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Natterings of a Nasal Barbarian

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SOTD SUNDAY, JULY 5, 2020

The holiday was a lot of fun. We had 16 instead of 17. One of my grandsons elected to spend the afternoon with his girlfriendā€™s family. Go figure! The women oohed and ahhed over my new great-granddaughter, Jennifer. The men enjoyed beer, bourbon, scotch, pulled pork, hamburgers, hotdogs and cheesesteaks. But back to my shave this morning. I just may be keeping one of the two Damascus razors my son, Ben, gifted himself through me. On pure whim this morning, I grabbed and stropped One 40 or more times telling myself, ā€œIā€™ll give it a shot, if thereā€™s a problem, Iā€™ll just grab the Feather SS Kamisori with the loaded Feather Super.ā€ Well dang if this little razor didnā€™t feel better in hand and easier to shave with than my 5/8 Dovo Special! I lathered up my face with the mentholated Kapo Fresh I had laying around with my Jayaruh Custom Rosewood Silvertip Badger #378. Iā€™d forgotten what a nice lather it generates, nothing like my beloved Nancy Boy, but dang close.

I started the face shave on my dominant left side, and noticed the heft and feel of this razor was markedly different than the Dovo during the start of this WTG pass. The balance seemed better, and it just mowed through the whiskers. This baby is sharp as it came from the maker shave ready! Makes me wonder whether the Dovo could benefit from a honing. Switching to my right hand produced more of the same. I wonder whether my less than exemplary shaving experience with the Dovo was just the result of a dull edge. It did sit in a drawer for almost 5 years. In any case, the second ATG pass with the Damascus using a Kamisori grip left me firmly in DFS++ territory. Nothing need be said really about the noggin shave. The wonderful Shake Sharp Model 1.5 did a splendid job in two passes (WTG, ATG) reducing the noggin stubble, even on the 5th shave with these stacked Sunekos. A quick alum check revealed no heat except just below my Adamā€™s Apple, a traditional trouble spot, and a clean bill of healthy for the VBBS delivered to the dome. Humphreys Lilac WH cooled the front of my neck down, which was further accelerated by Osage Rub and finished with Cremo Cooling After Shave Balm. I feel refrigeratingly cool, clean and definitely velveteen!

RAZOR: 7/8 Full Hollow Damascus Koa Scales (Mug), Shake Sharp Model 1.5 (Dome)
BLADE: Two Stacked Suneko DE (5)
PREP: Cold water rinse
BRUSH: Jayaruh Custom Rosewood Silvertip Badger #378
CREAM: Kapo Fresh Menthol
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with Glyce Glycerin soap followed by Humphreys Lilac WH and Osage Rub. Finished with Cremo Cooling Post Shave Balm.
 
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SOTD MONDAY, July 6, 2020

SWMBO left with her son and his girlfriend for a weekā€™s vacation on Cape Cod minus your humble narrator. Iā€™m keeping company with Gromit, my faithful dachshund buddy, in the Philly burbs. I will miss SWMBO, but am excited at the prospect of a week with my favorite fragrances.

Another great shave today! Did the face with the Feather SS folding Barberā€™s Razor loaded with a Feather Super Blade. Very pleasant DFS++ with some residual stubble around the Adamā€™s Apple. The Shake Sharp cleaned things up on the mug and again delivered its usual velveteen BBS noggin job. I feel refreshed, clean and velveteen!

RAZOR: Feather SS Barberā€™s Razor (Mug), Shake Sharp Model 1.5 (Noggin)
BLADES: Suneko Stacked
PREP: Cold water rinse
BRUSH: Kent Infinity Synth
CREAM: Palmolive w/ 6 drops of M-Bomb
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with Glyce Glycerin soap followed by Humphreys Lilac WH and Osage Rub. Finished withMentholated Mysterium Serum.
 
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SOTD TUESDAY, JULY 7, 2020

Today's shave was totally relaxed and quite enjoyable. SWMBO is almost 400 miles away on Cape Cod romping and frolicking with her son and his girlfriend, and it's just my dachshund, Gromit, and I back here in the Philly burbs. What I like about Gromit is that he's a very non-critical observer more interested in chewing his Nylabone than my shave particulars. I've informed my son that I'm keeping this Damascus straight razor along with both Feather Barber's razors. I love Menthol as many of you know, and have developed a real fondness for Osage Rub (OR). So much so that I've subscribed to it on Amazon. It's been incredibly humid and hot for the last few weeks, and while it's great to use during the shaving process, it's even better after one has been working outside as a capstone splash to a good cold soap and water wash. The stuff works all day! They ain't lying' when they describe it as an "Invigorating Splash for Head and Face". Whoo doggie, it sure is!

There's something about this Damascus blade that I prefer over my Dovo's blade besides the fact that it's honed. It just feels better in hand. The knurling on the spine is a nice touch and may contribute to the latter. In any case after my shower and cold water wash, I decided to to return the PAA Preshave Cube. I prefer Rabid Banana over the Charcoal versions I had been using. I stopped using the Charcoal version because of the black mess I always had to clean off my face. No such problem with the Rabid Banana which also has a delightful fruity scent. After applying it I lathered up with Nancy Boy and enjoyed a slow, relaxing two pass (WTG, ATG) DFS mug shave with the Damascus Straight leaving some residual stubble in the usual places, which I have decided to, at this point in my straight razor journey, forego cleaning up. Besides, it was time to use what Ruds Shaves proclaimed as his 2019 Safety razor of the year pick. The RazoRock SS DLC coated DE safety razor has been neglected lately, so it was time for a spin. What I really like about this razor is that it just works! Mowing down the residual facial stubble around the Adam's Apple took no time, and moved me from bloodless DFS to VBBS on the Mug.

The dome shave was a real delight. After rinsing the skull in ice cold water, I scrubbed the noggin shave surfaces thoroughly with the Rabid Banana Preshave cube. It really felt great and was definitely accentuated by the ice cold Nancy Boy lather applied directly on top. I've been reading many shave commentaries of late on my home TSD forum referencing riding the bar vs riding the cap. I don't believe I've ever ridden the cap, and I've been shaving with DEs for a very long time. My straight razor journey has focused my attention on skin stretching, but even more importantly on blade to skin touch, or what many refer to as 'blade feel'. Before returning to straight razors I was very aware of the 'negative pressure' mantra trumpeted about in the wet shaving forums. That's clearly important, but when combined with skin stretching, I realized that 'blade feel' is a very important component of the process except in negative or neutral exposure safety razor designs like the AS-D2 or Colonial Silversmith where it isn't immediately apparent. It's really all about 'blade feel' and the 'sweet spot' for a particular safety razor. So I don't find the whole riding the cap vs riding the bar metaphors particularly helpful personally. YMMV! Sorry about the shaving philosophy excursus. The noggin shave with this wonderful safety razor was a brilliant two pass (WTG, ATG) that delivered your very pleased shaving narrator to VBBS land. I do feel very refreshed, cool, clean and velveteen!

RAZOR: Damascus Straight 7/10 Koa Scales (Mug); RazoRock SS DLC Lupo (Dome & Mug cleanup)
BLADE: Sharp Star (2)
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub with PAAā€™s Rabid Banana Preshave Cube
BRUSH: Rearden Razor 316L Tuxedo Synth
CREAM: Nancy Boy Signature w/ 6 drops of M-Bomb
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with Glyce Glycerin soap followed by Humphreys Lilac WH and Osage Rub. Finished with Nancy Boy Signature Scent Cooling After-Shave Gel and Ultimo Cologne.
 
Another SS Lupo sighting! Man, I really missed out on that one I think, stickin to my GC .68 guns. And Koa scales on the damascus? Very nice!
 
GearNoir said:
Another SS Lupo sighting! Man, I really missed out on that one I think, stickin to my GC .68 guns. And Koa scales on the damascus? Very nice!
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Thanks, Chris! That SS Lupo shaves like a dream! Incredible head shaver, for a modern DE. Not quite in the Shake Sharp or Valet VC4 class however!
 
I love my Lupo, I have both the aluminum and the SS DLC ones. But I also love my Weber, Blackbird, Game Changer 84 OC, too. It's a great razor, but not the last word on DEs. Plenty of other razors can give you just as great of a shave.
 
GearNoir said:
Yea I figure, but often one wonders anyway...and letā€™s curiosity get the better of them :ROFLMAO:
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One of the things I truly believe is that shave technique trumps tools! So I agree, but will say that the design of certain tools makes it easier to get a better shave!
 
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