global_dev straight journal

[global_dev]

before 204, i had gone all out BBS with a 40s SS and while it was looking great for 24 hours, and not so bad at 36 hours, the re-growth was irritated and not nice. i decided then and there that i don't care for ultimate BBS and what it does for me, perhaps my technique was a bit rough, but no redness or irritation for the first day, maybe it was an old blade that should have been tossed. maybe my skin just can't take it.

#204 Wednesday? Another awesome shave with my brian brown custom, Caravela boar/badger, and AK 1869.. awesome shave all around.. couldn't want more out of a shave

#205 this morning… hadn't use my LeGrelot in quite a while and i remember it being a nice shave.. also decided to make it an AdP day, using AdP kit i hadn't before like shower gel and body lotion.

so grabbed a nice shower after breakfast and gotta say the scent of the gel and lotion is just ridiculous… i love the spicy citrus scent..

grabbed the WSP monarch while has been losing a hair or two over the past couple shaves, wondering if it is gonna stop soon. otherwise it's a really nice knot… AdP soap lathered superbly and i was originally gonna go for a two passer, but after 2 normal passes for me, i decided to do a third pass only on my neck

1st and 2nd pass cheeks N-S neck S-N, great shave on my cheeks, but i think i can eek out a bit more on the neck
so third only the neck N-S and the result is exactly what i love. i can probably sub the 3rd for second pass and be plenty happy.

following up with the AdP aftershave, emulsion, and cologne is just friggin awesome.. i want the deodorants for this and TdH (can't believe it's so expensive, i'll just have to grin and bear it, as i have a gucci envy and dirty english deo's and they are great, but not nearly as expensive)

I really like the LeGrelot blade and the scales (shape, size, weight) but i am not feeling the blue. it looks nice, but i really like the way natural materials look, or partial to animal natural than wood natural, although i think there are plenty of classy wood scales i would be happy with.

I think i am going to use a faux tortoise on my set of Palmeras, maybe with different wedge material colors (maybe not). still undecided, but open to comments.

 

[global_dev]

so i wasn't going to touch the herder for a while nor was i gonna shave this morning, but i was bored.

grabbed the Y/G thuri i have and did some slurried circles, looked at the edge on a scope (to no benefit) and decided it was time to shave.

lathered up the WSP monarch and I wonder if people are just mashing their knots into their faces. i can easily see that happen with a chubby style, or boar, or 2 band and the splay will be uncontrollable. i like the knot a lot, the handle is not really growing on me and i wish it was a bigger brush all around. also getting tired of RR fresco. it's not bad, but it's not very interesting.

stropped on the linen/shell (30/60) and paid extra special attention to the stropping on the last 15. very controlled, a bit more attention and pressure than normal, but not a lot by any means…

velvet squeegee.. sweet. 2 passes and done. BBS- . my neck is pretty much all cleared up from the BBS ridiculousness from last week and back on track.

don't know what was going on with the Jnat ozuku asagi, perhaps i need to spend some more with it, maybe i slurried it too dense.. regardless that's an adventure for another day.

 

[Tkocloser]

Jon, you are on a roll! Your AdP collection is wonderful to behold. The top end stuff is really special, isn't it? Fun to read this, hope your run of good shaving continues smooth through the holidays...(smooth, get it? I'll be here all week! I love this crowd! da - dum - bump) My corny jokes aside, keep it going dude!

 

[global_dev]

Jon, you are on a roll! Your AdP collection is wonderful to behold.

thanks, i have some more of their gear that i have stashed away... pricey, but worth it IMO.. in fact, i was using Arko the last 2 shaves and i was thinking " why am i doing using Arko and not AdP or something else."

 

[global_dev]

#206 Le Grelot, Plisson Plexi EW 12, Arko

I was looking at this Le Grelot (only one i have), and it appears to have a slight bellied appearance and feel. can't tell if that's true, but wondering if anyone else has seen that.. i'll try to get a pic soon.

2 glorious passes and i really like the plisson EW knots, not too dense, but clearly not thin, starts off with a tiny bit of skritch, that turns to nice and soft with lather...

like i said earlier, don''t really know why I am using Arko.. it works great and I don't mind the smell (as long as it doesn't linger), but i need to get through the good stuff. I wonder if I am unconsciously hoarding the good stuff for mid morning shaves...

nice BBS- shave

III

 

[O.G.]

I have the Le Grelot one above and I can confirm that it does have a belly and it is one of the best shaver that I have.

 

[global_dev]

I have the Le Grelot one above and I can confirm that it does have a belly and it is one of the best shaver that I have.

wow, wasn't sure anyone was really paying attention after all this time... it is a small bellied appearance... unlike me (as my wife and kids point out) during my leg recovery..

 

[global_dev]

#207 Le Grelot, Plisson plexi EW 12, P.160

another great shave.. stropped 40 on royal linen, 60 on scrupleworks leather (buffalo iirc) lots of draw

funny how your thoughts and feeling about a razor can change when you notice a small detail like teh bellied portion. I was literally trying to reassess the feel of the blade to see if i noticed any appreciable difference. hard to tell if it's real or imagined...

love the brush, I now have a 12 and 16 plexi EW and i really like them and P.160 is pretty good. i love the scent and performance isn't too shabby.

2 passes WTG and XTG and a superb shave.

however I had also pulled a cobra along and decided to try a final pass with it since i haven't used it in a while. I was actually intending to do the whole shave with the cobra, but backed out at the last minute since i wanted to use the straight.

that cobra is wonderful, so smooth and works really well. not a lot to shave at that point, but it was so smooth and eeked out just a tiny bit more closeness, it's a very impressive tool to me.

i followed up with the last bit of Shea Moisture After shave tea tree elixir. It is the first product since i started wetshaving that I have finished (2.5 yrs). I have given away or sold other stuff before they were finished, but this is the first to go in the graveyard. I have some other stuff that's close to empty, but not yet. I don't think i'll be replacing it at the moment. the ingredients seem really good, but the scent wasn't appreciated by my wife for the brief period it lingers and it's definitely not an issue i care about.

IV

 

[global_dev]

went to LI, NY for the long Christmas weekend and brought along a Joseph Allen non-XLL and some stones as my brother had asked for me a couple weeks ago if i would demo a straight shave... i actually ended up not shaving at all last week, but was gonna give my father a shave, but in the end i didn't have enough time, unfortunately. i did have time to give a couple strokes on the y/g thuringian

the good news, is that the razor was in great shape when i got back home and the shave with it was absolutely luxurious. no issues with tugging or pulling on a 5 day beard. some arko, the wsp monarch, which is still shedding 2-3 hairs with every use

3 passes
1st face N-S throat S-N
2nd face N-S throat N-S
3rd was very light with mostly just water and quick face N-S throat S-N

results absolutely near BBS, just what i like...

 

[cameraflier]

.. was gonna give my father a shave, but in the end i didn't have enough time, ...

That would be quite a special Christmas gift. Good for even thinking of it, and having the nerve to put it in your plan. I'm sure the opportunity will come again. I hope you share the story here.

 

[global_dev]

been keeping track of the typical straight shaves offline a bit...

however i got a chance to use a Ever-ready streamline. This would have been my third vintage SE (not including the cobra as it's not vintage quite yet). I have tried a messed-up OCCM, a 1912, and the streamline..

The OCCM was missing a blade cover hook? talk about shaving with a square point. i didn't know it until after the first shave...

The 1912 was nice, but didn't feel that smooth to me.. It was also after coming off a major shaving hiatus so who knows..

I was afraid that the Streamline would be a tad aggressive based on the comments I have read about it... no such issue. smooth, super close (used a GEM blade from Harmon (BB&B) as i couldn't find the 2 sleeves of Pella blades i bought a while ago). 2 normal passes for me and I was super happy with the result. I can see why vintage SE users rave about the nice shaves they get with this razor...

 

[global_dev]

That would be quite a special Christmas gift. Good for even thinking of it, and having the nerve to put it in your plan. I'm sure the opportunity will come again. I hope you share the story here.

My father is in town, so I may get the chance this week. I'll definitely take some pictures if it goes down!

 

[global_dev]

This shave only solidified that I get along really well with these type blades.

It was finished on a La Nouvelle Veinette coticule and super sharp and smooth.

50/60 stropped linen/Buffalo

This edge sings to me. Sweet and melodic

III

 

[global_dev]

Here is a pic of the blade from Feb 2011 of the Solingen "Sigi" 15/16 from whne i was experimenting with "Honing two different ways"

i believe i got that really black corrosion off as i don't recall seeing that yesterday.

 

[global_dev]

The Sigi actually has a manufacturer's name on the tang reverse. "Wilhem Boos Jr"

Sunday's shave was pretty nice. However, I went back into my notes here and decided I would run the edge over the LNV a couple more times, just to see how it feels. This is a huge conflict for me as I want to see how long an edge lasts without touch-up, but at the same time i want to see if I can get the edge even better.

Well, last nights shave (around 11pm) was even better, a couple swipes on the LNV with just water and some stropping and the edge was buttery sharp.

I have been using the SOC boar on and off and i am not feeling it... it's "OK", but i'd rather a "G-r-r-r-reat" even it means having to spend a bit more on a badger.

Wife was not enjoying the residual scent of Proraso ASL last night... so i finished up with some Thayers Cucumber WH and Nivea balm and had no complaints.

I also got a whiff last night of the AdP Colonia Oud. very interesting.

IV

 

[global_dev]

I normally enjoy the honing process. I don't have a real spot that is like a honing corner, so when i hone, and I don't enjoy having to grab all the stones, bring them up a flight of stairs (or down a flight of stairs, depending on where they are) to my kitchen table that transforms into the honing area to my wife's chagrin. My garage is a mess, which is where i keep most of the stones, and they are kind of hard to get to right now.

I did have a suehiro 1200 though that i hadn't put back yet from christmas time, sitting in a travelling box.. so it was easy to get to. the chosera 1K was too far away..

and thus my journey of shaving with a 1.2K edge begins..

so yesterday, I was feeling pretty lazy to grab all the stones, and the CV Heljestrand MK6 was kind of sitting in a pile with a bunch of other razors yet to be restored or honed.

I had read about shaving off a 1K edge, but typically once I start honing I never want to stop until i am way past 10K. I was determined to stop and give it a try. I was sure it was gonna be craggy and uncomfortable and that my face would feel raw and burned.. what a downer for the experience of understanding.. who wants that?

so I began the bevel setting process by wiping the edge on some glass and some laps.. I don't exactly remember if this is a a slow stone, my pressure wasn't hard enough, or what, but it took some time, all the while testing the edge. If i was gonna shave off this edge, it had to be better than perfect.

When i finally got the bevel set done to my satisfaction, i checked it on the scope and it all looked okay, set it down and waited until Saturday AM, when i thought i would get up early and give it a go… I just can't get up earlier than 7:30 AM on a sat unless i have somewhere really to go…

So while my wife was making breakfast and coffee, I grabbed a quick hot shower and proceeded to strop up the MK6 1.2K edge 40/60 linen/leather, lathered up the plexi with some P.160 and went to town.

I didn't really expect what happened. It was a pretty damn great shave. not uncomfortable at all. Granted it wasn't velvet smooth, but it was way more than acceptable and I came away after 3 passes with a DFS++. The 3rd pass was absolutely necessary. It wasn't by any means bad after 2 passes, but the third, which is kind of XTG for me, sharpens up the shave (as I expect it does for most of us). I was expecting to have to put the blade down, step away, and go grab something else. I was in shock. I don't know what to make of it… not too bad at all if i must say so myself.

pass 1 & 2 face N-S neck S-N
pass 3 face inside to out neck N-S

It won't pass for a BBS, but pretty damn fine… finished with some Proraso ASL (wife isn't feeling the drydown after 30 mins of it) and AdP Colonia intensa Oud. I like it. I think I may order a bottle soon.

I guess i'll have to dig out some stones and give it a go from each level (sharpen, polish, finish). Quite an interesting learning experience..

I don't know what it exactly tells me about my honing, other than I can hone, CVHs are quality and a 1.2K edge can shave, but it was fun to try it out.

I

 

[global_dev]

BTW, i did some calculations using slash mccoys bevel calc tool and it looks like my bevel angle on the MK6 is ~17

 

[global_dev]

I didn't remember using this straight lately, but apparently according to my notes, i used it 2 weeks ago and noted that the edge could be a bit smoother. I didn't see those notes until after the shave and went to log it in my notebook.

It gives a great shave, but like i just noted, could be a bit smoother..

i finished off with some alum, some thayers cucumber, some AdP Baberzione ASL, and some AdP Int. Oud. I love this stuff. it's always a Sunday when i want to order something. I also had big eyes last night looking at some custom razors. gotta check the accounts.

On another note, i found these nice leather laptop sleeve cover on sale at Crate and Barrel and immediately thought i could turn it into individual razor holders or a sleeve for 7. now i just need to learn how to sew leather, since once i make a mistake, it probably ain't going to look so hot. in this case measure 3x, cut once. maybe i'll even practice on something else. it's a bit thicker than a typical womens purse, IIRC, at 1/8 with both pieces, but it's not so thick as the Kanayama 90K I have. and I agree about the business card holder.. i wish it wasn't there.

III

 

[global_dev]

it seems, i changed the permissions on a bunch of these photos.. i look into figuring out what happened.

 

[global_dev]

just upped the finish on the CVH MK6 from 1.2K (suehiro deluxe stone) to 5K (through 2K) on the Shapton Pro ceramics. Can't wait to give it a spin tonight.