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- #41
akamarcus' DE shave journal
- Thread starter akamarcus
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- #42
Day 25 of shave journal:
Preshave: Just a face rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (4th use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second additional lather with each pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: 2 weepers, 1 nick.
Verdict: I had somewhere to be and didn't leave enough time for the 3rd pass, so I rushed it and got the nick and weepers. I'm getting much better about avoiding irritation with a 4-day old blade though.
Preshave: Just a face rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (4th use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second additional lather with each pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: 2 weepers, 1 nick.
Verdict: I had somewhere to be and didn't leave enough time for the 3rd pass, so I rushed it and got the nick and weepers. I'm getting much better about avoiding irritation with a 4-day old blade though.
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- #43
Day 26 of shave journal:
Preshave: Just a hot face rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (1st use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second additional lather with each pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 4 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, ATG, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: No blood or irritation!
Verdict: I really took my time today during the shave and paid close attention to how much pressure I applied so I didn't cause any irritation. I am very happy with the outcome of this shave!
Preshave: Just a hot face rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (1st use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second additional lather with each pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 4 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, ATG, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: No blood or irritation!
Verdict: I really took my time today during the shave and paid close attention to how much pressure I applied so I didn't cause any irritation. I am very happy with the outcome of this shave!
Just watch that blade angle and don't apply pressure, my neck hair grows out towards the ears, rather than do a ATG , I do an angle from under chin down towards the adams apple , if you catch my drift... it may also just being a case of your neck taking a while to succumb to the all empowering SE shaving experience...
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- #45
Day 27 of shave journal:
Preshave: Just a hot face rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (2nd use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second additional lather with each pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 2.5 passes: today's shave was very unconventional for me. 2 passes on my cheeks and 3 passes on my neck, but didn't follow a particular direction for any of them.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: 3 weepers.
Verdict: This was an experiment and it didn't turn out very well. Essentially, I tried to get small patches at a time completely smooth before moving on to the next. This required a lot of blade buffing and caused quite a bit of irritation on my neck. Tomorrow, I'm going back to a standard 3 pass shave while maintaining the direction of each pass.
Preshave: Just a hot face rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (2nd use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second additional lather with each pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 2.5 passes: today's shave was very unconventional for me. 2 passes on my cheeks and 3 passes on my neck, but didn't follow a particular direction for any of them.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: 3 weepers.
Verdict: This was an experiment and it didn't turn out very well. Essentially, I tried to get small patches at a time completely smooth before moving on to the next. This required a lot of blade buffing and caused quite a bit of irritation on my neck. Tomorrow, I'm going back to a standard 3 pass shave while maintaining the direction of each pass.
Good experiment. Just not the result you were expecting.
It's all good.
Hang in there,
Ww
It's all good.
Hang in there,
Ww
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- #47
Day 28 of shave journal:
Preshave: Just a hot face rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (3rd use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/bowl lather, 30 second face lather with each pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: 1 weeper.
Verdict: A pretty good shave. I only ever get weepers on my neck now.
Preshave: Just a hot face rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (3rd use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/bowl lather, 30 second face lather with each pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: 1 weeper.
Verdict: A pretty good shave. I only ever get weepers on my neck now.
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- #48
Day 29 of shave journal:
Preshave: Just a hot face rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (4th use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/bowl lather, 30 second face lather with each pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 4 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, ATG, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: 3 weepers around my Adam's apple. This whipped dog silvertip is a lather machine! Honestly, I probably could have done a dozen passes before I ran out of lather!
Verdict: A good shave considering the age of the blade. I can't figure out how to adequately reduce the hair on my neck without getting weepers. It seems that unless I devote a time to a particular area with blade buffing, I can't reduce the hair so the skin is smooth. If I do that, however, I end up with serious irritation from so many passes with the blade over that area. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Preshave: Just a hot face rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (4th use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/bowl lather, 30 second face lather with each pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 4 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, ATG, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: 3 weepers around my Adam's apple. This whipped dog silvertip is a lather machine! Honestly, I probably could have done a dozen passes before I ran out of lather!
Verdict: A good shave considering the age of the blade. I can't figure out how to adequately reduce the hair on my neck without getting weepers. It seems that unless I devote a time to a particular area with blade buffing, I can't reduce the hair so the skin is smooth. If I do that, however, I end up with serious irritation from so many passes with the blade over that area. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Have your tried cold water shaving yet as an experiment? Not just a cold rinse but ice in the sink water to give it a chill and use a piece of ice between passes? The cold water helps on irritation.
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- #50
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- #51
Day 30 of shave journal:
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (1st use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: Day 1 of 3-day no-irritation experiment: no weepers or irritation. I focused particularly on applying no pressure, and that worked well. I kept vocally saying to myself "short strokes, no pressure."
Verdict: My skin feels great, albeit I can feel the stubble in every direction but WTG.
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (1st use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: Day 1 of 3-day no-irritation experiment: no weepers or irritation. I focused particularly on applying no pressure, and that worked well. I kept vocally saying to myself "short strokes, no pressure."
Verdict: My skin feels great, albeit I can feel the stubble in every direction but WTG.
I build it with cold water either by letting an ice begin to melt in the bowl while I shower, or from cold sink water...it works great. Most of my shave journal discusses the technique and there are pics of the lather that I build using cold water. I suspect you may have a few less noticeable weepers with the cold water, especially, if you use an ice cube between passes as your blood vessels constrict. It works for me at least.
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- #53
Day 31 of shave journal:
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (2ast use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: Day 2 of 3-day no-irritation experiment: no weepers or irritation.
Verdict: Closer shave than yesterday, still no irritation.
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (2ast use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: Day 2 of 3-day no-irritation experiment: no weepers or irritation.
Verdict: Closer shave than yesterday, still no irritation.
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- #54
Day 32 of shave journal:
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (3rd use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: Day 3 of 3-day no-irritation experiment: no weepers or irritation.
Verdict: I'm pretty happy with how my skin feels. The experiment worked. I'll maintain little pressure in my shaves to keep irritation down, and I'll be working to discover the key to my close shave on my neck.
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (3rd use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: Day 3 of 3-day no-irritation experiment: no weepers or irritation.
Verdict: I'm pretty happy with how my skin feels. The experiment worked. I'll maintain little pressure in my shaves to keep irritation down, and I'll be working to discover the key to my close shave on my neck.
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- #55
Day 33 of shave journal:
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse. I read up on making my own pre-shave oil, and I just picked some mint from the garden yesterday, so it's not quite ready. Today I just used some plain-old olive oil until my mint stuff is ready and I can get my hands on some castor oil.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (4th use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: No irritation.
Verdict: My cheeks/jaw line can handle almost anything I throw at them. The pre-shave oil seemed to help with 2nd and 3rd passes, but sometimes it seemed like it made it more difficult to shave, as though it were less slick. I'll add more water when I try it again tomorrow.
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse. I read up on making my own pre-shave oil, and I just picked some mint from the garden yesterday, so it's not quite ready. Today I just used some plain-old olive oil until my mint stuff is ready and I can get my hands on some castor oil.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (4th use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: No irritation.
Verdict: My cheeks/jaw line can handle almost anything I throw at them. The pre-shave oil seemed to help with 2nd and 3rd passes, but sometimes it seemed like it made it more difficult to shave, as though it were less slick. I'll add more water when I try it again tomorrow.
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- #56
Day 34 of shave journal:
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (1st use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: No irritation.
Verdict: An irritation-free shave is a great shave!
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (1st use), Whipped Dog 20 mm deep-set silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer!
Summary: No irritation.
Verdict: An irritation-free shave is a great shave!
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- #57
Day 35 of shave journal:
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse. I followed a few online suggestions for making your own mint oil and let it sit in the sun for 2 days. The mint spoiled and the oil smells badly. I picked up some castor oil at the store today and will probably just pick up some essential oil to add to it. I did notice, however, that the mint oil is much more slick than pure olive oil. Given the problems I have had with the first pass when using pre-shave oil, this gives me some hope.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (2nd use), Omega 11648, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, Additional load on 2 passes. The Omega boar doesn't hold nearly as much lather as the Whipped Dog silvertip, but it is a great face latherer!
Shave: 4 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, ATG, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer.
Summary: 6 weepers on my neck.
Verdict: I have decided that 4 passes is more than my skin can handle on my neck, no matter how little pressure I apply. If I want to get a closer shave, I may have to go with a more aggressive razor. I'm hoping to get my hands on a Slim adjustable.
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse. I followed a few online suggestions for making your own mint oil and let it sit in the sun for 2 days. The mint spoiled and the oil smells badly. I picked up some castor oil at the store today and will probably just pick up some essential oil to add to it. I did notice, however, that the mint oil is much more slick than pure olive oil. Given the problems I have had with the first pass when using pre-shave oil, this gives me some hope.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (2nd use), Omega 11648, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, Additional load on 2 passes. The Omega boar doesn't hold nearly as much lather as the Whipped Dog silvertip, but it is a great face latherer!
Shave: 4 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, ATG, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer.
Summary: 6 weepers on my neck.
Verdict: I have decided that 4 passes is more than my skin can handle on my neck, no matter how little pressure I apply. If I want to get a closer shave, I may have to go with a more aggressive razor. I'm hoping to get my hands on a Slim adjustable.
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- #58
Day 36 of shave journal:
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse. Mixed some castor oil with olive oil and the slickness was really nice! A definite improvement over just olive oil.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (3rd use), Whipped Dog silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer.
Summary: No irritation.
Verdict: I'm getting better about actually applying NO pressure when shaving. I think part of the reason I have sometimes had so much trouble with irritation is because even though I only do a maximum of 4 passes, I end up blade buffing on each pass in the trouble areas, hence making those areas endure an actual 12+ passes. I also tend to automatically apply more pressure to those areas. I think I have just been too psychologically concerned about BBS shaves and that negatively affected the quality of the shaves. I really would eventually like to try an aggressive razor to minimize the number of passes I do.
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse. Mixed some castor oil with olive oil and the slickness was really nice! A definite improvement over just olive oil.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (3rd use), Whipped Dog silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer.
Summary: No irritation.
Verdict: I'm getting better about actually applying NO pressure when shaving. I think part of the reason I have sometimes had so much trouble with irritation is because even though I only do a maximum of 4 passes, I end up blade buffing on each pass in the trouble areas, hence making those areas endure an actual 12+ passes. I also tend to automatically apply more pressure to those areas. I think I have just been too psychologically concerned about BBS shaves and that negatively affected the quality of the shaves. I really would eventually like to try an aggressive razor to minimize the number of passes I do.
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- #59
Day 37 of shave journal (2 Aug 2013):
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse. 50/50 mix of olive and castor oils. Waiting to get some essential oil to add for fragrance.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (4th use), Whipped Dog silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer.
Summary: No irritation.
Verdict: This was a quick shave, but a good one. I was rushing to get out of the house to go to a good friend's wedding, so I kind of had to rush things, but I still got 3 passes in and was very careful about how much pressure I applied.
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse. 50/50 mix of olive and castor oils. Waiting to get some essential oil to add for fragrance.
Gear: Gillette 40s style Super Speed, Astra SP (4th use), Whipped Dog silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer.
Summary: No irritation.
Verdict: This was a quick shave, but a good one. I was rushing to get out of the house to go to a good friend's wedding, so I kind of had to rush things, but I still got 3 passes in and was very careful about how much pressure I applied.
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- #60
Day 38 of shave journal (3 Aug 2013):
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse. 50/50 mix of castor and olive oils, no fragrance.
Gear: Edwin Jagger DE86, Astra SP (1st use), Whipped Dog silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer.
Summary: No irritation.
Verdict: As you may have noticed, I tried a different razor today. This Edwin Jagger DE86 is the only other razor I own, and came with the kit that I purchased that included the Whipped Dog silvertip. I enjoy that it is slightly more aggressive than the vintage Gillette Super Speed. In 3 passes with a tiny bit of blade buffing, I was able to get as close a shave as I ever have with only 3 passes and the Gillette. I don't really like the handle of the DE86 though. It's smooth and I cannot get a very good grip on it while wet unless it is completely free of soap.
Preshave: Quick face wash in the shower plus a hot rinse. 50/50 mix of castor and olive oils, no fragrance.
Gear: Edwin Jagger DE86, Astra SP (1st use), Whipped Dog silvertip, Palmolive shave stick.
Lather: 60/120 second load/face lather, 30 second lather with each additional pass, no additional load required.
Shave: 3 passes: WTG, XTG1, XTG2, plus a cold rinse.
Aftershave: Mennen Skin Bracer.
Summary: No irritation.
Verdict: As you may have noticed, I tried a different razor today. This Edwin Jagger DE86 is the only other razor I own, and came with the kit that I purchased that included the Whipped Dog silvertip. I enjoy that it is slightly more aggressive than the vintage Gillette Super Speed. In 3 passes with a tiny bit of blade buffing, I was able to get as close a shave as I ever have with only 3 passes and the Gillette. I don't really like the handle of the DE86 though. It's smooth and I cannot get a very good grip on it while wet unless it is completely free of soap.
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