Hydrolast Products : Shaving Paste Question

[MacMelvyn]

I ordered a sample pack plus cutting balm thinking it would enable me to get a clear run at finding out more about the products and the method.
Unfortunately quite a bad cold and cold-sore got right in the way of any concentrated run at the test.
In the order I got from Charles was a tiny plastic container of what I think must be the shaving paste, it was quite a bright red, and odourless compound rather like a cutting paste for car bodywork.
Now I don't know if I used too much, I don't think I did, but the shaving-paste didn't last much past the first attempt (the test period of around a week and a half).
Since then I've been test shaving without the shaving paste and haven't noticed any difference with the shave results. Can anybody give me an indication of what I've been doing wrong?
I'm such a small customer just now I don't want to bother Charles with half-witted questions till I get the where-with-all for a new order.

 

[tsmba]

I've found easy to use too much of the paste. What I do is use the wooden tongue depressor to put a smear of the paste into my palm, squeeze my initial wet mix from the cloth on top, mix it together, and apply to my face. That's it!

I pretty much mimic Charles' movements in the 30+min video, ie: "buffering" the wet mask with the paste, then no more. I adjust the amount of paste to get more protection for the form one passes (I do two). I have discovered I went through the paste faster than the other products.

 

[MacMelvyn]

Thanks Tom, it would be easy to use too much though the objective was to use "the size of a dime", it's been a while since I saw a dime but I remember them being quite small.
Have you done the same shave without any shave paste at all?
Keeping everything else the same.

 

[sanuginz]

Well actually I've gotten pretty good results without any paste as well. From what I understand all you really need is a tiny amount for the first pass "stretching the mix" with your hand. It's also called a wet mask once the paste to face is applied. I suppose you could do without it, but I like to use it just for the overall experience and skin care.

 

[MacMelvyn]

Thanks Sanuginz, Tom also mentioned just how he used the shave-paste. I asked him if he had gone-through his routine in the same manner but excluding the shave-paste.
It was only that I had none that I tried that variant. Everything else apart the logistics can present problems.
Charles' prices can not be considered expensive at all from what I've seen but I almost paid the same amount to Swedish customs as I did Enchante (actually I had to pay the customs bill and also $25 to the Swedish post-office for sending me the customs bill!).
I'm sadly old enough to remember the Beatles "Tax Man", "If you take a walk we'll tax your feet"!
OK Sanuginz, getting back to the fun; I'll keep at it till I can get some resupply from Hydrolast. It will be interesting to try some glycerine based soap etc. I think the Shave-Cloth is great, that might be as the good brushes seem to be animal parts!
But a real thanks to the dedicated people of this forum. It is the one constant in this marvellously variable double-edged world (I know, I know; I'm working around to single/straight edge!)

 

[Zombasaur]

MacMelvyn, don't be afraid to ask Charles any questions. He and I talked for an hour on the phone before I had even ordered one product. He's more than happy to answer any questions.

 

[mars]

I very often forgo the paste completely. Just primer + cutting balm.

 

[gstrand]

MacMelvyn -

A dime is about 1mm smaller than a 50 ore.

That said, when I use the paste, I dip my index finger in, and take out about the size of a pea after I've lathered my face the first time. I do that for each half of my face.

I may or may not repeat it later in the process depending on how focused I am shaving (meaning how many of my kids are in the bathroom with me...)

If I were going to budget myself a bit, I would look locally for a french hard milled olive oil soap and order the balm and paste. I would also order more than one cloth. They are light and relatively inexpensive...

Skål!

 

[MacMelvyn]

Thanks Gus, Mars, Zombasaur,
There's some real tips here!
Gus' bathroom's privacy reminds me of somebody paraphrasing Ralph Waldo Emerson.
"The only time the world beats a path to your door is when you're in the bathroom".

 

[Friskyseal]

gstrand, do you know which paste you are using?

 

[tsmba]

I also have the "red" (CR calls it "pink")paste....it's the #2 "all purpose" product. Next time, I plan to try #1 as I've heard it creates a more stable, lower velocity, mix. I did order it with the eucalyptus scent, I cannot really smell eucalyptus, so I'm thinking scent is irrelevant.

No, I haven't tried shaving sans paste. Instead, I try to mimic Charles. To me, amounts "the size of a dime" aren't descriptive because its far too broad...it could be all sorts of depths. I once described using a "smear"(thin) as opposed to a "glob"(thick) portion. In the video, Charles simply massages in his paste onto his face. I get better coverage by blending the paste with slag, THEN applying it to my face.

I plan to try skipping the paste. My thinking is, given that I purchased full-sized amounts of all the products (rather than the smaller "starter kit" portions) and am close to the bottom of the paste tub, while everything else is over half-full. I'm hesitant to simply order paste due to shipping charges.

 

[gstrand]

gstrand, do you know which paste you are using?

#2. The red/pink normal one...

 

[SpeedyB]

I plan to try skipping the paste.

Will you provide your results when you have a chance to compare? I'm curious to find out more about people's experience with the Hydrolast products before I order any.

Cheers,
Brennan

 

[tsmba]

I certainly will but, you'll find tons of info about the experiences of method-shavers here, other shaving forums, and especially the Enchante website and Hydrolast forum. Shaving101 is another great place to look. In the end, though, the best thing is to simply order a starter kit and try it yourself. I would certainly recommend that you start out as shown by Charles, become familiar with the process, and master the basics prior to even considering any tweaks such as shaving w/o paste.

The only essentials for starting out are: primer, paste, cutting balm, and a shave cloth, which he offers for $24.95. The video on Shaving101, plus Charles' written materials, are the best starting points. Mantic's videos are nice, but the process has evolved since then. I hear Charles plans to present more video tutorials, but I haven't seen them yet.

 

[gstrand]

The only essentials for starting out are: primer, paste, cutting balm, and a shave cloth, which he offers for $24.95. The video on Shaving101, plus Charles' written materials, are the best starting points. Mantic's videos are nice, but the process has evolved since then.

yup. What he said. +1...

 

[Zombasaur]

I tend to just stick the tip of my finger in the paste and pull it out. What sticks to it is what I use. That gets rid of the popsicle stick, which I think would just end up causing a mess on my sink. I agree that the paste goes the quickest. Guess I'll have to throw in some activator with the order of paste to cut down on shipping costs....

 

[H8Debt]

I just completed a shave clinic with Charles today. He will answer his phone and entertain any questions you may have.

Let me get the "negatives" out of the way:
1) I don't like it when someone bashes other products and Charles isn't afraid to give "commercial products" a beat down, but that's just me
2) My neck was bleeding enough to where all the dots actually connected, but Charles assured me that as long as it's not blood from a slice, then it's ok. Sure enough, it's now ok. The bleeding was due to the condition of my skin and (apparently) my previous poor shaving habits (I was using a 30-day old M3).

The positives:
1) Charles knows his stuff and he is not afraid to share his knowledge. This makes up for #1 above.
2) Even my hands feel softer than before I shaved. The products create a different kind of softness than I've felt before.

Other observations:
When Charles got going on my face, he was FAST!!! He went North to South with a pace I never expected using a DE!!! Of course, when it was my turn, I went about 1/10th the pace (not exaggerating).

I learned that WTG, ATG, XTG might not matter (not ready to agree with him just yet).

 

[SpeedyB]

It's great to see so many folks who are experienced with the system and products. Watching Charles' video on shaving101 really grabbed my interest, and I've read a lot of his writing since then. He certainly takes advantage of hyperbole in some of his stuff but it's a great read nonetheless.

If I remember correctly the starter kits just include a cloth, primer, and paste. This is partly why I'd like to hear others' experiences with the products. I'm inclined to buy the starter kit plus activator and cutting balm, but I need to recover from my recent bout of RAD first. Anyone want to trade an Old Type or Stahly for some hydrolast ?

 

[Zombasaur]

No thanks on the trade. I'll stick with the Hydrolast. I use the HD with the shaving, what's the point of the other razors?

 

[SpeedyB]

I've been really liking my 39c Slant so far, and have heard others have success using the Slant with Method Shaving. Anyone use other razors with MS (Gillette adjustables in particular)?