Inspired by a discussion with mharris127 at http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/294618-What-to-do-with-La-Toja-Sticks I added a digital scale and a timer to the equipment for a leisurely Sunday shave. This may be a whole new level of shaving OCD - probably better for my skin than chasing BBS, though. The only real hazard was that, while juggling the loaded brush and the digital scale, I almost knocked over a vintage bottle of Lilac Vegetal. However, no injuries were reported.
As much as possible I tried to stick to my usual routine. But naturally taking all these measurements altered my shave. It added extra time, about a minute by my estimate, and probably had other minor effects. I believe the measurements are accurate to plus or minus 1-min for time, and 0.5-g for weight.
Observations....
Not sure when I will do this again, but feel free to add your own measurements to this thread. Some bowl-lathering measurements would be interesting, since you could weigh the bowl and brush together to get the total lather.
As much as possible I tried to stick to my usual routine. But naturally taking all these measurements altered my shave. It added extra time, about a minute by my estimate, and probably had other minor effects. I believe the measurements are accurate to plus or minus 1-min for time, and 0.5-g for weight.
| Elapsed Time (minutes) !! Event !! Simpson Colonel (g) !! Delta (g) !! Notes |
|---|
| | dry || 61 || 0 || Brush last used 9 days ago. |
| | damp || 67 || +6 || Soaked, then gently squeezed to release water. |
| | loaded || 69.5 || +2.5 || Dip and twist with full-size tub Nancy Boy signature scent shaving cream, paraben formulation ca. 2009-12, more than 50% used. |
| | lathered || 74 || +4.5 || Face-lathered, adding drops of water to the breach as needed. Lather was fine after about 2-min, but I like more prep time. |
| | completed pass || 74 || 0 || Checking for evaporative loss. Light rinse after this pass. |
| | re-lathered || 73 || -1 || |
| | completed pass || 73 || 0 || Light rinse after this pass. |
| | re-lathered || 72 || -1 || |
| | completed pass || 72 || 0 || No rinse just yet. |
| | milked || 68.5 || -3.5 || Gentle squeeze to remove lather from the brush. |
| | cleaned || 69 || +0.5 || Rinsed brush thoroughly, and removed as much water as possible with gentle shaking. |
| | post-shower || 68.5 || -0.5 || Brush was placed upright in a room away from shower, near an open screen door, at about 65-F and about 55% humidity. |
| | later || 68 || -0.5 || |
| | later || 66 || -3 || Still drying out. |
| | later || 63 || -3 || Still drying out. |
| | later || 62 || -1 || Still drying out. |
Observations....
- My usual planning figure for creams is 1.5-g, but it seems I loaded over
4-g2-g. Some folks have said that Nancy Boy is less economical than other creams. That may be, or perhaps I just loaded more than I intended to. I am trying to use that stuff up. - The brush absorbed 6-8 grams of water, most of which I conclude stayed in the hair and did not work into the lather. I made about 6-g of lather, plus whatever was on my face for the first pass: call it 8-g since I think I have more lather on my face for the first pass. So my lather was roughly
50%25% water, most of which I probably added while face-lathering. - After the first pass, I used about 1-g per pass. It is surprising how much lather I squeezed out at the end. That core lather does not apply easily, and has to be milked out of the brush. I think it is wetter than the outer mantle of lather, too.
- The brush was a little heavier after a milked it than after I rinsed it. That makes sense: a given volume of residual lather would be lighter than the same volume of residual water.
- There seemed to be some early evaporative loss, then it seems to have slowed down. More data needed, but I expect this will be a decelerating process. I tend to let my brushes dry for 24-48 hr, and I find that I can still detect dampness in the heart of the brush after 24-hr.
Not sure when I will do this again, but feel free to add your own measurements to this thread. Some bowl-lathering measurements would be interesting, since you could weigh the bowl and brush together to get the total lather.
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