Sotiris' straight razor journal

[Sotiris_A]

SR Shave #26 (#1 after retouch):

• Pre-shave: Warm water and towel
• Razor: Ralf Aust 6/8
• Brush: Omega evo
• Soap: MWF
• ASL: Aqua Velva

• Method: 1st pass WTG, 2nd ATG(neck)/XTG(face), 3rd ATG.
• Result: Close result but I had a bit of irritation after the shave.

Notes:

Pre-shave stropping: I didn't count

I've had better shaves with the SR. Was it the lather, the different prep, the angle, the retouch that made the razor less smooth, improper/insufficient stropping, a combination of some/all of these? We'll see tomorrow.

Happy New Year everyone!

 

[Sotiris_A]

SR Shave #27-28 (#2-3 after retouch):

• Pre-shave: Hot water
• Razor: Ralf Aust 6/8
• Brush: Omega 011842
• Soap: MWF
• ASL: Pitralon Classic

• Method: 1st pass WTG, 2nd XTG, 3rd ATG.
• Result: Super close and comfortable. No blood yesterday, a couple of nicks today. No irritation and excellent post-shave feel.

Notes:

Pre- and post-shave stropping: 25 linen, 40 x-strokes and 10 normal on leather.

I didn't have time to post yesterday. The last two shaves were excellent! First of all, I revisited the 011842. Fantastic brush that fell out of my preferences due to shedding. However it is my most, best broken-in boar and a great match with the Fat. The lathers these two provided were some of my best. I know I wrote that Tabac was to be used for my "control" setup, but I cannot stop using Mitchell's lately.

I would blame using a towel during prep and the insufficient stropping for the mediocre first-of-the-year shave. I've experimented quite a bit with prep in the past and I know that for my face less is more, because it is better to keep some of the skin oil on. But sometimes I keep wondering "what if" and I always pay the price in the end.

The edge feels very sharp and comfortable. Strokes come more naturally and I finally managed to do a XTG everywhere. This added to the comfort on the neck. There are still a couple of areas where I need to think more on how to shave them, e.g. going ATG on the right part of the chin as well as lower neck where my growth is towards the Adam's apple. However, approaching the 30 shave milestone, I feel this is turning more and more to a routine.

Finally, I decided to stop rinsing the razor under the tap and use a wet sponge. I am too clumsy and I feel I was playing with fire all this time.

Happy shaves and have a wonderful day!

 

[Rosseforp]

Finally, I decided to stop rinsing the razor under the tap and use a wet sponge.

The further you can keep the tang from running water, the better off you are! I use a wet sponge or a wet folded towel.

 

[Sotiris_A]

SR Shave #29 (#4 after retouch):

• Pre-shave: Hot water
• Razor: Ralf Aust 6/8
• Brush: Omega 10065
• Soap: MWF
• ASL: DR Harris Windsor

• Method: 1st pass WTG, 2nd XTG, 3rd ATG.
• Result: Very close and comfortable. No blood, no irritation and very good post-shave feel.

Notes:

Pre- and post-shave stropping: 25 linen, 40 x-strokes and 10 normal on leather. That's still something that I am not sure I am doing correctly.

The 011842 was still wet from yesterday's shave, so the 10065 filled in. Good performance again, but not at the same standards. Perhaps it needs more time to break in, even though it is already very soft.

The edge feels sharp and smooth. No problem in any of the tougher spots. I was in a bit of a hurry today, so I didn't enjoy it that much.

Apart from the upper lip area and the right side of the lower neck, the rest felt like going through natural motions.

I love the post shave and scent of the DR Harris aftershave. Sometimes I am thinking of getting another scent, but I cannot really justify the cost.

Happy shaves and have a wonderful day!

 

[Sotiris_A]

SR Shave #30 (#5 after retouch):

• Pre-shave: Hot water
• Razor: Ralf Aust 6/8
• Brush: Simpsons Chubby 1 Super
• Soap: Mitchell's Wool Fat
• ASL: Le Pere Lucien Oud-Santal

• Method: 1st pass WTG, 2nd XTG, 3rd ATG.
• Result: Close and comfortable. A couple of spots could have been closer. No blood, no irritation and excellent post-shave feel.

Notes:

Pre- and post-shave stropping: 25 strokes on linen, 50 x-strokes and 10 normal on leather.

The CH1 super is a nice brush. Soft, mildly scrubby, nice size, doesn't steal much lather. That said, I prefer using brushes with better flow through and more resistance to splay with the Fat, because they help me control the air intake in the lather better. The reason for that is that Mitchell's can increase in volume very quickly and this doesn't help my way of shaving. For this reason I have abandoned swirling for the most part of my shaves, using painting motions and the tips of the hair/bristles/fibers. If I want to incorporate more air in the mixture, a mild splay still using the area near the tips is enough.

I tried to time myself today. Loading the brush, prep, face lathering and 3 passes took around 22 mins. Stropping before and after, as well as cleaning up took another 15. My strop is rather small and this means more laps. I am still quite slow at stropping and I don't think it is wise to speed it up.

The edge feels nice.

The 30 shaves milestone was hit. I'm happy that my shaves start becoming a routine. Each stroke is becoming part of the "ritual". I have to keep in mind to use a low angle. Once the edge wears a bit and I find myself opening the angle up.

I've started thinking about new razors and a strop. For some reason, I am tempted to buy a second Ralf Aust 6/8. I also like some of the TI I see, but all the reports of them being a pain to hone and maintain make me a bit cautious. I am also thinking of a cheap, vintage SR to use for honing training. We'll see.

Happy shaves and have a wonderful day!

 

[Billy T.]

Here's to another 30 (and hopefully even more) close and comfortable SR shaves

 

[Sotiris_A]

Here's to another 30 (and hopefully even more) close and comfortable SR shaves

Thanks Billy!

 

[Sotiris_A]

Yesterday, it was a day of major ups and downs. I treewhaled and bought a paddle strop, as well as a second Ralf Aust, this time from the maker himself. Early afternoon and I was over the moon with the prospect of my new toys.

However, two days ago my wife was complaining for a chest pain she had. Luckily it went away very quickly, but that was enough to prompt her visit her cardiologist, as she is already under treatment for high blood pressure. It all seemed normal, until yesterday afternoon, when the results of a troponin test she did came out and the numbers were high enough that she entered the hospital. Not sure if it was a heart attack, because the numbers are in a gray zone. Tomorrow, she will go through what I think is called in English, a cardiac stent. Talking about a roller-coaster...

Anyways, I am at home as I am not even allowed to visit her, due to the pandemic. So I needed a shave just to get some sense of normality in my life.


SR Shave #31 (#6 after retouch):

• Pre-shave: Hot water
• Razor: Ralf Aust 6/8
• Brush: Omega 011842
• Soap: Mitchell's Wool Fat
• ASL: Pitralon Classic

• Method: 1st pass WTG, 2nd XTG, 3rd ATG.
• Result: Close and super comfortable. Some spots on the neck could have been a bit closer. No blood, no irritation and excellent post-shave feel.

Notes:

Pre- and post-shave stropping: 25 strokes on linen, 60 x-strokes on leather. By using a thick hardcover book as a base, I turned my strop to a bench one. I think this was my best stropping session so far. The edge felt remarkably better today. As such, I ordered a Strop-it supex 77, which is a paddle strop with interchangeable beds. Different versions exist and mine comes with napped vegetable- and oil-tanned cow leather. I also ordered a Latigo and an English Bridle bed to test them.

The lather was great once again. The shave went very well. I need to play a bit with the amount of skin stretching on some parts of the neck.

Happy shaves and have a wonderful day!

 

[Rosseforp]

Praying that all goes well for your wife!

 

[Sotiris_A]

Praying that all goes well for your wife!

Thank you Doug!

 

[thombrogan]

Prayers sent for your bride.

 

[Sotiris_A]

Prayers sent for your bride.

Thanks Thom!

 

[MilkCrate]

Prayers sent for you and the missus.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Best wishes for you both

 

[Sotiris_A]

Thank you very much gentlemen! I really appreciate it.

 

[Sotiris_A]

Crisis averted!

Myocarditis probably due to a virus infection. What a relief!

Thank you all again for your thoughts, prayers and wishes!

Hopefully, tomorrow I'll get back to my regular shaving schedule.

 

[TinyT]

Great news.

 

[Sotiris_A]

The problem with great shaves is that there isn't enough stubble the next day. I was planning to report yesterday's and today's shaves, but at the moment I don't really need one. Maybe later...

So here's what happed yesterday.

SR Shave #32 (#7 after retouch):

• Pre-shave: Hot water
• Razor: Ralf Aust 6/8
• Brush: Omega 10018
• Soap: Mitchell's Wool Fat
• ASL: B&M Seville

• Method: 1st pass WTG, 2nd XTG, 3rd ATG.
• Result: Excellent by all accounts. No blood, no irritation and fantastic post-shave feel. I could have even skipped the ASL, but who doesn't like a nice scent to finish.

Notes:

Pre- and post-shave stropping: I didn't count.

Not much else to write, other than the satisfaction of being clean-shaved again after 2 days. It matched the relief I was feeling that everything went well on Thursday.

I also had several mail calls! Stones, strop, oils etc.



Happy shaves and have a wonderful day!

 

[thombrogan]

The problem with great shaves is that there isn't enough stubble the next day.

That‘s why @rbscebu doesn’t do three pass shaves. Doesn’t want to miss a moment if that open blade glory.

 

[rbscebu]

@Sotiris_A if you have not reach it yet, you should just about be at the state where you wished that you had started SR shaving in your teens.