You think you're long winded? Try making up for 3,000 posts without offering a PIF!

[jzuzphreek]

[longwindedness]
Well, time (and post counts) sure does fly on B&B when you're having fun. I've been astounded by the generosity and gentlemanliness on this site since day one. Finding B&B for the first time was a revelation and a rather odd journey spurred by a combination of a desire to find an “old-time” barbershop in my area and a few posts on Home-Barista that sparked curious tinder. A woodworker and espresso lover on the site began turning custom handles for several of the HBs. He started a long-running (still going) post with his work, and also periodically included his side work of shaving brushes and straight razor scales. This, coupled with a year-long desire to reconnect with the “glory days” of barber shops led me to the Google machine. Low and behold, if my first query for “shaving brushes” did not return Badger and Blade! The rest, as they tend to say, is history (ymmv, as they also say).

Now, 3100+ posts later, I find myself, finally at a place where I can give some stuff away, yet still retain some things for my own shaving necessities. I have 2 razors that, although they are highly thought of in these parts, don't seem to work well for me. I have some soaps that I love, but would love more to give someone else a try. I also feel incredibly guilty that I have not PIF (what’s the past tense of PIF… if the acronym stands for pay it forward, the past would be paid it forward, which is still PIF&#8230 given in generosity like some others I look up to here at B&B. So, without further ado (actually… there will be a bit more ado), here is what I'm offering.

The winner’s choice between:
(3rd Q. 1971) Gillette Black Handled Super Adjustable (R3) or a (4th Q. 1957) Gillette Red-Tipped Superspeed (C4)

About 4 oz of the discontinued P.160 Tipo Mobido or an almost full puck of Saint Charles Shave “Woods” soap

Sheaffer’s Craftsman (Touchdown) in need of a new O-ring (but works perfectly otherwise) or a Platinum Preppy with no logo, ready for eye-dropper filling

Also each of the following:

1 Full, Never-opened bottle of the VEG
1 Almost full (used once) bottle of Pinaud Clubman
Sample decants of Avon Öland and Wild Country aftershaves
Samples of some of my frags (Zegna, Gucci, Uomo, and others)
1 Almost full bottle of Noodler’s Benevolent Badger Blue ink
Samples of some other inks (Vintage Skrip, Quink, and Waterman)​

I guess that’s enough stuff for one PIF. I’m going to post pictures if and when I have time to take them. Please note that a BRUSH is NOT included in this PIF. I only have one, so of course I can't get rid of that.

So, “How Do I enter?” You may be wondering. Well, for one thing, you can’t say “I’m in.” If you do, you’ll be immediately disqualified, and will have to do QUITE a bit of penance to re-qualify (like Doctor Who trivia or something!) Also, no saying “I’m not in, but…” It’s ok to congratulate me on a great PIF (assuming it’s worthy of such praise), but you’re not allowed to say you’re not in. Doing so will automatically enter you against your will (I’m talking to all you Stewards who don’t seem to enter PIFs anymore).
I assume you’re still wondering how to enter. If so, I applaud your patience. If not…

To enter, please regale me with the tale, in as long-winded a way as you can, of how you came to be acquainted with Badger and Blade (the forum, not actually the brush and razor blade). This PIF will remain open for about 1 month. I’m not going to announce a date or time, you’ll just have to get in quick. However, on July 4th, my wife and I will be paying off a car! So it’s safe to say sometime after that next pay period, I’ll have a little extra shipping money lying around.

Unfortunately due to shipping costs, this can only be open to CONUS. However, I’ll make a special exception. For our Canadian members, you can enter as long as you don’t have your heart set on the aftershaves. Also, international members can enter if they are willing to accept the cost of shipping greater than shipping within the United States. In other words, I’ll cover up to the cost of domestic shipping, anything over that is up to you. I guess what I’m saying is that this is open to ANYONE, there are only a few caveats.
Since this post isn’t nearly long-winded enough, I’d like to add some special bonuses.

You can earn extra entries (winner will be chosen by random.org) a few ways:
​

• 
  [*=10]Have an Active Duty or Veteran tag.
  [*=10]Be a contributor of any level (I know, I’m not one yet, but I’m hoping to remediate that soon).
  [*=10]Be ON THE LIST for the 2013 Sabbatical. (It's your responsibility to tell me if you are, I can consult with Bruce to find out the truth though)
  [*=10]Be a Steward or Moderator.
  [*=10]Answer this question (only by PM, no giving away the answer in the thread):

​

How old is The Doctor?
​

​

(Please note, you may actually receive more things that what are mentioned in this post. Please don’t be offended, if, upon winning, you get more than you actually expected)
[/longwindedness]

woah... I just realized I made it through THREE MS Word pages without using a single smiley! Holy Cow!

Addendum: Also, I'm a firm believer in the Intertwining Meandering Thread Theory, which states that "Any thread which can be derailed, should be derailed." I'm keeping track of entrants as they post, so feel free to let the conversation lead where it will (but if the Mods shut us down because of your post, then you're gonna be in trouble, and Ed will get a LOT of the VEG).

 

[jzuzphreek]

Also, for those interested why the heck I'm giving either of those soaps away...

I LOVE them both! I was actually going to 3017 the Woods, but acquired a bunch of other soaps/creams right after I used it the first time. I've only used it 4 times. It smells amazing, and I've already decided that my next soap purchase will be from Saint Charles Shave (because of their generosity, and because the soap is an excellent performer).

As for the Tipo Morbido, it was given to me in the Never Ending PIF last year when I first began wet shaving. I can't remember who gave it to me, but it is the BEST SMELLING SOAP EVER! It smells just like wedding cake (almond/marzipan). It's also a terrific tallowy performer. I have decided that since it's such a hard soap to come by, I needed to share it with someone who may never have been able to. It's a very soft, typical Italian soap that will be very difficult for me to part with.

 

[JayEddie]

Nice PIF!
Well, I must say that since I don't have the time at the moment it is tempting to simply start if with "I'm not in but...", BUT, I'm really not that lazy so I will be back to add as long of a tale as I can come up with.

By the way, my son just LOVES your user name.

So last night, I came back to edit the post with as much long-windedness as possible. By the time I got done typing, the site had kicked me out. When I clicked the box to acknowledge it, I accidentally clicked on "cancel edit"
Today I typed it out in 'word' first.

So it starts off with my parents being both good Bohemians and children of the depression. You know, never get rid of anything that may have some value or “come in handy someday”. When my maternal grandmother passed away 15ish years ago the safety razors that belonged to my grandfather (who passed away in 1985, and God only knows if he was using them then or just being a good Bohemian) got packed away. Fast forward to three years ago. My Dad passed away, and little by little we had been going through stuff. Now his Aristocrat, which he hadn’t used in many years, was still in the medicine cabinet in the bathroom (remember, good bohemian). This was the razor that I remember him using when I was little, so getting rid of it still wasn’t an option. However at some point I came across the razors that belonged to my grandfather. Now Grandpa and I were not particularly close, and I’ve never seen him shave with them, so they didn’t carry the same sentimental value as Dad’s razor. I decided that it was time to see how much we could get for these old razors. I started doing some research to find out just what I had and how much they are worth. I kind of got an idea of value on one, and my interest had died down for a while. Well, with money being as tight as it is (and Christmas was coming up fast), it wasn’t too long before it became important again to try to sell them. I don’t sell on ebay, so I wanted to find where else I could sell them besides Craigslist. This led to more research, which led me to B&B. So I signed up. Now there was one little issue stopping me from selling them. The membership length and minimum post count requirement. I had decided that since I couldn’t sell anything yet, that I may as well do some reading to ensure that I get optimal dollar for what I have. I found out that I did indeed have a fatboy, and a super speed, as well as what I could expect to get for each. Somewhere along the way during my lurking though, I started thinking about how I was currently shaving and maybe there was something that I was missing. I was using the vibrating Fusion, with some Hydro 5’s waiting in the wings. My Mom, (being a good Bohemian) was working some magic with coupons and special offers and picking up the starter packages with a razor and two extra cartridges for me for around $1.00. But even at that I felt the need to stretch every cartridge as long as possible so I wouldn’t have to pay that outrageous price for cartridges. Of course that led to a lot of tugging and discomfort by the end of each cartridge. So I posed the question of what traditional wet shaving had to offer. Between the answers that I had gotten from the community and my own shaving experiences I moved to give it a try. I had some vintage Wilkinson blades on hand. I put one in the super speed and that was it. Grandpa’s vintage safety razors were off the market. Still won’t use Dad’s Aristocrat though, I don’t want to lose any more of the plating.

 

[jzuzphreek]

Nice PIF!
Well, I must say that since I don't have the time at the moment it is tempting to simply start if with "I'm not in but...", BUT, I'm really not that lazy so I will be back to add as long of a tale as I can come up with.

By the way, my son just LOVES your user name.

Terrific first non-entry! Kudos to your kiddo!

 

[Chaloney]

Not much of a tale-- after years (10+) of thinking about learning to shave with a straight razor, I finally decided to do it. I think something in a movie or tv show started the oft tangential thought process that ended with the decision that the time was now. I was in need of a new hobby and this was the winner. I started googling things and b&b kept showing up and the rest is history.

 

[the_edski]

Yay to go, Jessy! Great PIF! Count me out though. I enjoy your posts and look forward to many thousand more!

 

[Rockminer]

I think we're going to need a ruling on that one ED. I think you may have just entered this thing LOL.

 

[Nomad1600]

Amazing PIF! I don't know if I qualify, but just in case, I am in. And the Doctor is 63.

 

[Rockminer]

Well, for one thing, you can’t say “I’m in.” If you do, you’ll be immediately disqualified, and will have to do QUITE a bit of penance to re-qualify (like Doctor Who trivia or something!)

• 
  [*=10]Answer this question (only by PM, no giving away the answer in the thread):

​

How old is The Doctor?
​

​

​

Amazing PIF! I don't know if I qualify, but just in case, I am in. And the Doctor is 63.

I'm guessing you owe some penance, and Jessy is going to have to redo the pm question. ( assuming your right )

 

[inspiringK]

Holy reading

I came to B&B because I wanted some quick and simple advice about how to get a better shave and perhaps even save some money on shaving. Well, the advice, much like the OP, wasn't really quick or simple. There may have been something to the money saving part, but once I accidentally peeked in at the Nib, Haberdashery, Mess Hall, Brown Leaf, Honing, and the restoration sections, I am pretty sure that B&B has done well at enabling my spending much more so than show me ways of saving money

 

[the_edski]

I wanted to be entered against my will,
then I won't feel guilty when I win! Hehehe....

I think we're going to need a ruling on that one ED. I think you may have just entered this thing LOL.

 

[Rockminer]

I wanted to be entered against my will,
then I won't feel guilty when I win! Hehehe....

Well played sir. Can I have the bottle of VEG if you win?

 

[Lamar]

My story with how I came here starts back over 25 years ago. I was a young fella in my mid teens and found hairs growing longer on my face as time went by. I was given an 3 headed Norelco I think and that was my first try at shaving. Since hairs were not as thick and grew in patches, the razor did a decent job. I never cared much for the cord sticking out of the wall socket and sometimes my skin felt a bit inflamed but being young and vibrant, my skin looked just find and the discomfort disappeared very quickly. After a few years the hairs got darker and thicker and I found that the neck and jaw line never looked just right so I would get more aggressive with it. Eventually I started using Barbasol and some disposable razors (ya know, the large packages) and proceeded to figure it all out. To this day I can't recall my dad ever showing me how to shave and I can't recall ever watching him shave. BTW, he still uses disposable razors. I briefly got into the Atra Plus and then joined the U.S. Navy in January 1991. At this time I had moved further up to the Sensor, but I think I went back to those disposable razors during boot camp. Oh it was awful! I was cursed with pretty dark hair and an hour or two after a shave my company commanders would ride my butt telling me I did not shave and to go shave again. So I had to shave twice a day many times and it did not feel good. I became disabled while on active duty and was put on the Temporary Disability Retirement List in 1993. I have no idea why as I've never seen a leg grow back once amputated. Anyway. I had not shaved for three months while recovering int he hospital and I honestly can't remember what razor I used for it when I couldn't take it anymore. It may have been the Gillette Sensor Excel or just the Sensor. For a yer I was without a leg and was in the wheelchair. I didn't want a beard so I went back to my old electric (it was still in my parents bathroom!). I used this but now it wasn't the same. The neck would get red and sometimes bumpy. I would scratch at it for an hour or so each day that I shaved. Eventually one of the rotary blades needed replacing and I decided not too. I got double foil electric, whose brand I forget. I want to say Remington but I just can't confirm this. It didn't help and the jaw line became even harder to shave. After a year I got my leg and I got a job and out of the house. This meant I needed to shave more often and I got some Barbasol and an Sensor Excel or Sensor 3. Don't remember. I bought into the hype of more blades are better. So why did I keep getting a red neck? Why was it getting worse? Come the late 90's the Mach 3 arrived and I upgraded again! I had already converted to gel in a can also by this time. Did it help? No, not really and again, as time passed on, the irritation would get worse. Early 2000's I would switch back and forth from Mach 3 to Schick Quattro. By around 2007 to 2010 I started to get really disgusted with things. My hairs were so stiff that the cartridges would lose their sharpness before the lubrication ships were gone. I had to shave every day for work and I was going through a cartridge within two weeks. They were getting more expensive. Also a can of gel didn't really seem to last very long as I always put too much in my hand. Cost was going up and the supposedly close comfortable shaves I was promised were gone. My neck had red bumps all day and I could not stop scratching my neck during the day and at night. Of course the Gillette Fusion was out but I just could not afford to go that route and I started to think that more blades just wasn't going to help. I lost my job in 2010 and the need to shave every day dwindled to that that was tolerated by SWMBO. Still. One shave and I would be red necked all week and could not stop scratching till after about 3 days.
Enter the summer of 2012. It's hot and I'm down to about 5 cartridges of Mach3 and 3 of Quattro. I had started shaving my head at the end of 2011 so the gel was being consumed more. I wasn't shaving every day because of the skin and it was hot and I was scratching and I just got to thinking that perhaps I can find what I am doing wrong as I was never shown how to shave as a kid. I did a lot of searching and was watching a video on YouTube and it ended. There is of course related videos that pop up and I saw Mantic59's video Introduction to traditional wetshaving. Okay. it got my attention so I then watched more and more and doing more searches in Google and that is where I saw a link to Badger and Blade. So I lurked for month and joined in July and that's how I found my way here.

 

[jzuzphreek]

Amazing PIF! I don't know if I qualify, but just in case, I am in. And the Doctor is 63.

Tsk tsk tsk... someone stopped reading. At least tell us how you found B&B.

Holy reading

I came to B&B because I wanted some quick and simple advice about how to get a better shave and perhaps even save some money on shaving. Well, the advice, much like the OP, wasn't really quick or simple. There may have been something to the money saving part, but once I accidentally peeked in at the Nib, Haberdashery, Mess Hall, Brown Leaf, Honing, and the restoration sections, I am pretty sure that B&B has done well at enabling my spending much more so than show me ways of saving money

Sure, it's possible to save money... but where's the fun in that?

I wanted to be entered against my will,
then I won't feel guilty when I win! Hehehe....

Oooo... effective strategy! I guess I need to think of an effective counterplan. I'm sure it won't take more than 2 or 3 paragraphs to explain.

 

[jzuzphreek]

Also, The Doctor is not 63.

 

[Rockminer]

I first was drawn to a DE when I found one in my best friends grandfathers house. I went to wally world and bought some blades and a brush with soap. I proceeded to load the blade and swirl the brush, for about 20 seconds, on the soap. I put a meager amount of soap on my face and began to slice a piece of skin off, just below my sideburn. It wasn't a good experience and I didn't continue with the DE, although it never left my mind to try it again someday.

Fast forward 10 years and I had the sudden urge to try it again. I'm not sure how I found this site, but I'm sure glad I did. All of the knowledgeable people and information received made this experience far more enjoyable than the last time. I'm forever a convert and look forward to helping in any way I can , people looking for help.

 

[jzuzphreek]

Well played sir. Can I have the bottle of VEG if you win?

As his penance, he will be shipped 2 bottles of the VEG, should he win. Also, the box shall be dipped in the VEG.

 

[jzuzphreek]

My story with how I came here starts back over 25 years ago. I was a young fella in my mid teens and found hairs growing longer on my face as time went by. I was given an 3 headed Norelco I think and that was my first try at shaving. Since hairs were not as thick and grew in patches, the razor did a decent job. I never cared much for the cord sticking out of the wall socket and sometimes my skin felt a bit inflamed but being young and vibrant, my skin looked just find and the discomfort disappeared very quickly. After a few years the hairs got darker and thicker and I found that the neck and jaw line never looked just right so I would get more aggressive with it. Eventually I started using Barbasol and some disposable razors (ya know, the large packages) and proceeded to figure it all out. To this day I can't recall my dad ever showing me how to shave and I can't recall ever watching him shave. BTW, he still uses disposable razors. I briefly got into the Atra Plus and then joined the U.S. Navy in January 1991. At this time I had moved further up to the Sensor, but I think I went back to those disposable razors during boot camp. Oh it was awful! I was cursed with pretty dark hair and an hour or two after a shave my company commanders would ride my butt telling me I did not shave and to go shave again. So I had to shave twice a day many times and it did not feel good. I became disabled while on active duty and was put on the Temporary Disability Retirement List in 1993. I have no idea why as I've never seen a leg grow back once amputated. Anyway. I had not shaved for three months while recovering int he hospital and I honestly can't remember what razor I used for it when I couldn't take it anymore. It may have been the Gillette Sensor Excel or just the Sensor. For a yer I was without a leg and was in the wheelchair. I didn't want a beard so I went back to my old electric (it was still in my parents bathroom!). I used this but now it wasn't the same. The neck would get red and sometimes bumpy. I would scratch at it for an hour or so each day that I shaved. Eventually one of the rotary blades needed replacing and I decided not too. I got double foil electric, whose brand I forget. I want to say Remington but I just can't confirm this. It didn't help and the jaw line became even harder to shave. After a year I got my leg and I got a job and out of the house. This meant I needed to shave more often and I got some Barbasol and an Sensor Excel or Sensor 3. Don't remember. I bought into the hype of more blades are better. So why did I keep getting a red neck? Why was it getting worse? Come the late 90's the Mach 3 arrived and I upgraded again! I had already converted to gel in a can also by this time. Did it help? No, not really and again, as time passed on, the irritation would get worse. Early 2000's I would switch back and forth from Mach 3 to Schick Quattro. By around 2007 to 2010 I started to get really disgusted with things. My hairs were so stiff that the cartridges would lose their sharpness before the lubrication ships were gone. I had to shave every day for work and I was going through a cartridge within two weeks. They were getting more expensive. Also a can of gel didn't really seem to last very long as I always put too much in my hand. Cost was going up and the supposedly close comfortable shaves I was promised were gone. My neck had red bumps all day and I could not stop scratching my neck during the day and at night. Of course the Gillette Fusion was out but I just could not afford to go that route and I started to think that more blades just wasn't going to help. I lost my job in 2010 and the need to shave every day dwindled to that that was tolerated by SWMBO. Still. One shave and I would be red necked all week and could not stop scratching till after about 3 days.
Enter the summer of 2012. It's hot and I'm down to about 5 cartridges of Mach3 and 3 of Quattro. I had started shaving my head at the end of 2011 so the gel was being consumed more. I wasn't shaving every day because of the skin and it was hot and I was scratching and I just got to thinking that perhaps I can find what I am doing wrong as I was never shown how to shave as a kid. I did a lot of searching and was watching a video on YouTube and it ended. There is of course related videos that pop up and I saw Mantic59's video Introduction to traditional wetshaving. Okay. it got my attention so I then watched more and more and doing more searches in Google and that is where I saw a link to Badger and Blade. So I lurked for month and joined in July and that's how I found my way here.

Wow! Excellent entry! Thank you for your service and sacrifice! I'm terribly sorry for your injury... and your painful shaving journey.

I first was drawn to a DE when I found one in my best friends grandfathers house. I went to wally world and bought some blades and a brush with soap. I proceeded to load the blade and swirl the brush, for about 20 seconds, on the soap. I put a meager amount of soap on my face and began to slice a piece of skin off, just below my sideburn. It wasn't a good experience and I didn't continue with the DE, although it never left my mind to try it again someday.

Fast forward 10 years and I had the sudden urge to try it again. I'm not sure how I found this site, but I'm sure glad I did. All of the knowledgeable people and information received made this experience far more enjoyable than the last time. I'm forever a convert and look forward to helping in any way I can , people looking for help.

Thanks Chris... for that incredibly gory and painful mental image .

 

[Rockminer]

As his penance, he will be shipped 2 bottles of the VEG, should he win. Also, the box shall be dipped in the VEG.

Things just went from good to really bad for ED.

 

[jzuzphreek]

Not much of a tale-- after years (10+) of thinking about learning to shave with a straight razor, I finally decided to do it. I think something in a movie or tv show started the oft tangential thought process that ended with the decision that the time was now. I was in need of a new hobby and this was the winner. I started googling things and b&b kept showing up and the rest is history.

Welcome to the party. How's the straight shaving going?