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Doug's Journal of Shaving Happiness v2.0

Journal Entry #296
TSC Straight Shave #21

05/27/2019
Pre: Hot shower/splash of cool water/Williams modern soap
Straight: CBLindsay's Genco Master Barber
Strop: Tony Miller Plain Chocolate
Razor: PAA DOC Ascension
Blade: Shark SS (2)
Brush: Sorrentino Custom Tuxedo
Soap/Cream: TOBS Sandalwood Herbal soap (4)
AS 1: Thayer's Rose Witch Hazel
AS 2: Aqua Velva Sensitive 5-in-1 ASB
AS 3: TOBS Sandalwood AS (4)
Fragrance: none

Overview
Maybe there is something in this sandalwood soap...

SOTD Pic
None

Shave Quality
I had two good passes with the Master Barber and a clean up pass with the DOC Ascension. The soap worked well, but I again did feel a few tingles. There is a spicy note to the soap. Maybe something in that is disagreeing with my skin. I haven't had a problem with sandalwood before. The shave was BBS- overall. I am going to give the soap another shave or two, but if it keeps bothering my skin I am going to move on.

Gear
The edge on the Master Barber is really smooth. My edges have a long way to go before they are this good. I definitely need to spend more time honing.

Other Thoughts
I am really enjoying the The Rookie on Hulu. It is a very good show.


Thank you for reading and commenting on my journal. I hope you have a great day and stellar shaves, Cadre.
 
You seem to be on a pretty long stretch of soap reactions. That's rough but at least that blade sounds like a winner.

I have watched a few episodes of The Rookie and it looks good. The rest are all waiting for me on the DVR i just have to get to them.
 
Who else wants to raid Doug's house and toss all the soaps he reacts to into a bin to take away? Said bin, of course, will be taken to my house for further testing. But lets get some trouble free shaves in Doug!
 
Journal Entry #297

05/28/2019
Pre: Hot shower/splash of cool water/Williams modern soap
Razor: PAA DOC Ascension
Blade: Shark SS (3)
Brush: Sorrentino Custom Tuxedo
Soap/Cream: TOBS Sandalwood Herbal soap (5)
AS 1: Thayer's Rose Witch Hazel
AS 2: Aqua Velva Sensitive 5-in-1 ASB
AS 3: TOBS Sandalwood AS (5)
Fragrance: none

Overview
I am just not good at gauging my skin reactions.

SOTD Pic
None

Shave Quality
The more that I use the TOBS soap the more that I think I am not reacting to something in the soap so much as my skin is getting dried out and abraded by the razor. The irritation didn't start until the second pass today, which is what has been happening the other 4 times that I have used this soap. The shave was BBS, but I do have some lasting tenderness on my neck and chin.

Gear
The soap is not bad, but not good either. Maybe if I add a little glycerin the performance will get better? I really want to like this soap, but I may have to throw in the towel on it. There are so many other products in my den that don't leave me feeling irritated like this one does.

Other Thoughts
I was awakened this morning at 4:00 AM by a massive thunderstorm that dropped golf ball sized hail. It was quite dramatic. The combination of rain and hail came down hard and fast.


Thank you for reading and commenting on my journal. I hope you have a great day and stellar shaves, Cadre.
 
Spider said:
Yikes. Never seen hail quite that big..... and hope I never do.
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It is not the biggest that I have seen. We have had baseball sized hail here in Colorado before.

But, you are correct in your reaction. Once it gets to ping-pong ball size or bigger it gets really dangerous.
 
Journal Entry #298

05/29/2019
Pre: Hot shower/splash of cool water/Williams modern soap
Razor: PAA DOC Ascension
Blade: Shark SS (4)
Brush: Sorrentino Custom Tuxedo
Soap/Cream: TOBS Sandalwood Herbal soap (6)
AS 1: Thayer's Rose Witch Hazel
AS 2: Aqua Velva Sensitive 5-in-1 ASB
AS 3: TOBS Sandalwood AS (6)
Fragrance: none

Overview
Dear TOBS, It's not me, it's you.

SOTD Pic
None

Shave Quality
Holy razor burn, Batman! The shave is BBS. The Ascension is great and performs well, but it needs a slick and protective soap to keep it from scraping hard. Two passes left me really roughed up today.

Gear
I guess I have been using too much really high-end soaps or something. What initially seemed like a skin reaction I think now is just razor burn from a Tier 3 soap. The scent is great, but the performance is horrid. This one is getting re-tasked as hand soap. In the future I will be sticking to TOBS creams.

The Stainless PAA DOC Ascension is an aggressive razor. It is really efficient but will maul you if you let it. I like it.

Other Thoughts
I weigh myself too often. I find it just way too easy to hop on in the mornings since it is right there. This makes it easy to get discouraged with my weight loss since I am seeing the small ups and downs more then the overall trend. However, it is not always a disappointment. Today was one of those non-disappointing days. I was not expecting to see 245.4 staring back at me from the digital scale. I don't remember the last time I weighed so little. This Keto thing is really starting to work for me. (Free hint for anyone struggling with sweets cravings... Quest bars and cookies Quest Nutrition: Protein Bars, Protein Powders, Protein Chips. They are a great occasional treat.)


Thank you for reading and commenting on my journal. I hope you have a great day and stellar shaves, Cadre.
 
dkeester said:
This Keto thing is really starting to work for me.
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So glad to hear that. Days like this are good to help you know you're on the right track. It works for sure!

I'm currently on a weight loss stall, and need to get a little bit more strict with my keto and macro tracking to get back on track.
 
Spider said:
So glad to hear that. Days like this are good to help you know you're on the right track. It works for sure!

I'm currently on a weight loss stall, and need to get a little bit more strict with my keto and macro tracking to get back on track.
Click to expand...
I am using a smartphone app (Carb Manager on Android) to track my macros now. This has really helped.
 
Journal Entry #299

05/30/2019
Pre: Hot shower/splash of cool water/Williams modern soap
Razor: PAA DOC Ascension
Blade: Treet Black Carbon (1)
Brush: Sorrentino Custom Tuxedo
Soap/Cream: Victory Shaving Flight Engineer
AS 1: Thayer's Rose Witch Hazel
AS 2: Aqua Velva Sensitive 5-in-1 ASB
AS 3: Lucky Tiger AS and Facial Tonic
Fragrance: Stirling Island Man EdT

Overview
Another Josh soap.

SOTD Pic
None

Shave Quality
Is this what shaving is supposed to feel like? I had almost forgotten what good soap performance feels like. The soap was slick. It cushioned the blade against my face. I over buffed so I have some irritation, but nothing like yesterday. I am full on BBS. Hopefully the irritation won't hang around long.

Gear
Victory Shaving is good soap. I think it is probably Tier 1. The scent was great. Flight Engineer's scent is bamboo, ginger, and coconut. I will have to use it more, but I think this one may be a keeper.

I am a fan of Treet blades. The Black Carbon is a good blade for me.

Other Thoughts
I really wanted the TOBS hard soap to be good. It is a classic and something that many people on various forums hold in high esteem. I really wanted it to work for me. It is quite disappointing.


Thank you for reading and commenting on my journal. I hope you have a great day and stellar shaves, Cadre.
 
Journal Entry #300

05/31/2019
Pre: Hot shower/splash of cool water/Williams modern soap
Razor: RazoRock Game Changer .84
Blade: Treet Black Carbon (2)
Brush: Sorrentino Custom Tuxedo
Soap/Cream: Victory Shaving Flight Engineer
AS 1: Thayer's Rose Witch Hazel
AS 2: Aqua Velva Sensitive 5-in-1 ASB
AS 3: Pinaud Clubman
Fragrance: none

Overview
Two good shaves in a row? Does that actually happen?

SOTD Pic
None

Shave Quality
Another good shave today with the Victory Shaving Flight Engineer. I am BBS after two passes with only a little bit more than the expected amount of irritation. It was a really nice shave.

Gear
Considering the odd ingredient list for this soap, it is a really great performer. I would put it at the bottom of Tier 1. The slickness and protection aren't quite as good as many soaps in my den, but it is not far behind.

The GC .84 is a great shaver. It is efficient without feeling too aggressive. It is less aggressive than the PAA DOC Ascension, but it is almost as efficient. Both will give you a great shave, but the DOC requires a bit more TLC.

Other Thoughts
Time for coffee.


Thank you for reading and commenting on my journal. I hope you have a great day and stellar shaves, Cadre.
 
I am with you on Victory Soaps. Normally I avoid Olive Oil soaps like the plague. But Victory soaps are definitely an outlier. I have "Pilot" and I absolutely love the scent. Has some nice sweet florals in it.
 
Journal Entry #301
TSC Straight Shave #22

06/01/2019
Pre: Hot shower/splash of cool water/PAA The Cube pre-shave soap w/menthol
Straight: medical Weck Sextoblade
Shavette Blade: vintage Weck hairshaper blade
Strop: Tony Miller Plain Chocolate
Razor: RazoRock Baby Smooth
Blade: Treet Black Carbon (3)
Brush: Sorrentino Custom Tuxedo
Soap/Cream: Godrej Shaving Round
AS 1: Thayer's Rose Witch Hazel
AS 2: Aqua Velva Sensitive 5-in-1 ASB & Lucky Tiger Disappearing Cream
AS 3: Jovan Musk
Fragrance: none

Overview
A shave of many firsts

SOTD Pic
4164
4165

Shave Quality
Since everyone else has been talking about their Wecks, I decided to get one of mine out for a spin. I am not sure if I have used this particular one before. It was a great shave. I used my first vintage Weck blade in the razor. I stropped the blade on my Tony Miller and glassed the corners and then got a great shave. The lather was good and my face feels great. I used the Baby Smooth for the cleanup. The Treet Black worked well in the razor. I went for the full three passes and came away DSBBS.

Gear
The Weck is a great shaver and the Weck blade really performed well. I need to use my Weck collection more often.

The Godrej soap gave me a good shave combined with the PAA pre-shave soap. The scent really sucks, however. This is a really great soap if you want something cheap. There are better things out there.

I really, really like the PAA The Cube pre-shave soap is good stuff. It is available both with and without menthol. I am not sure if it or the Godrej was most responsible for my great shave today, but I do think this pre-shave is a keeper. Now I am going to spend some time with pre-shave oils for a while.

The Lucky Tiger Disappearing Cream was interesting. The ingredient list has "fragrance" as one of the items in this cream. They should just say menthol, because that is all I smell. The cream is harder and drier than I expected. I was going to just use this as my balm today, but I wanted something with a bit of moisture so I used some of the AV balm also. I will play around with it some more. The menthol in the cream is very nice.

Other Thoughts
I really need to spend more time on my yarn projects.


Thank you for reading and commenting on my journal. I hope you have a great day and stellar shaves, Cadre.
 
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