Jan. 2, 2024
- Brush: Yaqi 26mm Synthetic
- Razor: Karve Overlander
- Blade: Pro Edge Platinum
- Lather: Moon - Bixby - Soap
- Post Shave: Moon - Bixby - Aftershave
Great shave to start the short work week.
this post was submitted on 02 Jan 2024
7 points (100.0% liked)
WetShaving
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January 2, 2024
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Brush: Wald Nimbus Bloodline 27mm J3
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Razor: C.V. Heljestrand MK 31 11/16 Söderfors Extra Specialstål Full Hollow
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Lather: Captain's Choice - Venture - Soap
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Toner: Thayers - Lemon - Toner
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Aftershave: Ethos Grooming Essentials - Succès Skin Food - Splash
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Fragrance: Creed Aventus
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Talc: Yardley Classic
2 passes. Face lather. Excellent shave.
Second day of Aventus dupes. Venture is actually a pretty good one, though, as you might expect, it only hints at the real thing. Since I don't use Creed Aventus very often, I'm always impressed by how great the real deal is.
The Captain's Choice soap base is kind of old school; light, foamy, lots of volume. My strategy for these bases is to load heavily, add hydration slowly with a lot of agitation, then lightly paint in water at the end. This gets the soap almost to the point of drippy, but it is very slick. Not @sgrdddy slurry lather slick, but pretty close. The volume of soap from the heavy load delivers a good dose of fragrance to be enjoyed.
The Söderfors Extra Specialstål is a magically good razor. I bought this for a song off eBay and it shaved poorly until I corrected its geometry. That correction changed its nature entirely. A bit like unleashing the monster. I have a standard MK 31 which is a great razor, but this one just leaves it in the dust.
I'm going to join you for the Aventus dupe series tomorrow.
I have a standard MK 31 which is a great razor, but this one just leaves it in the dust.
Why do you think that is? Is the overall geometry the same and only the steel is different?
For two razors with the same geometry but different steel, I'd expect the only difference to be how long they hold an edge, unless of course one of them had such bad steel that it can't take an edge in the first place.
Even though it is marked as an MK 31, the Söderfors is lighter and more delicate. It has ivory scales which identifies it as an older razor. It sings much more than the standard MK 31. My standard MK 31 is the one I sent to you. I refreshed the edge on my Nakayama Jnat in October so it went through the honing process that I describe in my latest video. I think this edge is both sharper and more comfortable than the one you used and it is a terrific razor. I do think there are differences in the steel, but from a practical standpoint I wonder if that could be the reason for the difference in shave feel. Logic would suggest that it is but ... the Söderfors just has that je ne sais quois. If you ever see one, buy it.
Ah, that makes sense
If you ever see one, buy it.
On the ever growing list!
New Year, New TabacTuesday
- Brush: Dogclaration LG 2022 Mystery Brush (B16)
- Razor: Wolfman Razors WR4 Al tester on Blutt BR-1 (gen 2) handle
- Blade: Feather Professional
- Lather: Mäurer & Wirtz Tabac Original
- Aftershave: Mäurer & Wirtz Tabac Original
- Fragrance: Mäurer & Wirtz Tabac Original
First TabacTuesday of 2024: Yay!
Not having my Dogwood Tabak Oridjinal brush: Boo!
Wolfie WR4: Yay!
The Tabac kill continues, and the hole at the centre of the ring of death is about the size of a 1 Franc coin (super helpful reference, right?). For Tabac Tuesdays, I had been using my beautiful Dogwood Handcrafts (e.g., here, here, or here) with a Zenith knot almost exclusively ever since I debuted it in the 2022 Lather Games alongside some commentary about Tabac, until that knot started loosing bristles by the hundreds a few weeks ago. Alas, the replacement Gelousy knot is still somewhere between Canada and Switzerland in the mail, so I was reduced to using a generic, non-Stank®-bespoke brush today, like some pedestrian. I didn't check with the DjSIA, but this may be the first time I've lathered Tabac with a badger brush, and I am happy to report that I've adjusted just fine.
The WR4 is a true pleasure to use. The feedback, the intuitive geometry, the efficiency, everything I've experienced so far from this razor makes me like it. Easy BBS with close to no feedback from the splash on the second try is not something I'd expect to get from just any razor.
using a generic, non-Stank®-bespoke brush today, like some pedestrian
Ahem! I resemble that remark 🤨
The WR4 is a true pleasure to use.
Yup!
Ahem! I resemble that remark 🤨
If the shoe fits... 😎