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View Full Version : An introductory post and a homemade stand



Rem0
10-18-2009, 03:12 PM
Greetings to all

I thought i'd may as well pop in and say hello, as one cannot lurk forever. I've been reading these boards for a good month now after reading about wet shaving on a different forum, i can honestly say i was oblivious to the whole shaving scene prior to this revelation.

It's certainly a hobby that one can learn to appreciate and i understand why so many of you pursue it. What especially takes my fancy is the shiny metal hardware, you could say i despise plastic, so what a treat it is to see so many beautifully crafted razors and various other bits and pieces of pure metal that one can simply stare at and drool over.

Currently my kit consists of:
Gillette super slimtwist that i scored off a family member
No name boar brush i found around the house and cleaned up
Derby Extras
No name terrible shaving cream
Custom brush and razor stand i made out of a metal coat hanger, nothing fancy but its practical.

After about a month of wet shaving with the DE i can honestly say the shave it delivers is inferior to the previous schick 3 blader i used, but that is obviously attributed to my poor technique (despite no longer being cut, happy about that), poor soap/cream and possibly poor prep. Over time i have no doubt that the shaves will improve. My neck area is quite problematic with whacky hair growth patterns that i need to learn to tame.

I made an order with WCS for the following
Merkur 11c, to be honest i picked it over the HD because open comb just looks bad ass :cool:
Proraso SC
Col. Conks Amber SS
Ogalallalala bay rum and lemon grass shaving stick

I thought I'd buy an assortment of soaps/cream and get an impression of what works for me.

Despite being excited about the hobby i for one hope that AD doesn't kick in hard, at least not straight away. I browsed through the entire "post your shave den" thread and my god, some of the collections are outrageous. :eek:

That's all for now.
Cheers, Omer

jersey_boy
10-18-2009, 03:16 PM
Welcome aboard. I am sure your shaves will improve as you master the technique.

dpmtherrien
10-18-2009, 03:19 PM
Welcome to Badger and Bland. The open comb is a very nice razor, just remember to use no pressure other than that of the razor itself. You're off to a great start. :biggrin: :tongue: :wink:

mdunn
10-18-2009, 03:26 PM
welcome aboard, mate - looking good!

rm71
10-18-2009, 04:10 PM
Welcome!

machine99703
10-18-2009, 04:16 PM
Welcome, I'm liking that stand you got there! I would seriously consider upgrading your brush if you can, you can get an Omega for a pretty good price these days.

scdemandred
10-18-2009, 04:28 PM
Welcome, nice work on the stand!

Dustinl
10-18-2009, 04:36 PM
RemO,

Welcome to Badger & Blade! Great introductory post! You are welcomed here with open arms. Welcome to the madness!:lol:

Very nice stand that you made!


DL

Gruder
10-18-2009, 04:45 PM
Welcome to B&B! Nice work on the shave stand!

DonOhio
10-18-2009, 05:38 PM
Welcome, and ditto on the hanger/rack, very practical. You've got one of the better razors there (imo) so as they said above, be patient, it'll get better!

DSB
10-18-2009, 06:14 PM
Welcome! Nice rack.:wink:

donkennison
10-18-2009, 06:15 PM
Welcome to the B&B. Thats a great, lets you put money on the more important things,,,like razors, soaps and creams OH MY!

profsaffel
10-18-2009, 06:22 PM
Soaps are good. Just don't eat it. Please. Seriously. :001_huh:

Welcome to the B&B! :w00t:

michiganlover
10-18-2009, 06:35 PM
Welcome, and ditto on the hanger/rack, very practical. You've got one of the better razors there (imo) so as they said above, be patient, it'll get better!

The Slim Twist is very similar to the Gillette Knack, which is a phenomenal shaver. I really enjoy the longer handle on my Knack. :w00t::w00t:

Luc
10-18-2009, 07:19 PM
Welcome to B&B!

Sam F
10-18-2009, 07:23 PM
Welcome to B&B outstanding rack.

RILEY
10-18-2009, 07:25 PM
Welcome to B&B, great to have you here :001_smile

a2o
10-18-2009, 07:36 PM
Welcome to B&B!

MaxP
10-18-2009, 08:46 PM
Welcome to B&B.

Nice work on the stand.

Keep at it and your shaves will improve. And, you're right about the plastics. Razors should be made of METAL!

RCC
10-18-2009, 09:25 PM
Welcome to B&B
excellent stand

calcustom
10-18-2009, 09:31 PM
Welcome

JonDC
10-18-2009, 09:51 PM
Welcome

Love the stand.

bluefire
10-18-2009, 10:39 PM
Welcome to B&B. You got to start somewhere and the more you persist the better the shaves will become.

Hughies_online
10-19-2009, 12:51 AM
Welcome to B&B!

Scissors
10-19-2009, 01:24 AM
Omer, welcome to B&B, and I must say I'm might impressed by the stand you have there! No small feat of ingenuity to make something like that from a coat hanger!

I'm with machine 99703—I think you'll see a big improvement if you upgrade your brush. You don't mention the quality of lather you've been getting, but I'm going to guess it's not as rich and lubricating as you see at the end of this post. (http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showpost.php?p=251280&postcount=1) Take a look at that post, as well as mantic's video "How To Build And Apply Traditional Shaving Lather" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dd7Aj9vwrtc) The traditional wetshaving lather is more lubricating and protective than the junk that's in the aerosol cans, true, but the application of well-made lather is one of the great pleasures of wetshaving—and when you use a fine make like Proraso (full disclosure: I use Omega, another Italian mentholated cream with eucalyptus oil made by Proraso for the brush manufacturer, Omega), you'll want to linger over your shave and will end up putting more effort and concentrating into what you likely used to consider a chore because...well, because now shaving feels so damn good!

Wetshavers don't work on their technique because they're delaying gratification, like an unfortunate five-year old whose parents have decided will become a classical violinist. Nope, we work on it because it's a path to greater pleasure, to the comfort of a baby-bottom smooth shave, to improving a little act of hygiene that can improve your out look on the whole day (or evening!) ahead of you. Let us know how your shaves go when you get your new gear (don't forget to get another brush!) and may your shaves be nothing but pleasure from there on in! :smile: