Micromatic Monday

[Chard52142]

Mon 19th SE SOTD
Soap RazoRock Puros
Brush Yaqi 26mm Rainbow
Razor GEM Push Button
Blade GEM Stainless 5th
Post & Aftershaves Ice Water + Stirling Witchhazel MitA + Hyaluronic + Clubman Whiskey Woods
Somehow, today's soap lather scent was a little stronger and it was very distinctively aromatic tobacco! The lather was thickly creamy and slick too...nice!
Shave with razor paired with the blade was smooth overall until the atg pass on the upper lips area it became a bit skippy. Still, 3passes without any issues for between a dfs to ccs result. The aftershaves especially Whiskey Woods were excellent!

 

[RumpleBearskin]

Tomorrow will find me with the GEM Safety Razor (wedge blade) in hand.

 

[Ron R]

Gem Jr 1912 with baton handle for a GEMonday.

 

[Flintstone65]

No clue what I'll shave with tomorrow, either a Micromatic Open Comb, or a Gem Feather Weight -- or maybe one of the Ever Readys....yeah, I haven't got a clue. BUT, it will be a Micromatic Monday (aka GEMonday) with an ASR Gem-style razor. Can't wait to see you all there!!!

 

[GNR]

1st ever Micromatic Monday shave and post. I used my GEM Micromatic Bullet Tip paired with Speick and Stirling Deep Blue Sea for a DFS.

 

[Ron R]

GEMonday, April 19th, 2021

Razor: Gem Junior Parade with taper baton handle- MFG 1943-45 model, excellent mid range, nice handle to work the face IMO.
Blade: Gem Personna SS PTFE(4) Excellent blade, very sharp, good longevity, smooths out nicely, predictable.
Soap: Razorock Santa Marie del Fiore, nice light tobacco & vanilla scent with excellent lather qualities.
Brush: Yaqi lucky dice 26 mm Tuxedo knot, excellent lather generator with cloud like soft tips, great scrub+ lather painter.
Pre shave: brush wash whole face with CeraVe hand bar cleanser + a dollop of clear Aloe Vera gel on the cleaned beard area.
Prep: Cold water rinse after each pass of 2 + pickups. WTG +ATG+ pickups.
Post shave: Razorock Santa Marie del Fiore with witch hazel + a dollop of Nivea balm.
Results: CCS,DFS,BBS + no irritation + 1 blemish weeper= excellent shave with my Gem Jr Parade + Gem coated blade.

Have some great shaves! Stay and think safe in these times!

 

[Tanuki]

1st ever Micromatic Monday shave and post. I used my GEM Micromatic Bullet Tip paired with Speick and Stirling Deep Blue Sea for a DFS.View attachment 1253692

Welcome! Guided here by The Eye, no doubt. Looks like an excellent, comfortable set up for a Monday Morning.

 

[GNR]

Welcome! Guided here by The Eye, no doubt. Looks like an excellent, comfortable set up for a Monday Morning.

The Gem Micromatic Bullet Tip (Guiding Eye) is a really nice shaver. I’m enjoying it (5 or 6) shaves with it so far. I’m an SE convert/groupie now...I’ve seen the light!

 

[davidsilva]

Ever Ready Shovel Head / GEM PTFE (2)
DR Harris Arlington / Fine Fresh Vetiver

Always a nice close shave with this razor, and it sings LOUDLY.[emoji41]

 

[RumpleBearskin]

GEM Safety Razor (wedge blade)
MWF
Simpsons Duke 3 in Best
4711 AS and EdC

 

[Whiterook]

Razor: Gem Heavy Flat Top "G-Bar"
Blade: Personna GEM PTFE Stainless Steel Blade
Brush: Frank Shaving G4 Synthetic striped handle
Pre-Shave: Proraso White
Lather: Simpson's Luxury Shaving Cream
Aftershave: Shannon's 25th Street Lime splash
Additional Care:
Thayers Facial Tonic Witch Hazel Unscented
Imperial Leather Talcum Powder

 

[Tanuki]

Haven't shaved yet, but I have been busy creating lather catcher 'wedge blade' shim/adapter candidates from used SE blades with the belt sander:

Stainless row 1, carbon row 2. Nice spark display when belt sanding the carbon steel.

After some test loading, a fat spine vintage GEM shim is going on top for today's shave. The Contour can make up for any stubble elimination deficiencies, but it can't apply a neck tourniquet to avert a tragic outcome. Wish me luck.

 

[Ron R]

Haven't shaved yet, but I have been busy creating lather catcher 'wedge blade' shim/adapter candidates from used SE blades with the belt sander:
View attachment 1253825
Stainless row 1, carbon row 2. Nice spark display when belt sanding the carbon steel.

After some test loading, a fat spine vintage GEM shim is going on top for today's shave. The Contour can make up for any stubble elimination deficiencies, but it can't apply a neck tourniquet to avert a tragic outcome. Wish me luck.
View attachment 1253839View attachment 1253838

Hello @Tanuki, looking at your photo's would it not be more advantage and smoother shaving to have new blade on top having a slight downward angle. Interesting to see how the shave went?

 

[Tanuki]

would it not be more advantage and smoother shaving to have new blade on top having a slight downward angle

That was a question in my mind as well. It is particularly relevant given that the Improved Star (especially this one of my two) has a lot of top-hamper, to borrow a term from the age of sail. The blade retaining spring apparatus (on both sides and the back of the blade) projects well above the plane of the blade. The tiny side adjustment screws are almost designed to scratch.

I picked the lower position because 1) I don't personally get my best Gem blade results at full 'flat against face' and 2) my shim loading experiments seemed to predict that the cutting blade would be most secure with the shim blade on top.

In order to go full Kampfe/ASR nerd on this, I may load my other Star Improved in bottom shim configuration and do the A-B side-by-side test shave.

 

[Tanuki]

And finally... I shaved!

>Improved Star, Kampfe Bros., New York, from the Gay Nineties, loaded with a new Gem PTFE corked and forearm stropped, top shimmed with a de-beveled thick spine GEM BLADE
>backed up by a Contour / Gem SS (6) forearm stropped
>mentholated Col Conk Lime stick for prep
>RazoRock Lime puck for the shave lather
>Ever-Ready barber style vintage horse knot
>FloriLDrops badger blend, the Pinaud Lime Sec for the ignition test

A - very smooth, very comfortable, but kinda clunky with all that Apparatus sticking above the blade, on top of a very full-figured lather catch basin.
B - also very close. The Gem PTFE Blade left very little behind for the Gem SS.
C - the Contour mellowed the Gem SS blade feel. It was six and done for this blade. The remaining Gem SS blades will have to wait patiently for their chance.

 

[NoScrubs]

And finally... I shaved!

>Improved Star, Kampfe Bros., New York, from the Gay Nineties, loaded with a new Gem PTFE corked and forearm stropped, top shimmed with a de-beveled thick spine GEM BLADE
>backed up by a Contour / Gem SS (6) forearm stropped
>mentholated Col Conk Lime stick for prep
>RazoRock Lime puck for the shave lather
>Ever-Ready barber style vintage horse knot
>FloriLDrops badger blend, the Pinaud Lime Sec for the ignition test
View attachment 1253872
A - very smooth, very comfortable, but kinda clunky with all that Apparatus sticking above the blade, on top of a very full-figured lather catch basin.
B - also very close. The Gem PTFE Blade left very little behind for the Gem SS.
C - the Contour mellowed the Gem SS blade feel. It was six and done for this blade. The remaining Gem SS blades will have to wait patiently for their chance.

No fabrication needed. Any one of these adapters gives me the improved blade angle with a modern GEM blade with or without the GEM spine.

 

[Sinnbad11]

Gemmonday!
Ever ready 1924, haven't used this old gal in a while. Every time I break it out I think it shrinks a bit.

 

[Ted A]

Micromatic Monday is a Gem
Gem 1912
Personna blade (8)
Ever Ready 500
Razorock What the Puck Lime

 

[Ron R]

A.S.Razor shave, Tue, April 20th 2021

Razor: Everready 1924 (AKA shovelhead)-1924-33 Excellent mid range, different way of loading from back, easy to manipulate around the face. Everready Stream line strop handle for great grip.
Blade: Gem Personna SS PTFE(5) excellent blade, very sharp, great longevity, smooths out nicely + predictable.
Soap: Cyril R Salter Indian sandalwood cream- nice sandalwood scent, excellent lather qualities + good post shave feel.
Brush: Yaqi 24mm Tuxedo knot with marble handle excellent lather creator, cloud like soft tips, great scrubber+ great lather painter. It seems the loft is perfect for my brush desire for this tuxedo knot 54mm loft.
Pre shave: Brush wash whole face with CeraVe hand bar cleanser + a dollop of clear Aloe Vera gel on my cleaned beard area.
Prep: Cold water rinse after each pass of 2 + pickups. WTG + ATG + pickups.
Post shave: Witch hazel + Ogallala Bayrum + sandalwood + a dollop of Nivea balm.
Results: CCS,DFS,BBs + no irritation + no weepers = excellent shave with my ER 1924 shovelhead + a coated Gem blade.

Have some great shaves! Stay & think safe in these times!

 

[Tanuki]

Everready Stream line strop handle for great grip.

Let's not go backwards!

Were I not such a reverent ASR purist, I would incrementally cut down a Shovelhead handle just to discover the absolute lower limit of effective handle length. 3cm? 2cm? Or beyond!?!?

Flight on other planets is a great achievement, but there are still pinnacles of human endeavor within reach in my den!