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Journey to find my razor preference

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First shave with the Schick Krona yesterday.
To be honest I'm not quite sure what to say about this first shave because I found it somewhat perplexing.
Anyway, the usual three passes with WTG, XTG, ATG. Got a couple of nicks, which is the norm whichever razor I use. The quality of the shave was good, not quite BBS but definitely in DFS+ territory.
It was an effortless shave where the angle came easily, no struggles with using the razor, it was simply easy and effortless.
But despite that, the razor felt, well, dangerous. I'd even describe it as aggressive even though this shouldn't be an aggressive razor. I think it might have something to do with the blade exposure and that I felt a lot more of the blade as I shaved. And it's strange that I felt that but at the same time had such an easy and effortless shave.
My immediate thought after finishing the shave was that the Feather blade might not be a good fit for this razor and that a less sharp blade might feel better. That will of course be tested at a later time, but I feel it's worth noting.

It's been roughly 24 hours since the shave and the stubble is not nearly as pronounced as I get with other razors in the same time span. I think the Rocket Flare Tip that I started out with gave a similar close shave and that is a big plus for the Krona.

The handle has a slightly odd shape but I never really reflected on it or considered it during the shave. The same can be said about the weight, it is a light razor, but I didn't even think about it during the shave. Despite being plastic, the handle gave a good grip and it never felt like the razor would slip in my hand.

It's going to be interesting to see how the impressions evolve after shave two and three with this razor.
 
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First shave with the Schick Krona yesterday.
To be honest I'm not quite sure what to say about this first shave because I found it somewhat perplexing.
Anyway, the usual three passes with WTG, XTG, ATG. Got a couple of nicks, which is the norm whichever razor I use. The quality of the shave was good, not quite BBS but definitely in DFS+ territory.
It was an effortless shave where the angle came easily, no struggles with using the razor, it was simply easy and effortless.
But despite that, the razor felt, well, dangerous. I'd even describe it as aggressive even though this shouldn't be an aggressive razor. I think it might have something to do with the blade exposure and that I felt a lot more of the blade as I shaved. And it's strange that I felt that but at the same time had such an easy and effortless shave.
My immediate thought after finishing the shave was that the Feather blade might not be a good fit for this razor and that a less sharp blade might feel better. That will of course be tested at a later time, but I feel it's worth noting.

It's been roughly 24 hours since the shave and the stubble is not nearly as pronounced as I get with other razors in the same time span. I think the Rocket Flare Tip that I started out with gave a similar close shave and that is a big plus for the Krona.

The handle has a slightly odd shape but I never really reflected on it or considered it during the shave. The same can be said about the weight, it is a light razor, but I didn't even think about it during the shave. Despite being plastic, the handle gave a good grip and it never felt like the razor would slip in my hand.

It's going to be interesting to see how the impressions evolve after shave two and three with this razor.
Yes some razors feel "dangerous" to me as well and they usually take a bit to get used to and use well. With practice you will have it down.
 
I only have two brushes, the Edwin Jagger you've seen in the images and I also have a Kent brush that I need to repair. Both are made with badger hair and I've been inkling to try a synthetic.
Did some reading and both Yaqi and Dscosmetic came up as cheap alternatives with great quality.
Said and done, I ordered some brushes and the first batch arrived today:
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The left one is a 26mm tuxedo and the right one is a 24mm G7.

Used the 24mm G7 for the shave today and it will take some getting used to. I thought a synthetic would hold less water so I was a bit careful as I squeezed it before loading the brush with soap but the lather got very wet. It was quite serviceable still, but I think I can do better.
I also felt like the brush was quite stiff with strong back bone so it felt difficult to get a decent splay with it.
Practice makes perfect and perhaps it also needs some usage to "break it in" so to speak.

As for the shave it was with the Schick Krona and a feather blade.
Yet another smooth, easy and effortless shave with excellent quality. Result was DFS++ and I got a couple of nicks (as usual) and one weeper on my cheek, dunno how that happened.
I did not get the same feeling of "aggressiveness" or "danger" this time around.
After two shaves the impression is that this is an amazing razor simply based on the quality of the shave and how easy it is to use. At the same time there is something, well, not wrong, but something that doesn't sit quite right with me. Like something is missing, but I have no idea what.
Either way, one more shave with a feather blade and this razor will definitely be put through it's paces with a ton of different blades.

And it's that time again, to share yet another of my purchases. This one is quite recent, just last week if I'm not mistaken, and I only bought it because I could not figure out what it is.
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I'm suspecting that this might be a mix of parts, mostly based on the different finishes. It weights 44g and is 78mm long.
The case which I initially thought was a Gillette one, might not be because there are no markings on it whatsoever.
Would love your input on this razor and what you think it might be.
 
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First shave with the Schick Krona yesterday.
To be honest I'm not quite sure what to say about this first shave because I found it somewhat perplexing.
Anyway, the usual three passes with WTG, XTG, ATG. Got a couple of nicks, which is the norm whichever razor I use. The quality of the shave was good, not quite BBS but definitely in DFS+ territory.
It was an effortless shave where the angle came easily, no struggles with using the razor, it was simply easy and effortless.
But despite that, the razor felt, well, dangerous. I'd even describe it as aggressive even though this shouldn't be an aggressive razor. I think it might have something to do with the blade exposure and that I felt a lot more of the blade as I shaved. And it's strange that I felt that but at the same time had such an easy and effortless shave.
My immediate thought after finishing the shave was that the Feather blade might not be a good fit for this razor and that a less sharp blade might feel better. That will of course be tested at a later time, but I feel it's worth noting.

It's been roughly 24 hours since the shave and the stubble is not nearly as pronounced as I get with other razors in the same time span. I think the Rocket Flare Tip that I started out with gave a similar close shave and that is a big plus for the Krona.

The handle has a slightly odd shape but I never really reflected on it or considered it during the shave. The same can be said about the weight, it is a light razor, but I didn't even think about it during the shave. Despite being plastic, the handle gave a good grip and it never felt like the razor would slip in my hand.

It's going to be interesting to see how the impressions evolve after shave two and three with this razor.
Keep using the Feather in that Krona because any less aggressive blade will be a disappointment. I know that razor has its fans but I find it a poor performer that requires a lot of effort and skill to achieve acceptable results.
 
I also felt like the brush was quite stiff with strong back bone so it felt difficult to get a decent splay with it.
Practice makes perfect and perhaps it also needs some usage to "break it in" so to speak.
I have had real trouble warming to synthetic brushes, I am about to commit to using my synthetic (Big Bruce) all month to see if frequent use can break down the resistance.

One of the things I find unnerving is the bend in the synthetic bristle and splay feels unnatural. I have a working theory (more of a hypothesis really) that natural bristles with splitting at the end tend to be more bendy at the tips and get stiffer as you move down the bristle making the feel softer near the tips. Synthetic does not split and is equally strong all the way down so for me always tends to bend in the middle of the fibre. This gives a bouncier feel than what I get from natural fibre. Overall, I feel like the tips of the synthetic fibres grip the face and the middle bends, meaning there is no natural splay as such.

That may be just my brushes to date and hopefully after this month I will have more experience to draw on.

Enjoy your experimentation.
 
Keep using the Feather in that Krona because any less aggressive blade will be a disappointment. I know that razor has its fans but I find it a poor performer that requires a lot of effort and skill to achieve acceptable results.
Interesting. I've felt like the Feather is too aggressive in this razor but it will be interesting to see how it will perform with a less aggressive blade. All part of the journey 🙂
I have had real trouble warming to synthetic brushes, I am about to commit to using my synthetic (Big Bruce) all month to see if frequent use can break down the resistance.

One of the things I find unnerving is the bend in the synthetic bristle and splay feels unnatural. I have a working theory (more of a hypothesis really) that natural bristles with splitting at the end tend to be more bendy at the tips and get stiffer as you move down the bristle making the feel softer near the tips. Synthetic does not split and is equally strong all the way down so for me always tends to bend in the middle of the fibre. This gives a bouncier feel than what I get from natural fibre. Overall, I feel like the tips of the synthetic fibres grip the face and the middle bends, meaning there is no natural splay as such.

That may be just my brushes to date and hopefully after this month I will have more experience to draw on.

Enjoy your experimentation.
Your theory sounds plausible and sort of reflects my observations with the synthetic I used yesterday.
I am slightly doubtful about frequent use changing the feel of the brush since it is not a natural fibre. I would think that they rather break than get softer etc.

Will be interesting to see what you think after a month using synthetics.
 
Another shave with the Schick & Feather combo today.
As the previous shaves it was effortless, easy and smooth. Excellent shave quality despite a miserable lather, but more on that in a bit.
Most of my face actually ended up BBS but there are some DFS spots, so overall I'd say it's DFS+. Only a couple nicks, as usual.
I think I've said it before, but this razor is perplexing. I should love it simply based on how easy it is to use and the quality it delivers. But I don't. Don't get me wrong, the razor is amazing and I would gladly recommend anyone to try it. But based on these three shaves I would say it's not for me, but I can't put my finger on why.
I read a comment from a member on another razor that that particular razor was too easy to use and provided no challenge. Perhaps it is something similar with this razor, but it is silly. Would you really like to have a challenge when shaving?
Oh well. I'll use the Schick Krona with other blades as well before making any decisions, it is way too early to decide.

I mentioned miserable lather. I tried the other DScosmetic brush, the 26mm tuxedo and I probably over-compensated and had too little water on the brush because the lather was quite dry and adding water didn't do much.
Not sure if I've mentioned it but I'm a face latherer, never had any success with bowl lathering but these synthetics feel like they might work better with bowl lathering. I should perhaps devote an hour or two to try and get better at bowl lathering.
Anyway, back to the brush. I tried the brush dry just to get a feel for it and it felt good, soft and splayed decently well. But as soon as it was wet it started showing the same characteristics as the other synthetic, i.e. strong backbone and difficult to splay. This brush did feel good in my hand though, nice weight in the handle and a comfortable shape.
So far I'm not a big fan of the strong backbone in these brushes but I will keep at it.
 
Not sure if I've mentioned it but I'm a face latherer, never had any success with bowl lathering but these synthetics feel like they might work better with bowl lathering.
I was/am a bowl latherer, but I have been on a daily face lathering streak since OCtober. I find that synths work just as fine. I just need to shake them and squeeze them more than natural hair brushes before turning to loading soap. I then dip the tips to add a little weather to my face to build my lather.

I have found that with heavy backbone brushes I start on my chin rather than my cheek. This easy I get the brush to splay a bit and enough to then continue to the cheek. Might work for you too.

Enjoy!

Guido
 
I was/am a bowl latherer, but I have been on a daily face lathering streak since OCtober. I find that synths work just as fine. I just need to shake them and squeeze them more than natural hair brushes before turning to loading soap. I then dip the tips to add a little weather to my face to build my lather.

I have found that with heavy backbone brushes I start on my chin rather than my cheek. This easy I get the brush to splay a bit and enough to then continue to the cheek. Might work for you too.

Enjoy!

Guido
Yeah I've been trying to use the bonier part of my face to get the brush to splay better but they push back a lot once there's just soft tissue underneath. But I think technique is part of my issue, so I will keep at it.
That’s essentially a Gillette Old Type. There are several versions of the Old Type. Yours comes with a ball end handle. The middle red piece is non Gillette. These handles usually have cracks and so I suspect that this is an alternative repair job.
Ah, nice. It did remind me of a Gillette Old Type, but the handle threw me a curve ball. The repair job is fairly well done, if that is what it is. But it does seem very plausible.


Going back to the brush topic, today I received the last three brushes I ordered, three Yaqi synthetics:
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From left to right it is:
  • 22mm "factory defect" of unknown type. The ones sold at full price seems to have a different knot, but both are synthetic
  • 24mm Sagrada Familia with a tuxedo knot
  • 24mm Huskey
I used the 22mm for the shave today and it did not go well.
Much like the previous DScosmetic brush I struggled getting any decent lather. It was difficult to load the brush with soap and once I started lathering it dried quickly and adding water did not seem to help. After the first pass I tried to re-lather using a bowl and got it at least decent enough to do one more pass but did not dare do a third pass.
The backbone in this brush is the strongest yet and it was not easy to keep it splayed over the soft bits like the cheeks.
I think this one will be put away for a while and I might revisit it once I am more comfortable with the synthetic brushes.

As for the shave then:
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It was time to try the Matador Deluxe and once again I used a Feather blade with a new razor.
Due to the lather issues it doesn't really seem fair to say too much about the quality of the shave, but I will, so please keep that in mind.
I did two passes, WTG and XTG. The quality was not great, CCS at best. Got a couple of nicks (have you heard it before? :letterk1:).
There was an extremely strong blade feel with this razor which was a little scary at first, but it did not feel dangerous or intimidating at all and the shave angle came fairly quickly and naturally.
I actually really liked the blade feel which was slightly surprising based on my experience during the first shave with the Schick Krona.
The post-shave feel was a bit mediocre too and I felt a fair bit of straining in the skin, but I mostly blame the poor lather for this and that was probably the main cause for the slight skin discomfort.

Next shave with this razor I think I will skip the synthetic brushes and make sure I get a good lather so I can evaluate the razor properly. If I can do three passes and get better quality, then this razor could end up high on the list of razors.
 
The Matador is a magnificent razor with very good results without compromising comfort.

Enjoy those brushes too!

Guido
We'll see, the jury is still out on my end regarding the Matador. But it definitely has potential, I'll give you that.
Yes indeed great brushes there. Once you nail down your lather you will be good to go. I cannot wait to try my Matador! Soon very soon. Leaving on Thursday for Sweden.
Yeah, hopefully I can improve. As with the razors it mostly comes down to technique I think, and adjusting to the differences between synthetic and natural fibers.


Shave of the day was second shave with the Matador Deluxe:
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As I mentioned in the previous update I went back to the EJ badger brush and got better lather.
So I went ahead and did three passes, WTG, XTG and finally ATG. The ATG pass was a bit difficult and the strong blade feel made the razor feel a bit dangerous this time around. I'm really, really glad I did not do an ATG pass on the previous shave, that would've ended in disaster.
I did get three weepers this time and a few nicks. One of the weepers was due to carelessness but the other two appeared out of thin air. I did have some light skin soreness or rather straining immediately after the shave and I can still sort of feel it now, about 2 hours after the shave.
When I checked the quality of the shave immediately after I judged it as DFS+ with one or two CCS spots, but when I feel my face now I would up it to BBS with a very minor DFS+ spot on my chin.
I think this razor has given me the smoothest shave so far but I think my skin might not like the razor and even though it is way to early to judge, but so far it doesn't feel like a razor for me, but I can't pinpoint why I feel that way. But I will keep at it.

It is becoming more and more apparent to me though that I should probably adjust my approach to this journey and instead of keep trying different razors I should go back to the one I like the most that still felt like I needed to "work" to get a good shave and use that razor with different blades to improve my technique. All the years shaving with the Merkur 34C seems to have been shaving on auto-pilot and I'm slowly realizing that I'm still a beginner in many ways.
We'll see what I end up doing, there are a couple more razors I'm very eager to try and it would be a shame to put that off for a few months. 🤔

Speaking of more razors, I had planned to show two razors today, but the postman kindly delivered another razor today so I'll share that one instead.
When I summarized the first three shaves with the Tech I mentioned that I would like to have a thicker handle, so said and done, I bought this:
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Unless I'm sorely mistaken, this is a Gillette Fat-handle Post-war Tech, so made somewhere between 1946 and 1950ish.
It needs a little bit of cleaning but is in overall good shape.
Will be interesting to try this and compare it to the other Tech.
 
Shave of the day was the last one with the Matador Deluxe & Feather blade combo:
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Decided to try a synthetic brush again and this time the Yaqi 24mm Sagrada Familia tuxedo knot.

Did much better with lathering with the synthetic after checking some videos and thinking about what I might have done wrong. Used a lot more water and even bloomed the soap a bit which I generally haven't needed with this soap.
I got a very good lather for the first pass and it remained decent for the second and third pass as well.
This brush does not have the same strong backbone as the other synthetics I've used, so it was much easier to splay and use. It almost felt like using one of my badger brushes.
Overall a very good brush that I want to keep using.

The shave then, the usual three passes with WTG, XTG and ATG. It went much better than the previous two shaves with the Matador and I mainly attribute it to me being more mindful of what I was doing while shaving. I'm still using too much pressure when shaving I think, something that didn't matter with the Merkur 34C but with these vintage razors it seems to be a very big no-no. So on this shave I was very mindful of the pressure, it still got a bit too heavy on the ATG pass, but overall it was a pleasant experience to shave with the Matador. I did get a couple of small nicks though, which still is the norm for me.
Quality wise it was a BBS shave with some tiny spots of DFS++. There was a smidge of skin tension immediately after finishing, but I can't really feel it anymore (about 1 hour after shaving).
It was nice to finish with a very good shave with the Matador, it gives me hope for further shaves with it. But I think this is a razor I will have to revisit at a later time, I really, really, need to get rid of my bad shaving habits before using a razor with this strong of a blade feel and it might also be the blade gap that is causing me some issues.

Anyway, I mentioned in a previous update that I had planned to share two razors but postponed it, and now it is time.
The first razor was an accidental buy. I saw the box it was in and immediately wanted it. The images were poor but the more I studied them the more I realized the razor did not match the box. Figuring it might still be a Gillette razor I put in a bid, but I entered the wrong amount and it got way more expensive than intended and I won the auction:
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This is an unknown, unmarked razor from an unknown year. It weighs 43g and is approximately 83,5mm in length
Based on the weight I think it is aluminum. We'll see if I'll try it or not, but it is at the bottom of the list currently.

As you've probably figured out by now, I really wanted a Gillette Adjustable, so I kept my eyes peeled for a decent deal and came across this:
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A 1967 made in U.S.A Gillette Slim Adjustable. Fairly good condition and I haven't cleaned it yet.
It weighs 72g and is 90mm long. I think the adjustable case that came with the previous razor is earlier than this razor but it fits, just barely.
This is a razor I'm really keen on trying, but 9 (16 really) levels of adjustment just adds a whole new complexity to the whole "try razors with all blades".
This one and the fat-handle tech are at the top of the next razors to try, but I think I will go back to the flare-tip rocket and try it with different blades and really focus on technique. We'll see what the next shave ends up being, I might still change my mind :001_rolle
 
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Went back to the British Rocket Flare Tip today and tried a new blade, a 7 o'Clock Super Platinum. Also used the Yaqi 24mm Huskey for the first time, but more on that later.
WTG, XTG, ATG passes. Had some issues on the upper lip during the ATG pass where it continuously felt like the blade got caught on the tiny fragments of hair that remained. Did get some nicks, most on the XTG and ATG passes. I noticed that I am better at having no pressure during the WTG pass but still occasionally add a little pressure on XTG and ATG, which, of course, add to the slight struggle.
Overall shave quality I would say was DFS with one or two spots that were CCS, primarily under the chin which is an area I generally need to do a fourth clean-up pass regardless of razor/blade if I want it DFS or better.
Overall a decent shave, nothing revolutionary but also nothing bad, which is good because I have previously felt that all blades except Feather gave me sub-par shaves.
Two more shaves with this blade and then I'll try another one in this razor.

As for the Yaqi 24mm Huskey, it was even better than the Sagrada Familia. Just a hint of backbone, it splayed very easily and generally it felt just like using a badger brush, only softer in terms of feeling on the skin.
Also managed to get a very good lather right of the bat which was thick and creamy and came with no effort at all.
Overall just a very pleasant brush to use.
 
This is an unknown, unmarked razor from an unknown year.
Based on the geometry of the baseplate it resembles a Matador quite closely. However, Matadors I know of always have the brand etched into them on the bottom. Would still make a good shave I think.

The box you received it in is from a Gillette Fatboy. Hence the just fit for your Gillette Slim. The Slim is a very good adjustable! It’s the only razor my son uses for his shaves. And I think he will continue to use it throughout his life as he now only shaves with the Slim on 3 - so much room to manoeuvre!

Enjoy!!

Guido

Ps: I am glad to read that you shave with the real Matador (Razette model) went well too. And yes, as your technique progresses so well your shaves with this razor. :thumbup:
 
Yeah there is a lot of similarities between the Matador and the unknown razor. They are also quite close on weight and length.
Matador: 49g, 80mm
Unknown: 43g, 83,5mm

I'll give it a try eventually but as I mentioned, it is far down the list, and I still have 5-8 razors yet to share and many of those are higher on the list :001_cool:

Oh, so what you're saying is I should find a Fatboy? Gotcha! I'm on it! :thumbup:
Joking aside, I would love to get my hands on one, so I'll keep my eyes peeled and there usually are some for sale on eBay if I'm not mistaken.
 
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