Thread: Righty Tighty; Lefty Loosey

Shave #195.3 - Apologies

Catie's Bubbles LPV Shave Soap
TOBS Badger Brush
Edwin Jagger DE89L + Feather (3)
PAA CaD
Gentlmen's Tonic AS Balm

Another nice quick BBS from my standard 3 passes and a smidgen of neck touch up.

I have to apologize to those of you who read my posts. Sorry that there hasn't been much straight razor content lately. I've been in the weeds. I'm not totally sure when things will ease up, but right now I'm just cramming shaving in around the edges of my life, so I have a tendency to go with the DE at those times.

Shave #195.4 - Real Nice

RazoRock XXX Shave Soap
Semogue 2012
Edwin Jagger DE89L + Feather (4)
Captain's Choice Bay Rum
C&E West Indian Lime AS Balm

I really enjoyed this shave. The soap felt creamy and luxurious. It smelt good too. The blade was smooth and comfortable. 4-5 days of growth, whatever it was, just melted. The post-shave treatment really hit the spot. I'm BBS/DFS.

Shave #196 - Straight Shavin'

RazoRock XXX Shave Soap
TOBS Badger Brush
WISS Ugly Duckling 9/16" (10/8)
Classic Clubman
Gentlemen's Tonic AS Balm

I finally got off my butt, and pulled out a straight this evening. I reached for what I thought was my ERN, turned out to be the WISS, but no matter. I did my by now standard 2.5 passes, N-S, S-N, followed by a scything pass going kinda sideways along the neck, trying to catch the hairs that grow parallel to the floor. Considering my rustiness, the amount of growth I had, and that the WISS is nearly due for a trip to the hone, I had a surprisingly good shave. I'm a very solid DFS.

Shave #196.1 - One Shave Too Far

Klar Seifen Shave Soap
Semogue 2012
Edwin Jagger DE89L + Feather (5)
PAA CaD
L'Occitane Cedre & Oranger AS Balm

I pushed the Feather one shave too far. I lost comfort and a bit of closeness. I'm a very slightly irritated DFS. So, now I know, no more than 4 shaves on the Feather. I think I knew that before, but it slipped my mind.

I agree with the previous comment about the angle, or what I refer to as angle of attack. This term from flying applies well to straight razor shaving if you ask me. Have the correct angle of attack or you will stall in your quest to get the best shave of your life! And as you perhaps know, a poor angle of attack in flying leads to the same issue in straight razor shaving; blood being shed.

Hi Augustagj,

Thanks for reading and commenting. I assume that your reply refers to one of my earlier posts, but nonetheless I appreciate the interest.


Shave #197 - Shavette Shavexperiment

Klar Seifen Shave Soap
TOBS Badger Brush
Don Jae Chopper + Feather (6)
Krampert's Finest Frostbite

I decided to try my dulled Feather blade in the shavette to see how it works. I have tried this before, but I think I had used the blade less times in the DE before repurposing it to the shavette. That time I found the blade much too cutty and dangerous. After 5 DE shaves the Feather felt fine in my shavette, however at the end of the shave when I rinsed my face, I found that I had about 20 micro-cuts that I hadn't felt happen. I'm not sure how much this is due to lack of shavette practice vs. the residual sharpness of the blade. Since the blade felt fine, I'm guessing it is down to technique. If that is correct, I reckon I could get another 2 shaves per side out of the DE blade. But, I don't suppose I really need to save those pennies, and still prefer a duller/smoother blade in the shavette.

As for this shave, I did 2 passes N-S and S-N, no extra cleanup on the neck. My face is BBS and my neck is CCS, but I look a bit of a mess, little red cuts everywhere.

Shave #197.1 - Happy New Year

Klar Seifen Shave Soap
TOBS Badger Brush
Edwin Jagger DE89L + Feather (1)
PAA CaD

A little neck clean up after 3 pass, and the new Feather has delivered a comfortable BBS.



Happy New Year

Ever tried to strop a feather Jake? Some around here do and have success in a smooth shave.

Shave #198 - Continuing the Experiment

So, I decided to take FAL's suggestion and see what would happen if I stropped the Feather. I didn't really know how to strop it, so I just kept it in the shavette and lightly ran it down my strop for 5 laps.

L'Occitane Shave Soap
Semogue 2012
Don Jae Chopper + Feather (7)
Captain's Choice Bay Rum
C&E West Indian Lime AS Balm

Well, it worked. The Feather is not so cutty sharp. Actually, it is a smidgen on the dull side, I think that I over-stropped it, maybe 1 lap would have done the trick. Still I actually got a pretty smooth and comfortable shave, 2.5 passes = BBS Face, DFS Neck.

I wouldn't really advocate stropping a Feather under normal circumstances, basically you're taking a laser sharp blade and turning it into a Derby blade, but for repurposing a Feather that has already served its purpose in the DE, this seems to work.

Thanks for the tip FAL.

Shave #199 - Why Don't I Use It More?

L'Occitane Shave Soap
TOBS Badger Brush
ERN 5/8" (2/8)
Alum
Captain's Choice Bay Rum
Gentlemen's Tonic AS Balm

I have been rediscovering the L'Occitane shave soap these last couple shaves. It really is a great soap, cushiony, yoghurty, slick,.... I guess the only reason I don't reach for it more often is that it doesn't have much scent. I do rather enjoy a strongly scented soap. The L'Occitane, to me, smells like soap.

I did a 2.5-passer. My result is very good, BBS on the face and very close to BBS on the neck. I did however ding myself just under the jawline with the Spanish point, hence the inclusion of alum in my routine. I applied the alum over my entire face, and it was pretty silent, barring the cut points.