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Natterings of a Nasal Barbarian

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SOTD SUNDAY MORNING, OCTOBER 10, 2021

Today’s mug shave featured the Dubl Duck Goldedge 11/16. My JR Rosewood Silvertip Badger brush whipped up the thin, slick lather I prefer for my straight shaves, and it was smooth sailing through three slow, luxurious passes. My neck shaves have improved immeasurably since I‘ve included flatblading technique.

This is an advanced straight razor finishing technique I learned from BarberDave of the Shaving Cadre. It unfailingly provides the level of smoothness I desire in my mug shaves, but is not a technique I would recommend to the new open edge shaver. The technique works equally well with both traditional straight razors as well as shavettes/barber’s razors.

While not an OC, my Colonial Silversmith is a safety razor I treasure for the unfailing efficiency of the noggin shaves it provides. i realize the aesthetics of the revised handle design is not for everybody, but I really like it; it feels great great in hand and is a marked improvement over the initial handle design. It breezed through my dome stubble in two highly efficient passes, leaving me velveteen smooth from the shoulders up!

RAZOR: Dubl Duck Goldedge 11/16 (Mug), Colonial Silversmith (Dome)
BLADE: Feather DE
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub with Argan Oil
BRUSH: JR Rosewood Silvertip Badger
SOAP: Mitchell’s Wool Fat
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by a rinse with Humphreys Lilac WH. Finished with Williams Aqua Velva AS Splash (Spanish Version)
 
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SOTD MONDAY MORNING, OCTOBER 11, 2021

Even though this is OC October, every now and then we need to break from the routine. For this morning’s mug shave I grabbed one of my favorite vintage straight razors, the Frederick Reynolds 5/8 Rattler grind. It also happens to be my most challenging razor to hone as it just happens to be the iconic example of a wavy bladed razor. Rattlers were ground vertically instead of horizontally to achieve their amazingly uniform blade thinness from bevel to pronounced spine.

The fellow gave me a great deal on this razor which he pronounced “unhoneable“, if that’s a word. After some experimentation, I learned to maintain consistent contact between edge and spine by torquing the blade to primarily use the edge of my hone. That's what worked with this razor which has gone on to reward me with excellent mug shaves. And boy does this little beauty belt out the buttering toast song throughout the shave. Three clean passes with some final flatblading and I was dolphin smooth.

Castle Forbes Lime Shave cream is really nice stuff, and readily lends itself to the two kinds of lather I like for my shaves. Thinner slicker lather for the mug shave, and a thicker more protective lather for the noggin. So instead of an OC I grabbed my Rex Ambassador, a razor that was initially defective, but was made right by Matt Pisarcik of Razor Emporium. I really enjoy the blade feel when shaving my dome with this wonderful razor wide open. Two ATG passes completed my morning shave ritual, leaving your happy narrator velveteen smooth from shoulders to dome.

RAZOR: Frederick Reynolds Rattler Grind 5/8 (Mug), Rex Ambassador (Dome)
BLADE: Feather DE
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub with Argan Oil
BRUSH: Viking Silvertip Badger
CREAM: Castle Forbes Lime
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by a rinse with Humphreys Lilac WH. Finished with Royall Lyme AS/Cologne.
 
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SOTD TUESDAY MORNING, OCTOBER 12, 2021

Today’s mug shave featured my new Gipson razor, the Katsumi 14/13. It is easily the largest razor in my collection, but it shaves beautifully. Andrey, the proprietor of Gipson razor set out to build a tribute to the Saito SK series of Japanese razors. This razor is extremely well-balanced in hand, and despite its size shaves smoothly. I realize it is representative of a trend towards wider larger razors, but don’t plan on getting anything larger than 8/8. It’s a question of the bulk or sheer size of these larger razors. My preference is more towards smaller, more nimble shavers. I’m really getting a kick out of shaving with a number of wonderfully maneuverable little 4/8 Swedish razors lately. In any case, this is a keeper. Three passes with some final flatblading, which is admittedly more of a challenge with a wider blade, left me pleasantly smooth.smooth.

My 26mm boar knot became detached from its Alpha Shaving T-400 ferrule some time ago. I reset it with epoxy instead of marine silicon paste. It's in there to stay this time! As many know, my regular shave soap is MWF. Many complain of lathering issues with the latter, but the secret for me has been the use of a good stiff brush, and the patience to wait while the lather builds. After the great thin slick lather for my mug shave, I returned to the bowl and continued to build the kind of thick, yogurty lather for which MWF has no peer. The very stiff boar knot did the job, and left me with a beautiful protective lather carpet for the Barbasol Floating Head (BFH) to make good use of. That early 1930s safety razor is hyper efficient and left my noggin velveteen smooth after two slow, careful ATG passes, because Madame BFH demands respect or she will bite.

RAZOR: Gipson Katsumi 14/13 (Mug), Barbasol Floating Head (Dome)
BLADE: Feather DE
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub with Argan Oil
BRUSH: Alpha Shaving T-400 Tribute with 26mm Boar Knot Ferrule
SOAP: Mitchell’s Wool Fat
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by a rinse with Humphreys Lilac WH. Finished with Cremo Cooling Post Shave Balm.
 
jgreenepa said:
View attachment 63543
View attachment 63544
SOTD TUESDAY MORNING, OCTOBER 12, 2021

Today’s mug shave featured my new Gipson razor, the Katsumi 14/13. It is easily the largest razor in my collection, but it shaves beautifully. Andrey, the proprietor of Gipson razor set out to build a tribute to the Saito SK series of Japanese razors. This razor is extremely well-balanced in hand, and despite its size shaves smoothly. I realize it is representative of a trend towards wider larger razors, but don’t plan on getting anything larger than 8/8. It’s a question of the bulk or sheer size of these larger razors. My preference is more towards smaller, more nimble shavers. I’m really getting a kick out of shaving with a number of wonderfully maneuverable little 4/8 Swedish razors lately. In any case, this is a keeper. Three passes with some final flatblading, which is admittedly more of a challenge with a wider blade, left me pleasantly smooth.smooth.

My 26mm boar knot became detached from its Alpha Shaving T-400 ferrule some time ago. I reset it with epoxy instead of marine silicon paste. It's in there to stay this time! As many know, my regular shave soap is MWF. Many complain of lathering issues with the latter, but the secret for me has been the use of a good stiff brush, and the patience to wait while the lather builds. After the great thin slick lather for my mug shave, I returned to the bowl and continued to build the kind of thick, yogurty lather for which MWF has no peer. The very stiff boar knot did the job, and left me with a beautiful protective lather carpet for the Barbasol Floating Head (BFH) to make good use of. That early 1930s safety razor is hyper efficient and left my noggin velveteen smooth after two slow, careful ATG passes, because Madame BFH demands respect or she will bite.

RAZOR: Gipson Katsumi 14/13 (Mug), Barbasol Floating Head (Dome)
BLADE: Feather DE
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub with Argan Oil
BRUSH: Alpha Shaving T-400 Tribute with 26mm Boar Knot Ferrule
SOAP: Mitchell’s Wool Fat
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by a rinse with Humphreys Lilac WH. Finished with Cremo Cooling Post Shave Balm.
Click to expand...
Beautiful shave, Jeff.
 
jgreenepa said:
View attachment 63543
View attachment 63544
SOTD TUESDAY MORNING, OCTOBER 12, 2021

Today’s mug shave featured my new Gipson razor, the Katsumi 14/13. It is easily the largest razor in my collection, but it shaves beautifully. Andrey, the proprietor of Gipson razor set out to build a tribute to the Saito SK series of Japanese razors. This razor is extremely well-balanced in hand, and despite its size shaves smoothly. I realize it is representative of a trend towards wider larger razors, but don’t plan on getting anything larger than 8/8. It’s a question of the bulk or sheer size of these larger razors. My preference is more towards smaller, more nimble shavers. I’m really getting a kick out of shaving with a number of wonderfully maneuverable little 4/8 Swedish razors lately. In any case, this is a keeper. Three passes with some final flatblading, which is admittedly more of a challenge with a wider blade, left me pleasantly smooth.smooth.

My 26mm boar knot became detached from its Alpha Shaving T-400 ferrule some time ago. I reset it with epoxy instead of marine silicon paste. It's in there to stay this time! As many know, my regular shave soap is MWF. Many complain of lathering issues with the latter, but the secret for me has been the use of a good stiff brush, and the patience to wait while the lather builds. After the great thin slick lather for my mug shave, I returned to the bowl and continued to build the kind of thick, yogurty lather for which MWF has no peer. The very stiff boar knot did the job, and left me with a beautiful protective lather carpet for the Barbasol Floating Head (BFH) to make good use of. That early 1930s safety razor is hyper efficient and left my noggin velveteen smooth after two slow, careful ATG passes, because Madame BFH demands respect or she will bite.

RAZOR: Gipson Katsumi 14/13 (Mug), Barbasol Floating Head (Dome)
BLADE: Feather DE
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub with Argan Oil
BRUSH: Alpha Shaving T-400 Tribute with 26mm Boar Knot Ferrule
SOAP: Mitchell’s Wool Fat
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by a rinse with Humphreys Lilac WH. Finished with Cremo Cooling Post Shave Balm.
Click to expand...

Love the Big Smiling Blade Jeff. [emoji106]


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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SOTD WEDNESDAY MORNING, OCTOBER 13, 2021

The days are getting much shorter as we move towards winter. Shortly after purchasing my Rigarazor 7/8 about a year or so ago, I dropped It, and chipped the edge requiring a new bevel set. It wasn’t until after a touch up on the 9 Ball slate that I really began to enjoy the shave it delivers. The steel Sergej uses is quite hard and really holds a nice edge. Two mug passes with some additional buffing and some final flatblading to smooth those troublesome old man neck whiskers of mine, and I was delightfully smooth.

The Castle Forbes Lime lather’s scent is so enjoyable. The Alpha Shaving’s T-400 26mm Tuxedo Synth ferrule was firm yet incredibly soft while spreading the nice thick yogurty lather all over my noggin. The Leresche 77 seems at times to be the almost perfect headshaver. While my Shake Sharps hold the supreme headshaving title, the 77 is a very close second. The 69 gram silver plated beauty is a masterpiece of safety razor design. Two ATG passes and I‘m ready to face the rigors of the day, porcelain smooth from dome to neck.

RAZOR: Rigarazor 7/8 (Mug), Leresche 77 (Dome)
BLADE: Feather DE
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub with Argan Oil
BRUSH: Alpha Shaving T-400 Tribute with 26mm Tuxedo Synth Ferrule
CREAM: Castle Forbes Lime
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by a rinse with Humphreys Lilac WH. Finished with Royall Lyme AS/Cologne.
 
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