April Frugal Follies Cheapskate Challenge (AFFCC) - 2021.

[Rosseforp]

AFFCC #11


Razor: Razorock DE1
Blade: King C Gillette(4)
Brush: Omega 10290
Soap: Vitos Extra Super Coco
ASL: Aqua Velva
ASB: Nivea balm

After a long day at the races it was nice to come home to a relaxing shower and shave.

My Volt ran a 9.859 on a 9.86 Dial In. That is called a Break-Out and I was done for the day. One measly thousandth of a second. Of course if it had gone the other way and been one thousandth of a second slower I would have been bragging about what a great race car driver I was instead. Lol


I ran into a couple more of my old racing buddies and we all had a good time. Well, Woody wasn't too happy when his transmission broke in half, but he had the new parts ordered before we went home.
Woody did win yesterday, so that softened the blow a bit.

Oh yeah, the DE1 and the King C Gillette were up to the task, the Vitos and Omega boar blended up a nice lather, and a nice comfortable close shave was had.

 

[BubblesUK]

AFFCC - Day 26, Shave 23

Baili 191
Derby Extra (23)
Anbbas synthetic
Palmolive
Alum

All is still working great, the blade even at 23 shaves is still doing the job without hiccup - no complaints whatsoever there, a testament to both the humble Derby and the understated efficiency of the Baili.

Today's temptation?
Twin Tech's - both flat bottoms, though surprisingly different yet not different at all.
The baseplates are subtly different, the caps are different (one creased, one not) and the handles are different (one regular old fat handle, the other a thinner and shorter version)... But for all this, they're both still very much Tech's - efficient, smooth and mild.

I love them both, but this month belongs to the Baili! Resisted!

 

[Multum in parvo]

I’m over the hump and thoroughly enjoyed a DFS+ shave today
Looking forward to the next shaves and the finishing line.

 

[wmadoty]

Awesome shave today with my cheap kit. I am looking forward to a change.

 

[Rosseforp]

Tuesday, April 27
AFFCC #12


Razor: Razorock DE1
Blade: King C Gillette(5)
Brush: Omega 10290
Soap: Vitos Extra Super Coco
ASL: Aqua Velva
ASB: Nivea balm

I was actually looking forward to shaving tonight, and the economy kit delivered another fantastic shave. The King C Gillette blade, I think is what puts this kit over the top.

One more shave with this kit and I have some new brushes that I just put together I want to try out.

 

[BubblesUK]

One more shave with this kit and I have some new brushes that I just put together I want to try out.

Looking great!

I've got a few handles in process at the moment (and plenty of heads left) - may have to treat myself to a new brush very soon!

Can't wait to get back to my favourite (with ironic homemade handle... Wenge and Tulipwood - with the top shaped vaguely like a tulip ):

 

[BubblesUK]

AFFCC - Day 28, Shave 25

Baili 191
Derby Extra (25)
Anbbas synthetic
Palmolive
Alum

Nothing interesting to report still, all still a comfortable and happy cruise towards the finish line.

No time for pictures today so also no temptation.

 

[bjm]

As my mind slowly drifted to subjects totally unrelated to work, I started thinking about this thread. I know the idea is not to see how inexpensive a kit a person could put together for a month of shaves, but that's exactly what I did anyway.




$5 Omega 13564 from Maggard Razors (Black Friday sale)
$4 Derby Extra (20 blades) from Amazon
$3 P&G Gillette Super Blue from AlieExpress
$2 Williams Mug Shaving Soap from Walgreens
$1 Dove Men + Care from Walgreens
$15 TOTAL

The weak link in this kit for me is the brush. I recently removed it from my rotation because of its size. The handle, knot, and loft are all below my personal minimum desired dimensions for a brush. I will probably have an even stronger dislike for the brush after a few days, but I'll survive the ordeal. I've used the brush before so I'll just suck it up for a month. #FirstWorldProblems

I really wanted to get either the Omega 10065 boar or S10065 synthetic for the 2022 AFFCC, but I will probably talk myself out of the purchase. I don't need another boar to compete with the ones I already have, and I don't need another synthetic for travel since the one I already have rarely leaves the house.

Okay. That was a nice distraction, but it's time for me to get back to work...

 

[Multum in parvo]

This is a heads up for the last shave of the month with this setup and razor.

As I have a friendly discussion with @ivan_101 about the nature of the Super Blue Tech's Cap (sintered steel vs. nickled Zamak) I will saw it in half after the shave to see if we can clear this issue up. At the moment all points in the direction of Ivan --> the plate is aluminium and not stamped steel and the cap was fairly soft against the tip of a screw driver. The only piece that I'm fairly sure that it is made from steel is the ferule of the handle.

To soften the blow and liften our hearts, even though this is wanton destruction in the name of curiosity, I have added today my modest family of other Gillette razors that will come to the fore in May.

I will not cast out the Super Blue whatever the outcome may be and have already placed a new one in my dopp bag. This time WITH the original handle that I have come to like over the course of this month.

Final ramblings about the whole exercise will follow later in the day

 

[Multum in parvo]

First the good thing, I had an absolut smooth shave for BBS (one tiny weeper where I pushed too much). The whole month was a total success shaving wise!

Yes, a great shave is not related to super expensive stuff and yes you can save money compared to carts and canned foam. What wrecks it for the hobbyist is a) boredom using the same stuff day after day b) enablers on those danged message boards and c) the Want/Need/Collect dilemma if you have time and money on hand.

Now to the sad part. I did the magic trick and sawed the trusty Tech in half. It is very hard to catch it with my Iphone cam but I have to concede to @ivan_101

In the first picture what looks like strands of foil on the bottom of the cut is most probably the plating with the inner part of the cut being slightly darker --> let's say Zamak and Nickel. Cutting it was quite easy so if it would be steel it would be a very mild one.

If anybody can read more out the pics or has a different view please chime in!

All the best to my fellow AFFCC'ers and see you next year with new gear

 

[ivan_101]

First the good thing, I had an absolut smooth shave for BBS (one tiny weeper where I pushed too much). The whole month was a total success shaving wise!

Yes, a great shave is not related to super expensive stuff and yes you can save money compared to carts and canned foam. What wrecks it for the hobbyist is a) boredom using the same stuff day after day b) enablers on those danged message boards and c) the Want/Need/Collect dilemma if you have time and money on hand.

Now to the sad part. I did the magic trick and sawed the trusty Tech in half. It is very hard to catch it with my Iphone cam but I have to concede to @ivan_101

In the first picture what looks like strands of foil on the bottom of the cut is most probably the plating with the inner part of the cut being slightly darker --> let's say Zamak and Nickel. Cutting it was quite easy so if it would be steel it would be a very mild one.

If anybody can read more out the pics or has a different view please chime in!

View attachment 1259391
View attachment 1259392

All the best to my fellow AFFCC'ers and see you next year with new gear

Still, nothing wrong with the top cap being ZAMAK. This razor would easily withstand 8-10 years of everyday shaving with some care and cleaning. The nickel plating is decent as is supposed to be. The latest Super Blues I bought were $2.47 / piece with free shipping. And it shaves like a 70s Tech.

 

[wmadoty]

... As I have a friendly discussion with @ivan_101 about the nature of the Super Blue Tech's Cap (sintered steel vs. nickled Zamak) I will saw it in half after the shave to see if we can clear this issue up. At the moment all points in the direction of Ivan --> the plate is aluminium and not stamped steel and the cap was fairly soft against the tip of a screw driver. The only piece that I'm fairly sure that it is made from steel is the ferule of the handle. ...

I am no expert but I will check with a magnet when I get home. I am fairly certain that the base plate on my Gillette Blue razor is stamped steel. I think so because when I received it it was badly bent and I had to straighten both sides with a pair of pliers. I had to bend the base plate about 1/8 of an inch on one side and approximately 1/16 of an inch on the other. I massaged the edges back into shape so that it would have an even blade gap. If you look close you will see tool marks on my base plate in the pictures I have posted. My thinking is that if the base plate were Zamak or Aluminum I do not think it could have survived the surgery I performed.

I am not sure if the top cap is Zamak or Aluminum but my guess is Plated Zamak. The bushing in the handle appears to be good quality stainless. I also have come to appreciate the plastic handle and the balance of the whole razor in general.

I do have a couple more of these razors still in the box that I use as giveaways for family and friends that are thinking about getting into wet shaving.

 

[Rosseforp]

Thursday, April 29
AFFCC #13


Razor: Razorock DE1
Blade: King C Gillette(6)
Brush: Omega 10290
Soap: Vitos Extra Super Coco
ASL: Aqua Velva
ASB: Nivea balm


Tonight's shave was probably the closest shave of the month, maybe one of my closest shaves of the year. It goes to show that with the right technique, even a meager kit can provide superb results.
With this same kit 2 years ago I would not have been pleased with the results. With such a mild razor as the DE1 is, every shave was a challenge to produce not only a close shave, but one that was comfortable to boot.

I will close out the AFFCC as it was so close I won't have any stubble tomorrow.

And the shave was comfortable.

For a teaser my 1967 M4 Vietnam War era Tech, my Pre War Tech, and my 1953 Y2 Korean War Tech with steel baseplate.

 

[BubblesUK]

AFFCC - Day 30, Shave 27

Baili 191
Derby Extra (27)
Anbbas synthetic
Palmolive
Alum

Well then my friends, that is that!

It's been a good month - the shaves have been excellent, close and comfortable all the way through.

The humble Derby Extra has surpassed my expectations. I wasn't sure whether it'd be a great match for the Baili to begin with and had no great expectations of its lifespan - in the end, I've gone right through the month on a single blade missing just a few days!

The razor and cream are familiar enough that they were always safe picks - they've performed nicely and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them again (I have done in the past).

The brush... The saving over the cheapest omega's isn't enough to justify having to wait 2-3 weeks for it to arrive - so I wouldn't be likely at all to recommend it really.

So, on to freedom and using whatever I feel like again!!!

 

[bjm]

Thank you @BubblesUK for starting this thread and thanks to all of the participants for your contributions. I found the AFFCC to be a nice exercise and challenge to show a decent shaving kit doesn't need to be expensive. A month of consistent components allowed me to further determine a few preferences and also improve on some techniques. I've already decided on my gear for next year's AFFCC. I'm even considering maxing out the budget and using the chosen setup until one of the consumables (blades or soap) runs out. We'll see; I still have eleven months to change my mind

Be well, stay safe, and peace to you all...