Wednesday SOTD Thread - November 20th, 2024 (#528)

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DaveWave94@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
20.11.2024 - BVWSC: Travel Edition

Brush: Omega Roma Colosseo 31 mm

Razor: Headblade S2 Lunar Eclipse

Blade: HB 2 cartridge

Lather: Stirling Soap Co. - Oro Valley sample

Post-Shave: Capanova Natural aftershave repair balm

Fragrance: Tom Ford Ombré Leather EdP

2 pass head shave with the Headblade. A very luxurious shave to end a great day for me.

For today’s edition of Buena Vista Wetshaving Social Club, we use Oro Valley by Stirling - a very faithful dupe of Tom Ford Ombré Leather . I was really looking forward to this, as the original TF fragrance is one of my absolute favourites (together with its sibling Tuscan Leather ). OL is more unisex than TL though: it’s the smell of luxurious new car seats made from the finest italian leather. It’s the new leather jacket fresh out of its packaging. In general, it’s a scent of fresh, new luxury items made from leather.

Stirling’s dupe is very faithful and that’s very great. Of course, the base is one of the most often recommended starting points in the hobby and it works fantastic. My only gripe is that Oro Valley is one of the few Stirling Soaps who aren’t available in the EU. Otherwise, it would be totally great to combine with the little travel decant I have of the original TF.

Very busy vacation day for me, first a visit at the Kyffhäuser-Denkmal and then the Panorama museum with a huge 360° painting. This shave topped off a very successful time. Hope you’re all well, happy Hump Day and all that jazz… I’m off to the hotel bar now ✌🏻
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- PorkButtsNTaters666@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  
  I’m off to the hotel bar now
  
  🍻
  
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  - DaveWave94@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    Two cocktails were enough, I have to drive home tomorrow 😅
    But it was nice - I rarely drink in social settings.
    
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gcgallant@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
November 20, 2024 – BVWSC

Brush: Muninn Woodworks w/AP Shave Co 24mm Titanium Synthetic

Blade Holder: Haircut & Shave Co P076 Ti

Blade: Astra Superior Platinum (5)

Lather: Stirling Soap Co. - Oro Valley - Soap

Aftershave: Stirling Soap Co. - Mountain Man - Aftershave

Fragrance: Creed - Silver Mountain Water

2 passes. Bowl lather. Excellent shave.

This is a Buena Vista Wetshaving Social Club shave, and wow(!), what a good one. Oro Valley is a dupe of Tom Ford Ombre Leather. With my penchant for placing non-Creed scents in the Stirling Soap “Man” category, I would definitely call this one Leather Man. I was sent a smush of this (thank you @walden@sub.wetshaving.social), but I previously purchased a 1 oz. sample from Stirling and waited to use it today. The scent combines well with Creed’s Silver Mountain Water, but I think a full trifecta of this is warranted.

I almost never use this Haircut & Shave razor. It’s expensive (because Ti), and made in Maryland where I live. Today everything about it was perfect, however. I need to use this one more. I definitely will fit in another use of it within my next 20 shaves this month.
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walden@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
November 20, 2024

Brush: Maggard 24mm Synthetic

Razor: Chiseled Face - Legacy Raw Titanium (#69)

Blade: Personna Lab Blue (2)

Lather: Stirling Soap Co. - Oro Valley - Soap

Post Shave: Pinaud - Clubman Special Reserve - Aftershave

Post Shave: Goodfellow & Co. - Face Lotion - Kelp & Sea Mineral

Fragrance: Jōvan Musk - EdT

$Discord

Oro Valley is named after a place north of Tuscon, Arizona, which presumably smells amazing. It’s a really great leather scent, both bright and dark, complex yet simple. I like it a lot.

Smushes for next months BVWSC will be mailed out today. I have 8 envelopes ready to go to @DaveWave94@sub.wetshaving.social , @gcgallant@sub.wetshaving.social , @sahenders@sub.wetshaving.social , @djundjila@sub.wetshaving.social , @whosgotthepudding@sub.wetshaving.social , @PorkButtsNTaters666@sub.wetshaving.social , @snooting@sub.wetshaving.social, and @enndeegee@sub.wetshaving.social.
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- djundjila@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Yayy, thanks!
  
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PorkButtsNTaters666@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Wednesday, November 20, 2024: Buena Vista Wetshaving Social Club

Preshave: Proraso Green Preshave

Brush: Semogue C3 Galahad Horse 🐎

Razor: Ertan Süer L’Ours Russe (7/8th)

Lather: Stirling Oro Valley

Postshave: Naissance 702 Witch Hazel

Postshave: Epsilon Blue Mediterranean

Postshave: Nivea After Shave Balm

It is the 3rd Wednesday of the month, and it is BVWSC! Unfortunately, I have been struggling with a long cold, which leaves my olfactory capacities strongly diminished. I could identify some faint leather scent, but other than this, I’m not in the best shape to pronounce myself on odors. I’ll have to revisit this soap once I’m better.

Otherwise, the Stirling base was good as always, easy to lather, and providing a good shave.

Have a good day!

~Shared via emacs & sotd.el~
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gcgallant@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
November 20, 2024

Brush: Wald Stratos Goldvein 29mm A1 Fan

Blade Holder: Gillette Slim Aristocrat H4 (setting: 7)

Blade: Astra Superior Platinum (6)

Lather: Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Black Watch - Soap

Aftershave: Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Black Watch - Aftershave

Fragrance: Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Black Watch - Eau de Toilette

2 passes. Face lather. Excellent shave.

Great Black Watchday shave today!
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- djundjila@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Black Watch ❤️❤️;
  
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  - gcgallant@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    Yeah, yesterday’s SLS. Enjoyed it enough that I considered it briefly for Theme Thursday.
    
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sahenders@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Nov 20, 2024 - BVWSC: Oro Valley

Brush: Brochas El Druida/House of Mammoth Tobacconist Chisel & Hound v8 Fanchurian Badger Knot

Razor: Mühle Rocca R94

Blade: Perma-Sharp Super [4]

Lather: Stirling Soap Co. - Oro Valley - Soap

Post Shave: Ariana & Evans - Lavender Noir - Splash

Fragrance: Tom Ford - Ombré Leather - Eau de Parfum

I enjoy the interplay between the jasmine sambac and the leather notes in both Oro Valley and Tom Ford’s Ombré Leather. Stirling’s homage, which is the Buena Vista Wetshaving Social Club selection for today, is spot on to the original.
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- snooting@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  I very much want to try the TF frag. I have the Stirling EdT and feel that it wears off pretty quickly (as is typical for their frags).
  
  How strong/long lasting do you find the TF?
  
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  - DaveWave94@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    
    How strong/long lasting do you find the TF?
    
    Not sahenders, but Tom Ford fragrances are really great in sillage and projection - means you get a long lasting scent from just a few sprays. More than 3 is overkill, 3 is already very strong. If you put one on each wrist and one on the lower sternum, it should last quite some time 👍🏻
    
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enndeegee@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Muchos thanks for the oro vaLley.

Warm and comfortable scent but not something that wows me… I’m not the biggest leather fan so no surprises there.

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snooting@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Wednesday, November 20, 2024: FLS - Oro Valley BVWSC

Brush: Omega - 10048 boar

Razor: Rockwell - 6C

Blade: Bic - Chrome Platinum (2)

Lather: Stirling - Oro Valley

Post: Stirling - Oro Valley Aftershave splash

Post: Stirling - Glacial Unscented Aftershave balm

Frag: Stirling - Oro Valley EdT

A great shave for today’s meeting of the Buena Vista Wetshaving Social Club. Today we’re shaving with Stirling’s Oro Valley, which is a recent addition to my collection that’s quickly become a favorite.

There is definitely a strong leather note, but I also get a touch of citrus and smoke. Not a thick, overpowering smoke. Think the smell the morning after a juniper brushfire. Mild, but quite lovely.

Drama free lather with the Omega, this thing always delivers with Stirling’s base.

Have a great day y’all!

🍳 Created with Neovim & sotd.nvim 🍳
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djundjila@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
GEM Days 4a/14: first generation GEM Micromatic Open Comb - Wed 20 Nov 2024

Brush: Dogwood Handcrafts - Papa Eld with Declaration Grooming B3

Razor: GEM Micromatic Open Comb (first generation)

Blade: Personna GEM PTFE

Lather: Stirling Soap Co. – Oro Valley

Post Shave: D.R. Harris – Marlborough

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This is shave 7 of my run through all 14 generations of GEM-stile razors, and I have reached the first generation MMOC, a.k.a. where GEM razors made the jump from good to great.

The Micromatic Open Comb

Fair warning, I love the Micromatic mechanism and will bore you if you’re not interested in design details.

To recap the story of GEM razors so far: The 1912 is a great shaver and already has half of what makes GEMs great: perfect blade alignment by pressing the edge against blade stops. The two later models of 1914 and 1924 tried to improve upon the design by 1) making loading the blade easier by having a top cap that fully opens, and 2) decoupling the actions of aligning the blade with the stops and clamping the blade by using two separate spring instead of one. So what could GEM improve further if their product already shaves well and loads easily? Make it safer and even easier! The Micromatic twist-to-open mechanism has your fingers safely a few cm away from the edge when the top cap opens. In addition, the top cap opens smoothly, unlike the predecessors’, which is held by buckling springs and opens with a snap motion.

As a second addition, they also modified the blade format to make loading even more easy. Micromatic is the brand name for this razor and also for the new blade format with the three cutouts, see this figure.

Image

The centre cut-out engages with the little post in the centre of the base plate to centre the blade. Previously, the 1914 and 1924 Shovelhead had annoying lateral hooks on their base plates that made inserting the blade fiddly, and the 1912’s blade stops grabbed the corners of the blade which also made inserting the blade into the small opening tricky. The Micromatic’s centre cut-out makes inserting the blade child’s play. You literally just place it on the base plate in you’re done. The second set of cut-outs on the sides is where the top cap engages with the blade and pushes it against the stops. We will talk about these lateral cutouts a bit more with tomorrow’s second generation MMOC.

It is clear that the company’s decision here was to produce a high-tech razor (for the 1930ies), with many machined parts and a clever, but robust twist-to-open mechanism. This represents GEM/ASR Ever-Ready’s third attempt at replacing the cheap 1912 (which is still chugging along successfully) and it’s a bullseye in terms of robustness and ergonomics. Now this first Micromatic has a reputation for being aggressive, but that’s a question of preference and GEM will address it thoroughly over the next four generations of Micromatics.

The shave

Today is already the third Wednesday of the month, which means that it’s Buena Vista Wetshaving Social Club meeting day. This month, see have chosen Stirling Oro Valley. Rod one told us that it was his favourite dupe (or was it the most successful? Not sure anymore), and I can see why. A rich warm leather scent. There is a bright note that feels a bit like citrus to me, but I think that’s my nose playing tricks.

This particular MMOC is the one I used for two consecutive AAs in the GEMs of Wisdom: Finding Serenity in Austerity challenge, and I also took a blade to 100 shaves in it. In other words, it’s my favourite safety razor and I get the smoothest, most efficient shaves from it. It has an unmistakeable pronounced blade feel (great haptic feedback). The angle of the head promotes a flat shave angle (great ergonomics). The crunchy toast buttering audio feedback is legendary.

The timeline

~~1906-1953: GEM 1912/Star Cadet/Junior/Damaskeene~~

FLS

SLS

~~1914-1927: 1914~~

FLS

SLS

~~1924-1933: 1924 Shovelhead~~

FLS

SLS

1930-1932: Micromatic Open Comb Gen 1 (Bumpless baseplate) ← We are here

1932-1941: Micromatic Open Comb Gen 2 (double-edge Micromatic GEM blades)

1940-1943: Micromatic Clog-Pruf

1945-1946: Micromatic Clog-Pruf Peerless

1947-1950: Micromatic Flying Wing/Bullet Tip, with guiding eye until 1948, with plastic knob in the last year

1949-1953: GEM Jewel/Streamline/Ambassador (The beginning of the end IMHO)

1950: New GEM Feather Weight, renamed to “Slim-V Flat Top” in 1953, British version sold as “Natural Angle” by Ever-Ready

1955-1958: GEM V-Slim “Heavy Flat Top” (G-Bar, shiny chrome), New V Natural Angle Heavy Flat Top (E-Bar, less shiny nickel)

1958-1965: Push Button

1965-1973: Contour

1973-1979: Countour II (The last GEM razor)
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- snooting@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  
  The Micromatic twist-to-open mechanism has your fingers safely a few cm away from the edge when the top cap opens.
  
  Is the TTO knob on this razor still at the bottom of the handle?
  
  Loving these write-ups btw, I’m learning a lot from them. It’s a great introduction to the different GEM razors.
  
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  - djundjila@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    Yes, all 5 Micromatics have that same TTO mechanism you know from your Clog-Pruf.
    
    Glad you like them! I’ve been wanting to do this series for a while but kept procrastinating
    
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- walden@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  I didn’t know that the MMOC marked the beginning of the GRM blade format that we know and love to this day. Proprietary, yet backwards compatible.
  
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snooting@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Wednesday, November 20, 2024: SLS

Brush: Zenith/Stirling - 510SE-XL 31mm boar brush

Razor: RazoRock - Game Changer .68

Blade: Astra Superior Platinum (4)

Lather: Barrister and Mann - Latha Taiga

Post: Barrister and Mann - Latha Taiga Aftershave splash

Post: Stirling - Glacial Unscented Aftershave balm

Frag: Chiseled Face - Summer Storm EdP

I like the scent of Taiga a lot; it might be my favorite pine-forward soap so far. However, I don’t love the Latha base compared with others from BaM that I’ve tried. It seems to dry out faster than others. Perhaps I’m just not hydrating properly.

🍳 Created with Neovim & sotd.nvim 🍳
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- djundjila@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  
  It seems to dry out faster than others
  
  That means not enough soap in my experience. Not enough soap to hold enough water to keep the lather from drying.
  
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  - snooting@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    This is almost certainly it.
    
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djundjila@sub.wetshaving.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
GEM Days 4b/14: first generation GEM Micromatic Open Comb - Wed 20 Nov 2024

Brush: Dogwood Handcrafts - Papa Eld with Declaration Grooming B3

Razor: GEM Micromatic Open Comb (first generation)

Blade: Personna GEM PTFE

Lather: Declaration Grooming – Scrooge

Post Shave: Ariana and Evans Peach & Cognac

Image

Lovely second luxury shave with spicy Scrooge, boozy Peach & Cognac, and the goat MMOC.

This was shave 8 of my run through all 14 generations of GEM-style razors:

~~1906-1953: GEM 1912/Star Cadet/Junior/Damaskeene~~

FLS

SLS

~~1914-1927: 1914~~

FLS

SLS

~~1924-1933: 1924 Shovelhead~~

FLS

SLS

1930-1932: Micromatic Open Comb Gen 1 (Bumpless baseplate) ← We are here

FLS

1932-1941: Micromatic Open Comb Gen 2 (double-edge Micromatic GEM blades)

1940-1943: Micromatic Clog-Pruf

1945-1946: Micromatic Clog-Pruf Peerless

1947-1950: Micromatic Flying Wing/Bullet Tip, with guiding eye until 1948, with plastic knob in the last year

1949-1953: GEM Jewel/Streamline/Ambassador (The beginning of the end IMHO)

1950: New GEM Feather Weight, renamed to “Slim-V Flat Top” in 1953, British version sold as “Natural Angle” by Ever-Ready

1955-1958: GEM V-Slim “Heavy Flat Top” (G-Bar, shiny chrome), New V Natural Angle Heavy Flat Top (E-Bar, less shiny nickel)

1958-1965: Push Button

1965-1973: Contour

1973-1979: Countour II (The last GEM razor)
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Wednesday SOTD Thread - November 20th, 2024 (#528)

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GEM Days 4a/14: first generation GEM Micromatic Open Comb - Wed 20 Nov 2024

GEM Days 4b/14: first generation GEM Micromatic Open Comb - Wed 20 Nov 2024