I plan on 2-3 test drives then in the mail no later than noon on 8 December. Looking forward to seeing how it works out.
Aww man.....Sorry to hear of your bad experience....Sure hope tomorrow provides a better time of it... I've tried the YUMA when I lived in Turkey...I didn't get on with it, but I'm very curious in how you cats find it... Wishing you all the best and I'm enjoying this read.... BTW, that Green EverReady box Rocks! Wish I was in there now so I could 'nick' it... Carry on my fellow Denizens, "Into the Valley of.....rode the 600..."....we all benefit from these types of self sacrificing experiments....lol....Wishing great shaves to you all....
No worries! I'm sure your soap is safe for human consumption! I have that reaction to various products sometimes. It was actually the same reaction I had to a Sterling aftershave that I tried, and they're ingredient list is as safe as yours. I also can't use Dove or Nivea balms due that reaction, so you're in good company!
WELL... I gave a slice of the same soap to a local bud and heard back from him today. His face burned as well! ( <sigh> I'm feeling a little guilty, but it didn't burn my skin, so... ? ) Fortunately I also gave him a non-scented puck (of a slightly different recipe). He loved it. That's not to brag —> his base line shave soap was Irish Spring! (How can his skin take Irish Spring and then react to the (relatively) mild coconut+vanilla I used? It's a mystery!) I "tricked" him into using a brush, too. Just a VDH I had. I was telling him about good brushes. I told him that if he would just commit to a small learning curve he can leave the cartridges behind and be similarly pleased at the improvement. I'll convert him yet!
This is what I received. All looks good. Will attempt a two-pass before going out this evening and will write it up tonight. Will riding the cap tame this beast? Let's see...
I wouldn't feel too guilty, like I said it's not the first time that's happened to me, and I'd bet it's not the first time for your friend either! My skin takes Irish Spring awesomely, BTW. Must be something in one of the fragrances. Oh well! You're in good company as Dove and Nivea do the same to me.
Since there are two boxes, I suppose you could pick whichever you like. However, assuming they travel at roughly the same speed, I reckon you would prefer the EVEN box. If I have kept track, we are here: ODD Box BristleMe —> Bama Samurai —> Chuck F --> Shotwell --> Medicus Ille EVEN Box Mr Droid —> Mr Shaverman —> Flightmedic --> Youngunn --> Justin Linker
Good question! I originally launched both boxes with blades for the first the first three participants to pull an even share out of each box. I thought it possible, but didn't expect to have others join as we went... but it freakin' awesome! Rather than establish a rule, I vote to stick to the Golden Rule! Take as many as you wouldn't mind someone else taking... that's my vote! Personally, I think each of the crew will tend to want to add more than they take. I point out that if everyone does this, the boxes will grow in blades as they travel! Everyone should do their bit to keep the blade population under control. Also, don't be afraid to take the last piece of candy from the Whitman's sampler. The blades of a given flavor are gonna run out (I certainly hope so!). Ain't no thing. Enjoy!
I wanted to use blades that I was familiar with in order to be able to evaluate the razor itself. The blades I put in the box are for anybody to do with whatever they prefer. No worries!!
Here's a thought on how to answer "how many blades does my conscience allow me to take?" You can only make decisons on the information you have at the moment, so... If you see three signed up downstream, I would easily support dividing your box's total blades by three and helping yourself up to that many. If you then add a couple, there is a net gain in shares on down the line. If there is some crazy surge of new links added to the chain, then so be it. Maybe the downstream quantity was three but, when it gets to you, the downstream jumps to five. Given the spirit in which we are doing this, does it really matter very much? OK, those are my thoughts of the moment. They aren't rules! We haven't reached the half way point and this is already more fun that I would have guessed. I think it would be great if maybe two new people signed each month. The spirit in which you guys are taking on this project — combined with the perverse contrast of the attention given to such a humble item — really strokes my odd sense of humor! I wonder how long before one of them dies. What if they both traveled safely for a year or more? Darkbulb thought it was funny when we were going to collectively spend just $40 in shipping on $4 worth of razor! <sigh and smile> This is great.
Another thought: Maybe for whatever reason you don't have any blades to add. Take "some" and don't sweat it. When in doubt: 1) check Golden Rule 2) check your conscience 3) take next step without second thoughts (or guilt!). Ta daaaa!
