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Natterings of a Nasal Barbarian

Darn! The Fatboy is just a killer smooth shave for me. Glad you’ve got a couple more likeable alternatives!
 
jgreenepa said:
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by Thayers Lavender WH and finished with A&E Post-Shave Serum
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I really like the A&E Post Shave Serum. Better than balms as it is a bit lighter and less greasier! Good to see you posting again on TSC!
 
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SOTD 04/04/2020

Shaving with an original Gibbs Adjustable is always a treat for me. I own two - a #15 and a #17. Both are in great shape given their age and a joy to use. The only wrinkle is adjusting a modern blade for their use which requires a metal punch. The Gibbs has two metal columnar tabs that sit in the middle of each end of the baseplate. Adapting a blade involves punching out a half circle in the middle of each blade tab, a zen-like activity that I find helps me to begin sinking into that shave fu technique focus that I so enjoy.

For this morning’s shave, I adapted one of my dwindling supply of original Polish Wizamet Super Iridium blades by punching out the necessary slots into each blade tab. After showering, I began the shave with a good cold water rinse. I then added 6 drops of M-Bomb to the MWF. The Jayaruh #378 Rosewood Badger brush had been soaking in warm water during the shower. It generated that lovely MWF cooling paste that was then applied to the shave surfaces and face and dome lathered with plenty of warm water into that thick MWF lather that always softens and prepares the whiskers beautifully.

Setting the Gibbs at 6, I began a slow leisurely WTG first pass. Madame Gibbs delivered the goods, shearing those whiskers right down to the skin line on both face and noggin. After lathering up again and adjusting the razor to 4, I finished up the second ATG pass, and that was all Madame Gibbs wrote, a velveteen smooth BBS. I finished up with Chiseled Face Cryogen AS Splash followed by Cremo Cooling Post Shave Balm. The result was one of those shaves that you always remember, leaving me feeling extremely cool, smoooth, clean and refreshed. Tomorrow I’ll be shaving with a modern artisan razor inspired by the Gibbs, the Rex Ambassador.

RAZOR: Gibbs Adjustable #17
BLADE: Adapted Polish Wizamet Super Iridium
PREP: Cold water rinse
BRUSH: Jayaruh Custom Rosewood Silvertip Badger #378
SOAP: Mitchell’s Wool Fat
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by Chiseled Face Cryogen AS Splash and finished with Cremo Cooling Post Shave Balm
 
Now that sir is a cold shave! And using a hole punch> Man, you definitely have mastered the art of shaving improv!
 
SOTD 04/05/2020

Learned a new shaving lesson today about my Rex Ambassador, at least for me! It’s definitely blade dependent, YMMV. I’ve been shaving very successfully with the Rex since it’s repair at Razor Emporium. My usual settings are 5 and then 3 with a Voskhod blade, not with a Nacet blade. It appears that I need to adjust the settings that worked so well with the coated Voskhod blade. Nacets are really sharp, second after Feather, according to tests conducted at Refined Shave. A setting of 5 which worked so beautifully for me with the Voskhod was just too much blade exposure with the Nacet. After nicking myself three times within the first two strokes, I stopped, applied styptic, and swapped out the blade. I put the Nacet into my Feather SS, and loaded the Rex with a fresh Voskhod. It was like night and day. After the swap, I had the razor I remembered so fondly.

The Viking Silvertip Badger brush did an excellent job generating a nice thick pre-mentholated MWF paste which I then face and head lathered into that nice yogurty coating that works so well for me. After the initial blade faux pas, I proceeded to complete the first WTG pass, albeit gingerly on my injured right cheek. The rest of the pass was business as usual. After relathering, the second ATG pass was completed leaving me with a more than acceptable DFS++. Witch hazel followed by Fine Snake Bite AS Splash and Pre de Provence Bergamot and Thyme AS Balm completed a great shave leaving me feeling cool, smooth and clean.

RAZOR: Rex Ambassador
BLADE: Voskhod
PREP: Cold water rinse
BRUSH: Viking Silvertip Badger
SOAP: Mitchell’s Wool Fat
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by Thayers Lavender WH and Fine Snake Bite AS Splash. Finished with Pre de Provence Bergamot and Thyme Aftershave Balm
 
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SOTD 04/06/2020

I’ve decided to spend several of the next few shaves focusing on my new Colonial General. I used a Feather Super in my first three shaves with this razor, and have been very pleased with the performance. My regular goto blade for my AC razor’s is a Schick Proline. The only thing about the Feather Super I've not been so pleased with has been the tugging I experienced near the end of my third shave, despite palm stropping the blade after every shave. Using the same palm stropping method I was able to achieve 28 shaves on a Schick Proline blade in my Blackland Vector.

With this in mind I loaded a Proline in the new General for today’s shave. I began my shave with my usual cold water rinse. In keeping with the monthly theme at the 30DC at TSD, I then grabbed a neglected stick of Arko shave soap, applied it to my face and noggin, and proceeded to generate a decent protective lather by face and head lathering the applied soap into a rich yogurty covering. The General is a heavier razor than the Vector, but I found that first WTG pass to be comparable to the Vector, but not as close as the shaves achieved by the Feather Super on the initial pass.

Given that experience, and always seeking the BBS, I chose to pursue a three pass shave today. The Proline held true for my second XTG pass after lathering up again, being especially careful not to reopen the three nicks on my right cheek following my brief Nacet adventure with the Rex Ambassador yesterday. The third ATG pass left me with a very acceptable DFS++. There remained a slight bit of roughness around yesterday’s nicks which I allowed to give the nicked areas some healing. As non-mentholated shaves go, this one was more than acceptable, and left me feeling clean and decently smooth.

RAZOR: Colonial General V2
BLADE: Schick Proline
PREP: Cold water rinse
BRUSH: Omega Pro48 Boar
SOAP: Arko Shave Stick
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by ThayersLavender WH and finished with Pre de Provence AS Balm with Shea Butter
 
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SOTD Tuesday 04/07/2020

I had an exemplary shave this morning. One of the members at a large shave site on FB suggested, after my raving about the great shave my new General with a Feather Super loaded delivered, that I should try the Super in my Vector. Now, mind you, I was quite content with the Vector and a Schick Proline Blade which I found sharper than the regular Feather. It shaved every bit as well as my Shake Sharps, which hands down were my best head shavers. Every razor in my rotation must be capable of providing a head and a face shave. The new General with a Feather Super provided a shave superior to my Shake Sharps. So this morning I loaded the Vector with a Feather Super and proceeded to have at it.

I must say, however, before getting into the specifics of the shave, that my new brush from Evan (@MrEE) is a superb performer. The knurling is just perfect, it never slips, and the hybrid Badger/Boar knot has great backbone. I really enjoy using it. It generated a very rich, yogurty lather from my Pannacrema Nuavia Blu. Being a nasal barbarian, I can’t really comment on the particular components of the scent, but boy, it sure smelled good! The one problem I have with this soap, which I really enjoy, is that like Tabac, the scent is so strong that it tends to ignite fragrance allergy migraines in SWMBO. After informing her mightiness that I planned to use it for my shave this morning, she wisely decided to work in her office with the door closed. Now, four hours post shave all is well. The scent has faded. Yes, the child bride, being a decade younger, still works, while her erstwhile, shaky spouse devotes himself to experiencing and reporting on all things shaving. Now, back to the shave...

The head on the Vector is rather dramatically smaller than the General, and the weight distribution in hand differs. See the pictures comparing both razors. Please excuse the poor photography. Thank goodness for muscle memory! The Feather Super is so wonderfully sharp, that when combined with negative pressure, just sweeps away the whiskers. The first WTG pass was every bit as good as my forays with the General. The cut is completely inaudible and the strokes feel like one is weightlessly brushing the lather away. I could have stopped with an excellent DFS++ shave after that first pass, but decided to lather up again and buff away ATG the very slight roughness remaining on noggin and neck after the first pass. I finished the shave with Aqua Velva AS (Spanish version) and Pre de Provence AS Balm. All in all, after one and a half passes, a velveteen feeling scalp and face lands me solidly in BBS land. I feel clean, velvety smooth, refreshed and ready for another day of sheltering in place. Stay safe and healthy out there!

RAZOR: Blackland Vector
BLADE: Feather Super AC
PREP: Cold water rinse
BRUSH: @MeEE Aluminum Handle Hybrid Badger/Boar
SOAP: Pannacrema Nuavia Blu
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by Thayers Lavender WH, Aqua Velva AS Splash and finished with Pre de Provence AS Balm with Shea Butter
 
Feather Pro in the ole Vector huh? It's too much for me in the RX. Might give it a shot, but the Schick is pretty sweet.
 
NurseDave said:
Feather Pro in the ole Vector huh? It's too much for me in the RX. Might give it a shot, but the Schick is pretty sweet.
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I’ve been a Schick Proline guy for years. In fact, I was very hesitant to even try one until I heard one of the Evans twins (Owners of Colonial Razor and designers of the Silversmith and the General) recommended the Super in the General for a true Barber-close shave. He wasn’t kidding! Best shave I‘ve ever experienced with a safety razor hands down, and I‘ve been using DEs for over 50 years.
 
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SOTD 04/08/2020

A man can definitely become addicted to the delightful velveteen feeling smooth skin arising from a barber close BBS shave. The truth underlying any safety razor is that it really is nothing more than a blade holder. The transition many make from safety razor to shavette to straight arises for a variety of reasons. There’s the danger coupled with the mastery of technique of straight edge open shaving. There’s the connection to our past and the history of shaving dating back to the Egyptians. Then there’s just the feeling of belonging to a small select club. But most importantly, it’s that feeling of shaving mastery, understanding shaving angle and the accompanying skin stretching required for a great shave that contributes to the improvement of safety razor shaving. In my case a neurological condition prohibits my joining the open edge family.

Safety razor designers can attempt to engineer blade angle and blade exposure into their blade holders, but technique still reigns supreme. The safety razor shavers’ acronym, “YOUR MILEAGE MAY VARY (YMMV)”, exemplifies the role technique plays. But is that all there is to it? I own a variety of vintage and modern artisan safety razors, and can elicit a decent shave from all of them, but there are certain razors that that just seem to perform better for me within certain blade parameters. For example, my Rex Ambassador shaves beautifully with Wizamets or Voskhods, not so much with Feathers or Nacets. Whereas my AS-D2 and Occam’s DE reform best with Feathers or Nacets, and not so much with Voskhods or Wizamets. When it comes to my SE razors, of which I own many, my favorite DE SE, the G.E. Jones Shake Sharp performs best with any stacked DE blade, but the blades of choice for my smoothest and closest shave are Sunekos.

I can achieve a BBS shave with any of my razors, but have recently discovered that the closest barber-level BBS is best achieved with a Feather Super blade in any of my SE AC blade holders. Today’s one and a half pass BBS was delivered through my newest SE AC razor ordered back in December of 2019, the Colonial General V2. What I most love about this razor is the sense of effortless competence I experience when shaving with it. It truly feels like I’m just sweeping away the lather. The Feather Super blade is incredibly sharp, but the balance and weight of the razor in hand allows for old, shaky me to exert negative pressure with no effort. So much so, in fact, that there is no audible or tactile feel of the blade cutting. I will always insist on Feather Super Blades in future AC SE shaves. I truly enjoy shaving both face and noggin with this razor. I feel clean, velveteen smooth, and refreshed.

RAZOR: Colonial General V2 in 316L SS
BLADE: Feather Super AC
PREP: Cold water rinse
BRUSH: Alpha Shaving T-400 with 26mm Silvertip Badger Knot
SOAP: Pannacrema Nuavia Blu
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by Thayers Lavender WH and finished with Fine Fresh Vetiver AS Splash
 
jgreenepa said:
I can achieve a BBS shave with any of my razors, but have recently discovered that the closest barber-level BBS is best achieved with a Feather Super blade in any of my SE AC blade holders.
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Right there with ya! I can get a good shave from most any razor...some just seem to make it easier and do it just that much better!
 
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