The Journal of a Backwards Professor

[TinyT]

I've been enjoying catching up with and following your thread. I share your enthusiasm for Semogue, I really like my 1438. I don't feel the need to have a ton of brushes but I'll likely try a synthetic and badger at some point and I suspect at least one other Semogue boar. I'm a semi-face latherer at the moment and a soft face feel is high on my list of priorities.

ATG pass first. Backwards Professor indeed. I salute you!

My 1st pass was full ATG on my neck, the rigidity of the razor really shined, and I was able to comfortably shave all the way up to my chin. I made sure that I kept a nice steep angle and didn't touch the cap.

You mentioned the rigidity of the GC, I'll be using my RR Lupo in about a dozen shaves time. It appears to have a similar head design so I'm looking forward to using it. I'm one of those who adheres to the principle that rigidity is the most important factor in achieving a comfortable, efficient shave. How do you find your Merkur OC in that regard? You seem to get consistently good shaves with it as I recall.

 

[Rosseforp]

I share your enthusiasm for Semogue, I really like my 1438. I don't feel the need to have a ton of brushes but I'll likely try a synthetic and badger at some point and I suspect at least one other Semogue boar.

When I first started wet shaving a year ago, my first brush was a synthetic Vikings Blade White Knight. The water is very hard where I live and synthetic brushes are usually recommended. It served me well, but I wanted to try a boar or two, and ordered an Omega 10066 and a Semogue 1800. While the Omega 66 broke-in for me right away, I could never get the 1800 to lather and traded it for an Omega 49. I didn't like the 49 much at first because it is such a lather hog. So I got an Omega 290 boar and an Omega S-Brush 10005, and really thought I had enough brushes.

Then my brother sent me an Acca Kappa badger from Italy and I tripped over the rabbit hole.........be careful

You mentioned the rigidity of the GC, I'll be using my RR Lupo in about a dozen shaves time. It appears to have a similar head design so I'm looking forward to using it. I'm one of those who adheres to the principle that rigidity is the most important factor in achieving a comfortable, efficient shave. How do you find your Merkur OC in that regard? You seem to get consistently good shaves with it as I recall.

My Merkur holds the blade even more securely that my Fatip OC razors, and is so light I can literally toss it around on my face without any fear of nicks or cuts. It is the mildest of all my OC razors, the cap being the same width
as my Gillette Flare Tips, 19.6mm. There is also a bit of leeway in how tight you get the handle, if you don't tighten it up all the way it will be a tad more aggressive.
When I first picked up my Merkur 15C at WCS and held it in my hand, I fell in love. And it seems that it hasn't been getting much love lately, so it just bumped my GC84P from the rotation on Sunday.

I will be using my Red Tip tonight for Flare Tip Friday, and yes, full ATG 1st pass........

 

[TinyT]

When I first started wet shaving a year ago, my first brush was a synthetic Vikings Blade White Knight. The water is very hard where I live and synthetic brushes are usually recommended. It served me well, but I wanted to try a boar or two, and ordered an Omega 10066 and a Semogue 1800. While the Omega 66 broke-in for me right away, I could never get the 1800 to lather and traded it for an Omega 49. I didn't like the 49 much at first because it is such a lather hog. So I got an Omega 290 boar and an Omega S-Brush 10005, and really thought I had enough brushes.

I wonder if these two things - hard water and hogging lather - are connected. It's something I've been thinking about lately. Like many others, I also have hard water and find either of my boar brushes can hog lather, the Semogue less than the Omega. I suspect that the hard water is less easily absorbed by boar bristles, some more than others, resulting in a brush which hasn't been fully water logged before loading with soap (assuming that this water logging of the bristles is why soaking of boar brushes is advised), meaning that the bristles will soak up the valuable lather. I have yet to test this theory rigorously but I have done some experimenting. It seems logical, in any case. It would also explain the recommendation of a synthetic brush for hard water.

 

[Rosseforp]

I wonder if these two things - hard water and hogging lather - are connected. It's something I've been thinking about lately.

You hear it on commercials for beer, wine, and fine spirits "It's the Water".
It made all the difference for me.

About 6 or 8 months ago I tried using the filtered water we use for our coffee machine for soaking my brush. I was already filling up a mug with hot water from the tap, and getting hot water from the kitchen only takes 30 seconds.

Even when I was using the same soap and brush I would sometimes get inconsistent results. Once I started using filtered water all of that went away. In fact I am gonna use my Omega 49 boar tonight, and treat it just like my Omega 618 badger. It did take the 49 a lot of shaves to get soft, but it is a pleasure to use now, and a whole lot cheaper than a badger!
My kids took my synthetics.............lol

 

[Rosseforp]

Flare Tip Friday, February 14
55 Red Tip
Feather(4)
Omega 49
Wholly Kaw La Fougere Parfaite
Eau Sauvage

Tonight's shave was a good one.

The Omega 49 is my largest brush, and it used to be a lather hog. Tonight it only took about 30 swirls to load, and the volume of lather was more than enough for 3 passes. The Wholly Kaw really went on super creamy, and provided plenty of cushion for a full ATG 1st pass.

The Red Tip just swept up my neck with almost no resistance all the way to my chin, I used a fairly steep angle and never even felt the blade, but I could feel it cutting smoothly. Even the ATG 1st pass on my face was actually comfortable, the 4th use Feather showing no signs of getting dull. I did shave under my nose WTG, but XTG on my chin.

I was really impressed tonight with how the Wholly Kaw performed, the 2nd pass was mostly WTG on my face and neck, XTG chin and under my nose. I could hear the blade sweeping away, but I never felt the blade at all.

For the 3rd pass I shaved nose to ear on my face, and N-S on my neck. I could still feel the blade removing hair, but the steep angle let it do it's job with no irritation at all.
The Witch hazel almost felt like water it was so smooth, and the Eau Sauvage leaves a wonderful silky feeling on my face.
I finished with Nivea balm, and my face feels like a baby's butt.

DFS

 

[Rosseforp]

Last nights shave was pretty nice going full ATG on the 1st pass, but I felt some whiskers this morning. More whiskers than I had the day after going full ATG with my GC68-P.

I have tried shaving ATG before, but never on the 1st pass.
When I first started shaving with a Gillette Trac II in the late 1970's, I could never shave my neck ATG without major irritation. And with my whiskers laying flat on my neck, I could never get a decent shave on my neck.
And I have always had irritation on my neck the next day after shaving ATG. So I have always settled for having whiskers on my neck, even right after I shave.

Not the I have a heavy beard and it is noticeable. I can skip 2-3 days shaving before SWMBO complains. My beard is sparse, but my whiskers are coarse and in many places lie flat against my skin. After a WTG 1st pass, there isn't enough left for the blade to catch without causing irritation on subsequent XTG and ATG passes.

So I usually just so a 2 pass WTG, XTG shave, rarely ever an ATG 3rd pass.

But I have always wondered if I tried to go full ATG on the 1st pass, it would make a difference, and after reading threads from the Steep Angle Shavers Alliance, it seems that using a steep angle is the key.

 

[Rosseforp]

Saturday, February 15
GC84P
Feather(5)
Omega 49
Wholly Kaw La Fougere Parfaite
RR Essential Oil of Lime

Tonight's shave was very nice, indeed.

I used the large lather bowl with pennies glued inside, and the jury is still out. I did get a great lather, and plenty of it, but not a noticeable difference from the oriental bowl. And it isn't nearly as pretty.

Of course with all this lather, I need a large brush, and the Omega 49 fits the bill perfectly. It really felt great lathering up my face and neck, the Wholly Kaw lather is thick and creamy.

For the 1st ATG pass I started with the handle very close to my adams apple, and brought it out until I could feel the blade starting to cut my whiskers. When I felt the blade starting to pull against my whiskers I added a little pressure and got a nice smooth pull all the way up to my chin, like only 3 strokes. I used the same type of strokes on both sides of my neck and barely felt the blade. Once I realized I could shave my neck ATG with ease, I sped up my passes with comfort, to my surprise!

I mean, most people would consider a GC84P an aggressive razor, and tonight, it did not feel aggressive.

My 1st pass on my face was ear to nose and chin, WTG under my nose, still keeping a steep angle, and not feeling much of the blade at all. After rinsing I almost thought of just stopping right there, the shave was that close.

But I had that large bowl of lather I didn't want to waste, and it sure felt nice lathering up again.

The 2nd pass was nose to ear my whole face, and WTG neck. Just for the fun of it, and because I had so much lather left, I felt a WTG 3rd pass on my face would be nice. And it was.

The Witch hazel felt nice like last night, but I think this is the last time I will use the RR Essential Oil of Lime, my face isn't happy with the post feeling at all.
I used some HA and the Nivea balm and my face feels a lot better after that.

Still a DFS

 

[Rosseforp]

Sunday, February 16
Merkur 15C
Feather(1)
Omega 618
Wholly Kaw La Fougere Parfaite
The "Veg"

After getting used to how soft my Omega 49 has become, I think my new Omega Silver Tip is gonna need some more time to break-in. The 49 has snuck its way up the list!

Tonight's shave was good. I think it is the closest shave I have had with this razor.

But was it as good as last night's shave? The GC84P felt more comfortable, but this morning I noticed that I had stubble on my left side, and not on my right side.
So the GC84P will need some adjustment.

On my 1st steep angle ATG pass, the teeth on my Merkur15C let me know they were there, and it did not feel as effortless even with a new Feather.

The 2nd pass, nose to ear face and WTG neck was much smoother, I tried to keep the angle to where it just cleaned the lather off with the blade while not touching the cap.

On the 3rd pass I tried shaving under my nose from the outside to center and got probably the closest shave there ever. I finished with a WTG face and neck using almost no pressure, but I could still feel the blade removing the remaining stubble.

And I do mean remove all the remaining stubble.
This shave is a BBS, no doubt the closest shave I have had with this razor, and with almost no irritation at all.

But not the most comfortable.

I finished with Witch hazel, which felt as nice as usual. In fact, it felt really nice. The "Veg" did, however make it's presence known, but the Nivea balm calmed it right down. I added a few drops of HA, and my face is happy.

DFS

 

[Rosseforp]

Monday, February 17
Piccolo SE
Feather(2)
Omega 618
Wholly Kaw La Fougere Parfaite
Pinaud Clubman

Tonight's shave was good. Tonight's shave was close.

The Silver Tip Omega still needs more time before it catches up with the Omega 49, it did a fine job exfoliating my face tonight. I think it is more suited to the AdP and MdC soaps.

The 1st pass was again a Steep Angle full ATG on my neck. And it did put up some resistance. I'm starting to think that an OC razor might be better with a Steep Angle WTG 1st pass on my neck. Tomorrow.

For tonight my 1st face pass, jawline, and chin, was ear to nose, and that was very smooth, but I could feel the blade working. WTG under my nose.

At that point I could have stopped. When I rinsed my face was already smooth.
But I still had lather...........and the brush was actually tougher on my face than the blade.

So a 2nd nose to ear pass on my face and WTG on my neck, and just enough lather for a nice touch-up pass. I did a bit of extra work on the hollows on either side of my neck and my jawline.

There was some irritation, not much considering I have shaved my neck Full ATG 1st pass for over a week.

Have I said tonight's shave was close yet? By the time it took to write this, the hysteresis effect has left me with a BBS, one of the absolute closest shaves ever with a DE.

The Witch hazel was welcome, and the Clubman delivered a punch where I had done some extra work. I used some HA and finished with Nivea balm.
My face is very smooth........... DFS

 

[Rosseforp]

Tuesday, February 18
Piccolo SE
Feather(3)
Semogue 620
Wholly Kaw La Fougere Parfaite
Amici after splash

A nice shave tonight.

The Semogue boar did a great job lathering up. I can't say enough about this brush, from the 1st time I used it, I liked it. It isn't large, but holds enough lather for 3 passes easy, and it is soft.

I was thinking of starting with a WTG pass, but a Full ATG Steep Angle pass was the order of the day, or night. The resistance was there, but I kept the pressure light, and the ear to nose face pass felt pretty smooth.

I did shave WTG for the 2nd pass face and neck, it went fast and smooth, cleaning up most of what was left from the 1st pass.
The 3rd pass was mostly touch-up and ear to nose and along my jawline and chin.

I splashed the Witch hazel on while my face was still moist and let it dry while I cleaned up my gear, then I splashed on the Amici, it stung a bit but cooled off right away. I finished up with Nivea balm.

My face is smooth and there is no irritation. DFS

 

[Esox]

I started my directly ATG single pass shaves testing blades in my Grande on my 7th shave with that razor and a Feather blade on page 5 of my journal.

I tested almost 30 different blades trying to find the ones that would let me shave like that easily, comfortably and closely. Polsilver and Gillette Yellow are the two blades that let me do all three. I used a single Polsilver blade over 5 weeks for 20 shaves, all shaves done with a single ATG buffing pass for a 12 hour BBS finish. A rigid blade is paramount and I can use any well supported razor to shave like that, even a Tech, but no DE comes close to being as smooth and comfortable as an SE. The rigidity of the thicker blade, even at the very edge, is instantly noticeable.

With my Grande, if I drop the angle even a tiny bit the very edge of the blade will flex, tug and I'll have a weeper. Using an SE thats not an issue and I can shave at any angle from extremely steep to extremely shallow. The pressure applied becomes far more important than angle used and I generally shave steep to very steep with my GEM's. Care needs to be taken with the MMOC though. It will peel skin like you're peeling an apple if you use to much pressure.

I used my Grande at 78 hours growth single pass ATG without any trouble at all, but my MMOC is King.

I didnt record my last shave here, but it was Monday evening or night. I dont remember.

MMOC/PTFE for its 4th shave.

WK.

Maggard Synthetic.

~100 hours since last shave. I dont think it would matter if it was around 200 hours.

Single buffing pass ATG. One clean up. The MMOC is all business and this was business as usual.

Nice comfy BBS. What more could be asked for.

Its a lot easier than most people believe but there arent many of us that do shave like that. @rabidus is the only other person I know of that shaves like that all the time. Once you understand the razor being used, assuming it has enough blade support, know the proper angle and learn the right length of stroke for the growth being shaved, it's easy. Done properly, it's also very gentle on the skin. The less amount of time the blade is on my skin, the better. A typical ATG shave like that, from loading my brush to toweling off, takes me around three minutes. With my Grande thats a 12 hour BBS. With my MMOC, typically 14 hours but as long as 19 wiith a fresh blade.

 

[Rosseforp]

Its a lot easier than most people believe but there arent many of us that do shave like that. @rabidus is the only other person I know of that shaves like that all the time. Once you understand the razor being used, assuming it has enough blade support, know the proper angle and learn the right length of stroke for the growth being shaved, it's easy. Done properly, it's also very gentle on the skin. The less amount of time the blade is on my skin, the better. A typical ATG shave like that, from loading my brush to toweling off, takes me around three minutes.

"The downside would be less time spent shaving."
with apologies to @Chan Eil Whiskers

I actually look forward to shaving as a hobby, my goal with a full ATG 1st pass is not to decrease my time spent shaving.
I have some pesky whiskers that lay flat and 2nd and 3rd ATG passes have always irritated them. Individual hair's the razor misses removing enough of on the 1st WTG pass, and respond with a tiny red dot on subsequent ATG passes.
The 1st ATG pass cuts them off clean at the root.

The upside is that I can spend more time on 2nd and 3rd passes using almost no pressure, getting a BBS without irritation........
The caveat is that I am not "chasing a BBS", it is the result.

As a machinist my job was to remove chips, the left-over by-product was a finished part.

It has taken me a year to figure this out, and it was actually Wilford Brimley shaving in the the movie "The Natural", that gave me the idea. Even though he was using a SR, it looked like an effortless ATG 1st pass.
I don't know if he was really shaving in the movie, but it looked real enough.

I have only been shaving ATG 1st pass for a little over a week now, I'm getting the closest shaves ever with little to no irritation. So far my SB razors are smoother on the 1st pass ATG. I have plan on working my way through all my OC razors with the same Feather blade, ATG 1st pass, before starting over with my SB's.
The Schöne tonight, then I will find out if the Mk1 I got from @Tanuki has more teeth than my GC OC84..........

I PIF'ed my first NSC to a co-worker, as it hadn't seen much use after I got my Piccolo, but I missed it, and I have another one coming. I also have an ATT SE1 on the way.............

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

S-N is not (for me) 100% ATG because my beard map is kinda sorta all over the place, but a S-N shave is about as ATG as I could get by going in only one direction.

What's my history with S-N first pass shaving?

• I used to shave S-N with a cartridge razor on the first pass.
• Off and on I've tried S-N first passes with various safety razors. Usually it's been fine for me with the safeties.
• For a good while a S-N first pass has been my routine with the straight razor.
• Currently my first pass is S-N over most of the territory excepting my upper lip and chin.
• With my best edges - my Top of the Top edges - all I really need is the first, ATG pass. Usually I don't stop after one, but I could.

No idea why. No idea it would work for anyone else.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[Rosseforp]

No idea why. No idea it would work for anyone else

It is almost like learning to shave all over again. Fortunately for me, I haven't learned much about DE shaving yet, so I don't have much to re-learn.
It is becoming natural. Sort of.

 

[Rosseforp]

Wednesday, February 19
Schöne
Feather(4)
Acca Kappa
Wholly Kaw La Fougere Parfaite
Amici after splash

Tonight's shave was nice.

The badger my brother bought me at an Italian barber shop is a good one. I did have to load it pretty heavy, but the lather is great.

The Schöne felt smoother on the 1st ATG pass than my Piccolo. Is it because the Schöne is a tad more aggressive? The blade is still plenty sharp, even on it's 4th shave.

I added a bit of water to the lather for the 2nd XTG pass, and it was creamy and slick, I could hear the blade cutting just as smooth as can be while it just glided over my face. N-S on my neck, very smooth, comfortable.

I didn't really need a 3rd pass, but I wanted to make sure my sideburns were straight and it was just a light WTG pass on my face and some minor touch-up. It is starting to get a little tender in the hollows under my jawline, but the rest of my neck feels nice. I noticed the Piccolo did a slightly better job under my jaw.

I splashed on the Witch hazel while my face was still moist, then cleaned up my gear while my face dried and tightened up. The Amici gave a hint of a sting, but was mostly nice and cool. It leaves my face feeling moist. The Nivea balm finished it off for a nice close shave.

Maybe not a BBS on my neck, but certainly a comfortable shave.

DFS

 

[Raven Koenes]

Wednesday, February 19
Schöne
Feather(4)
Acca Kappa
Wholly Kaw La Fougere Parfaite
Amici after splash

Tonight's shave was nice.

The badger my brother bought me at an Italian barber shop is a good one. I did have to load it pretty heavy, but the lather is great.

The Schöne felt smoother on the 1st ATG pass than my Piccolo. Is it because the Schöne is a tad more aggressive? The blade is still plenty sharp, even on it's 4th shave.

I added a bit of water to the lather for the 2nd XTG pass, and it was creamy and slick, I could hear the blade cutting just as smooth as can be while it just glided over my face. N-S on my neck, very smooth, comfortable.

I didn't really need a 3rd pass, but I wanted to make sure my sideburns were straight and it was just a light WTG pass on my face and some minor touch-up. It is starting to get a little tender in the hollows under my jawline, but the rest of my neck feels nice. I noticed the Piccolo did a slightly better job under my jaw.

I splashed on the Witch hazel while my face was still moist, then cleaned up my gear while my face dried and tightened up. The Amici gave a hint of a sting, but was mostly nice and cool. It leaves my face feeling moist. The Nivea balm finished it off for a nice close shave.

Maybe not a BBS on my neck, but certainly a comfortable shave.

DFS

View attachment 1064956

Nice Schone ! Mine is an older Schone with the traditional Fatip column shaped handle not the twist. I remember one time I posted my shaves all week calling it a Fatip Grande. Cal pointed out I was using my Schone.

 

[Esox]

getting a BBS without irritation........

That was the goal I set for myself. A single ATG pass with the least amount of buffing as possible while striving for a very comfortable shave. Once I found my best blades for that kind of shave the rest fell into place in its own time.

My ideal wasnt the fastest shave I could have but as I got better at it, I became quicker. When I finally got to the point of having a post shave feel that felt like I hadnt shaved, with no redness or irritation to my skin at all, I felt I had reached my goal. That took about a year using my Grande, but the foundation was laid and my technique was solid.

Then I started with my GEM's and PTFE blades. Once I had finally learned them, which took me 6 months or more in the case of my MMOC, I found that the "feeling of not being shaved" with a DE wasnt as accurate a statement as I had thought. No matter how gentle a DE blade can be on my skin, which is very gentle, the thicker SE blade betters it and is even more gentle on my skin.

A long term effect of that was improved skin condition while using only my SE's for about another year. Switching back to DE, the difference in blade stability was instantly noticeable to me. The Fatip Grande is a fantastic razor, but to achieve the same level of comfort as with an SE, I need to focus and my technique needs to be absolutely perfect. Using my GEM"s, its just another shave and I dont need to concentrate at all.

In my opinion, rigidity of the blade trumps technique. No matter how good your technique is it can only be as good as the tool allows it to be. The better the tool, the better the job.

I also have an ATT SE1 on the way.............

An ATT SE1 is still on my mind too. I still struggle with the idea of spending that much money on a razor though. If they start offering them in 24k gold plating it might be to difficult to resist lol.

It is almost like learning to shave all over again. Fortunately for me, I haven't learned much about DE shaving yet, so I don't have much to re-learn.
It is becoming natural. Sort of.

I shaved single pass ATG every shave for so long it became very strong muscle memory. So strong in fact that when I started shaving N-S first pass again that I had to really concentrate to get past that muscle memory. I normally shave now first pass N-S, second pass S-N and third pass directly ATG. By the time I'm ready for my third pass theres so little stubble left it might as well not even be there.

Shaving with three passes feels natural now and I do it without even thinking. It takes a little bit longer but not much really, gives me more time to enjoy and work on my technique, which I still do on every shave. The result is the same while being, possibly, even more gentle on my skin.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Some tools are better than other tools.

How this simple fact escapes anyone who has been to Harbor Freight escapes me.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[Rosseforp]

Some tools are better than other tools.

How this simple fact escapes anyone who has been to Harbor Freight escapes me.

Happy shaves,

Jim

"There is hardly anything in this world that cannot be made a little worse and sold a little cheaper. He that considers price alone is this man's lawful prey."
John Ruskin

 

[Malort]

Very thorough.


I started logging my shaves into an excel spreadsheet a while back.

It’s less about qualitative observations, like your logs, and more about identifying patterns in kit selection, product usage, blade longevity... in an effort to make the most of my materials and make better purchases.