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Phoenixkh: An Old Man's Continuum....

I have to say, I'm relieved. I had an excellent shave with my 24K hardened gold plated Overlander for the first time today. Chris Spencer @ Back Roads Gold did such an excellent job with the replating, I really wanted this razor to work for me. I am still puzzled about the poor shaves I got when using it prior to today but..........

I used a Kai blade in it. The only experience I've had with the Kai blades so far was a poor outing with my England Flat Bottom Tech, but I had hoped I'd fare better with the Overlander/Kai pairing and sure enough, it was wonderful. Totally smooth, even in my problem areas. No problem going ATG on my upper lip and my problematic chin area is also smooth. I'll try it with a Wizamet or Personna Lab Blue USA next shave to see if it performs well with a blade having traditional dimensions. I know the problem has been me, but I can't for the life of me figure out what I have been doing wrong.

The only thing I changed other that the razor and blade from the last shave was the boar brush I'm using for DecemBOAR month. I used the Zenith Malachite bleached boar brush today. You might recall, I ordered this brush from YourShaving by mistake but liked the handle so I kept it. It isn't fully broken-in..... but what a performer. I used some extra Canada Shaving Soap just for insurance but man, this brush lathered up like a dream. I had lots of soap left over even with the two passes (WTG and ATG) and an extra pass on my upper lip. My upper lip whiskers grow very close together and need a bit of special attention so I've been doing the customary WTG, XTG in both directions and ATG when necessary. I'm still using the Claymore Evolution around my nose and except for the few minutes it takes to clean the razor afterwards, it is a net positive.

Everything else remained the same. I'm so pleased I got the Overlander dialed in. It's almost universally liked here. As I keep mentioning, there are quite a few people here now with whom I have razors in common. All of them who have the Overlander rave about it so I'm glad I found a way to make it work. I trust that I'll find a way to make a regular dimension DE blade to work, as I noted above.

So how does it rank with my top 4 razors? The jury is still out. With the Kai, I don't find it as smooth as the other 4 nor quite as close, I don't think. Since I had several appointments today, including one at 4PM, I shaved this morning instead of yesterday afternoon. I'll be awake long enough to see exactly how long this shave lasts. My guess it will be on par with my Claymore Evo.... around 10 hours, but that may not be accurate. I'll report back later this evening.

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Glad you’re getting some improvement with the Overlander. I guess you did something different, whatever it was, and if it’s working, it’s working. Maybe a touch less pressure, better consistency with the angle, I don’t know, but these things tend to stick and you never know what you are doing differently because it’s not conscious. You’ll probably get better shaves with some of your other razors too - I’m thinking you levelled-up. I doubt it was the blade, unless the fear of it made you shave differently somehow.

It still puzzles me. I never felt the Overlander was very angle sensitive or intolerant of different techniques. But I’m sure there will always be people who just don’t naturally gel with any given razor. I’ve never seen any razor get 100% positive reviews, but some get a much higher percentage than others.

I totally agree with your idea to go back to your normal blade for the next shave and see if it’s still working. I bet it is.

What do we learn from this? Beats me, but it’s why I never sell razors. I just put them away for a while and try them again in a year or something.

I think next time you level-up you get two more hours shave longevity from all your razors. So that’ll be nice.
 

Phoenixkh

I shaved a fortune
Oh, and I like that swirly-green handled Zenith boar brush. Seriously groovy.
Some mistakes work out for the better. The Malachite brush is one of those lucky ones. I really do like the Zenith brushes. I think they tend to punch above their weight. The Zenith Manchurian M23 506 Copper handle brush is almost as good as my SV 2.0 Manchurians for quite a bit less. My SV 2.0 brushes did end my brush buying frenzy, so that tells you something. I don't think I could do better.... I'm sure there are other brushes out there that I might like as much, but I love the gentle scrub and the bristle density is perfect for me.

It was on to my current razor buying frenzy..... though that seems semi-complete at the moment. Never say never and all that.
 
Some mistakes work out for the better. The Malachite brush is one of those lucky ones. I really do like the Zenith brushes. I think they tend to punch above their weight. The Zenith Manchurian M23 506 Copper handle brush is almost as good as my SV 2.0 Manchurians for quite a bit less. My SV 2.0 brushes did end my brush buying frenzy, so that tells you something. I don't think I could do better.... I'm sure there are other brushes out there that I might like as much, but I love the gentle scrub and the bristle density is perfect for me.

It was on to my current razor buying frenzy..... though that seems semi-complete at the moment. Never say never and all that.
I agree on the SV brushes. They just feel right. It’s good to be reminded. I think I will put my Wald A1s away and use a couple of SV badgers for a while. Just for a change. I’ve been using only the Walds for a couple of months or more now.

It’s funny, we have a saying in England: “as rough as a badger’s arse”. I suspect after using only these nylon brushes for so long a badger brush is going to be a shock.
 

Phoenixkh

I shaved a fortune
@SgtCrppls PM'd me today to tell me, tomorrow at noon, on the Italian SV site, they are going to be re-releasing their brushes with the Paragon handle. I'm not sure if that is 12PMEST or Italy time.

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Phoenixkh

I shaved a fortune
Thanks, Sgt.C.... I'll probably have to wait until they show up on the Gifts and Care website for the pricing... unless these are limited editions... then I'll have a tough decision to make. ;)
 

Phoenixkh

I shaved a fortune
It's been a few days from my last entry. I had to check to make sure I didn't shave since then, but I didn't. I had a problem with my dental implant appliance and it was out for repair so I had no front teeth. Not a good look... or a pleasant experience but I got them back today.

I had a very nice shave with my Rocnel Elite. 6 days growth for me is a semi-beard. I should have used my Andis clippers and cut the whiskers off but I decided just to shave my mug. I also used a USA Personna Labs blue for the first time. It wasn't really a fair test because of the long whisker growth but other than that, it did a wonderful job. There weren't as many whiskers left after the WTG pass, surprisingly. I threw in an extra XTG pass anyway and finished up with my normal ATG pass. The end results were as expected..... very smooth. The shave was comfortable after I finished the first pass that was a bit of a challenge. I say this but the Elite had no problem plowing through the whiskers but with that much growth, I had to clean the razor way more than usual.

The Elite will remain in my top 4 list. I'm happy about that. I also glad I could feel the difference between the German Personna Labs and the USA Personnas. I know some people here has said the German Personna Labs work well for them, but that hasn't been my experience. When I buy a new DE blade, I'm always a bit apprehensive until I actually shave with one. I'd say, with the qualifiers in place (my face and whiskers, my skin, 6 days of growth) the Personna was a smooth for me as the Wizamets. That's sort of a relief. I now know I have two DE blades that have worked in all my razors, though as mentioned above, I did use a Kai in my Overlander and that improved its feel for me.

Regular other stuff for the shave. I am rotating brushes now due to DecemBOAR month so today I used the very fine Zenith B33 bleached boar brush with their 506 copper handle. This brush has everything I like in a brush... soft tips and a nice scrub backbone. So far, all the Zenith brushes I've used have been stellar. I haven't use the Zenith Wenghe brush yet.... it's quite a bit smaller: 24x52 knot. I'm just going to rotate the other Zeniths and the Omega Jade for the month. The other 4 boars I have will either wait until next year or I'll rotate them in somewhere in between my SV 2.0 brushes that have become my comfort brushes.

RE_Dec14Shave.jpg
 

Phoenixkh

I shaved a fortune
Another note. I have a complete RR Lupo 95SB on way along with the new 72OC base plate. That will be my next challenge, I think.... trying the 72SB/72OC and the 95SB/95OC base plates to see if I can come up with a moderately priced razor that will make it into my top razor category.

In addition, I do have the Green Cult 2.0 with the Level 2 and 3 base plates coming in. This razor finally made it to the States today and is now with US Customs. I'm guessing this will take a while due to the Christmas busy season. I don't expect to see it until the end of next week, give or take a few days. I would sort of like to try it twice before I start the Lupo testing but the Lupo was shipped from Canada just yesterday (UPS) and it will be here this coming Monday, Dec. 19th. I might just sneak in another shave with my X1.... wait until I get in those two saves with the CG 2.0 before I start the more lengthy Lupo testing. I'm thinking out loud in font again..... I hope it isn't too annoying.
 

Chan Eil Whiskers

Fumbling about.
@SgtCrppls PM'd me today to tell me, tomorrow at noon, on the Italian SV site, they are going to be re-releasing their brushes with the Paragon handle. I'm not sure if that is 12PMEST or Italy time.

View attachment 1569312

Not sure why this is our fault, but congrats on the stunning brush!

These ones are 30mm knots, right, rather than the 26mm in the SV 2.0 brushes?


The size of the knots wasn't published anywhere I could locate it. I'd be fine if the knots are larger than the 2.0, but kinda think they aren't, and will be happy either way.

I know SV has made similar looking handles with larger than 2.0 knots, but that was in the past. I'm assuming nothing but still think I'll be happy either way.

I believe this is a limited run or limited addition, but don't know that for sure. Link. I'd be interested in what you guys read into it.

I like the handle shape.

Happy shaves,

Jim
 
The size of the knots wasn't published anywhere I could locate it. I'd be fine if the knots are larger than the 2.0, but kinda think they aren't, and will be happy either way.

I know SV has made similar looking handles with larger than 2.0 knots, but that was in the past. I'm assuming nothing but still think I'll be happy either way.

I believe this is a limited run or limited addition, but don't know that for sure. Link. I'd be interested in what you guys read into it.

I like the handle shape.

Happy shaves,

Jim
Reading the descriptions on the SV site, it’s a limited edition of 28 brushes. Handle made of 10 different woods. Knot is 30mm with 54mm loft (compared to 26mm and 50mm loft for the regular 2.0). Same two-band “high mountain white”, “Manchurian” hair.

30mm knot will make this a BIG brush, but I think that’s fitting and will make it notably special next to the regular models.

Interestingly I notice it says “origin Manchuria” which suggests that the hair actually does come from badgers residing in Manchuria, rather than ‘Manchurian’ just being a company knot classification for marketing reasons. The badgers should be able to see Korea or Russia or the Gobi desert from their cages.

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Phoenixkh

I shaved a fortune
The size of the knots wasn't published anywhere I could locate it. I'd be fine if the knots are larger than the 2.0, but kinda think they aren't, and will be happy either way.

I know SV has made similar looking handles with larger than 2.0 knots, but that was in the past. I'm assuming nothing but still think I'll be happy either way.

I believe this is a limited run or limited addition, but don't know that for sure. Link. I'd be interested in what you guys read into it.

I like the handle shape.

Happy shaves,

Jim
Jim, I was tempted due to the handle shape... but I didn't like any of the patterns... according to the Italian SV website, they only made 28 of those... so it's very cool that you got one.
 

Chan Eil Whiskers

Fumbling about.
Sorry, gentlemen, I twice absolutely missed the published information on the knot size. Having it be 30 mm is a major bonus particularly when coupled with the cool handle.

I was in a hurry. That's my only excuse, but thanks, Mr. Shavington, for posting the knot size.

Interesting information on the Manchuria origin. I believe the 2.0 brushes have the same hair. I suppose I'll know for sure when I've used the new brush for awhile. It's supposed to be here before Christmas. Even though it's a boar month, there's always the Christmas present from myself exception.

I've always thought this would be a cool handle shape.

Long time ago - it seems like a long time - I thought the 2.0 knots were on the small size. David @never-stop-learning had written something about a larger knot size, like 30 mm, I think, and I was able to find evidence SV had indeed made brushes in the 30 mm size with this handle shape, but this is the first time I've seen one offered for sale anywhere.

Turns out the 2.0 knots are far from small.

Happy shaves,

Jim
 
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