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Doug's Journal of Shaving Happiness v2.0

Great shave to wrap up the 3017! It’s kinda odd not to see that as your soap. Bummer that the first free shave was not as spectacular.
 
Catching up Doug. Good stuff! My buddy just picked up a RR Hawk SE from Italian barber on a scratch and dent deal.

That Keyforge game looks pretty interesting too. I used to play a similar Star Wars themed card game years ago.
 
Dave in KY said:
You've earned it, bring on the free shaves. If you want to 3017 GTB, I'd join you
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I am going to do the CBL first. However, I would be totally down for a group 3017 of GTB, or other CFG product. Maybe I will try to get this going in January.
 
Journal Entry #173

11/12/18
Pre: Hot shower/splash of cool water/Williams Mug modern soap
Razor: Merkur 34c
Blade: Croma Diamant (4)
Brush: Semogue SOC boar
Soap/Cream: AOS Sandalwood tallow formula
AS 1: Thayer's Rose Witch Hazel
AS 2: Aqua Velva Sensitive 5-in-1 ASB
AS 3: AOS Sandalwood ASB
Fragrance: none

11/13/18
Pre: Hot shower/splash of cool water/Williams Mug modern soap
Razor: RazoRock MJ-90 w/ mild plate
Blade: Croma Diamant (1)
Brush: Omega 49 Pro S-Brush
Soap/Cream: CFG GTB
AS 1: Thayer's Rose Witch Hazel
AS 2: Aqua Velva Sensitive 5-in-1 ASB
AS 3: CFG GTB
Fragrance: CFG GTB EdP

Overview
A good AOS tallow shave followed by a near Grail GTB shave.

SOTD Pic
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Shave Quality
Yesterday's shave with the AOS tallow was good, nothing spectacular but good enough to get me through the day comfortably. Today's shave, however, was so good it is almost like the heavens opened up and angels sang. ... Okay, it wasn't that good, but it was close. The CFG soap is so good and so slick. It is elite even before factoring in the scent. My first pass was a little too dry, but the second pass made up for it and then some. Afterwards I am BBS- and there was almost zero alum feedback. The razor just skated on my face.

Gear
CFG is definitely Box 1 on the Vargo Scale making it totally elite. This is one of the soaps that I am going to use as a performance benchmark to measure every other soap that I use. (The other soap that I will be using as a benchmark is CBL, since it is also squarely Box 1.) I will be replacing GTB when it is gone, and I wil
l be buying other CFG scents. There is only one thing that I don't like about the CFG soap base, the consistency in the tub. It is a very soft and squishy soap. I find it easy to pull chunks of it up into my brush when loading. It is a bit of a pet peeve of mine when this happens. I load on the puck and want to just get proto-lather on the brush. Otherwise I end up with chunks in the lather. This pet peeve is obviously not enough to stop me from enjoying the soap and definitely won't impede repurchasing.


The MJ-90 is another fabulous product. It is an aluminum EJ DE89 clone head (with a second, more aggressive, base plate included) on a titanium handle. It is light, nimble, and efficient. It shaves just as good as an EJ, and is perhaps actually better. It is like someone set out to perfect the EJ head and succeeded. If I had this and the Game Changer (with both plates) on a desert island, I could shave happily for the rest of my days. I might have to do a comparison shave between this and my Merkur 34c to see which I like better. If you are a fan of EJ razors, you should definitely get one of these. It is a steal at $40.

Other Thoughts
I used some vacation time and had a three day weekend, so today is my Monday. I am relaxed and feeling good. Three day weekend + GTB shave + new APAP machine = Happy Doug on a Tuesday. I think the machine is working as advertised. I do feel more rested in the morning.

Thank you for reading and commenting on my journal. I hope you have a great day and stellar shaves, Cadre.
 
Excellent review here Doug. Sounds like you had a nice long weekend. Now back to the grind.
 
Alright, ya made me go look up the difference between APAP and CPAP. So I'm guessing most of us are using the term CPAP out of common usage and probably mean APAP. I see that's the case for me. I know mine starts low and increased pressure after a set period of time to allow you to get into a deeper sleep before cranking up the pressure.

I'm all down for a 3017 of GTB as long as it doesn't last more than 2-3 days. Then I'll start getting twitchy.
 
NurseDave said:
Alright, ya made me go look up the difference between APAP and CPAP. So I'm guessing most of us are using the term CPAP out of common usage and probably mean APAP. I see that's the case for me. I know mine starts low and increased pressure after a set period of time to allow you to get into a deeper sleep before cranking up the pressure.

I'm all down for a 3017 of GTB as long as it doesn't last more than 2-3 days. Then I'll start getting twitchy.
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The term CPAP is kind of like the term Kleenex. It has become a catch all term these days.
 
Journal Entry #174

Pre: Hot shower/splash of cool water/Williams Mug modern soap
Razor: RazoRock MJ-90 w/ mild plate
Blade: Croma Diamant (2)
Brush: Sorrentino custom Tuxedo
Soap/Cream: CBL Cigar Shop Cowboy
AS 1: Thayer's Rose Witch Hazel
AS 2: Aqua Velva Sensitive 5-in-1 ASB
AS 3: Pinaud Clubman SR
Fragrance: none

Overview
It begins again.

SOTD Pic
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Shave Quality
Day one of CBL Cigar Shop Cowboy. It was a good shave with great post-shave feel. BBS- in two passes. The lather had the MJ-90 skating across my face.

Gear
The CBL soap is definitely Box 1 on the Vargo Scale. It performs wonderfully during the shave and the post-shave properties are very good. My face has been feeling great all day. I do have on quibble with this soap, however. That is the scent. It is very heavy on the leather notes. The description mentions gunpowder, amber, and cherry as well as notes from the Cigar Shop Indian scent. Those various notes are lost on me. It is probably just my nose, but the other scents get a bit drowned out by the leather component. This is not an unpleasant scent. On the contrary. However, my nose is just overwhelmed by that one note. It is going to be a good few weeks of shaving with this soap.

I paired it with the Clubman SR. It wasn't a great match, but it didn't clash either. I might have to pickup some English Leather or something to go with this soap.

Other Thoughts
Some days you just have to push forward, plowing through the things that you don't want to do.

Thank you for reading and commenting on my journal. I hope you have a great day and stellar shaves, Cadre.
 
I'll have to bail on the 3017, I couldn't hold TabacTober together. Plus I don't have a big enough dent in my GTB to buy a full tub yet.
 
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