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Natterings of a Nasal Barbarian

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SOTD SATURDAY MORNING, SEPTEMBER 5, 2020

What a glorious morning for an old school shave! I’m really beginning to like this Lush Prince shaving cream. It leaves my mug feeling incredibly good post shave, and I think it’s going to become a keeper for all my straight razor shaves. Unfortunately, it’s too thick for my dome shave with the Colonial General V2. In fact, I wouldn’t recommend it for any safety razor shaver, particularly, cart shavers as it has the consistency of cold cream. But that’s never a problem because of the wonderful MWF lather built with my Jayaruh #372 Boar. I’ve swapped handles between my Silversmith and General, and think I’ll keep things that way.

My son, Ben, gave me two beautiful CKBA Damascus Straight razor’s for Father’s Day this year. He’s an amateur bladesmith who had them made by a master bladesmith operating out of Arizona. The steel measures only a 58-59 on the Rockwell scale, and as the smith himself admitted won’t hold an edge as long as a Sheffield, Solingen or Silver Steel blade will, but since I regularly touch up my straight razors biweekly on my jasper finishing stone, it’s not an issue for me. They both yield a lovely edge that’s a pleasure to shave with.

My shave this morning was awesome. I’ve dedicated a cheap synthetic brush tospread the Lush Prince cream on my mug. It does a much better job than my fingers since it doesn’t lather up as there's no soap in it. My slow three pass (WTG, ATG, XTG) face shave left me firmly ensconced in VBBS land. My one and 1/2 pass (ATG, ATG) noggin MWF shave delivered me to the same destination. When I began my straight razor journey it was with a great deal of trepidation given my mishap 5 yrs ago, but now I’m glad I did. There’s a leisurely, exactingquality to a good straight shave that I’ve really come to enjoy. I feel refreshed, clean, and really velveteen this morning! I wish all my shave brothers and sisters a great day today!

RAZOR: CKBA Damascus Koa Wood Scales 6/8 (Mug), Colonial General V2 Head mounted on Colonial Silversmith Handle (Dome)
BLADE: Feather Super AC (Dome)
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub with Rabid Banana Preshave Cube (Dome)
BRUSH: JR Custom Boar #372
SOAP/CREAM: Lush Prince Cream (Mug), Mitchell’s Wool Fat (Dome)
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings (Dome) followed by Humphrey’s Lilac WH and Osage Rub. Finished with Cremo Cooling Post Shave Balm.
 
I stopped into the Lush store a couple times (mostly because of the missus) and checked out their shaving stuff. None of the scents really grabbed me. Glad it works for you though!
 
GearNoir said:
I stopped into the Lush store a couple times (mostly because of the missus) and checked out their shaving stuff. None of the scents really grabbed me. Glad it works for you though!
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It’s really not for safety razors, but it is magnificent for my straight shaves! I’m not a scent-oriented guy, but instead go for slickness and post shave skin feel. It ticks all those boxes for me Chris!
 
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SOTD SUNDAY MORNING, SEPTEMBER 6, 2020

I’d ask for help, as I slide down this straight razor rabbit hole, but I’m just having too much fun. The NOS Nichigi Tokusen by Diamond Hayashi Co. Of Tokyo arrived unexpectedly early yesterday. This particular razor is immaculate and was sent out by the previous owner for honing by Max Sprecher. A quick touch up on the Jasper stone followed by a quick session on the pasted strop last night, and I was ready for business this morning.

The shave was amazing! I get why folks are so enamored by Silver Steel Japanese razors. Three slow luxurious passes (WTG, ATG, XTG) and an effortless VBBS result. In fact, the post shave skin feel was so good from the Lush Prince shaving cream, I decided to forego the dome shave today. I didn’t understand smooth sharp until this particular shave.

This Prince shaving cream is a pretty amazing straight shaving accessory. Time to make the Michigan sauce for the clan gathering tomorrow. I’ll be shaving with this razor tomorrow! I feel cool, clean and very velveteen! In fact I can’t seem to stop touching my face. This was an unbelievably close face shave! Enjoy your Sunday and have a blessed day to all!

RAZOR: Nichigi Tokusen 6/8 by Diamond Hayashi Co. of Tokyo
PREP: Cold water rinse
BRUSH: Viking Silvertip Badger
CREAM: Lush Prince Shaving Cream
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with Prince shave cream followed by Humphreys Lilac WH and Osage Rub. Finished with Krampert’s Frostbite AS Splash.
 
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SOTD MONDAY MORNING, SEPTEMBER 7, 2020

Yesterday’s shave was spectacular, but I’ve been troubled that my Feather SS razor was creating bad shaving angle habits. So I borrowed my son, Ben’s DX Barber’s Razor that was literally covered in dust. He hadn’t used it in years apparently, and had no interest in ever using it again. After shaving with it, I traded him an old Triumph Spitfire overdrive transmission of mine he’s wanted that I’ll never use and that he plans to adapt for his Triumph GT. It was just taking up space in my garage. We’re both happy. He’s got a 50 yr old gummed up transmission and I have a practically brand new Feather DX. As my friend Bill Morgan (@Edison Carter) said, it shaves and feels much more like a straight than the SS model I’d been using. After loading it and my Colonial General V2 with Feather Supers I was ready.

This morning I decided to shave both face and dome with Nancy Boy Signature shave cream. I still really like this cream, although it’s a bit thicker than I like for my mug shaves. Despite that all went well. The Feather DX is heavier in hand than the SS model, and without the SS lip surrounding the blade shaves at a much more natural straight razor shave angle.. This razor is a definite keeper. The shave was sharper than yesterday’s shave with the Nichiri Tokusen straight razor which I attribute to the Feather Super blade. Despite that, the three pass (WTG, ATG, XTG) sheared last night’s stubble right down to the skin line. I had one very minor set down error at the beginning of the shave because I began with the old Feather SS angle. Once I adjusted to a more traditional straight razor angle everything proceeded beautifully. The General delivered its usual flawless one and 1/2 pass (ATG, ATG) dome shave. I feel smooth, refreshed, cool, clean and velveteen! Enjoy your Labor Day shave brothers and sisters! Stay safe and healthy,

RAZOR: Feather DX Wood Scales (Mug), Colonial General V2 w/ Silversmith Handle (Dome)
BLADE: Feather Super AC (Mug & Dome)
PREP: Cold water rinse
BRUSH: Alpha Shaving T-400 Tribute w/ 26mm Two Band Badger Knot
CREAM: Nancy Boy Signature
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with Glyce Glycerin soap followed by Humphreys Lilac WH and Osage Rub. Finished with Krampert’s Frostbite AS Splash.
 
GearNoir said:
Michigan sauce? Do tell!
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Chris, it’s a very old family recipe that we slather on our hot dogs and hamburgers. I grew up in a mining town in the Adirondack Mtns of NYS. It’s a recipe developed to last for quite some time without refrigeration. My four children grew up having it served to them, and now their children expect it at family get-togethers.
 
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SOTD TUESDAY MORNING, SEPTEMBER 8, 2020

Another beautiful day here in the western suburbs of Philadelphia, enhanced even more by a truly epic (copyright @Keithmax) shave of both mug and noggin. I’m particularly proud of the mirror edge I’ve managed on the CKBA Damascus with the help of this magical jasper stone with support from a sprayed felt strop coated with .25 micron DMT diamond spray thanks to coaching from my son. The shiny, buttery smooth edge is clearly visible in the early morning sunlight. All I’ll say is that my three pass (WTG, ATG, XTG) mug shave was velveteen smooth and surprisingly comfortable. The unbelievably slick Prince shave cream certainly helped.

And then it was my noggin’s turn! For today’s shave I grabbed my vintage Ronson razor, and loaded it with a Schick Twinjector blade. The Rooney Badger whipped up a lovely, slick, yogurty Nancy Boy lather dome carpet. The loading process is always a bit fiddly with this razor, but the result is always well worth it. The razor is one hefty little package weighing in at 198.4 grams most of which is concentrated in the head. Shaving with it is always a pleasure as the weight does all the work which just works beautifully for shaky old me. One and 1/2 passes saw me happily arriving in VBBS land. The result was an epic velveteen shave to compliment this beautiful day.

RAZOR: CKBA Damascus 6/8 Koa Wood Scales (Mug), Ronson Safety Razor (Dome)
BLADE: Schick Twinjector (Dome)
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by Argan Oil
BRUSH: Rooney Ebony Pure Badger
CREAM: Prince (Mug), Nancy Boy (Dome)
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with Glyce Glycerin soap followed by Humphreys Lilac WH and Osage Rub. Finished with Pre de Provence Balm.
 
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SOTD WEDNESDAY MORNING, SEPTEMBER 9, 2020

Despite a gloomy start to the day, this morning’s shave was glorious. My son, Ben, is a collector of Japanese straight razors. The other day, one of TSD’s 30DC Crew straight razor luminaries (@Keithmax), shaved with the same razor, the Saito SK3, that I shaved with this morning. Ben had this one mounted and labeled in a frame in his man cave. Let’s just say I worked out a lend-lease arrangement where my automotive tool chest, jacks and blocks are moving to his garage and this razor and several others he’s not using will be migrating my way. Glenfiddich 18 Single Malt definitely loosened any resistance on his part. As far as this morning’s shave goes, I knocked it out of the park! I rarely work on the TR6 anymore, but I do shave everyday, and this razor is magnificent! It’s my first smiling blade straight razor.

What I discovered is that the slightly curved blade made access to the regular trouble spots on my neck much easier. The three pass (WTG, ATG, XTG) mug shave was a delight. Ben demonstrated the rolling X-stroke which I employed on the jasper hone last night to prepare the razor. Apparently he had set the bevel years ago, and all it really needed was a quick touch up on the jasper stone under running water followed by a few strokes on the diamond sprayed bench strop. The shave was smooth, clean and velveteen as was the dome shave, although the Prince shave cream really gummed up the Twinjector blade in my Schick Hydro-Magic safety razor as I tried it on the dome. After rinsing it clean in very hot water, it was Nancy Boy to the rescue. I’ve just about used up that tub, but fortunately another is wending it’s way to me. The result was a matching dome shave that resonated perfectly with my earlier mug shave. All is right with the world here in the Philly burbs! I wish everyone a great shave today and tomorrow!

RAZOR: Saito SK3 7/8 (Mug), Schick Type I2 Hydro-Magic (Dome)
BLADE: Schick Twinjector (Dome)
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub of the shave surfaces with Argan Oil
BRUSH: Viking Silvertip Badger
CREAM: Lush Prince (mug), Nancy Boy Signature (Dome)
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with Glyce Glycerin soap followed by Humphreys Lilac WH and Osage Rub. Finished with Chiseled Face Natural AS Splash.
 
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SOTD THURSDAY MORNING, SEPTEMBER 10, 2020

And the great shaves just keep on coming. Touched up my new Manhattan Cutlery 13/16 French Point last night on the jasper stone and diamond sprayed felted strop. This Sheffield Steel razor is the oldest that I own, dated to between 1861 and 1900. I was initially a bit intimidated by the French Point, but I took my time and ended up with a velveteen smooth three pass (WTG, ATG, XTG) shave. I used the Prince shaving cream for my head shave as well and avoided the gumminess issue by selecting one of my best noggin shavers, the Valet Auto Strop VC4. The beauty of this razor is that its clever design allows for the FAS-10 blade-holder to be released for hot water rinsing of both sides of the blade. It made short work of the 24 hr dome stubble and in one and 1/2 passes (ATG, ATG) put the baby right to bed. Although the Lush Prince shaving cream doesn’t lather as it has no soap in it, it is amazingly slick and leaves my skin feeling so good, that I believe I could easily go without any aftershave product. I never thought I would say this, but the aftershave skin feel is superior to any lathering product I’ve ever used. Despite that, I do enjoy lathers, and will probably continue to use them on my dome in the future. I feel refreshed, clean and smoothly velveteen!

RAZOR: Manhattan Cutlery 13/16 French Point Turtle Shell Scales (Mug), Valet Auto Strop VC4 (Dome)
BLADE: Feather FAS-10 Carbon Steel
PREP: Cold water rinse
BRUSH: Rooney Ebony Pure Badger
CREAM: Lush Prince Soap-less Shaving Cream
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with Glyce Glycerin soap followed by Humphreys Lilac WH and Osage Rub. Finished with Royall Lyme AS.
 
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SOTD FRIDAY MORNING, SEPTEMBER 11 (A day to rival December 7)

Well I tried this Baume.BE stuff everyone was raving about. I was planning on using it for my G7DC starting tomorrow, but after today will shelve it for my den clearance coming up in a week or two. I may have received a bad batch; it was yellow and stubbornly refused to produce a decent lather, and believe me I tried everything - little water, lots of water, face lathering, bowl lathering, three different brushes - to no effect. The lather produced was frankly meh, and not slick at all! Thank heavens for Argan oil which did add sufficient slickness. I completed the shave, but certainly will not use this stuff again!

Other than the sub par lathering experience, the rest of the shave went well. The Saito SK3 could easily become one of my favorite razors. It delivered the same level of velveteen shave it delivered on its first outing. I loaded my Schick Type L Paul Revere with a Schick Twinjector blade and cleaned my dome stubble right down to the skin line. I’ll admit that after my mug lather, I grabbed for my faithful Nancy Boy and had a great velveteen dome shave. The Paul Revere has usually been a relatively mild safety razor, but the Schick Twinjector seemed to increase its efficiency. The shave was refreshing, cooling and velveteen despite the dud lather start. All worked well. I feel refreshed and ready for the day!

RAZOR: Saito SK3 (Mug), Schick Type L International Silver Paul Revere Model (Dome)
BLADE: Schick Injector II
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by Argan oil
BRUSH: Alpha Shaving T-400 Tribute w/ Two Band Badger Ferrule
CREAM: Baume.BE (Mug). Nancy Boy Signature (Dome)
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with NB brush squeezings followed by Humphreys Lilac WH and Osage Rub. Finished with Pre de Provence Bergamot & Thyme Balm.
 
GearNoir said:
Bummer the soap didn’t work out for ya. Great specimen of a Paul Revere injector though! Those are quite nice looking and a bit rare as I understand it!
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Thanks, Chris! I don't know why it didn't lather properly. Nancy Boy seems to have spoiled me for all creams. I even prefer it over my Castle Forbes Lime, and that used to be one of my favorites.
 
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