Intro again - once again LONG
This is why im glad i typed my longer posts in MS WORD.
Just a repost, dont read if you read it before.
Well it’s snowing outside and I got motivated enough to write this first post. It also manages to come at a time that this morning marks the 20th straight shave with no nicks so I am very happy. This post will be a little lengthy so bear with me or just skip it and hit the back button now.
First let me start by saying hello to all and that you all have a magnificent forum here. Although this is my first post, I have been reading these forums since the end of May of 2007. I signed up for this forum in August as SIK N TWISTED but never posted, although I read about every post on the boards. Some of you who check who is online may have seen me a lot. This new name is a much better, more appropriate name and if Lynn happens to read this, you can go ahead and delete the other account if that’s possible.
Anyhow, this summer I was interning at Cherokee Town and Country Club (anyone in Georgia that plays may have heard of it, but most likely has never played because it is a private course) where they required us to shave every day for professional appearance and my Schick Quattro just wasn’t going to cut it (no pun intended). So after searching the internet, I landed here. After I went to some local Georgian barbers to get a “real” shave, I was hooked on how it felt, and how long the shave lasted. My hair is dense and very rough so pieces of plastic like Mach 3 and Schick Quattro don’t handle it very well and I have to place the cartridge every 2-3 uses or else it just pulls on my beard. So I took the plunge and I ordered a Dovo “Best Quality” from eBay that came with a Dovo strop. I ordered an Omega boar brush and a few pucks of UGLY MUG Bay Rum and sandalwood soap from the Old Dominion Soap Company in Virginia. The Dovo was stated to be slightly used but shave ready and surprisingly it was. I wasn’t afraid if it wasn’t because my co-worker at the golf course shaved with a straight and had a Norton 4k/8k that he said he would teach me how to use. Which he did teach me, and the first edge HE put on the Dovo after I shaved about 6 times with it was immensely better than when I received it from eBay so I went ahead and ordered my own 4k/8k combo.
First shave: Ouch. Got a few nicks here and there but nothing that really weeped. Just a small line of blood in places. The shaves that followed were about the same every for 2 – 2 ½ weeks. Then I got my first no nick shave and I was ecstatic. I wasn’t nick free for long as the next shave I nicked my jaw line kind of bad. I guess I got cocky and didn’t respect the blade. People at work made fun of me too. I got a Wapi from eBay at the end of august as I was returning to school (read about that later). It was a consistently better shaver than the Dovo so I gave the Dovo to my roommate who had started showing interest in the way I was shaving. I continued to get great shaves and nicked shaves with the Wapi up until October when I went ahead and purchased a 7/8 Friodur from the Shaving Shop courtesy of John Crowley and honed by him as well (he put my honing to shame). This razor is fantastic, and it looks as good as it shaves. After getting remarkable shaves for about a month I went to getting a new set of hones because the 4k/8k pyramids weren’t sharpening the Friodur as well as I wanted (I know it’s a different steel) but because I had been working hard and saving money, I wanted to try my hand at a new set of hones. I gave the Norton to my roommate because he liked using it (I taught him the basics and he took over from there) and purchased all three Spyderco hones. These babies are magnificent. They cut fast and the ultra fine leaves a wicked edge on the Friodur but not so much the Wapi but that could just be my methods. I did manage to finally stop nicking myself DAILY with the edge I put on the Friodur with the Norton after changing to the Spyderco hones. Coincidence?
So the next step, a better strop right? In comes Tony Miller for my best Xmas gift, a 3 inch Red Latigo / Linen Paragon strop with two Dee rings accompanied by a practice strop. This thing really does put the Dovo strop to shame, and it is gorgeously crafted. I plan on putting some .25 paste on the practice stop when I get around to buying some but it may not be for awhile because I am getting some excellent shaves with just the ultra fine and I have to travel to Orlando soon and I will only be bringing the practice strop and my wapi. (Leave the best stuff out of reach of the baggage handlers.
Would my next step be a better brush? Hell no, my Omega Boar Brush is fantastic, makes a great lather, and I like the feel of the stiffer bristles, kind of like a gentle massage on my rugged, ugly mug. And it was 10 dollars. I do however think that my Mama Bear soap has something to do with my better shaves as its better than the UGLY MUG that I was using up until October.
Well that sums up the shaving experiences until now, and I hope to get my roommate into this forum but he is almost as lazy as me. (Hence the name THE DUDE if anyone has seen The Big Lebowski, one of my favorite movies)
Now for a brief Bio of me if anyone cares. I am 23 and currently a Student at Virginia Tech (finally Senior Year) so from what I gather I am not the youngest member but likely in the lower 30%. I study Golf Course Management and will be moving onto assistant Superintendent sometime this summer but I may take a bit off and go into Golf Course construction. If anyone has questions about grass, trees, shrubs or their yards, I would love to help you out to the best of my knowledge. Free of course. I look forward to conversing with you all and probably getting into heated debates with some.
So once again, thank you John Crowley, Tony Miller and dearest Mama Bear for making my face as smooth as it is and so nice smelling. And a special thanks to everyone else whose posts were extremely enlightening and very helpful. Sorry it took forever to post this and it was a long read. Keep up the good work, and as always, the Dude abides.
