I started my wet shaving experience January 23rd this year with a Vikings Blade Chieftain and using the supplied "mild" blades that came with the razor.
Before that I had been using a Norelco or Braun electric razor for almost 40 years. Oh, my first shave as a teen in the 1970's was with one of my Dad's DE razors. I only remember it being a gold colored TTO style and shaving cream in a can. That and a styptic pencil. That didn't last very long before I learned how to get lousy shaves with a Gillette Trac II. I still needed the styptic pencil.
So I grew a beard, not a particularly good looking beard, actually downright scraggly. But I didn't need the styptic pencil anymore.
Well that lasted until I needed to shave on a semi-regular basis for work. My beard doesn't grow very fast, so I usually only shaved every 3-4 days.
So for 40+ years, shaving had been a chore I avoided most of the time. Mainly when the wife started complaining, as I had become a machinist, so daily shaving wasn't really necessary for work.
Of course, I had always used the excuse that shaving irritates my face to avoid shaving, when I came across my Grandpa's old straight razor and became intrigued by it. Oh, it was chipped, dull, and rusted from ages of neglect. I think my Grandma used it to open letters when my Grandpa started using a Tech. Lol
Intrigued, yes. Brave, not so much. So I started looking at DE razors. I seemed that wet shaving was making a small comeback due to being easier on the complexion than either a cartridge or electric razor. Or maybe it was the 007 movie........
Not that I have the face of a model, or even the Marlboro Man, but the hood was set.
Of course, being an Amazon Prime customer, I figured that the razor with the highest Amazon rating would be the place to start.
So off to the races I went with my Cheiftain and a can of Barbasol. And a styptic pencil.
Man oh man, back to square one, what was I thinking when I could have just bought a new electric razor for $75.......
I'm watching all the youtube videos, and they make it look so easy, and I can't build a decent lather to save my life, let alone shave with it........
But whenever I did an internet search, B&B kept showing up. So I lurked for a week or two, read tons of the beginner threads, parked my Chieftain and got a Feather Popular. That and I joined B&B.
I also started keeping notes, as I have never subscribed to the 4 weeks using the same razor, brush, blade, soap, etc......
My thinking on the 4 week thing is it makes it a chore, not a new experience every time you pick up a razor in the morning or evening.
Hey, when you get RAD and next thing you have 20 razors and a half dozen brushes, why on earth would you want to use the same razor every day?????
It is called a HOBBY for a reason!
But I digress. The main reason for this posting is when I go back and look at some of my notes, it does show a progression. I am getting the best shaves of my life, and actually look forward to shaving. And some of them are funny.
So I thought that I might share some of them here.
Prof
This is the first set of notes with a journal...Oh yeah, using a White Knight synthetic brush until noted...
53 Tech-GSB-1-TOBS, tugged at first, then got smooth.
Tuesday, March 19, 2019
53 Tech-GSB-2
Wednesday, March 20, 2019
TOBS. Just ok, light tugging. Clean shave, getting better at jaw.
53 Tech-GSB-3
Thursday, March 21, 2019
TOBS. Tried out new SS 11mm x 81mm x 35.5 gram handle. Not bad.
53 Tech-Nacet-1
Friday, March 22, 2019
TOBS. SS 11mm x 89mm x 39gram handle. Nice balance. Blade ok.
53 Tech-Nacet-2-TOBS.
Saturday, March 23, 2019
SS 11mm x 95mm x 42gram handle. I likes the new handle
Got a little careless and got a tiny nick on my neck. The Tech felt so nice with the heavier handle, much smoother.
Before that I had been using a Norelco or Braun electric razor for almost 40 years. Oh, my first shave as a teen in the 1970's was with one of my Dad's DE razors. I only remember it being a gold colored TTO style and shaving cream in a can. That and a styptic pencil. That didn't last very long before I learned how to get lousy shaves with a Gillette Trac II. I still needed the styptic pencil.
So I grew a beard, not a particularly good looking beard, actually downright scraggly. But I didn't need the styptic pencil anymore.
Well that lasted until I needed to shave on a semi-regular basis for work. My beard doesn't grow very fast, so I usually only shaved every 3-4 days.
So for 40+ years, shaving had been a chore I avoided most of the time. Mainly when the wife started complaining, as I had become a machinist, so daily shaving wasn't really necessary for work.
Of course, I had always used the excuse that shaving irritates my face to avoid shaving, when I came across my Grandpa's old straight razor and became intrigued by it. Oh, it was chipped, dull, and rusted from ages of neglect. I think my Grandma used it to open letters when my Grandpa started using a Tech. Lol
Intrigued, yes. Brave, not so much. So I started looking at DE razors. I seemed that wet shaving was making a small comeback due to being easier on the complexion than either a cartridge or electric razor. Or maybe it was the 007 movie........
Not that I have the face of a model, or even the Marlboro Man, but the hood was set.
Of course, being an Amazon Prime customer, I figured that the razor with the highest Amazon rating would be the place to start.
So off to the races I went with my Cheiftain and a can of Barbasol. And a styptic pencil.
Man oh man, back to square one, what was I thinking when I could have just bought a new electric razor for $75.......
I'm watching all the youtube videos, and they make it look so easy, and I can't build a decent lather to save my life, let alone shave with it........
But whenever I did an internet search, B&B kept showing up. So I lurked for a week or two, read tons of the beginner threads, parked my Chieftain and got a Feather Popular. That and I joined B&B.
I also started keeping notes, as I have never subscribed to the 4 weeks using the same razor, brush, blade, soap, etc......
My thinking on the 4 week thing is it makes it a chore, not a new experience every time you pick up a razor in the morning or evening.
Hey, when you get RAD and next thing you have 20 razors and a half dozen brushes, why on earth would you want to use the same razor every day?????
It is called a HOBBY for a reason!
But I digress. The main reason for this posting is when I go back and look at some of my notes, it does show a progression. I am getting the best shaves of my life, and actually look forward to shaving. And some of them are funny.
So I thought that I might share some of them here.
Prof
This is the first set of notes with a journal...Oh yeah, using a White Knight synthetic brush until noted...
53 Tech-GSB-1-TOBS, tugged at first, then got smooth.
Tuesday, March 19, 2019
53 Tech-GSB-2
Wednesday, March 20, 2019
TOBS. Just ok, light tugging. Clean shave, getting better at jaw.
53 Tech-GSB-3
Thursday, March 21, 2019
TOBS. Tried out new SS 11mm x 81mm x 35.5 gram handle. Not bad.
53 Tech-Nacet-1
Friday, March 22, 2019
TOBS. SS 11mm x 89mm x 39gram handle. Nice balance. Blade ok.
53 Tech-Nacet-2-TOBS.
Saturday, March 23, 2019
SS 11mm x 95mm x 42gram handle. I likes the new handle
Got a little careless and got a tiny nick on my neck. The Tech felt so nice with the heavier handle, much smoother.
