DaveWave94
@DaveWave94@sub.wetshaving.social
- Comment on Thursday SOTD Thread - November 14th, 2024 (#522) 3 days ago:
14.11.2024 - Pine Tar-sday
- Brush: RazoRock 400 Noir SE 24 mm
- Razor: Greencult GC 2.0, Plate II
- Blade: Rapira Platinum Lux
- Lather: Chiseled Face Groomatorium - Pine Tar (sample)
- Post-Shave: Thayer’s Original toner; Alterra men natural ASB
2 passes on the head, 1 on cheeks and neck. Stellar shave!
Have you heard stories about musicians who’ve sold one of their instruments, later regretted it, bought the same model again and suddenly everything clicked between them and their instrument? I think the GC 2.0 is such a story for me. We didn’t have the best start, someday I put it in a drawer and forgot about it… Until my recent misadventure with the Stando Perun made me dig it out today again! I gave it a nice ultrasonic bath, wiped it clean and put a fresh RPL in it. And damn, now we’re onto something. This was just enough blade feel while still being mild enough. I guess if I am using the IV plate, it’d be enough for just one pass on the dome. I really like the fat handle - to quote Anthony Fantano: “Damn boy! He thicc, boy!”. Looking forward to more shaves with it - it probably gave me the closest head shave in recent months , that’s quite impressive!
Today’s sample was graciously provided by @snooting@sub.wetshaving.social - thank you very much! Pine Tar seemed like a good fit for today. Woody, earthy, spicy, a bit dank and mossy. The initial impression is really interesting. A great autumn weather scent IMHO and the solid base of CFG is always nice to use.
Despite having a mandatory homeschooling day, I really got a lot done today - just not a lot for school 😅 tire change appointment for my car, grocery shopping, cleaning razors… Now it’s just tomorrow before a week of vacation time. Yay!
- Comment on Wednesday SOTD Thread - November 13th, 2024 (#521) 3 days ago:
Well, it is what it is with the Perun. I actually digged out my Greencult GC 2.0 out again today due to this. At least that one has a solid plating/finish.
Yep, considering the materials and CNC processes alone, the R41 GS is well worth its price.
Zenith makes really awesome brushes at a very fair price point. PantaRei was just my example of choice as they actually seem to care about a full luxurious product instead of a half-assed job like Mühle’s brushes and I knew they also do ceramic brushes (at a third of the Mühle price even!)
- Comment on Wednesday SOTD Thread - November 13th, 2024 (#521) 4 days ago:
I see where you’re coming from and I think we’re generally on the same page. There are also expensive cartridge razors with fancy handles or vibration or heated blades, but no one from our hobby would call a cartridge razor luxurious. The cartridge prices are ridiculous and I think that’s what pushed a lot of us into traditional wetshaving: the promise of saving money while finally enjoying to scrape those unwanted hairs off. Of course that was long before we fell down this rabbit hole and are now firmly into the sunk cost fallacy…
Yep, we wouldn’t necessarily need a 100+€/£/$ stainless steel razor due to all the vintage brass razors still around in great condition for a quarter of that price. Yet if we actually save that amount and make such a purchase, we expect rock solid quality that should outlast us in the way that vintage razors outlasted their previous owners. Sadly this often isn’t the case. Anecdotal evidence, but my Stando Perun really pisses me off in that regard. A 100+€ stainless steel razor simply shouldn’t catch rust, period. 😞
Oh yes, the Mühle series in cooperation with Meissener Porzellan is mind-blowing in a negative sense. These are probably more or less collectors items, but I still believe that the fun thing about wetshaving is that you have this collector’s obsession aspect of the hobby while actually being able to use your precious items for the intended purpose! However, as you said - that shouldn’t be done with this precious porcelain handle razor, since it has just a Zamac head. What an absolute (cruel) joke! Meissen really creates porcelain art and then it’s honoured with one of the cheapest materials possible for razor construction (the others being plastic and bakelite, who at least don’t corrode easily).
A good contrary example to this might be PantaRei brushes from Italy. Some of their brushes are custom order, made from expensive woods and/or ceramics and most even hand painted… yet you also get a quality horse/boar/badger or synthetic knot in 28 to 30 mm! And Mühles supposed “gold standard” synthetic fibre only goes up to 25 mm as their XL option. Weird. I think they could do lots of things right, e.g. the R41 design was quickly gaining notoriety as a very aggressive shaver, but it’s also a very unique design. It’s cool that they even came out with the GS model after the success of the Rocca.
I apologize for rambling way too much, but you brought up so many valid points and instigated such a meaningful discussion that I wanted to share my two cents, but instead dropped my whole bank account on you. Sorry 😅
- Comment on Wednesday SOTD Thread - November 13th, 2024 (#521) 4 days ago:
Wow. Great take and I honestly agree 100%!
However, I think there’s a socialization component to it too - men, especially in (East) Germany, are rather reluctant to spend too much money on grooming tools and something for their self care. They can justify buying expensive tools and cars or motorcycles, but when it comes to their grooming the bare minimum has to suffice. “I can’t justify spending so much money on a safety razor!” is a common sentiment. I know since that was how I used to think before finally having an epiphany after shaving with your Rocca that you lent me. Mühle as well as Merkur could totally focus on high quality materials, especially the former: have an inexpensive line of Zamac razors under your nom brand, everything Mühle will be at least aluminium heads on fancy material handles. That makes wetshaving accessible for students and folks with a low income while keeping your brand identity as a luxury item. Because if we’re being honest, a well made safety razor (or straight razor, or shaving brush) is a luxury item. I also don’t see the point of putting Zamac heads on porcelain or ebonite handles that look really awesome. Worst case scenario, someone has a broken and unusable razor at home that has cost them 200+€.
Good point about quality and luxury often not going hand in hand despite the public expectation that it does. I personally think we might need to push companies in the right direction by voting with our wallets: if we only buy products from materials that will stand the test of time, maybe then companies produce more of those and less Zamac crap. Shame to hear about the brush though. It looks so great, but a lackluster knot in an awesome handle is still a below average brush. I can relate with the Cooldog brushes I used to own: very cheap synthetic knots set at a very low loft, making it look almost like a make-up brush and coins that were only glued in with a cheap adhesive sticker so they fell out. In fact, I enjoyed my cheap RazoRock brushes way more than these (supposedly) premium products! So I just put them away.
- Comment on Wednesday SOTD Thread - November 13th, 2024 (#521) 4 days ago:
I think WestMan is somewhat overlooked.
I totally agree. WestMan makes some really great products. In general, european artisans are somewhat overlooked due to them being rather quiet in the marketing front (HAGS being the exception there). WestMan’s soap base, as well as the one by José/Los Jabones de Joserra is very creamy, rich and thick while retaining great slickness. Top notch stuff 👍🏻
- Comment on Tuesday SOTD Thread - November 12th, 2024 (#520) 5 days ago:
12.11.2024 - Coffee in the evening
- Brush: AP Shave Co. Snakeskin handle w/ 26 mm Silksmoke Flattop/Fan hybrid knot
- Razor: Stando Perun
- Blade: Voskhod
- Lather: WestMan - MazaGran
- Post-Shave: Osma alum block; Westman - MazaGran balm
1 pass plus buffing on both head and face. Overall, a rather comfortable but not very close shave.
Figured some coffee notes would do wonders, so today was a call for WestMan’s MazaGran. A gourmand scent of a coffee cocktail. The base is rather picky to hydrate - seems like there’s not much room for error about adding too much water. That’s also why I did just one pass on each part… This matching balm also seems to have gone bad. Ugh, I definitely need replacements soon.
Coupled the Perun with a mild blade and suddenly it’s ill-equipped to deal with my face. It was comfortable in comparison to my Hawk V2 face shave, but it looks like I used a dry shaver. Well, all in all it’s not quite what I hoped for at this price point.
Also, first time today where I used alum but not on any spot that I shaved - the spots behind my ears are currently having a very hard time and are prone to breaking open, which hurts like hell. Alum was good to seal it up and I don’t mind that short-term sting much.
- Comment on Saturday SOTD Thread - November 9th, 2024 (#517) 1 week ago:
09.11.2024 - Face Shave test
- Brush: vintage yellow bakelite handle w/ 22 mm SynBad knot
- Razor: RazoRock Hawk V2
- Blade: KAI Protouch MG
- Lather: Abbate Y La Mantia - Blu Tobacco
- Post-Shave: Osma alum block; Moon Soaps Old School “balm”; Natura Siberica ASB gel
Just a two pass face shave around the 'stache and patch. Rather rough shave, a good amount of weepers and some red areas on the neck. Guess that blade’s over its limits.
Was kinda refreshing to shave my face again after such a long time, but it shows that I am not used to this anymore. My face also seems to prefer mild and smooth razors, which the Hawk V2 is definitely not. Blu Tobacco was not to blame, it’s a very good hard soap that makes me miss menthol cigarettes.
The good thing is, in contrast to head shaving, shaving my face is not a “must do” but rather “can do” for me. Due to the moustache style and my very visible beard shadow, it actually still looks well groomed even with a few days of stubble - I only need to trim the neck and it even looks intentional. Judging by today’s IKEA visit and most guys I saw there, I’m definitely not looking like a bum with stubble. But I enjoy shaving around the moustache the most, as it works even better than a zero gap trimmer for getting crisp contours - an oddly satisfying thing to me. I like to spice things up from time to time, so I’m grateful for having that variability/versatility now again.
- Comment on Thursday SOTD Thread - November 7th, 2024 (#515) 1 week ago:
07.11.2024 - In Stag we trust
- Brush: Omega Roma Colosseo 31 mm
- Razor: Stando Perun
- Blade: King C. Gillette
- Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag
- Post-Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag ASB
2-pass head shave. A really good shave today.
What happens if everything around you seems to turn to shit and chaos? You fall back on the things you know you can trust. Your Ol’ Reliable. To me, that’s Midnight Stag. A dark, dank and very polarizing scent of leather, smoke, musky notes and freedom. It’s definitely not for everyday wear, but once in a while it really shines. The balm seems to have gone bad… but no big loss, as it contains paraffin and dimethicone. More space for new stuff.
I like the simple CF base. Comparable to Stirling IMHO and just very easy to whip up a nice lather with.I also went through with my plan to cut my facial hair down into just moustache and a triangular soul patch. Everything was almost healed, but I didn’t want to wait another day. Put some witch hazel toner and a menthol balm on the facial skin, so I hope it’ll recover enough to give it a proper shave tomorrow.
So what chaos? Apart from the abysmal news from the US election, my country’s government coalition broke apart late last night. Read about it here from a credible source Funny how yesterday I actually wrote about my own concerns for our general elections next year and today I woke up to these news. Now it’s sure that I and many others will vote far earlier than September 2025. Of course the old government was very unpopular and incompetent, but the worst were the neolibs (FDP) IMHO. If we really get Merz next year, it sucks. He’s a billionaire politician and a warmonger. Diplomacy isn’t his strong suit as he’s far removed from the ordinary folk in our country in his views. The far-right will also have gains again and I hate that… but it is what it is.
- Comment on Wednesday SOTD Thread - November 6th, 2024 (#514) 1 week ago:
Welp, our government coalition just threw the towel: german news here
So yes, better very very soon. Don’t know when we’ll need to vote now…
- Comment on Wednesday SOTD Thread - November 6th, 2024 (#514) 1 week ago:
06.11.2024 - Three times the charm
- Brush: RazoRock 400 Noir SE 24 mm
- Razor: Stando Perun
- Blade: King C. Gillette
- Lather: Barrister & Mann - The Full Measure of Man
- Post-Shave: Osma alum block; Thayer’s Original toner; Alterra men natural ASB
2 passes on the face, one on the head. Yep, I switched my usual order today - but didn’t like it at all. Face got a few blood spots out of nowhere on the second pass - weird thing is that they didn’t even hurt. I probably need to give it a day of rest tomorrow.
Third tobacco soap now - FMoM is a fairly recent addition to my collection but an instant favourite. This is a very sophisticated tobacco - usually it’s hard to emulate the dry, cigar leaf scent so most just go with floral tobacco. B&M actually did it very great though… I love it.
Now to address the elephant in the room: of course I am also deeply disappointed by the election results and like most of you, hoped for a different outcome. Regardless, it was a democratic election. The will of the people needs to be respected… but damn: I feel awful for all those who are LGBTQ+, immigrants, POC, disabled or part of another minority group. Do me a favour and look out for those people as well as for each other. It’s the best thing to do in tough times.
Germany will face a general election next year… while Scholz was definitely bad, I really hope we don’t get our version of a despot then. - Comment on Wednesday SOTD Thread - November 6th, 2024 (#514) 1 week ago:
I’m not shocked, but severely disappointed. Right now seems to be the best time to support each other in Europe, as transatlantic relationships will come with a climate of uncertainty and stubbornness. My thoughts go out to the millions of Americans who are part of some minority group… Uncertain and dark times, sadly. 😞
- Comment on Tuesday SOTD Thread - November 5th, 2024 (#513) 1 week ago:
Thanks for your insights - I didn’t want to imply that both candidates are the same, IMHO one is definitely far, far worse and a threat to democracy. It was more a general critique of the “two party system” in the US. Yeah, the Greens and the Libertarians exist - but judging by how they mostly reach below 2% of the vote, that’s only cosmetic… Anyway, I wish all of you the best ✌🏻
- Comment on [Buena Vista Wetshaving Social Club December Edition] Soap Voting Thread 1 week ago:
Thanks!
I personally think 48 hours would be enough for everyone to make their choice in a timely manner.
Maybe something like 2 token points for every unranked soap would be okay. I think this wouldn’t mess with the general voting consensus, of course depending on how many soaps are suggested.
That’s a great idea with a discussion thread! I am sure we’d find a good consensus based on democratic decision making. Thanks again for coming up with the idea of BVWSC 👍🏻
- Comment on Tuesday SOTD Thread - November 5th, 2024 (#513) 1 week ago:
05.11.2024 - Tobacco Tuesday
- Brush: AP Shave Co. Snakeskin handle w/ 26 mm Silksmoke Flattop/Fan hybrid knot
- Razor: Leaf Thorn
- Blade: snapped KCG
- Lather: E&S Rasage - Shaman
- Post-Shave: Thayer’s Original toner; Alterra men natural ASB
1 pass plus “buffing” on the head; 1 pass on the face. A solid, comfortable shave.
Another themed thing, but just by accident. Figured that I want another tobacco scent today, but opted for one of my newer soaps with tobacco as one of the many notes in a complex fragrance. Shaman smells like luxurious furniture or a really high-class candy store (the kind you only visit to buy something as a gift). The base is very good once you load heavy, very thick and rich lather (as in: this makes my skin feel protected and good even after wiping it off).
I remembered why a ultimately abandoned wearing a moustache & goatee combo and settled for just the Frank Zappa/Doc Holiday combo of stache and soul patch instead: I obsess way too goddamn much about symmetry of the goatee part. But even as much as I want to shave it down, I need to wait - I’m currently dealing with a few pimples (perhaps I am not as well suited to write about skincare after all?) and a particularly troublesome one sits directly on my chin. I’ll need to wait until that thing has healed, but today’s single pass face shave was used to assert dominance. Like it or not, chin - sooner or lat(h)er, you’ll get the razor! 😈
Sending out my thoughts & good wishes over to our american friends; I sure don’t envy you folks only having the choice between plague and cholera - having to choose “the lesser of two evils” instead of your real political affiliation sucks. Stay positive, stay calm and keep on keeping on 🤝🏻
- Comment on [Buena Vista Wetshaving Social Club December Edition] Soap Voting Thread 1 week ago:
First off, thanks for organising these every time. Your efforts have my utmost respect and none of what follows is meant to be a personal critique. It’s all meant in good faith.
I have to issue a few minor complaints:
- we should wait until every member who wants to participate has voted (walden doesn’t mind this time, but I imagine it might be very disappointing if he indeed did want to vote); alternatively have a clear deadline to do so
- we probably should have a rule in place what happens when someone doesn’t rank every soap. We had more than ever before this time, so I see how some people couldn’t be bothered - but I personally think they deserve at least some token vote points
- likewise, we might need to limit nominations to one soap per member. As you said, there’s always next month to suggest another one.
These are just minor issues, but I guess like every club we need to follow at least a bare minimum of votes. BVWSC has been really great so far and I find it charming how open and inviting our Lemmy community is.
Perhaps those are only personal issues though; I am of course open to discussion with other members and receptive for constructive feedback. Cheers & have a nice evening ✌🏻
- Comment on Monday SOTD Thread - November 4th, 2024 (#512) 1 week ago:
I’d say you shave half of your face (or head) 3+ times per day. Goal is to look like Harvey (NSFW) by New Year’s Eve 🤯
- Comment on Monday SOTD Thread - November 4th, 2024 (#512) 1 week ago:
MMMMFF is cool, I could see myself doing it more often; gives me something to look forward to on Mondays. Need more HoM though.
I know you pretty much run on themed shave days and even months (TabOKtoberfest, BBS November, Destroy your Dermis December etc.) but I’m frankly too inconsistent with my shaves to remember…
Ah the joys of wetshaving, a classic “I definitely don’t need it, but I surely want it” hobby 😅
- Comment on Monday SOTD Thread - November 4th, 2024 (#512) 1 week ago:
Perhaps some… Witch hazel would help?! 😉
- Comment on [Buena Vista Wetshaving Social Club December Edition] Soap Voting Thread 1 week ago:
10th.
(Unfortunately I’m out with anything aniseed) - Comment on [Buena Vista Wetshaving Social Club December Edition] Soap Voting Thread 1 week ago:
9th
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- Comment on [Buena Vista Wetshaving Social Club December Edition] Soap Voting Thread 1 week ago:
7th
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- Comment on [Buena Vista Wetshaving Social Club December Edition] Soap Voting Thread 1 week ago:
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- Comment on [Buena Vista Wetshaving Social Club December Edition] Soap Voting Thread 1 week ago:
1st
- Comment on Monday SOTD Thread - November 4th, 2024 (#512) 1 week ago:
04.11.2024 - MMMMFF Tobacco
- Brush: vintage yellow bakelite handle w/ 21 mm AP Shave SynBad knot
- Razor: GEM Micromatic Bullet Tip/Flying Wing (gold)
- Blade: GEM PTFE
- Lather: House of Mammoth - Tobacconist
- Post-Shave: HAGS Barberwood AS toner; Alterra men natural ASB
1 pass face shave to get back into the swing of things while still giving my face a bit rest after yesterday’s rough shave. Comfortable shave but not close at all.
Oh look, Dave has done the MMMMFF thing despite his aversion to themed shaves! Yeah, sometimes a little nostalgia is all it takes to get me going. Tobacconist was great as always, the Flying Wing is perhaps the GEM razor with the best handle in terms of ergonomics for me and it’s a pretty mild but efficient shaver.
I realized today that I totally lack any balms or toners with tobacco… I should change that. Weird justification for impulse buying? Maybe. It’ll suffice though. 🤔
- Comment on Monday SOTD Thread - November 4th, 2024 (#512) 1 week ago:
Congrats on the kill!
I also managed to cut my nostril […] The witches of the South should be pleased by your offering and shall grant you great shaves from now on! 🧝🏼♀️
JK, I hope it heals up soon. Cuts suck.
