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For the Love of Old Spice - Illini's Shave Journal

Greetings Cadre, I've missed you. Hoping everyone had a fantastic holiday weekend. It was phenomenal to step away from it all with the college buddies and relive some of the "glory days" without the wives or kids. There was a lot of golf, a lot of laughs, and a lot of beer. That said, this was the longest time I had spent away from my son since he was born last May so that was rougher than I had anticipated. Makes coming back to reality a little bit easier I suppose!

I had 5 days of growth, so I reached for the Black Hawk loaded with a Feather AC Pro this morning. Man, did it absolutely mow down the growth with no hesitation or struggle. Generally I'll get just a little bit more than desirable feedback on anything 3+ days and this felt like a knife through butter. Definitely appreciate the AC style a little more after this morning's shave. All it took was a hybrid WTG/XTG pass (which is my normal first pass) to get to DFS. Normally I have another hybrid XTG/ATG pass in some of the trickier spots but not this morning!

Tuesday June 1st, 2021
Razor : Gillette Black Hawk V2
Blade : Feather AC Pro (5)
Brush : Ever Ready 100T with Plisson Knot
Pre : Hot Shower
Soap : Seaforth Sea Spice Lime
Post : Seaforth Sea Spice Lime

PXL_20210601_193418417.jpg​
 
Thank goodness this is a short work week, because I woke up thinking it was already Friday. Sometimes the shorter weeks feel even longer than the normal ones!

Missed documenting yesterday's shave, but both yesterday and today I used the Heritage Adjustable beta razor. While not the final production razor, I must say I am impressed with the build quality and feel. Neil already acknowledged they have issues with QC in terms of getting the dial to line up correctly with the numbers which they're working to correct, and that's really the only thing I can nit-pick so far (the mildest setting should be lined up with the "N" but on mine it is 180* off and lines up with the 6.) Feels extremely well made and sturdy in the hand.

What's really neat is that it's "dual adjustable" so you can loosen a second set of threads within the handle assembly and gain more and more blade gap, essentially allowing you to continue to adjust the N-6 for at least two more full turns. While there is definitely a learning curve to understand how the adjustment mechanism works, I think it's a really cool and differentiating idea for those who really love to crank up the aggressiveness. I generally don't take my Fat Boy or Slim past a 6 so probably not for me, but super cool that it's there for those who want it. Interested to see if that feature sticks around for the final production razor or if it's removed since I could also see it confusing people if they don't watch a video or read instructions.

Shaved with it at the most mild setting N yesterday (erroneously a 6 on my specific razor) and bumped up to a 3 (N on mine) this morning and it shaved beautifully on both settings. Color me impressed. If they can keep the price at what they've previously mentioned as the target, I think this one is going to be a real winner for those who love a DE adjustable, and especially those who want to truly take one and turn it up to 11.

Thursday June 3rd, 2021
Razor : Heritage Adjustable "Gibbs"
Blade : Personna Lab Blue (90)
Brush : Stirling Boar
Pre : Hot Shower
Soap : Soap Commander Endurance
Post : Soap Commander Endurance

PXL_20210603_144953002.jpg​
 
Fightingillini22 said:
Thank goodness this is a short work week, because I woke up thinking it was already Friday. Sometimes the shorter weeks feel even longer than the normal ones!

Missed documenting yesterday's shave, but both yesterday and today I used the Heritage Adjustable beta razor. While not the final production razor, I must say I am impressed with the build quality and feel. Neil already acknowledged they have issues with QC in terms of getting the dial to line up correctly with the numbers which they're working to correct, and that's really the only thing I can nit-pick so far (the mildest setting should be lined up with the "N" but on mine it is 180* off and lines up with the 6.) Feels extremely well made and sturdy in the hand.

What's really neat is that it's "dual adjustable" so you can loosen a second set of threads within the handle assembly and gain more and more blade gap, essentially allowing you to continue to adjust the N-6 for at least two more full turns. While there is definitely a learning curve to understand how the adjustment mechanism works, I think it's a really cool and differentiating idea for those who really love to crank up the aggressiveness. I generally don't take my Fat Boy or Slim past a 6 so probably not for me, but super cool that it's there for those who want it. Interested to see if that feature sticks around for the final production razor or if it's removed since I could also see it confusing people if they don't watch a video or read instructions.

Shaved with it at the most mild setting N yesterday (erroneously a 6 on my specific razor) and bumped up to a 3 (N on mine) this morning and it shaved beautifully on both settings. Color me impressed. If they can keep the price at what they've previously mentioned as the target, I think this one is going to be a real winner for those who love a DE adjustable, and especially those who want to truly take one and turn it up to 11.

Thursday June 3rd, 2021
Razor : Heritage Adjustable "Gibbs"
Blade : Personna Lab Blue (90)
Brush : Stirling Boar
Pre : Hot Shower
Soap : Soap Commander Endurance
Post : Soap Commander Endurance

View attachment 53263​
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I can practically SMELL the Old Spice! :cool:
 
Happy Friday, Cadre, we made it! Short work week felt much longer than the standard one, that's for sure. It's going to be a scorcher of a weekend here, with temps up above 90* so of course we're edging and mulching the back beds tomorrow. Hopefully going to knock out as much as possible in the morning, because we're not crazy enough to try and continue on during the afternoon. That's got bad news written all over it. Planning to take our son to the neighborhood pool for the first time on Sunday, where there's a special kids area with a splash pad and waterfall. Really looking forward to it, I think he's really going to love it!

3rd shave with the Heritage Gibbs was just as great as the first 2. Cranked it up another notch to a 4 of 6 on the initial adjustment level and was thrilled at the results. Effortless shave. Going to continue to push it up a notch at a time until I find a level that it's no longer comfortable. Have a fantastic weekend Cadre!

Friday June 4th, 2021
Razor : Heritage Adjustable "Gibbs"
Blade : Personna Lab Blue (91)
Brush : Omega 11575
Pre : Hot Shower
Soap : MWF & TOBS Mr. Taylor
Post : 50:50 Blend of Osage and Skin Bracer

PXL_20210604_155429943.jpg​
 
Hope you and the fam have a great time at the pool, Ryan. Stay hydrated with that yard work.

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Back to the grind this Monday, which of course needs to be broken up by a TSC journal entry!

Weekend was not a relaxing one, but a good one nonetheless. Thankfully I made a few trips to Menards Friday afternoon to pick up all the mulch and we edged all the rear and side beds after the little man wet to sleep on Friday evening. There were a lot of bugs (and a lot of tired angry swears on my part I think) but that just left the actual mulching for Saturday which was very doable in the morning. By noon on Saturday the beds were fully defined and mulched for the first time in what I can only surmise to be at least a decade, probably longer. Real shame that the previous owners let the lawn and exterior landscaping get this bad, but as we enter the second year of ownership, the differences on the exterior have been both noticed and commented on by both neighbors, so at least there's that! Saturday afternoon I went Scotch hunting as my wife's godfather who is a retired estate attorney drew up our wills pro bono a few weeks ago and I wanted to get him a nice bottle. Found some Yamazaki 12 at our local big box chain and that fit the bill perfectly!

Took my mother out to brunch yesterday for her birthday which she very much enjoyed. It's nice to be able to go out to restaurants again! Cleaned the house in the afternoon and took the little man to the pool for the first time. It was open last summer with various Covid restrictions but since he was so little we decided against going, so this was our first time back to since 2019. He was a little overwhelmed by all the people but man was it nice to be back at the pool. I swear each and every day there's something that makes me thankful for our slow return to normalcy around here.

Shaves were great throughout the weekend as well. My PAA Sundown set on Saturday, CC 4th Parallel yesterday before brunch and then the MWF/TOBS combo this morning were all flawless. Continuing to love the Heritage Adjustable but also broke out the Bakelite Tech just for a change of pace.

Have a great Monday, Cadre!

Saturday June 5th, 2021
Razor : Heritage Adjustable "Gibbs"
Blade : Personna Lab Blue (92)
Brush : Yaqi Tuxedo Barberpole
Pre : Hot Shower
Soap : PAA Sundown
Post : PAA Sundown

PXL_20210605_163252902.jpg

Sunday June 6th, 2021
Razor : '52 Gillette Bakelite Tech
Blade : Personna Lab Blue (93)
Brush : Stirling Kong
Pre : Hot Shower
Soap : Captain's Choice 45th Parallel
Post : Captain's Choice 45th Parallel

PXL_20210606_155854958.jpg

Monday June 7th, 2021
Razor : Heritage Adjustable "Gibbs"
Blade : Personna Lab Blue (94)
Brush : Omega Proraso Boar
Pre : Hot Shower
Soap : MWF & TOBS Mr. Taylor
Post : AV Ice Blue

PXL_20210607_153105463.jpg​
 
Be careful with the yard work. My wife started borrowing my truck to bring home yard work stuff: stone wall blocks, railroad ties, paving stones, mulch, soil … all kinds of crap. I was more concerned about the tonnage and not the cost. Most things she brought home were on pallets. After one back breaking summer, I sold my truck and bought a car.
 
Finally got the results of the "pee into the jug for 24 hours" test back from my urologist and it turns out it would appear I have a metabolic deficiency around citrates which could definitely be leading me to be kidney stone prone. Great news is that oftentimes a potassium citrate medication can help correct so I am officially taking that prescription twice a day. Will have to go get bloodwork done in a couple weeks to make sure my potassium levels remain in check but hopefully this will help prevent future stone creation when coupled with continued increased water. Guess we'll see, anything to avoid having to go through that pain again is good in my book!

Feeling red with today's shave and it was a great one. I bounce between my Red Tip SS and Prewar Canadian Tech in terms of which of my razors is my favorite. Right now trending towards the Red Tip again. Seaforth Spiced continues to be such a huge winner in my book too.

Tuesday June 8th, 2021
Razor : '55 Gillette Red Tip SS
Blade : Personna Lab Blue (95)
Brush : Razorock F400
Pre : Hot Shower
Soap : Seaforth Spice
Post : Seaforth Spice

PXL_20210608_164603160.jpg​
 
Fightingillini22 said:
Finally got the results of the "pee into the jug for 24 hours" test back from my urologist and it turns out it would appear I have a metabolic deficiency around citrates which could definitely be leading me to be kidney stone prone. Great news is that oftentimes a potassium citrate medication can help correct so I am officially taking that prescription twice a day. Will have to go get bloodwork done in a couple weeks to make sure my potassium levels remain in check but hopefully this will help prevent future stone creation when coupled with continued increased water. Guess we'll see, anything to avoid having to go through that pain again is good in my book!

Feeling red with today's shave and it was a great one. I bounce between my Red Tip SS and Prewar Canadian Tech in terms of which of my razors is my favorite. Right now trending towards the Red Tip again. Seaforth Spiced continues to be such a huge winner in my book too.

Tuesday June 8th, 2021
Razor : '55 Gillette Red Tip SS
Blade : Personna Lab Blue (95)
Brush : Razorock F400
Pre : Hot Shower
Soap : Seaforth Spice
Post : Seaforth Spice

View attachment 53512​
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Mmmmm, I can practically smell that picture! :love:
 
GearNoir said:
Glad there’s some possible preventative measures you can take for the stone issues. Hope they do work for ya! 👍
Click to expand...
I hope so too, Chris!

Went back into the office yesterday for only the second time in 15 months and there were quite a few more people compared to a month ago. I used to have to get to the train station no later than 6am in order to get a parking spot. Yesterday they were still basically empty at 7am. While I'm sure ridership will continue to slowly increase again, I'm hopeful that those days of full lots at 615am are gone. It was nice to be around some of my colleagues again and even had a 3 hour happy hour after work. Had a lot to catch up on! An early workout and commute called for a very quick shave, so threw on the Barbasol and had a DFS in under 2 minutes. Skipped today's since it's been crazy busy. Almost to Friday!

Wednesday June 9th, 2021
Razor : Gillette NEW LC
Blade : Personna Lab Blue (96)
Brush : Fingers
Pre : Hot Shower
Soap : Barbasol Extra Moisturizing
Post : Barbasol Brisk

PXL_20210609_112626639.jpg​
 
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