Shave journal - Chris

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week #19
todays shave
prep: shower
Cream: TOBS - Jermyn Street
Razor: 7/8 Joseph Ellot
Honed: 4 weeks ago - 1 week of shaving
HHT: not done as I only do this at honing or pasted strop.
AF: Tabac spalsh

today I tried using 50/50 hot tap water and boiling water for my scuttle. lifted the temp of the lather just a bit, but I needed to add a few drops of water to the bowl to remix inbeteen passes.
todays shave was very enjoyable. 6 days of using the Joseph Ellot and the edge is as good as fresh off the hone.
it would have been 7 days of use but I felt a bit crook yesterday morning, was not going to shave at all but changed my mind in the shower deciding a DE shave will do for today. applied my same save routen but with a DE - Mergress. nice shave BBS and not iritation.
This is my 1st DE shave since taking up SR shaving at Christmas. it Is good to have it there as a back up but there was no life to the event, boring very boring shave indeed.

back the the straights. my shave today was good enough that I don't feel the need take the razor to the pasted strop just yet (6 shaves so far).
this could be because I have adjusted my stropping tension just a little bit less. hard to decribe but I held my to what I would concider taught i.e. tight pull but not trying to pull out of the wall. Have noticed the strop has streched a little in the 4 months of use and although this is normal for leather I am not sure it is for using a strop. so have tried giving just a little bit of slack, so far so good, no rolled edges and razor is good to go after stropping.

in the post: nothing.............. sniff sniff - may have to correct that in the the next few weeks with a puck of MWF.

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week #20
todays shave
prep: shower
Soap: Speick
Razor: 7/8 Joseph Ellot
Honed: 2 week of shaving
HHT: not done as I only do this at honing or pasted strop.
AF: Tabac spalsh

1st pass WTG: tried using a bit of a guillotine stroke. I think I have been doing it on part of my face without much thought,
so focused on doing this for the entire wtg pass. good beard reduction and felt comfortable doing it.
2nd pass XTG: what is the norm for me, ear to nose.
3rd pass ATG: tried the guillotine stroke under the jaw line only. result BBS

have been enjoying the shave with speick soap. just lacks a scent
been using my scuttle for a few weeks now. very nice to have warm lather, not sure if it makes a differnce in the shave result but does add to the enjoyment of the shave.
2nd week with the 7/8. have taken it to the pasted strop once and still fells as good as straight off the hone. will take it to the hone next weekend as I want to try a differnt honing stroke. watched a video of honing a razor with a smile and would like to give that a go as the very tip could do with a touch more hone time with the correct angle of attack.

was looking at the hollow of the 7/8 Joseph Ellot compaired to the 5/8 half hollow. The 7/8 looks a heavier grind but not by much. so this leaves me thinking which grind should I try next? Should I take a full hollow for a few laps around my face to see if it is for me, followed by a 1/4 hollow or the other way round.
decisions decisions decisions what is a man to do.

[global_dev]

was looking at the hollow of the 7/8 Joseph Ellot compaired to the 5/8 half hollow. The 7/8 looks a heavier grind but not by much. so this leaves me thinking which grind should I try next? Should I take a full hollow for a few laps around my face to see if it is for me, followed by a 1/4 hollow or the other way round.
decisions decisions decisions what is a man to do.

full hollow!

[Grips]

I agree about the scuttle. The lather does not seem better; but consistently warm lather is sure nice.

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full hollow!

yes I think the full hollow will offer the biggest difference from what I have now.

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shave week #21
todays shave
prep: shower
Soap: Irisch Moos
Razor: 7/8 Joseph Ellot
Honed: 3rd week of shaving with this razor since honing.
HHT: not done as I only do this at honing or pasted strop.
AF: DR Harris - Marlborough

1st pass WTG. used a guillotine stroke for the whole pass. have done this all week, good beard reduction
2nd pass XTG: standard pass for me ear to nose.
3rd pass WTG still using the light grip approch = light touch = smooth stroke = BBS face left behind.

This is the end of my 2 x 3 weeks using the same razor without honing. 1st 3 was with the 5/8 dovo and 2nd with the 7/8 Joseph Ellot.
conculsion: my edges can go more than 3 weeks. how far I don't know but happy with the result so far. after all I enjoy honing as well as shaving and the more I do both the better I get.
on that note I will take the 7/8 Joseph Ellot to the hone today with focus on a stroke for a smile. with start the stroke with heel forward on a 45' angle bring down the hone holding this angle until approx half way when I will start to bring the tip forward and finish with a swoop action to leave the tip forward on a 45' angle. I hope that made sence..........

I have just brough my third SR razor, a F.W Engels Leader, 11/16, Full hollow. looking forward to try this grind hope to have the razor some time next week.
that will leave me with a 1/4 hollow to sneek into the house while the Mrs is not looking. my leave that for a few month. Then I would have tried a good range of razors to work out what fits bets for me.

In the post: Gents the English Shaving Company is doing free shipping at the moment, so I picked up some Geo F Trumper Eucris Shaving Cream &
Geo F Trumper Spanish Leather Shaving Cream.
and from B&B BST a F.W Engels Leader, 11/16, Full hollow

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shave week #21 + 1day
todays shave
prep: shower
Soap: Irisch Moos
Razor: F.W Engels Leader, 11/16, Full hollow
Honed: by seller.
HHT: 3
AF: DR Harris - Marlborough

my F.W Engels Leader, 11/16, Full hollow arrived in the post yesteday
1st shave with a full hollow. Must say it's not a quite shave but was smooth.
done my standard 3 pass in the same way as yesterday to see how the different grind works for me. happy to say I liked it.
just one small problem, the gap to the end of the heel on this razor was just a little bit smaller than my razors.
with my fat fingers it seemed uncomfortable when held upside down with the scale at 90'. as I said small problem may try a differnt grip for that part of my shave.

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shave week #22
todays shave
prep: shower
Soap/Cream: mix of Eucris Shaving Cream & soap
Razor: F.W Engels Leader, 11/16, Full hollow
Honed: by seller.
HHT: 3
AF: DR Harris - Marlborough

have been using the F.W Engels Leader, 11/16, Full hollow all week.
1st WTG : good beard reduction razor has held a good keen edge over the week of use.
2nd XTD: ear to nose. for my neck I go up towards the chin on this pass and use my right hand only (when going chin down I use both left and right). on one side I hold the razor upside down, my first 2 fingers only just fit in between the gap. So I changed to holding with the scale straight out. don't use this grip at all so I am happy to get out of what has become a comfort zone with holding grips.
3rd ATG: smooth BBS results
This is my first full hollow and find it good to shave with but the shave results are no different than my other razors.
When shaving my neck around the adams apple, I can fell the hair being cut but with the 1/2 grind this seams to just glid on through with less fell. not a bad thing just different.
I need to try a 1/4 hollow now to see how that fits my shave. If all the talk re if you have thick beard use a thicker grind is correct this may be a good grind for me to try. no rush to try just on the to do list or should I say the I want list.....

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shave week #23
prep: shower
Soap/Cream: mix of Eucris Shaving Cream & soap
Razor: F.W Engels Leader, 11/16, Full hollow
Honed: by seller.
AF: TOBS - Shaving Shop

1st WTG good reduction.
2nd XTG Ear to nose
3rd XTG nose to ear. I have not done this pass since I started SR shaving. have decided to throw it in for the weekends. figure more passes = more shave time under the belt. good to try something different. pass was smooth just the doing a backhand stroke with the left hand on the left side of my face felt just a little bit odd.
4th ATD - good pass.

I have found myself to have settled into a shave routine. that in it's self is not a bad thing as are happy with my shave results but need to try a few thing with differnt grips and direction of attack to keep moving up the learning curve. will stay with the 3 pass shave on work days and do a 4 pass on the weekend using differnt grips and directions etc.

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shave week #25
prep: shower
Soap/Cream: mix of Eucris Shaving Cream & soap
Razor: Dovo 5/8 half hollow
Honed: by the one and only. The best homemister in my house... me
pasted strop: Today used excalibur/ a dozen laps on the TI paste then a dozen on Crox.
strop: 20 linen/60leather
AF: TOBS Bay Rum

1st pass WTG: long strokes good beard reduction.
2nd pass XTG: Ear to nose.
3rd pass XTG: Nose to ear. This is now my third weekend of using this pass. still trying to workout the best hand grip. Do enjoy this pass when time permits.
4th pass ATG: constant results here. I only use my right hand, this is the only pass I do this. getting BBS every shave but want to try using my right hand for left side and the left for the right side.

I had 2 sub par shaves last week not sure why. maybe still half asleep and shaving on autopilot.

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Todays shave was 6 month since I started shaving with a straight razor.
I wanted to make it a special shave to celebrate. Saturday morning are me time as the Mrs always goes out so pleanty of time and can crank up the sterio.
Added a hot towel in just for fun. I had tried this about 15 years ago with a DE shave but had not used the microwave.
This is a must try if you have not already.
For my scuttle I boiled the kettel prior to jumping into the shower (normal just use the hot tap water). This lets it drop in temp to approx 80'C / 176'F. by the time I pour it into the scuttle. pre heat scuttle with hot tap water as per standard procedure. Using the boiled water means I need to rehydrate the later between passses as it will start drying a bit but this puts the large spout to good use. result... toasty warm lather for 4 pass shave and more.
hot towel: rinsed in hot water. wrung out towel of all water then microwaved for 2 minutes. I applied the towel on top of a lathered face, now do be careful the towel will he hot but it came out just right temp. fingers said too hot, too hot what are you doing but my face said ahhh just right. YMMV
rinsed face and lathered up as per normal.

shave week #26
todays shave
prep: shower
Soap: Tabac
Razor: 7/8 Joseph Ellot
Honed: 1.5 weeks of use since honing.
pasted strop: today on excalibur - 12 laps TI pasted and then 15 Crox
strop: 30 linen / 60 leather
hot towel: rinsed in hot water. wrung out towel then microwaved for 2 minutes. (caution hot towel)
HHT: not done
AF: Tabac

1st pass: WTG. wiskers put up no resistance at all. could this be the pasted strop you may ask or the hot towel. now the answer must be both but that hot towel had a large part to play here.
2nd pass: XTG ear to nose
3rd pass: XTG nose to ear
4th pass: ATG. as I have said before this has been a right hand only shave and I have used my left hand a couple of time but find myself on autopilot Monday to Friday and my right hand just does the job on its own. weekend I seem to remember and have been using left and right. the left hand is feeling more natural and yield good results.

6 months in seems to be the time a lot of people mention to get muscle memory. For me I would say that would have been some were around 1 to 2 months in with good shaves coming in the first week.
SR shaving has me hook, line and sinker.

[Tkocloser]

Chris, sounds like great progress on your left hand for the ATG. I switch hands too and I'm convinced it will yield superior results when everything comes together. Also, I like your scuttle technique, I'll have to try that. SR shaving is awesome isn't it? I'm following your Rams horn thread too, can't wait to see how that turns out.

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Chris, sounds like great progress on your left hand for the ATG. I switch hands too and I'm convinced it will yield superior results when everything comes together. Also, I like your scuttle technique, I'll have to try that. SR shaving is awesome isn't it? I'm following your Rams horn thread too, can't wait to see how that turns out.

Thanks Tom. I even managed to override the autopilot this morning and use the left hand ATG on a Monday morning. no cuts and smooth strokes, just the starting of the stroke needs concentration. Can already tell it is right for me.

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shave week #28
todays shave
prep: shower
Soap: Irish Moos - nice soap shame they have stopped making it.
Razor: Dovo 5/8 half hollow
Honed: 1.5 weeks of use since honing.
pasted strop: -
strop: 30 linen / 60 leather
HHT: not done
AF: Tabac

1st - WTG
2nd - XTG ear to nose
3rd - XTG nose to ear.
4th - ATG using left and right for every shave. left hand is becoming comfortable in this pass.

Still doing a 3 pass shave Monday to Friday with a 4 pass in the weekends. Next week I will change the scond pass (of the 3 pass shaver) to nose to ear just to see how that goes.

A new 7/8 Hart is on the way. this is my first 1/4 so are looking forward to see how it shaves for me.
this will now give me a 1/4, 1/2 and full hollow and the 7/8 Joseph Ellot real hollow which I would say is between a 1/2 and 1/4.

[Tkocloser]

I'm eager to hear about your new 7/8 Hart! Also, neat idea trying to mix up your XTG pass. I might copy that move myself (I'm always ear to nose, never tried nose to ear just yet...gotta get my head around the grip). Thanks for sharing, it is important to mix the routine up a bit to keep making progress toward shaving nirvana.

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I'm eager to hear about your new 7/8 Hart! Also, neat idea trying to mix up your XTG pass. I might copy that move myself (I'm always ear to nose, never tried nose to ear just yet...gotta get my head around the grip). Thanks for sharing, it is important to mix the routine up a bit to keep making progress toward shaving nirvana.

hope to have the Hart by Friday with a bit of luck.
I use the same grip as WTG for my XTG nose to ear with right hand for the right side and left hand for left side, if that helps you.

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shave week #30
todays shave
prep: shower
Soap: mix of Eucris Soap & Cream
Razor: 7/8 Joseph Ellot
Honed: 2 weeks of use
pasted strop: - none
strop: 30 linen / 60 leather
HHT: not done
AF: TOBS - Shaving Shop

1st - WTG, 2nd - XTG ear to nose, 3rd - XTG nose to ear, 4th - ATG

Nice shave. Have not used the Eucris Soap for a while. leaves the face felling good after the shave and gives me a lot of glide.
Enjoy the weekend 4 pass shave but results are on very similar to my 3 pass.

Happy with left hand on the ATG pass, yielding smooth stokes.
At first if I was thinking to change direction one way but hand would adjust the other way. mind to blade control is now good.

My new Hart 7/8 arrived but I sent it back as they gave me a round point when ordered was a square point.
Hope to have the corrrect on in a week or two.

[Tkocloser]

hope to have the Hart by Friday with a bit of luck.
I use the same grip as WTG for my XTG nose to ear with right hand for the right side and left hand for left side, if that helps you.

That does help, I will try that Chris. Thanks!

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shave week #31
todays shave
prep: shower
Soap: Irish Moos
Razor: 15/16 Bengall full hollow
Honed: fresh off the hone
pasted strop: - none
strop: 30 linen / 60 leather
AF: Tabac splash

1st - WTG, 2nd - XTG ear to nose, 3rd - XTG nose to ear, 4th - ATG
This is the second shave with the 15/16 Bengall. The first left my face irritated after the ATG pass. I have been doing this pass from my first SR shave so could only be the razor. Back to the hone I went this time I dulled the edge before setting the bevel, so I can be sure the edge was mine.
Shave result was good. Smooth 4 pass shave with no irriation.
What I have learnt here is unless the razor comes from a good vendor or B&B member as shave ready, I will dull the edge and start with a new bevel.

I have been mantaining my a edges about once a week with my paddle strop - TI paste & Crox.
Now I will try using my Naniwa 12000 for touch ups.
Reason more hone time is a good thing, also want to see if there is any difference in how the edge holds and fells.

still eagerly awaiting my new Hart 7/8.

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shave week #32
todays shave
prep: shower
Cream: Geo F Trumpers - GFT
Razor: 15/16 Bengall full hollow
Honed: 1 week ago
pasted strop: - none
strop: 30 linen / 60 leather
AF: TOBS - ST James

1st pass - WTG good beard reduction
2nd pass - ATG ear to nose
3rd pass - XTG - smooth strokes.

Have used the 15/16 bengall all week and must say I am happy with how it shaves.
Using my left hand for the XTG pass is now second nature, yielding BBS every time.

The Bengall feels as good as it did first shave off the hone but will still take it for a few laps on the 12K Naniwa before putting it aside.
I have been using one razor for the whole week before moving onto the next in my rotation.