Rusty Blade’s Wet Shaving Journey

[thombrogan]

@Rusty Blade , have you tried Canada Shaving Soap? It is my favorite unscented soap at the moment and I’ve used all three Stirling offerings. Very easy to use, very long-lasting puck, and dreadful ad copy. The three qualities all good soaps need.

Also, when did you move from three pass shaves to two pass shaves? I’ve read reports where you’ve mentioned using either variety, but was in too much as “searching for techniques” frenzy to check the dates.

Asking because I think you’ve mentioned most people should be able to get a great shave in two passes if their technique is good.

 

[Rusty Blade]

@Rusty Blade , have you tried Canada Shaving Soap? It is my favorite unscented soap at the moment and I’ve used all three Stirling offerings. Very easy to use, very long-lasting puck, and dreadful ad copy. The three qualities all good soaps need.

Also, when did you move from three pass shaves to two pass shaves? I’ve read reports where you’ve mentioned using either variety, but was in too much as “searching for techniques” frenzy to check the dates.

Asking because I think you’ve mentioned most people should be able to get a great shave in two passes if their technique is good.

Canada Shaving soap eh? I've had my eye on this one for a while now. It will have to wait for a bit because I have recently fallen in love again with MWF and I have some other unscented soaps i need to burn through before i bring another into the house.
As for dates, my memory isnt that good. Three pass to two pass, well i cant say i was ever a believer in three pass shaves. Two pass is the way to fly. And if you cant get a near perfect shave in two pass then there is something wrong with your technique. Just my opinion.

 

[thombrogan]

You work on your MWF-adjacent collection and I’ll work on my technique.

 

[Rusty Blade]

Time for an update. Here is my current stash of shaving soaps:

1. Palmolive -- I just purchased 3 tubes...a moment of madness...
2. Proraso white
3. Stirling Pharaoh's Dreamsicle
4. Mike's Barbershop
5. Zingari Man Unscented
6. NIL (Bartigan & Stark)
7. MWF

This seems like a manageable number of soaps. And I enjoy every one of them equally. Since I rotate my soaps on a weekly basis (See Shave of the Week Society in the Clubs and Brotherhood section of B&B), I think these will easily get me through 2023 and beyond.

 

[albsat]

Time for an update. Here is my current stash of shaving soaps:

1. Palmolive -- I just purchased 3 tubes...a moment of madness...
2. Proraso white
3. Stirling Pharaoh's Dreamsicle
4. Mike's Barbershop
5. Zingari Man Unscented
6. NIL (Bartigan & Stark)
7. MWF

This seems like a manageable number of soaps. And I enjoy every one of them equally. Since I rotate my soaps on a weekly basis (See Shave of the Week Society in the Clubs and Brotherhood section of B&B), I think these will easily get me through 2023 and beyond.

I have found for my personal usage that I need 300 ml soap for a yearly usage. I use two soaps and a cream and I find that the cream goes away much faster then the soaps.

 

[flask28]

Time for an update. Here is my current stash of shaving soaps:

1. Palmolive -- I just purchased 3 tubes...a moment of madness...
2. Proraso white
3. Stirling Pharaoh's Dreamsicle
4. Mike's Barbershop
5. Zingari Man Unscented
6. NIL (Bartigan & Stark)
7. MWF

This seems like a manageable number of soaps. And I enjoy every one of them equally. Since I rotate my soaps on a weekly basis (See Shave of the Week Society in the Clubs and Brotherhood section of B&B), I think these will easily get me through 2023 and beyond.

Nice selection! Mike's Barbershop would be in my top 7 for sure. Way to keep it reasonable man.

 

[Rusty Blade]

Time for an update:

1. Palmolive
2. Proraso white
3. Stirling Pharaoh's Dreamsicle
4. Zingari Man Unscented
5. NIL (Bartigan & Stark)
6. MWF
And I just clicked purchase on a tub of Saponificio Varesino 70th Anniversary shave soap. Couldn't help myself. A little treat to help the winter days pass.

 

[Rusty Blade]

Hold the press! I am making a change to my list of soaps:

1. Palmolive
2. Proraso white
3. Stirling Pharaoh's Dreamsicle
4. Zingari Man Unscented
5. NIL (Bartigan & Stark)
6. MWF
7. MdC (...don't ask...its a long story and involves a shoe box, preconceived notions of what constitutes a good soap, 7 years of trial and error and a mixed boar/badger brush)
8. Saponificio Varesino (It hasn't arrived yet, but my postal tracking says its on the way)

I can see from this ever changing list that I am never going to make it to three soaps. Wishful thinking at best, if truthful, delusion. I should just give up trying....go with the flow of life....learn to stop and smell the roses, enjoy each day, one shave at a time.

 

[Rusty Blade]

I recently was in the mood to try a new DE blade. My current favourite blades are Tiger and GSB. I also like Gillette Sharp Edge. I read through my reviews and ended up buying 100 Personna Lab Blue blades (Made in USA). I had my first shave with one this morning and I must say, they are a cut above the two favourites on my list. Very smooth, very sharp. My new #1 DE blade.

 

[Rusty Blade]

I thought it was time for an update.
Soaps: I recently resurrected a jar of MdC unscented that had been in my shoebox in the closet. For the longest time I just couldn't seem to click with this soap. But recently, with new determination, I decided to give it another go...and have been enjoying it thoroughly. Its now part of my regular rotation. I found a couple of other soaps (actually one soap and one cream) that I typically used for travel, but since I don't travel much anymore, I am using them as part of a regular rotation: Le Pere Lucien unscented and Lucky Tiger Shaving Cream. Both really nice products. And I recently click "Purchase" on a tub of Canada shaving soap. I am anxious for this to arrive....I hear such good things about this product. Starting to get low on a couple of my favourites: Mike's Barbershop and Zingari unscented.
Brushes: Nothing new lately, just rediscovering some of my many past purchases. I think I am up to 30 brushes. I've been enjoying softening up a Semogue Boar with regular use. As I mentioned in another post I used to only have one brush at a time...typically a drugstore boar. And with daily use the ends of the boar hair would split and make the brush very soft....make it feel like a more expensive brush. With so many brushes on the shelf, it is hard to use just one for a long period of time. My favourite brush remains the EJ Synthetic. This brush is pure magic.
Razors:
DE: I have so many, and I tend to rely on my favourites - the Fendrihan DE (el cheapo, but a nice long hefty handle. I picked this up many years ago and it just seems to be a good fit for my hand). The EJ 3one6 is another fine razor. The Gillette Slim. And some time ago when I heard Merkur was going to stop making razors, I decided to pick up a 34c...and it is a fine razor...I find the handle a tad short, but still a nice razor. I recently ordered the King C. Gillette DE. It has been a long time since I purchased a new DE. But since it was a Gillette I wanted to get one for my collection. I plan to use it next week in my Shave of the Week.
SE: There is only one love of my life in this regard: The Schick Type G. God's gift to wet shavers. Perfection. An engineering marvel. I have thought about buying one of the newer SE razors, but I honestly don't think they could replace the Type G.
Straight Razors: I tend to slip in one or two SR shaves every week. I still enjoy SR shaving. It is a pleasure to take the time for a SR shave. Out of the 200 in my collection I tend to keep about 20 SRs that I keep shave ready and with a good edge. I rotate through the full collection over time. All beautiful....though one did bite me the other day. Bad SR...bad SR!. A momentary lapse of attention on my part.
Blades: As I have mentioned in another post I recently discovered the Personna Lab Blue blade...and they are amazing. They are my new favourite...along with Tiger and GSB. My top 3.

My involvement in the Shave of the Week Society has been really enjoyable. There has been a recent spike in membership (We had to order more chairs and a new coffee maker for the clubhouse). A really great bunch of guys. I still really enjoy picking one kit -- razor, blade, brush, soap -- and using it for the full week. As I use one weekly kit I am already thinking about the kit for the next week. It has really helped my perfect my shaving technique and I get to enjoy one product fully before I switch to something new. I grew weary of switching every product every day. Though I understand the excitement when you first discover wet shaving...you want to try everything all at once.

Collecting: The Rusty Blade Shaving Museum has grown in size over the years. It started with a cigar box for a few vintage razors, and has grown into a sizeable collection. I have a few display cabinets to play with....and a vault for spare items. I try to make sure everything gets a turn in the display cabinets. Great fun. My kids think I am insane...and for once they are right. Lately I have been focusing more on collecting vintage razor blades. It is incredible how many razor blade manufacturers there have been over the years. I love the vintage packaging. I have a large supply of DE, SE, SR razors, shaving mugs, and other shaving paraphernalia. It has been great fun and a wonderful learning experience. And I suppose as antique store season will soon be upon us, I certainly won't pass up any great finds. And I continue to working on the time machine I have been building in the garage so I can go back to the 1950s to pick up a few new off the shelf items for my collection. Still waiting on a few parts...it is getting hard to source some of these products.

I still on occasion meet guys who want to learn how to wet shave and I usually have a Gillette Tech, a tube of Palmolive and a Wilkinson Sword Brush to pass along. Always a pleasure to get someone else hooked on this great hobby. I can hear their wives cursing me...

Overall, I am still having a great time with traditional wet shaving. Such a nice way to start the day and a wonderful learning experience. Always something new to learn, always some new product to try. I particularly appreciate Badger and Blade...and all the great guys that make this such a nice place to hide from an increasingly crazy world. Take care all.

 

[thombrogan]

Hoping you enjoy the Canada Shaving Soap. Looking forward to your impressions.

Modern Injector-style razors are merely heavier and generally have longer handles than the E And G series.

Thank you for your update on shaving fun

 

[Rosseforp]

And I continue to working on the time machine I have been building in the garage so I can go back to the 1950s to pick up a few new off the shelf items for my collection. Still waiting on a few parts...it is getting hard to source some of these products.

Those Flux Capacitors are hard to find

 

[Rusty Blade]

Those Flux Capacitors are hard to find

Flux capacitors I got...its the phase transistors and Type L multi-phasic temporal convergence shifters that I am finding hard to get.

 

[Rusty Blade]

It has been a while since I posted in my journal. I continue with my Shave of the Week Society (SWS) approach to shaving. One kit (razor, brush and soap) for the week. It seems to work best for me. I read through my post above from March 25 (above) and it looks like not much has changed for me...same preferences, same approach to shaving, same philosophy about collecting. Some may notice I am not posting as much on B&B as I did in the past. Life just seems to get in the way. I do prefer scrolling through B&B forums rather than other social media to pass the time. Nice to see so many new people joining in the hobby. I hope everyone is well.

 

[Rusty Blade]

Today I went out and purchased a new tube of Nivea Shave Cream. It has been a while since I used this cream and surprise, surprise, it is still very inexpensive at $5.99 a tube. This used to be my go-to shave cream for the longest time. I love the scent of this product and it is a lather monster...and who can argue with that price?
Razor: Merkur 34C
Blade: Gillette Sharp Edge
Brush: EJ synth
Cream: Nivea
ASB: Nivea Sensitive (of course)!

 

[Rusty Blade]

Time for an update on my stash of shaving soaps:

1. Palmolive shave cream
2. Proraso white
3. Zingari Man Unscented (almost finished)
4. NIL (Bartigan & Stark)
5. MWF
6. Le Pere Lucien (unscented)
7. Martin de Candre (Unscented)
8. Lucky Tiger Shave Cream
9. TOBS Organic (on order, arriving soon)
10. La Toja shave stick

That's about it. Still can't seem to get my stash below 10 soaps/creams.

 

[Rusty Blade]

Time for an update on my stash of shaving soaps:

1. Palmolive shave cream
2. Proraso white
3. Zingari Man Unscented (almost finished)
4. NIL (Bartigan & Stark)
5. MWF
6. Le Pere Lucien (unscented)
7. Martin de Candre (Unscented)
8. Lucky Tiger Shave Cream
9. TOBS Organic (on order, arriving soon)
10. La Toja shave stick

That's about it. Still can't seem to get my stash below 10 soaps/creams.

I forgot one: Canada Shaving Soap. That makes it 11.

 

[Rusty Blade]

I forgot one: Canada Shaving Soap. That makes it 11.

And I forgot another soap: Saponificio Varesino. I havent cracked that one open yet. It's been sitting in my closet, unopened. Saving it for when I burn through some of my other soaps. So that makes it a count of 12. Yikes!

 

[thombrogan]

Which scent for the Saponifico Varesino?